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	<title>Meshell Ndegeocello Archives - Cultural Attaché</title>
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		<title>New In Music This Week: June 16th</title>
		<link>https://culturalattache.co/2023/06/16/new-in-music-this-week-june-16th/</link>
					<comments>https://culturalattache.co/2023/06/16/new-in-music-this-week-june-16th/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Craig Byrd]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Fri, 16 Jun 2023 13:52:51 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Music]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[What's Hot]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[A Time to Remember]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Adam Tendler]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Anyone Is Better Than Here]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Beethoven]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Chicago Symphony Orchestra]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Daniel Barenboim]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Devonté Hynes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Elina Duni]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[If you&#039;re So Smart Why Aren&#039;t You Rich]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Javon Jackson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jeremy Dutton]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jessie Montgomery]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Julius Eastman]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Leroy Vinnegar]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Leroy Walks!]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Max Raimi]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Meshell Ndegeocello]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[New Philharmonic Orchestra]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Other Lives: The Story Songs of Michael Colby]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Otto Klemperer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Philip Glass]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ricardo Muti]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The Omnichord Real Book]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[wild UP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[With Peter Bradley]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://culturalattache.co/?p=18753</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>Music by Wild Up, Jeremy Dutton, Elina Duni and Leroy Vinnegar are amongst this week's picks</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2023/06/16/new-in-music-this-week-june-16th/">New In Music This Week: June 16th</a> appeared first on <a href="https://culturalattache.co">Cultural Attaché</a>.</p>
]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[
<p>Welcome to the start of the weekend. What better way to start than with our selections of the best of what&#8217;s <em>New In Music This Week: June 16th.</em></p>



<p>My Top Pick:</p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-thumbnail"><img decoding="async" width="150" height="150" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Wild-Up-Eastman-3-150x150.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-18755" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Wild-Up-Eastman-3-150x150.jpg 150w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Wild-Up-Eastman-3-300x300.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Wild-Up-Eastman-3-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Wild-Up-Eastman-3-768x768.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Wild-Up-Eastman-3-696x696.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Wild-Up-Eastman-3-1068x1068.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Wild-Up-Eastman-3-420x420.jpg 420w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Wild-Up-Eastman-3.jpg 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></figure></div>


<p>Contemporary Classical:&nbsp;&nbsp;<strong><em>JULIUS EASTMAN VOL. 3: IF YOU&#8217;RE SO SMART, WHY AREN’T YOU RICH – Wild Up</em></strong>&nbsp;(New Amsterdam Records)</p>



<p>Wild Up continues their multi-album series of recordings exploring and celebrating the music of Julius Eastman. Joining Wild Up for this recording are Devonté Hynes (aka Blood Orange) and Adam Tendler.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Three of Eastman’s works are performed on this album: the title track,&nbsp;<em>the Moon’s Silent Modulation</em>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<em>Evil N&#8211;</em>. Since so much of Eastman’s work was thrown out after his untimely death, these recordings are essential in bringing into focus what Eastman was doing. This is another fine series of performances by Wild Up of his music.</p>



<p>Here are our other selections of the best New In Music This Week: June 16<sup>th</sup></p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-thumbnail"><img decoding="async" width="150" height="150" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Beethoven-Barenboim-150x150.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-18756" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Beethoven-Barenboim-150x150.jpg 150w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Beethoven-Barenboim-300x300.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Beethoven-Barenboim-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Beethoven-Barenboim-768x768.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Beethoven-Barenboim-696x696.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Beethoven-Barenboim-1068x1068.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Beethoven-Barenboim-420x420.jpg 420w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Beethoven-Barenboim.jpg 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></figure></div>


<p>Classical Music:&nbsp;<strong><em>BEETHOVEN: EMPEROR CONCERTO – Daniel Barenboim and New Philarmonia Orchestra</em></strong>&nbsp;(Warner Classics)</p>



<p>This is a vinyl only release of Beethoven’s&nbsp;<em>Piano Concerto No. 5</em>&nbsp;with Otto Klemperer conducting. Warner Classics is honoring Klemperer on the 50<sup>th</sup>&nbsp;anniversary of his death. Digitally this album is being released today with Beethoven’s 2<sup>nd</sup>&nbsp;piano concerto as well.</p>



<p>Recorded in the late 1960s, this album reflects Barenboim’s youthful energy and Klemperer’s more studied approach. Simply put, the pairing works beautifully.&nbsp;&nbsp;It’s as if the competing styles challenged everyone involved and the end result is terrific.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-thumbnail"><img decoding="async" width="150" height="150" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Contemporary-American-Composers-150x150.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-18757" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Contemporary-American-Composers-150x150.jpg 150w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Contemporary-American-Composers-300x300.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Contemporary-American-Composers-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Contemporary-American-Composers-768x768.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Contemporary-American-Composers-696x696.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Contemporary-American-Composers-1068x1068.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Contemporary-American-Composers-420x420.jpg 420w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Contemporary-American-Composers.jpg 1080w" sizes="(max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></figure></div>


<p>Contemporary Classical:&nbsp;&nbsp;<strong><em>CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN COMPOSERS – Chicago Symphony Orchestra</em></strong> (CSO Resound Label)</p>



<p>Riccardo Muti leads the CSO in performances of works by Philip Glass, Jessie Montgomery and Max Raimi. Montgomery’s&nbsp;<em>Hymn for Everyone</em>&nbsp;opens the album. That is followed by&nbsp;<em>Three Lisel Mutter Settings</em>&nbsp;by Raimi and closes with&nbsp;<em>Symphony No. 11</em>&nbsp;by Glass.</p>



<p><em>Hymn for Everyone</em>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<em>Three Lisel Mueller&nbsp;</em>Settings were both commissioned by Muti. Mezzo-soprano Elizabeth DeShong is the soloist for Raimi’s song cycle. When the CSO first performed Glass’s symphony in 2022 it was the first-ever performance of any of his symphonies by the orchestra.&nbsp;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-thumbnail"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="150" height="150" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Duni-150x150.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-18758" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Duni-150x150.jpg 150w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Duni-300x300.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Duni-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Duni-768x768.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Duni-696x696.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Duni-1068x1068.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Duni-420x420.jpg 420w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Duni.jpg 1080w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></figure></div>


<p>Jazz:&nbsp;&nbsp;<strong><em>A TIME TO REMEMBER – Elina Duni</em></strong>&nbsp;(ECM Records)</p>



<p>If you ike your music beautiful and unconvenontial at the same time, you’ll want to check out this album that features the Swiss-Albanian jazz vocalist joined by guitarist Rob Luft, Flugelhorn musicians Matthieu Michel and percussionist/pianist Fred Thomas.</p>



<p>There are several original songs amongst the 12 tracks on&nbsp;<em>A Time to Remember</em>. There are a few traditional songs. Plus there are covers of songs by Abbey Lincoln, Sammy Fain and Stephen Sondheim.</p>



<p>All are beautifully sung and arranged. The simplicity with which each song reveals itself is amazing.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-thumbnail"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="150" height="150" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Dutton-Cover-150x150.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-18759" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Dutton-Cover-150x150.jpg 150w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Dutton-Cover-300x300.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Dutton-Cover-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Dutton-Cover-768x768.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Dutton-Cover-696x696.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Dutton-Cover-1068x1068.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Dutton-Cover-420x420.jpg 420w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Dutton-Cover.jpg 1080w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></figure></div>


<p>Jazz:  <strong><em>ANYONE IS BETTER THAN HERE – <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2019/05/21/sense-of-discovery-jeremy-dutton/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jeremy Dutton</a></em></strong></p>



<p>My first exposure to this incredible drummer was seeing him as part of <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2019/10/03/vijay-iyer-eschews-labels/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Vijay Iyer</a>’s group at a 2019 concert. Simply put, I was blown away. Clearly others have been two given the artists he has assembled for his debut album: trumpeter Ambrose Akiknmusire, bassists Matt Brewer and Daryl Johns, guitarist Mike Moreno, vibraphonist Joel Ross and saxophonist Ben Wendell.</p>



<p>Dutton composed the 12 tracks on this terrific album which further cements my belief that he’s a force to be reckoned with. I strongly recommend&nbsp;<em>Anyone Is Better Than Here</em>.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-thumbnail"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="150" height="150" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/With-Peter-Bradley-150x150.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-18760" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/With-Peter-Bradley-150x150.jpg 150w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/With-Peter-Bradley-300x300.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/With-Peter-Bradley-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/With-Peter-Bradley-768x768.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/With-Peter-Bradley-696x696.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/With-Peter-Bradley-1068x1068.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/With-Peter-Bradley-420x420.jpg 420w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/With-Peter-Bradley.jpg 1080w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></figure></div>


<p>Jazz:&nbsp;<strong><em>WITH PETER BRADLEY – Javon Jackson</em></strong>&nbsp;(Solid Jackson Records)</p>



<p>This is the soundtrack for the documentary of the same name about abstract artist Peter Bradley. Jackson, who plays saxophone, composed the score for Alex Rappoport’s 2023&nbsp;film about the abstract artist who continues to paint every day even though he hasn’t had a major show in over 40 years.</p>



<p>The genius of what Jackson has done with this moving score is offer tributes to many of the jazz artists who inspired Bradley: Art Blakey, John Coltrane and Miles Davis.</p>



<p>Jackson is joined on the album by trumpeter Greg glassman,&nbsp;drummers Charles Goold and McClenty Hunter, pianist Jeremy Manasia and bassist David Williams.</p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-thumbnail"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="150" height="150" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Omnichord-150x150.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-18764" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Omnichord-150x150.jpg 150w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Omnichord-300x300.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Omnichord-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Omnichord-768x768.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Omnichord-696x696.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Omnichord-1068x1068.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Omnichord-420x420.jpg 420w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Omnichord.jpg 1080w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></figure></div>


<p>Jazz: <strong><em>THE OMNICHORD REAL BOOK – <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2019/07/11/meshell-ndegeocello-unplugged-and-unmasked/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Meshell Ndegeocello</a></em></strong> (Blue Note Records)</p>



<p>This isn’t strictly speaking a jazz album, but the depth of jazz influences on it makes it worthy of attention from jazz fans. Ndegeocello first gained prominence with her 1993 album&nbsp;<em>Plantation Lullabies</em>&nbsp;which featured the hit song&nbsp;<em>If That’s your Boyfriend (He Wasn’t Last Night)</em>.&nbsp;</p>



<p>Since then her work has explored a variety of styles and has always been interesting. This album is no exception. As is the impressive list of guest artists who join for the 18 original songs on&nbsp;<em>The Omnichord Real Book</em>: Ambrose Akinmusire, Jason Moran, Jeff Parker, Julius Rodriguez, Joel Ross and more.</p>



<p>Fans of her previous work will like this as will those who don&#8217;t know her previous work. </p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-thumbnail"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="150" height="150" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Leroy-Walks-150x150.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-18765" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Leroy-Walks-150x150.jpg 150w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Leroy-Walks-300x300.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Leroy-Walks-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Leroy-Walks-768x768.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Leroy-Walks-696x696.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Leroy-Walks-1068x1068.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Leroy-Walks-420x420.jpg 420w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Leroy-Walks.jpg 1080w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></figure></div>


<p>Jazz:&nbsp;&nbsp;<strong><em>LEROY WALKS! – The Leroy Vinnegar Sextet</em></strong>&nbsp;&nbsp;(Craft Recordings)</p>



<p>I wasn’t familiar with bassist Leroy Vinnegar until I heard this album and now I can’t stop playing it.&nbsp;<em>Leroy Walks!</em>&nbsp;Was originally released in 1957 and was his debut album. From the opening walking bass line of the album, you know you’re in for some great music.</p>



<p>The seven tracks are:&nbsp;<em>Walk On</em>,&nbsp;<em>Would You Like to Take A Walk</em>,&nbsp;<em>On the Sunny Side of the Street</em>,&nbsp;<em>Walkin’</em>,&nbsp;<em>Walkin’ My Baby Back Home</em>,&nbsp;<em>I’ll Walk Alone</em>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<em>Walkin’ By the River</em>. Do you see a theme there? </p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-thumbnail"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="150" height="150" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Other-Lives-150x150.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-18761" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Other-Lives-150x150.jpg 150w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Other-Lives-300x300.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Other-Lives-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Other-Lives-768x768.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Other-Lives-696x696.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Other-Lives-1068x1068.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Other-Lives-420x420.jpg 420w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Other-Lives.jpg 1080w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 150px) 100vw, 150px" /></figure></div>


<p>MUSICAL THEATER:&nbsp;<strong><em>OTHER LIVES: THE STORY SONGS OF MICHAEL COLBY</em></strong>&nbsp;(Jay Records)</p>



<p>Lyricist Michael Colby’s work was celebrated in a benefit revue off-Broadway at Urban Stages in New York last December. This is the cast album of that show.</p>



<p>The album features 22 songs with music written by an array of composers including Andrea Colby, Ned Paul Ginsberg, Larry Hochman, Paul Katz, Peter Millrose, Gerald Jay Markoe, Alex Rybeck, Steven Silverstein, Joseph Thalken and Herman Yabaloff.</p>



<p>The cast of 22 includes Klea Blackhurst, Steven Bogardus, Sean McDermott and more. Michael Lavine is the music director.</p>



<p><em>Other Lives</em>&nbsp;is a great way to get introduced to Colby’s work (and some composers you may not be familiar with).</p>



<p>That&#8217;s our list of New In Music This Week: June 16th.  What are you listening to? Let us know.</p>



<p>Enjoy the weekend and enjoy the music.</p>



<p>Main Photo: Art from Jeremy Dutton&#8217;s &#8220;Anyone Is Better Than Here&#8221;</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2023/06/16/new-in-music-this-week-june-16th/">New In Music This Week: June 16th</a> appeared first on <a href="https://culturalattache.co">Cultural Attaché</a>.</p>
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			</item>
		<item>
		<title>Soprano Julia Bullock Wants to Rock Your Soul</title>
		<link>https://culturalattache.co/2022/11/02/soprano-julia-bullock-wants-to-rock-your-soul/</link>
					<comments>https://culturalattache.co/2022/11/02/soprano-julia-bullock-wants-to-rock-your-soul/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Craig Byrd]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 03 Nov 2022 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Classical: Metronome]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[What's Hot]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bell Hooks]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Christian Reif]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Courtney Brian]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Florence Price]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[History&#039;s Persistent Voice]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[J&#039;Nai Bridges]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[James Agee]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jasmine White]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Jeri Lynn Johnson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[John Adams]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Julia Bullock]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Philharmonic]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Margaret Bonds]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Meshell Ndegeocello]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Michelle Bradley]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Michelle Cann]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nonesuch Records]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Peter Sellars]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rhiannon Giddens]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rock Your Soul Festival]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Samuel Barber]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Valerie Coleman]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Walking the Dark]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://culturalattache.co/?p=17271</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>"I made a lot of peace with who I am and how I also am expanding in the various roles that I can take on and feel comfortable in."</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2022/11/02/soprano-julia-bullock-wants-to-rock-your-soul/">Soprano Julia Bullock Wants to Rock Your Soul</a> appeared first on <a href="https://culturalattache.co">Cultural Attaché</a>.</p>
]]></description>
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<figure class="alignleft size-medium"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="300" height="169" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-2-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-300x169.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-17279" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-2-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-300x169.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-2-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-2-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-768x432.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-2-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-2-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-696x392.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-2-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1068x601.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-2-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-747x420.jpg 747w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-2-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></figure></div>


<p>This year is going out with a bang for soprano Julia Bullock. She&#8217;s curated the <a href="https://www.laphil.com/concerts-and-events/festivals/rock-my-soul-festival" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><em>Rock Your Soul Festival</em> </a>with the Los Angeles Philharmonic that starts in earnest on November 5th and runs through November 22nd. She has her first solo recording coming out from Nonesuch Records. It&#8217;s called <em><a href="https://www.nonesuch.com/albums/walking-in-the-dark" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Walking in the Dark</a></em>. Finally she and pianist/conductor husband Christian Reif are expecting their first child any day now.</p>



<p><em>Rock Your Soul</em> <em>Festival</em> was originally conceived by the LA Phil as a celebration of the work and friendship of Florence Price and Margaret Bonds. The title harkens back to a spiritual (<em>Rock My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham</em>) and a book by noted author and activist Bell Hooks (<em>Rock My Soul: Black People and Self-Esteem</em>).</p>



<p>Amongst the artists Bullock has assembled for the festival are soprano Michelle Bradley, mezzo-soprano <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2022/05/31/jnai-bridges-enters-peter-lorraine-hunt-liebersons-world/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">J&#8217;Nai Bridges</a>, pianist Michelle Cann (look for our interview with her later this week), singer/composer Rhiannon Giddens, conductor Jeri Lynn Johnson, singer/songwriter <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2019/07/11/meshell-ndegeocello-unplugged-and-unmasked/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Meshell Ndegeocello</a> and mezzo-soprano Jasmine White.</p>



<p><em>Walking in the Dark</em> finds Bullock performing works by John Adams, Samuel Barber, Oscar Brown Jr., <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDdUOXpp6Zc" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Connie Converse</a> and Sandy Denny. It&#8217;s a beautiful record that is set for release on December 9th. Reif plays piano on the recording and leads the Philharmonia Orchestra of London as well.</p>



<p>Bullock&#8217;s pregnancy precludes her from performing in <em>Rock Your Soul Festival</em>, but it did allow for other opportunities which she described in our conversation recently. What follows are excerpts from that conversation which have been edited for length and for clarity.</p>



<p>I want to start by asking you about something you told <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/25/arts/music/julia-bullock-zauberland-lincoln-center.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Zachary Wolff</a> in the <span style="text-decoration: underline;">New York Times</span> in 2019. It was advice your mother gave you: &#8220;Make sure that your work is making a difference for the betterment of the world.&#8221; You seem to have taken up that challenge and made it your mission. How do you think that has made your career different than others and, by extension, more fulfilling for you?&nbsp;</p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-medium"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="300" height="169" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-300x169.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-17280" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-300x169.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-768x432.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-696x392.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1068x601.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-747x420.jpg 747w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></figure></div>


<p><strong>Well, I don&#8217;t know if it&#8217;s made it so much different from other people&#8217;s. I think every artist has a call in one way or another to have a mission or have their their passion realized. I don&#8217;t have a casual relationship with music. In fact, my desire to sing and also share music is because I know the impact that it&#8217;s had on my life and also how it&#8217;s enriched my life and helps me feel more interconnected and engaged. </strong></p>



<p><strong>I guess I&#8217;m always looking for ways to deepen that exploration and enjoy it in the process. I find that most of the artists whose work I really love also have this sort of mission. They&#8217;re very much conscious of the world that was going on around them and trying to make sense of it or call out hypocrisies. I&#8217;m not sure if I feel it&#8217;s so different than what other artists are doing. I guess I&#8217;ve just given myself permission to expand that in as many directions as I can imagine.</strong></p>



<p>I would assume that in doing that, when someone like Peter Sellars says &#8220;Her path is going to be our path,&#8221; that&#8217;s got to be both hugely flattering and also a bit of a mantle to take on on a certain level.</p>



<p><strong>I truthfully don&#8217;t like to be positioned in any capacity. I appreciate that Peter feels that the way that I work, the reflections that I have, and just the fact that I&#8217;m really dedicated to my craft and my own development and learning, is something that he wants to celebrate. I guess I celebrate that, too. That would be part of why, in the performing arts in particular, I don&#8217;t take that pressure on because that&#8217;s just a projection of something. The work that I do is not trying to live into some projection of Julia.&nbsp;</strong></p>



<p>In the liner notes for <em>Walking in the Dark</em> you conclude your statements in the liner notes with &#8220;If our intentions are translated well enough and are clearly in focus, it may lead to some moments of illumination.&#8221; What has been the process of making your intentions perfectly clear with the <em>Rock Your Soul Festival</em>?</p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-medium"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="300" height="169" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Florence-Price-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-300x169.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-17275" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Florence-Price-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-300x169.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Florence-Price-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Florence-Price-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-768x432.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Florence-Price-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Florence-Price-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-696x392.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Florence-Price-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-1068x601.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Florence-Price-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-747x420.jpg 747w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Florence-Price-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Florence Price (Courtesy New York Public Library Archive)</figcaption></figure></div>


<p><strong>It was their idea, not the title or anything like that, but just the proposal to curate a program that was focusing on the relationship between Margaret Bonds and Florence Price. Other than their vocal music and really just their songs, I was not too familiar with a lot of their repertoire &#8211; the breadth of their repertoire. It was an opportunity for me to again delve into some research and take six, seven months to consider the work of composers that I had not had the time or had this opportunity to look at. </strong></p>



<p><strong>I was reading about their personal lives and also this relationship of mutual support. They had this teacher</strong> (Price)<strong>/ student</strong> (Bonds) <strong>relationship.</strong> <strong>When there were really troubling times for Florence Price in her personal life she went and lived with Margaret Bonds for a period of time. That really communicated this beautiful thing. It wasn&#8217;t just about their artistic output. It was also about nurturing and respecting each other as human beings and fully supporting each other that way. That was something I really wanted to celebrate and acknowledge besides just sharing their repertoire. </strong></p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-medium"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="300" height="169" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Margaret-Bonds-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-300x169.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-17276" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Margaret-Bonds-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-300x169.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Margaret-Bonds-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Margaret-Bonds-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-768x432.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Margaret-Bonds-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Margaret-Bonds-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-696x392.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Margaret-Bonds-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-1068x601.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Margaret-Bonds-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive-747x420.jpg 747w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Margaret-Bonds-Courtesy-New-York-Public-Library-Archive.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Margaret Bonds (Courtesy New York Public Library Archives)</figcaption></figure></div>


<p><strong>Every single artist that was invited into the festival there is this feeling of mutual support. Every single composer that I know, that I work with personally and also the composers that I either read their letters or biographies, they openly admit how influenced they are by the people who are around them. And they seek out guidance and advice. They are influenced by what&#8217;s going on socially, politically.</strong> </p>



<p>I think we can learn a lot from what Florence Price and Margaret Bonds did in terms of shared experiences as musicians and as human beings. Because it goes without saying that a lot of people care more about ideologies and less about each other as human beings right now. Perhaps the festival can find a way to bridge that divide.</p>



<p><strong>It can be very closed and people can get very closed. Growing up listening to recordings, my family had vinyls or cassettes playing all the time. A lot of the time we listened to music together. Even if I was alone I was still playing music, not locked into an earphone or earbuds privately, it was something that was heard in the house &#8211; the shared space. I think music can foster some really beautiful acknowledgment of each other.&nbsp;It&#8217;s not just some theoretical exercise. It&#8217;s like actually putting it into practice. I think that&#8217;s probably what drove me and that&#8217;s what drives most musicians to make music. Because you&#8217;re wanting a shared experience and wanting to share your own experience as well.<em>&nbsp;</em></strong></p>



<p>Once you became pregnant and knew that being here for the festival wasn&#8217;t going to be possible did that give you any opportunities to make changes or add other things that maybe couldn&#8217;t fit into the program because you were a part of it at one point and now you were not?<em>&nbsp;</em></p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-medium"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="300" height="169" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-4-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1-300x169.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-17282" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-4-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1-300x169.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-4-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-4-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1-768x432.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-4-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-4-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1-696x392.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-4-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1-1068x601.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-4-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1-747x420.jpg 747w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Julia-Bullock-4-Photo-by-Allison-Michael-orenstein-Courtesy-Askonas-Holt-1.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></figure></div>


<p><strong>I&#8217;m sad. I&#8217;m just not going to be there. Obviously I&#8217;m growing a human being. So that&#8217;s what it is.</strong><em>&nbsp;</em></p>



<p><strong>I was supposed to perform <a href="https://juliabullock.com/met-residency-historys-persistent-voice/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">History&#8217;s Persistent Voice</a>, which featured a lot of  contemporary composers who are all Black women. That was an hour-and-a-half program.<em>&nbsp;</em>I decided to save this for another season and think about another program. </strong></p>



<p><strong>That was a great opportunity to perform one of <a href="https://www.laphil.com/events/performances/1796/2022-11-11/bryan-bonds-price" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Florence Price&#8217; full symphonies</a>. It was also an opportunity then for me to think about the composers who were associated with <em>History&#8217;s Persistence Voice</em> and look at some of their other pieces and see if there was a way to feature their work.</strong>&nbsp;</p>



<p><strong>I&#8217;m really excited Courtney Brian&#8217;s <em>Sanctum</em> is included. Her work is just super powerful and I&#8217;m so glad that that is going to have a premiere at the LA Phil. Valerie Coleman&#8217;s selections from her <em>Phenomenal Women</em> will be featured as well. It&#8217;s the first time that she will have anything performed at the Phil.</strong></p>



<p>Your first album is going to be something that was to be considered carefully. Now that you&#8217;ve recorded it, and I know from earlier in this conversation you haven&#8217;t listened to it recently, but what would you like listeners to know about you from hearing the choices that you made for <em>Walking in the Dark</em> and the performances you give? </p>



<p><strong>What do I want them to know about me? I really hope it is just an invitation. All of the music that&#8217;s on this is material I&#8217;ve lived with for honestly two decades and some of it I&#8217;ve performed for a decade. The chance to lay it down and be a part of a recording legacy of some of these pieces that have also been recorded by so many different artists was a rare and wonderful opportunity. It&#8217;s not one that I take for granted. </strong></p>


<div class="wp-block-image">
<figure class="alignleft size-medium"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="300" height="300" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Walking-in-the-Dark-Album-Cover-300x300.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-17277" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Walking-in-the-Dark-Album-Cover-300x300.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Walking-in-the-Dark-Album-Cover-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Walking-in-the-Dark-Album-Cover-150x150.jpg 150w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Walking-in-the-Dark-Album-Cover-768x768.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Walking-in-the-Dark-Album-Cover-696x696.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Walking-in-the-Dark-Album-Cover-1068x1068.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Walking-in-the-Dark-Album-Cover-420x420.jpg 420w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Walking-in-the-Dark-Album-Cover.jpg 1080w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" /></figure></div>


<p><strong><em>Walking in the Dark</em>, I mean the title of it. I didn&#8217;t write this in the liner notes and I&#8217;ve only brought it up to a few people, but I want to make it very clear that darkness is not something that should have, in fact, any kind of negative association. I feel in some ways that darkness, or blackness even, has been conditioned in certain parts of societies or cultures to have negative connotations and somehow promotes the idea of a white supremacist ideology. That really is not something that I can tolerate. </strong></p>



<p><strong>I guess it&#8217;s been something I have grappled with &#8211; a collective question about identity or I have felt that I have had to question my identity for a very, very long time. I made a lot of peace with who I am and how I also am expanding in the various roles that I can take on and feel comfortable in.</strong></p>



<p>James Agee, who probably needs no introduction to you since his poetry inspired Samuel Barber&#8217;s <em>Knoxville Summer of 1915</em> (which Bullock performs on <em>Walking in the Dark</em>), is quoted as saying, &#8220;Some people get where they hope to in this world. Most of us don&#8217;t.&#8221; I feel like in watching your career over the last number of years that you&#8217;re actively working through your art and through your activism to get the world to where you hope it will be. As a soon-to-be mother, what is the world you&#8217;d like to see your child living in and how do you think your art can pave a path for that to be a reality?&nbsp;</p>



<p><strong>Well, I hope that this child will feel safe. That the child will not be limited in anything that they want to invest in and enjoy. That there will be not be a lot of assumptions made or anticipated projections of this child and what they feel they have to represent so that they can just live their lives. But there&#8217;s something in safety that feels really important right now.</strong></p>



<p>Photos of Julia Bullock (By Allison Michael Orenstein/Courtesy Askonas Holt)</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2022/11/02/soprano-julia-bullock-wants-to-rock-your-soul/">Soprano Julia Bullock Wants to Rock Your Soul</a> appeared first on <a href="https://culturalattache.co">Cultural Attaché</a>.</p>
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		<title>Black Movie Soundtrack III</title>
		<link>https://culturalattache.co/2019/09/23/black-movie-soundtrack-iii/</link>
					<comments>https://culturalattache.co/2019/09/23/black-movie-soundtrack-iii/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Craig Byrd]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 23 Sep 2019 14:00:59 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Music]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[BeBe Winans]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Black Movie Soundtrack III]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Chaka Khan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Charlie Wilson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Craig Robinson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dionne Farris]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[El DeBarge]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Hollywood Bowl]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marcus Miller]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Meshell Ndegeocello]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Raphael Saadiq]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Reginald Hudlin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[The Hollywood Bowl Orchestra]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Vince Mendoza]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://culturalattache.co/?p=6849</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>Hollywood Bowl<br />
<br />
September 25th</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2019/09/23/black-movie-soundtrack-iii/">Black Movie Soundtrack III</a> appeared first on <a href="https://culturalattache.co">Cultural Attaché</a>.</p>
]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>On face value this doesn&#8217;t look like something we&#8217;d cover. But I attended Black Movie Soundtrack II in 2016 and it remains one of the most entertaining concerts I&#8217;ve ever attended. Too bad I won&#8217;t be able to attend Wednesday night&#8217;s <a href="https://www.hollywoodbowl.com/events/performances/620/2019-09-25/black-movie-soundtrack-iii" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>Black Movie Soundtrack III</em></a> at the Hollywood Bowl, but you can. And you should.</p>
<p>These shows are put together by filmmaker Reginald Hudlin and musician Marcus Miller. The show is hosted by Craig Robinson. They always have a great line-up of songs (both the well-known and more obscure) and artists. This year is no exception.</p>
<p>The performers scheduled to appear Wednesday night include El DeBarge, Dionne Farris, Chaka Khan, <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2019/07/11/meshell-ndegeocello-unplugged-and-unmasked/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Meshell Ndegéocello</a>, Raphael Saadiq, Charlie Wilson and BeBe Winans.</p>
<p>Vince Mendoza will lead the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra.</p>
<p>In <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2016/08/31/the-black-movie-soundtrack-finally-comes-back-to-the-hollywood-bowl-2/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2016</a>, I was able to corral many of the artists performing at <em>Black Movie Soundtrack II </em>to reveal their favorite songs. Many of them said the North Star of Black Movie soundtracks is Isaac Hayes&#8217; <em>Theme from Shaft</em>. Who are we to argue with them about that? Let&#8217;s hope this year&#8217;s show celebrates that incredible song.</p>
<p><iframe loading="lazy" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/lPE3C0GpDoA" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>
<p>To read my interview with Marcus Miller about this year&#8217;s show and more, go <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2019/09/24/marcus-milers-third-time-with-black-movie-soundtrack/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.</p>
<p>For tickets go <a href="https://my.hollywoodbowl.com/en/syos/performance/3605?_ga=2.73723730.1704000071.1569205540-1747444963.1569079532" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.</p>
<p>Photo of Reginald Hudlin, Craig Robinson and Marcus Miller courtesy of the LA Philharmonic Association</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2019/09/23/black-movie-soundtrack-iii/">Black Movie Soundtrack III</a> appeared first on <a href="https://culturalattache.co">Cultural Attaché</a>.</p>
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		<title>Meshell Ndegeocello Unplugged and Unmasked</title>
		<link>https://culturalattache.co/2019/07/11/meshell-ndegeocello-unplugged-and-unmasked/</link>
					<comments>https://culturalattache.co/2019/07/11/meshell-ndegeocello-unplugged-and-unmasked/#respond</comments>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Craig Byrd]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 11 Jul 2019 21:36:07 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Music]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[What's Hot]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Clarence Thomas]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ford Amphitheatre]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Harry Potter]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ignite! at the Ford]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Janet Jackson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[John Roberts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Meshell Ndegeocello]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Peace Beyond Passion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Prince]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Tina Turner]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TLC]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ventriloquism]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://culturalattache.co/?p=6117</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[<p>"I wonder if I could open up a bar in Eagle Rock where you could have a drink or bullshit with friends without worrying about it."</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2019/07/11/meshell-ndegeocello-unplugged-and-unmasked/">Meshell Ndegeocello Unplugged and Unmasked</a> appeared first on <a href="https://culturalattache.co">Cultural Attaché</a>.</p>
]]></description>
										<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Technology can be a tricky thing. Take, for instance, my attempts to talk to Meshell Ndegeocello earlier this week. Cell phones, landlines &#8211; it didn&#8217;t seem to matter. We couldn&#8217;t connect. Multiple tries before we took a 20 minute break and tried again. And then it worked. Finally.</p>
<p>Which lead perfectly into a conversation about whether or not to employ technology &#8211; something Ndegeocello did in limited amounts for her most recent album,&nbsp;<em>Ventriloquism</em>. She and her band will be in concert on Saturday night at the <a href="https://www.fordtheatres.org/calendar/meshell-ndegeocello" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ford Amphitheatre</a> as part of the Ignite! series in support of the recording.</p>
<p><iframe loading="lazy" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/r3b9dPn3MPU" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>
<p>&#8220;We all played at one time,&#8221; she say of the recording process for&nbsp;<em>Ventriloquism</em>. &#8220;Usually you hear the first or second take. Once we got to a third or fourth take, we moved on. We played like a cover band and we were allowed to have some intimacy. I wanted to make sure if I had to play this live, I could play it in a pub in Dublin with just a guitar player or go to a piano bar. I wish there was a place&#8230;&#8221;</p>
<p>We spend a few minutes talking about the demise of piano bars in Los Angeles before she says, &#8220;I wonder if I could open up a bar in Eagle Rock where you could have a drink or bullshit with friends without worrying about it.&#8221; She lives in New York, but when in the LA area she likes Eagle Rock.</p>
<p><em>Ventriloquism</em>&nbsp;finds Ndegeocello doing cover songs from the 80s and 90s. Her selection of these songs was born out of sad circumstances.</p>
<p>&#8220;I was mourning that my father was about to journey to the next realm,&#8221; she reveals about the inspiration for the album. &#8220;I would drive back and forth to the hospital. My mother&#8217;s old car only got one station. The soundtrack to that experience was listening to the oldies. That was my joy. So a lot of those covers are just something that was coloring my experience. Something that gave me transcendence during the hard time.&#8221;</p>
<p><em>Ventriloquism</em> features songs by Prince (&#8220;Sometimes It Snows in April&#8221;), TLC (&#8220;Waterfalls&#8221;), Janet Jackson (&#8220;Funny How Times Flies&#8221;) and Tina Turner (&#8220;Private Dancer.&#8221;)</p>
<p><iframe loading="lazy" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/R2MHkGmzt-Y" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>
<p>She isn&#8217;t the first artist, and certainly won&#8217;t be the last, to do an album of covers. David Bowie had a popular album named&nbsp;<em>Pin-Ups</em>. Do these albums reveal something about the artists themselves?</p>
<p>&#8220;That&#8217;s a really great question. I can only speak for myself, but it&#8217;s like you love a great song and a great song is just that. That means it can survive a revision. A re-envisioning. I think the songs, what they say about me is the foundation of my whole career, even though I really like every genre of music, my foundation is in the R&amp;B of the 80s and 90s. I also grew up in a time when there was serious crossover. And a time when it wasn&#8217;t so genre specific. I could hear Neil Diamond and Stevie Wonder on the same station.&#8221;</p>
<p><figure id="attachment_6123" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-6123" style="width: 1920px" class="wp-caption alignleft"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-6123" src="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Meshell-Lamp-Charlie-Gross.jpg" alt="Ndegeocello's newest album has covers of R&amp;B songs from the 80s and 90s" width="1920" height="1080" srcset="https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Meshell-Lamp-Charlie-Gross.jpg 1920w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Meshell-Lamp-Charlie-Gross-300x169.jpg 300w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Meshell-Lamp-Charlie-Gross-768x432.jpg 768w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Meshell-Lamp-Charlie-Gross-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Meshell-Lamp-Charlie-Gross-696x392.jpg 696w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Meshell-Lamp-Charlie-Gross-1068x601.jpg 1068w, https://culturalattache.co/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Meshell-Lamp-Charlie-Gross-747x420.jpg 747w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-6123" class="wp-caption-text">Meshell Ndegeocello (Photo by Charlie Gross)</figcaption></figure></p>
<p>Given some of her previous songs, it was inevitable we got around to politics. I asked her how far she thinks we&#8217;ve come as a society from &#8220;Leviticus: Faggot&#8221; (on her second album &#8211;&nbsp;<em>Peace Beyond Passion</em>&nbsp;from 1996) if Justice Clarence Thomas is arguing that the gay marriage decision should be overturned.</p>
<p>&#8220;Ooooh&#8230;well that&#8217;s a complicated conversation. I think we&#8217;ve come very far, but you can&#8217;t legislate reason without common decency. That man&#8230;I wish I could understand what happened to him in his childhood to make him so off-kilter about certain issues. I find myself siding more with Justice Robert. Then it leads me to this more ethereal conversation&#8230;I&#8217;ve yet to meet any man or woman that I feel should have this much power to judge and set in place rules and ideas that may not be the best for human beings. Is this working for us? Is a democratic society truly democratic when you give so much power to so few people? It&#8217;s not.&#8221;</p>
<p><iframe loading="lazy" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/U0N83NvSfk4" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>
<p>One thing I&#8217;ve always admired about Ndegeocello&#8217;s career is I feel like she&#8217;s fully followed the beat of the drummer inside her soul. She doesn&#8217;t pander. She doesn&#8217;t make artistic decisions based on anything other than her own talent and instincts.</p>
<p>So I asked her about a Frank Kafka quote who said, &#8220;Don&#8217;t bend; don&#8217;t water it down; don&#8217;t try to make it logical; don&#8217;t edit your own soul according to the fashion. Rather, follow your most intense obsessions mercilessly.&#8221; Has it gotten any easier for her to do that and is there a price to be paid for doing so?</p>
<p>She immediately shot back a question. &#8220;Are you an atheist?&#8221;</p>
<p>I said, &#8220;Yes, as a matter of fact I am.&#8221;</p>
<p>And then she answered. &#8220;I was just curious. &nbsp;Of course there is a price to pay, but if I told you what that was I would be participating in the culture. I had a religious upbringing and I&#8217;ve been groomed to not be of the world. I have tried to be and that was really uncomfortable. I think the isolation of reason and honesty with one&#8217;s self is difficult. If you are doing it for a glory grab, you&#8217;re not going to get it.</p>
<p>&#8220;Doing something that feels really good to you and is the path you want to go down, you have to be okay with it and you have to be your own cheerleader. I&#8217;m that way for many reasons. I jokingly say my mother was so depressed that she isn&#8217;t the person I got my self-esteem from.</p>
<p>&#8220;Most important to me is trying to be a good person and whatever good I have to leave behind in the world will go to my children and the musicians I&#8217;ve played with. I can see what happens with fame and money. I&#8217;m like Harry Potter&#8230;sometimes you have to leave that shit alone.&#8221;</p>
<p>For tickets go <a href="https://secure.ticketsage.net/websales.aspx?u=fordtheatres&amp;pid=329659" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>. (At press time just a few seats were available.)</p>
<p>It should be noted that a portion of the proceeds from sales of&nbsp;<em>Ventriloquism</em> benefit the American Civil Liberties Union.</p>
<p>Photos of Meshell Ndegeocello by Charlie Goss/Courtesy of the Ford Theatre</p>
<p>The post <a href="https://culturalattache.co/2019/07/11/meshell-ndegeocello-unplugged-and-unmasked/">Meshell Ndegeocello Unplugged and Unmasked</a> appeared first on <a href="https://culturalattache.co">Cultural Attaché</a>.</p>
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