I normally post reviews as soon as time permits with events which run for a few performances getting priority so that you can read about them whilst there is still time to book, or avoid! One night stands may be left for a day or two as they have come and gone. This particular article has been on the back burner for over a week because it links up with an exhibition at Leeds Art Gallery, so I thought that I would go and have a look at it and write a two for the price of one piece. I have now been, so here we go.
As one of the more erudite pundits on Match of the Day might put it, this was a game of three halves, Gary. The first was a Q&A Session with the two people in the title being asked about their work by Dr Rommi Smith, the poet, playwright, theatre-maker, performer, librettist and scholar. Sadly there were no questions from the floor or I would have enquired of Dr Smith as to what she did in her spare time!
Sonia Boyce, Dr Rommi Smith and Jacqui Dankworth
The subject of the questioning mainly concerned Feeling Her Way, the exhibition, which is an installation focussing on black women performers whose elements were made and curated by Sonia Boyce. Ms Dankworth provided video performances which are on view along with contributions by Poppy Ajudha, Sofia Jernberg and Tanita Tikaram, a name I sadly haven’t heard for a while.
Dr Smith, having had the benefit of having been to the exhibition and, being an art aficionado, was able to analyse it far more intricately than I, who hadn’t and isn’t. She lost me fairly early on so I am not able to pass on too much knowledge, other than the bits I did understand, made me want to pay it a visit. In my defence I must say that the women tended to speak quite quietly so I missed some comments altogether.
Jacqui Dankworth
The second part began after a short interval with Jacqui Dankworth giving us the benefit of some songs with that silky voice of hers. Being jazz royalty, her parents, John Dankworth and Cleo Lane, were huge in the jazz revival of the 1950s and 60s, it is difficult not to draw comparison with her mother but, for once, I won’t opt for the soft option but will say that her voice is beautifully smooth with a huge range from soprano to contralto. Her interpretations of the pieces covered everything from the belters to quiet, intimate works, all delivered wonderfully expressively.
The Carducci String Quartet
This section was a treat, as it comprised Ms Dankworth accompanied by the Carducci String Quartet, a wonderful combination with the classical group bursting into jazz riffs every now and then, giving the evening a light-hearted feel. The songs were familiar, but when you have a jazz singer and a string quartet, they sound so different. There was the Kurt Weill and Ogden Nash classic Speak Low, an arrangement of William Shakespeare’s Shall I Compare Thee To A Summers Day, through to Fragile by Sting.
The Trio
The third half!?!? saw the Carducci Quartet joined by piano, bass and drums which added yet another dimension. The ensemble sometimes played all together but on a couple of occasions there was just the newcomers involved. A couple of songs stood out, Michel LeGrand’s Windmills of Your Mind, which we were told was originally written as a flamenco, and Send In The Clowns by Stephen Sondheim, so soft and yet so powerful.
To see Jacqui Dankworth perform Lucky To Be Me, which she sang on the night, accompanied by the Carducci String Quartet and a trio comprising the same pianist but different bass player and drummer, please go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNkuTA7NQUY
The whole evening was a delight, well, at least the parts I understood!
Some of the video screens at Leeds Art gallery
It was almost a week before I got to visit Sonia Boyce’s Feeling Her Way exhibition, which is dedicated to the musical contribution of women of colour. There were four video screens constantly playing the four aforementioned women, along with albums, singles and CDs by a range of singers through the years, including an LP cover featuring Cleo Lane and John Dankworth. Some still had the price stickers attached which was an element discussed in the Q&A session. Another thing I remembered from the discussion was a portrait of Tanita Tikaram with glitter painted on it. There was a debate as to the meaning of it, Dr Smith saying it looked as though Ms Tikaram was vomiting stardust!
A selection of pictures including the Tinita Tikaram stardust one.
Album covers with Dankworth and Lane middle top.
Feeling Her Way is at Leeds Art Gallery until 5th November and admission is free so why not pop along. There is an explanatory programme, again no charge, and gold geometrical shapes on which you can sit and listen and watch the videos whilst reading the information.
To see what is coming up at Howard assembly Room please go to https://www.operanorth.co.uk/event-tag/har/
For more about Leeds Art Gallery it is https://museumsandgalleries.leeds.gov.uk/leeds-art-gallery/
Feature image provided by Opera North
Photographs by Stan Graham
Tyke It To The Limit 