NY Video Friday: Episode Lucky 13

FYI: ALL the Video Fridays represent the opinion/expertise/vision of Cayce Crown, not Robert Westfield. So if I LOVE something don't assume he loves it.

We're on the eve of another new year and how better to enjoy the transition but with a lovely song written by a local boy and performed at a local venue by a not-so-local boy. The song is "Out In The Cold" by the award winning composer Bob Levy. The performer is the exquisitely talented Dane Vannatter. The venue is the ever popular Laurie Beechman Theater in Manhattan. Perhaps in 2011 we'll be so fortunate as to hear those great Bob Levy songs performed live by Mr. Vannatter. What do you say, gentlemen?

A bit melancholy, yes, but so beautiful...

New York Video Friday! Episode #4

With Halloween fast approaching, there is nothing more New York than the infamous Village Halloween parade. Its been going on for 38 years! As a former participant, I can vouch for the insanity, diversity and ferocity of the paraders. Although things have become more homogenized in recent years, one thing we can thank the internet and social media for are all the large groups performing together. One of my faves is the "Thriller" contingent. Here's a clip from last year's parade. (If you want to be a part of it, go here: Join the Thriller Gang!)

If you want more info about the parade: Village Halloween Parade

What thrills you on Halloween In New York?

New York Video Friday! Episode #3

Celebrating the births and mourning the deaths, it's just another week in New York City.

First, the sad news. Joan Sutherland, famed Opera star died 10/10/10 at her home near Montreux in Switzerland. Known as "La Stupenda," her debut with the Metropolitan Opera in New York was so anticipated that fans started lining up at 7:30 in the morning. In 1961, this was unheard of... They were not disappointed. Her singing of the "mad scene" garnered her a 12 minute standing ovation. The video below is from 1981 with another great NYC Opera company, the City Opera. Please listen and enjoy, Ms. Sutherland singing "Tu del mio Carlo ... Carlo vive!" from Verdi's I Masnadieri.

 

Now, on to cheerier news. The Bronx Zoo hosted the debut of the 3 tiger triplets born this Spring. Nice to have good news about the name Tiger.... 

As always, we would LOVE to know what YOU think. Please leave a timely comment below.

Launching Little Bytes New York Video Fridays!

One of the greatest New York songs was just written this year. Here are three versions to soothe, entertain and move you.

The Original:

 

The Parody:

 

The "Glee" Version:

 

Which one do YOU like best?

Let us know in the comments below.

Little Bytes Recommends: A Musical Journey in the Life of Martin Luther King, Jr.

In these sad times full of the fear-mongering preachers of hate, take an hour to be inspired by a program that includes not only Marian Anderson at the Lincoln Memorial but moving performance of the song King mentioned as he lay dying and which was performed at a rally in Memphis that night.

A Beautiful Symphony of Brotherhood: A Musical Journey in the Life of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Listen today at 3pm on 93.9FM or listen online:

From the WNYC site:

Martin Luther King, Jr. grew up listening to and singing church songs, and saw gospel and folk music as natural tools to further the civil rights movement. In this hour-long special from WNYC, host Terrance McKnight interweaves musical examples with Dr. King's own speeches and sermons to illustrate the powerful place that music held in his work--and examines how the musical community responded to and participated in Dr. King's cause.

Life is too short.

A personal tidbyte from Cayce:

R.I.P. Mary Travers

A great loss to American music lovers.

The first live concert I ever had tickets to, was Peter, Paul & Mary. When the day finally arrived, my mom wouldn't let me go because I had a fever. The first songs I ever played on the guitar: P, P & M songs. I bumped into Mary (30 years ago!) in Greenwich Village, outside the now defunct Bottom Line, she was as charming & gracious as you would expect. I will miss her.

Tiny Tidbytes...Cayce Recommends:

A lesson learned about books and their covers.
If you haven't seen it yet, you may shed a tear.
Not sophisticated, but moving.

Susan Boyle on Britain's Got Talent

Demi Moore said on Twitter.com that it reduced her to tears as well.

Something on the lighter side to perk up Tuesday afternoon...

Another tidbyte from Cayce:

Two More Closings

Wow, it's hard to keep up with the closings in 2009, but here are two more possibilities:

Governor's Island in New York Harbor, which has become one of the great summer escapes, might not reopen this spring since funds were not provided in Governor Patterson's executive budget.

Come on Patterson, it's GOVERNOR'S Island.

And the Amato Opera Company looks to end its run after sixty-one years...thanks in part to one of New York's worst landlords.  Read about the closing at the Gothamist or Curbed, and don't miss the piece about the opera itself posted last January in Vanishing New York.

Trivia Question: 75 Years of Amateur Night at the Apollo

Last week, the legendary Apollo Theater in Harlem held a 75th anniversary celebration for its famous Amateur Night, which premiered in 1934.  The theater opened in 1914 as the Hurtig and Seamon's New Burlesque Theater, which admitted only white audiences.  In 1934, under new ownership, that policy changed and a show premiered that permitted audiences to boo amateur acts that didn't live up to their exectations.

My favorite story has to do with one of the first winners from that same year.  Orphaned at the age of 15, she escaped various state institutions and was living on the street when, on November 21st, she went to the Apollo to dance.  The act preceding hers, the Edwards Sisters, was one of Harlem's most famous dance duos; intimidated, the seventeen-year-old decided to sing instead.  She sang Judy and The Object of My Affection and won first prize.  Almost immediately, she began to work with bandleader Chick Webb on a journey that would make hers one of the most famous voices of the twentieth century.

NAME THAT SINGER!

Jerome Kern and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Today we celebrate the birth of 2 great musical talents:

Jerome Kern

Mr. Kern died at the young age of 60 collapsing in front of 450 Park Avenue, in his birthplace of New York City. His best known theater success is the musical "Showboat". Some of his great songs are: "Ol' Man River", "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man", "A Fine Romance", "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes", "All the Things You Are", "The Way You Look Tonight", and one song particularly suited for today's economic times, "Pick Yourself Up."

Our other birthday boy is

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Download Marriage of Figaro, K. 492, Overture

Mozart dies at the incredibly young age of 35. There isn't room to go into all of his fabulous music, however his NYC connection is that a wonderful play depicting his life (more or less) was produced on Broadway. The play, entitled Amadeus, premiered on Broadway in 1980 with Ian McKellen as Salieri and Tim Curry as Mozart. It ran for 1,181 performances and was nominated for seven Tony Awards (best actor for both McKellen and Curry, best director for Peter Hall, best play, best costume design, lighting, and set design for John Bury), of which it won five (including a best actor Tony for McKellen).

The lights on Broadway burn a little brighter thanks to these talented gentlemen.