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Sunday, July 17, 2005
Kenny Chesney & Gretchen Wilson
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Kenny Chesney was named entertainer of the year by the Academy of Country Music and the Country Music Association within the last year. At the first of three sold-out shows at Philips Arena Saturday night, it was hard to imagine anyone more deserving of those accolades.
The man’s credentials were apparent even before he stepped on the stage. It was a gutsy move and a show of confidence to have southern Illinois spitfire Gretchen Wilson open the show. She’s only got one album to her credit, but the compact brunette already has enough charisma — and vocal power — to fill an arena. There’s plenty of honky tonk in her soul, from her massive debut hit “Redneck Woman” to the old-school balladry of “When I Think About Cheatin’,” but she’s got a wide streak of rock ‘n’ roll in her, too. Her one-two punch of Heart’s “Straight On” and a blazing version of Led Zeppelin’s “Black Dog” near the end of the set worked the audience into a frenzy, priming them for the two good-time anthems that introduced her to country audiences, “Redneck Woman” and “Here for the Party.”
From the moment he entered on a suspended seat above the audience, it was clear that Chesney was the star of this show. His set was as much athletic display as concert, with Chesney and his band working every part of the jutting T-shaped stage, drawing energy from the adoring capacity crowd. If you didn’t know the words to every song, the person next to you probably did.
His current Top 10 hit, “Keg in the Closet,” opened the nearly two-hour set. The energy level was set on high and rarely dipped very low. Even the quiet moments didn’t put much of a dent in the electric atmosphere in the arena. The vocal crowd was just subdued enough to hear his acoustic version of “Old Blue Chair,” from his latest album, which he performed solo while sitting in a tattered and worn chair just like the one on the album cover.
Later, Wilson returned to add sizzle to Chesney’s cover of John Mellencamp’s “Hurts So Good,” and Uncle Kracker showed up to lend a hand on “When the Sun Goes Down” (as he did in the recorded version), sticking around to do his hit version of “Drift Away” and a take on his old pal Kid Rock’s “Cowboy.”
The sea of dancing bodies seemed to love every minute of it, and judging by the broad smile and aw-shucks amazement on Chesney’s face, he did, too.
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Laura Jackson conducts ASO
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
CONCERT REVIEW
Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Saturday in Symphony Hall. Part of the summer “Made in America” series, which continues July 21-23. www.atlantasymphony.org.
Before discussing conductor Laura Jackson’s winning weekend with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra — a high-profile debut, of sorts — it is worth noting a milestone in American music.
Last week, The Baltimore Sun reported that its hometown orchestra will likely appoint Marin Alsop as music director — the first female to take charge of a major U.S. orchestra.
Jackson, who has studied with the glass ceiling-shattering Alsop, is still in the beginning stages of her career. Educated as a violinist, Jackson has experience conducting student and amateur ensembles.
Now 37, she’s rounding out her first season as the ASO’s conducting fellow, part of a three-year training program. While in Atlanta her duties include leading ASO youth concerts and various parks events. She is also the “cover” for main-season concerts, prepared to step in at the last minute if the scheduled conductor gets sick. She also joins in administrative talks, learning the realities of running an orchestra. This intensive experience, hopefully, will launch Jackson on her own high level career — the next Marin Alsop, perhaps.
Saturday evening, for a Symphony Hall concert devoted to George Gershwin, Jackson proved wonderfully fluent on the podium and, at her best, an imaginative and sophisticated interpreter.
Since a conductor does not play an instrument on stage, her artistry lies in the psychological devices — blunt or subtle — necessary to get almost 100 musicians to obey her will.
She had firm control of “An American in Paris,” Gershwin’s jazzy, 1928 travelogue of boulevard excitement and honking taxi horns. Although her nose sometimes seemed buried in the score, Jackson used minimal movements to coax maximum expression. I liked her handling of the “blues” section, swinging low and agreeably louche.
Best of the evening was the Overture to “Girl Crazy,” the 1930 Broadway musical that introduced Ethel Merman belting out “I Got Rhythm.” The conductor got crisp playing from the orchestra, snappy, sassy and just right.
“Rhapsody in Blue” didn’t come off as well, largely because pianist Andrew von Oeyen indulged in low-grade romantic excess at the keyboard. (Hasn’t he heard the edgy, jazz-age modernism of Gershwin’s own player-piano recordings? The music has to move.) Despite the electricity of the music, von Oeyen emitted a very weak signal.
The evening closed with “Porgy and Bess: A Symphonic Picture,” which is Robert Russell Bennett’s medley of tunes from Gershwin’s opera, with thick squirts of added syrup. It bears repeating: the Tin Pan Alley genius is best played as a lean, colorful modernist — closer to the brilliance of Ravel than to the bland kitsch of Hollywood. Sadly, Bennett’s 1943 arrangement is standard in the concert hall. Someone needs to commission a version that is more true to the composer’s spirit.
For her part, Jackson seemed to work against Bennett’s homogenization. She gave definition to each “Porgy” number, with a unique profile for “It Ain’t Necessarily So” and “Summertime.” The orchestra was at its multi-tasking best. Michael Moore, a double-threat musician, put down his tuba to play banjo for “I Got Plenty o’ Nuttin’.”
Still, thanks largely to Jackson’s nimble and smart understanding of Gershwin, the evening amounted to a superb “debut” for this young conductor. Under the baton of a lesser conductor, the show might have seemed like a glorified pops concert. Jackson helped elevate Gershwin to the master status he deserves. I’m eager to hear more from her.
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