DALLAS Symphony program/setlist here 5-28/29, 2010

[charliestumpy]

Very nice - can anyone (e.g. people who have the FLACS) please share e.g. mp3s of 'Kairos' and 'Girl in the other room' with the majority of Mr Costello likers? Thanks.

[Dr. Luther]

Jimmie Standing in the Rain (EC solo, not with orchestra)

Well, wtf?
This song would lend itself well to a bit of the ol' orchestration, I would think.

[sweetest punch]

Audioclips: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQvQXa0uoYw

[charliestumpy]

Thanks.

[johnfoyle]

http://www.pegasusnews.com/news/2010/ma ... orchestra/




Sunday, May 30, 2010

Concert review: Elvis Costello with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra (May 28)

by Andy Odom

DALLAS — There were quite a few more pairs of jeans than usual walking around the Meyerson Friday night. That’s one inherent risk in inviting a Rock and Roll Hall-of-Fame inductee to perform with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. And, to those unfamiliar, it may seem like an odd pairing.

But even the most casual reading of Elvis Costello’s bio in the playbill showed ample reason why this collaboration was perfectly appropriate – he was commissioned by the Royal Danish Opera, he composed a full orchestral work called Il Songo, he’s released an album of piano ballads called North, and he recorded and toured with the Brodsky Quartet, all of which received awards, acclaim, and respectable chart performance. Oh, and there’s that whole thing about being one of the most respected songwriters and voices on the planet.

The performance was broken up into two sets. The first set was a rather straightforward delivery of what one might expect – Costello tunes, both old and new, arranged with orchestral support. He began with “Accidents Will Happen,” supported with nothing but the DSO in a dramatic, but not unexpected, retelling of his classic. Only Bruce Thomas’ bass parts were left as some of the recognizable elements of the original. Costello then picked up an acoustic guitar and moved on to one of the most moving performances of the evening with “All This Useless Beauty.” Costello wrote that particular arrangement himself, and it was absolutely beautiful.

Two new songs made their way into the first set: “My Three Sons,” a love letter to his children, and “Jimmie Standing In The Rain,” heard most recently on his tour to support his 2009 album, Secret, Profane, and Sugarcane. He also included “The Girl in the Other Room,” which he said he wrote with “[his] favorite piano player ... but I won’t say who she is.” And while the piano player in question, his wife Diana Krall, wasn’t there, her influence on the moody, jazzy song was palpable.

After an intermission, Costello began the second set and quickly established a different tone from the first set. This was Big Band Elvis. He opened with “Still,” greatly expanded for orchestra from the simple piano arrangement on the album North, and moved on to a completely deconstructed version of “Green Shirt.” His next few songs, from the dark “Almost Blue” to the Big Band-cum-Vegas Revue retelling of “Watching The Detectives” cast Costello in a new light. The Angry Young Man has grown into Nerdy Sinatra!

Costello’s mood throughout was light and appreciative. He exchanged constant glances to the whole orchestra, looking at whatever section was playing the main role at that moment, almost urging them along in the arrangements by himself and longtime keyboardist Steve Nieve, and then to trade knowing glances to the audience as if to say, “This is pretty neat, huh?” His performance with the DSO on Friday night served as a perfect reminder of why Elvis Costello is still such a vital artist, his releases still noteworthy, and his performances still important.

[johnfoyle]

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent ... 2623b.html

Concert review: Elvis Costello joins Dallas Symphony Orchestra for some jazzy song stylings

May 30, 2010

By MANUEL MENDOZA / Special Contributor to The Dallas Morning News

Sometimes a concert is just a concert. But when your favorite solo artist of all time is performing in a context that's rare even for him, then it's a chance to reconsider how he made it to the top of your list in the first place.

That was my win-win situation this weekend when 55-year-old pop chameleon Elvis Costello played two nights with a game Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Under the enthusiastic direction of guest conductor Albert-George Schram, who has worked with the one-time punk rocker before, not every arrangement gelled and not every song choice would've been mine.

I never need to hear the overrated 1989 hit "Veronica" again, though it was funny when Costello referred to his collaborator on the tune, Paul McCartney, as a "Mersey Delta bluesman." The song was part of an up-and-down first set that improved from Friday to Saturday at Meyerson Symphony Center, probably because Costello and his large band had grown accustomed to one another.

Supplemented by a plugged-in trio that included his longtime keyboardist Steve Nieve and jazz drummer Matt Wilson, he entertained the audience by humorously gesturing and dancing as if possessed by the music coming from behind him.

The general strategy was to create harmonious riffs for classical instrumentation and alternate them with the original verses and choruses of his pop nuggets. But what worked even better was rethinking the approach to songs altogether or choosing tunes that lent themselves to a more integrated sound.

That meant jazz – or at least jazzy. In fact, when everything came together for good during the second set, Costello had gradually turned the symphony orchestra into a swing band, most notably on a full-tilt arrangement of his reggae-punk classic "Watching the Detectives."

He surrounded and then extended that moment with gorgeously rounded crooning on "Almost Blue," Nieve's lush new composition "Kairos," Charles Aznavour's "She" and two of his collaborations with Burt Bacharach, the show closer "God Give Me Strength" and the first encore "I Still Have That Other Girl."

Over the years, Costello's place in the pantheon has gained from his experimentations outside pop and rock, this showing of his stylish versatility only being the latest.

Manuel Mendoza is a Dallas freelance writer.

[sweetest punch]

http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/dc9/201 ... o_with.php

Elvis Costello With The Dallas Symphony Orchestra at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center
By Pete Freedman

There wasn't a lot of room for the 55-year-old Elvis Costello to gallivant about on stage at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center on Friday night--no, there were simply too many other players and instruments strewn about for that.

But the clutter was certainly justified: These weren't just any players and instruments impeding Costello's movements on this night; rather, in addition to being surrounded by members of his current backing band, The Sugarcanes, Costello was flanked by members of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, who, in anticipation of the performer's two-night run at the Meyerson this past weekend, had taken up the task of learning symphonic arrangements of the icon's greatest hits.

And, no surprise here, their efforts were not in vain: Over the course of a two-hour performance (complete with an intermission halfway through the set), Costello, his Sugarcanes and the DSO wowed the not-quite-sold -out-but-reverent-nonetheless room with impressive ease.

A once-in-a-lifetime showcase? In premise, almost certainly. In practice, without a doubt.

Costello has endured and aged brilliantly over the course of his 33-year recording career, transitioning from proto-New Waver to soul act to to classical composer to country artist and back (and forward again) with remarkable ease, and, on this night, while often referencing his classical dalliances in the early '90s with the Brodsky Quartet, Costello proved himself still more than capable of comfortably performing in any of those realms.

Of course, given the players sharing the stage with him at this performance, the night leaned most heavily on his classical persuasion. And the DSO left little room for complaints on this night--except, perhaps, that its showing impeded any real opportunity for Costello to proverbially "rock out."

Still, Costello, ever the showman (and confident speaker, no doubt part of what makes him such a compelling television host as well), dazzled. He shared the anecdotes behind the inspirations for most of his songs, credited the arrangers who allowed his music to be performed by this orchestra and charmed, teased and flirted with the audience all along--giving them, really, all their money's worth, and perhaps more.

The highlights, sure enough, were plentiful--"Shipbulding," "My Three Sons," "The Girl In The Other Room," "My Flame Burns Blue," "She," "God Give Me Strength," "I Still Have That Other Girl," "Allison," "Couldn't Call It unexpected, No. 4" and even a new song called "Kairos" among them--as Costello, sometimes performing with his acoustic guitar (which, along with his microphone, were the only amplified pieces on stage, if only lightly) and sometimes not, shimmied slightly in place and leaned over the crowd, making eye contact with his audience, who sat in their seats unsure of whether to foot-tap or stand and dance or what.

Their confusion was fair--and eventually, moot. No, this was not a rock show--but by night's end, it felt like one. Each of the final four songs performed this night elicited standing ovations from crowd. Not just because they were tired of sitting, though--but, rather, because Costello and the DSO performing together more than merited such appreciation.

So perhaps it was a bit surprising, then, that the night's biggest crowd-pleaser didn't feature the DSO playing at all.

With but a few songs remaining in the performance, Costello, eschewed his microphone (which, in fairness, he barely needed at all in such an acoustically sound room) and stepped out to the stage's edge for a folk ditty called "Slow Drag With Josephine," which Costello described as "what rock 'n' roll sounded like in 1921" and saw the crowd hooting and laughing along with the performer.

Odd for the biggest moment of the night to come without the DSO's aid? Perhaps. But, let's face it, they were but supporting players on this eve. Costello, as ever, was its biggest star.

Critic's Notebook
Personal Bias: I, along with most, appreciate Costello to all ends, but most prefer his late '70s and early '80s efforts. Still, it's tough not to appreciate a man who has so effortlessly transitioned from genre to genre and sound to sound. This night only reinforced this stance--although it was a little off or me personally. Having never before seen Costello perform live (I know, I know), I would've preferred not to have popped my cherry in this formal setting, but in a more traditional rock 'n' roll environment. But seeing him in this environment, perhaps, helped me appreciate his talents even more than another setting might have.

Random Note: This was also my first time in the Meyerson. Quite the gem we've got there, Dallas. Place is gorgeous--and it sounds absolutely flawless, no surprise.

By The Way: After Costello, the Sugarcanes and the DSO, the biggest star of the night was the man sitting in the front row, on the far left side of the middle section--if only because he simply could not contain his amusement. He beamed, grimaced and twitched with glee--and started pretty much every standing ovation--which was surprising if only because he appeared, throughout the night, more likely to fall to the ground, faint, than to spring to his legs with joy.

[johnfoyle]

Here's an MP3 of Steve Nieve's "Kairos", performed by EC, Steve, and
the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, May 28 in Dallas.

MP3 (224 kbps / 8.5 MB)
http://www.mediafire.com/?ojn4twmm3qj

[charliestumpy]

Thankyou very much - as always - for this nice mp3 of 'Kairos'.

[CraigatCoF]

15 second clip of Shipbuilding from the May 29th show - http://www.twitvid.com/2FRUQ

[pophead2k]

Jimmie Standing in the Rain (EC solo, not with orchestra)

Well, wtf?
This song would lend itself well to a bit of the ol' orchestration, I would think.

EC usually sends the charts of the songs to the orchestras many months in advance. He probably hasn't done an orchestrated arrangement for this one yet.

[krm]

Here's an MP3 of Steve Nieve's "Kairos", performed by EC, Steve, and
the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, May 28 in Dallas.

MP3 (224 kbps / 8.5 MB)
http://www.mediafire.com/?ojn4twmm3qj

This one says: "thank you"