Just as we went to press. the news
broke that a union of two of the biggest teen phenomena is set to take place by the end of this tax year:
Jason [)onoy'an is to join Bros. We
were contacted by a man called Wayne who. by tise of a prearranged
codeword. proy‘ed to our satisfaction
that he is Bros's official spokesman. He told us: '( )ur managerial policy is based entirely on the findings of market analysis [am and Stiltskin. and we now realise that we made a mistake by sacking ( ‘raig Logan altogether and not just replacing him with a cuddly blonrle sex ptrppy like Jason.
‘l le’s a lovely lad. he just fits like a hand in a yelyct gloy e. to coin a phrase. The boys hay e been communicating by fax for weeks. ()nce Matt and l.uke get huddled round that little grey machine. they‘re there for hours. sending their doodles and chuckling oy'el' .lason’s jokes. He sent us this great one abottt a Rottweiller. but the fa\'
' chewed up most ofit. lt‘sa pity. Matt
and l.uke are telling it to eyerybody now. bttt they need a little help yy hen they get to the punchline. We're going to ptrt it in the fan club magazine once we find out how it finishes.‘
So Jason and Bros haycn't actually
. . er. jammed. or men met yet'.’
‘Well. no. not as such. but he's got it all going for him. He's already got a proy‘en following and he's shown that he can work irt art ensemble situation without ego problems. It‘s gonna be a hydra-headed teen ses machine arid you can tell your readers I said that.’
And this won't disturb the twins" finely-tuned balance in concert'.’
‘ln concert'.’ Well. oby'iousl_V thc_\"ll do all their photocalls together. bttt we’re thinking of .lason in terms of a backroom boy: production. l’R . . . occasional liy'e bongos. that sort of thing. The first choice was actually Prince Edward. you see. bttt he's always had a problem finding a bleach that wouldn't cause his hair to fall otrt in great bunches.’
Jason 1)!)IlUt‘tlpr/(fky(ilt’ I’luy/iorm'. Edinburgh. on his own. on Sat [5.
l
V OPERA
Empire building
Latter-day prophets of doom notwithstanding — environmental health officers, measuring the level of noise pollution during rehearsals, promptly declared that culture was too noisy and caused some of them to be stopped - Scottish Opera is ga|l0ping ahead this month with its first new production of Berlioz's ‘The Trojans' for more than 20 years.
Although Glasgow has well-established historical links with ‘The Trojans‘ (the Glasgow Grand Opera Company gave the first British performance in 1935, and the world premiere of the complete performance of both parts in one evening was given by Scottish Opera itself when it was only seven years old in 1969 — the centenary of Berlioz's death), it is nevertheless last in line to host this renowned Tim Albery production, shared between Welsh National Opera, Opera North and Scottish Opera.
But this is no pig in a poke. Scottish Opera can justifiably bask in the knowledge that this year marks the centenary of the very first complete performance in Karlsruhe — and that the company had earned immense kudos in ensuring its own performances of the epic work take place during the city's
cultural celebrations before touring Scofland.
And it‘s the only company of the three to perform ‘The Trojans' in the original French libretto, which Berlioz wrote himself. Based on Virgil's ‘Aeneid‘, it is the classic story of the founding of the Roman Empire. The warrior Aeneas, duped by the original Trojan Horse, and deal to the prophecies of the hapless Cassandra, causes the destruction of his beloved Troy. Urged
i»: c_,‘
by ghostly voices to build a new city in Italy, he sets off; but before he gets
there, he stops off in Carthage, where
the benevolent queen, Dido, falls for him hook, line and sinker to the extent that she kills herself when he
; eventually resumes his journey. She has a deathbed vision of Rome
overtaking Carthage, and the rest is
\ history.
‘The Trojans' is a colossal treatment of the themes of love, destiny and war. Cassandra and Dido are but the human victims of clvilisation‘s relentless evolution.
‘The music glistens like polished bronze,‘ comments John Mauceri, Scottish Opera‘s Music Director and conductor of ‘The Trojans'. ‘lt's one of the world‘s great passionate and classical utterances - an eruption of emotion which pays tribute to our great heroic past.‘
A huge cast of 16 principals, an extended chorus and orchestra and dancers from Scottish Stride make this production one of the biggest undertakings by Scottish Opera in the last decade. A total shared cost of some £200,000 has been offset by a tripartite sponsorship of £150,000 by lBM UK.
Performed in two parts over two evenings (with surtitles), ‘The Trojans‘ represents something of an adventure for its audiences. ‘lt‘s what epic cinema aspires to be,’ says John Mauceri. (Cate Devine)
‘The Trojans' opens at the Theatre Royal, Glasgow on Tues 18 and moves to the Playhouse Theatre, Edinburgh on 9—10 November. See Listings for details.
l l l f
V ALBUMS
I Mouth Music: Mouth Music (Triple Earth) Talitha Mackenzie and Martin Swan have already been given short shrift live by some. w ho cradled their pints impatiently while waiting for the latest hand-me-down (ilaswegian American rock outfit to take the stage. People who should have known better. but such is the attitude tothe world rtittsic on ourown doorstep. Mouth Music is all in (iaelic. some strnga capeila by Mackenzie. others supplied with synthetic backing tracks by Swan If the traditional and modern elements don't gel perfectly every time they re fused. that doesn't mean that Mouth Music are barking tip the wrong tree. When they get it right. it sounds right - organic. ey'en. (Alastair Mabbottl
IThe Neville Brothers: Brother‘s Keeper(A&M) lhe Neyille Brothers area class acl‘.cy en ifthey hadn't collected a sackful of(irarnmies for 1988's Yellow .Vr mu cy‘ery'one would know that by now A lot of people will buy this for that reason. and stick with it until it'sa much~loycd part ofthcir lryes. But they play it very safe they mightpointto their adoption of reggae to refute this. but it‘s pastel reggae. despite (‘yril Neytlle's Rastafarianisrn and Brothers Kt’l’pt’r still it holdsycry littlethat grips. thrillsor awes. ‘Bird on a Wue‘. produced by l)aye Stewart. Is a solid reinterpretation of l L‘Ultltitl ( ‘ohcn's song. and tension grows in 'Sons and Daughters' and its reprise ( l found myself thinkrngoftirl Scott-Heron wrthottt tltc jokes). the trackson which their experiences with Darnell anors surface most clearly ()ther songs are sery rccably ftrrtky . btit you don't go running to [he Ncy rllc lirothcrs for funk Their most y .rluablc assct is then you es. and it'stl‘c voices that shore up lirorln'r \ Ace/tn llonly the rest was quite so tlcpend.‘rl\lc (.-\l.tst.rrr Mabbottl
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