ITLIS
I Wyntorr mus The great trumpeter and his superb Septet were nothing short of sensational at the Queen’s Hall in June. and make an early return courtesy of an adjacent Proms date in London. Not to be missed.
Wjinton Marsalis Septet ( TDK Round Midnight) Playhouse. 557 2590. 17 Aug. 10.30pm. £10.50. £8.50 (£5).
I Martin Taylor The guitarist has specialised in playing solo in recent times. and has established himself as major international attraction through a stunningly virtuoso technique allied to an inherent musicality.
Martin Taylor ('I‘DK Round Midnight) Queen 's Hall (Venue 72) 668 2019. 19 Aug. 7.30pm. £8.50. £7 (£5).
I Robert Mazurek Ouartet Powerful young jazz and blues trumpeter from Chicago leads his own quartet. Worth checking out.
Robert Mazurek Quartet (Fringe) Ceilidh House (Venue 9) 16-20. 27—29 Aug. 8pm. £5; 21—24 Aug. 3pm. £5.
I Anne Evans One of the world‘s top Wagner sopranos makes her Festival debut with an unmissable programme from the heart of the Lieder repertoire. Wagner's Wesendonek Lieder to start. with Berg's Seven Early Songs and
F rauenliebe und leben by Schumann to follow make for a stunning start to the Queen‘s Hall morning series.
Ann Evans (International Festival) Queen is Hall. 225 5756. 16 Aug. 11am. £4-£12.
l Cary Clark/Boo iiewerdirre The voice of Danny Wilson teams up with the sympatico voice of The Bible for an evening of immaculate songmanship. You mean you haven't bought Clark’s Ten Short Songs About Love yet?
Gary Clark/Boo Hewerdine (Fringe). Acropolis. Calton Hill (Venue 26) 55 7 6969. 15 Aug. 9.30pm. £8.
I IIOI'SO One of Scotland‘s premier live attractions combine a Festival appearance with a timely reminder that their second album is just about to hit the shops. Heart-stopping vocals from frontwoman Horse McDonald.
Horse (Fringe) Acropolis. Calton Hill (Venue 26) 557 6969. 16 Aug. 9.30pm. £8.
From the heart
Kenny Mathieson on the changing face of Suzanne Bonnar.
Wild women may not sing the blues (although 1 can think of some who did). but Suzanne Bonnar intends to dojust that in her new Fringe show. and throw in a little jazz. soul and gospel into the bargain. The Dunoon-based singer is currently in the throes of considerable changes in her personal and professional life. but is looking forward to the hefty challenge of 23 nights with only pianist Brian Kellock for on-stage company.
‘I am something of a latecomer to jazz.’
Unlike her earlier work in I Cover the Waterfront. a tribute to Billie Holiday. and livery Bit of It. a show based on the life of Bessie Smith. Wild Women Don 't Sing The Blues will be an entirely song- based hour. what she describes as ‘more a kind of evening with Suzanne Bonnar than a theatre piece'. She has tended to be labelled as a jazz singer up to now. but confesses that she is less than comfortable with that notion.
‘l think it comes down to a misuse of that word jazz. to be honest. I am something of a latecomer to jazz. and i can‘t say that l have any great knowledge about it — there is still an
awful lot that l have to pick up on. i feel that my singing is more rooted in old blues and gospel and a bit of soul. and I think this show will reflect that. Whatever i sing. though. it has to come from the heart. l’m a very emotional singer in that sense.‘
Bonnar hasjust returned from filming a follow-up documentary to the earlier Fly Me To Dunoon. which she describes as ‘sort of tracing the American roots in my background‘. It has been. she confirms. a ‘hectic‘ period in her life. and it is only now that she is finding the time to get excited about the Edinburgh residence.
‘l'm really looking forward to it now.
Suzanne Bonnar
and especially to working with Brian Kellock. who is such an intuitive player. which is great for someone who 1 sings the way I do. When I was a kid I was encouraged to think about the theatre as a career. and i still have an interest in straight acting roles. but i think a lot of people still think of me in the context of the earlier shows. and l really want to make a change at this point. and just be up there singing. lam changing all the time. and I think my g work has to reflect that.‘
I Wild Women Don’t Sing The Blues (Fringe) The Gilded Balloon (Venue
38) 226 2151. 13 Aug—4 Sept.
midnight, £6 (£5).
Staging Verdi
Scottish Opera welcomes its new Musical Director Richard Armstrong with an all-new production of Verdi’s I Due Foscari. On the face at it, more ot a curiosity than a fixture in the repertoire, Verdi turns Byron’s study of power and conflicting duty to state and conscience into a political drama. lie was a passionate nationalist, and this dark tale of intrigue and revenge resonates powerfully with the recent climax of the Maestricht debate.
The conventions of mid-19th century
opera are something of a challenge to the demands of contemporary theatre. With a lot of the events taking place off-stage, the emphasis is very much on the visible psychological effects of these actions, again a parallel with modern politics which are so much concerned with image and presentation. Originally set in 16th century Venice, the production brings the story forward to the 19th century in order to clarify the rigid social order which is the backdrop to the plot.
There’s an impressively international cast, with a Russian soprano, a Chinese tenor, a French bass and an American baritone. Much interest centres on the Chinese tenor Deng, making his ilk debut in the central role of Julianna Foscari. Deng was at the Belling Conservatoire before
studying in Italy, so, although he speaks very little English, his Italian is I excellent. According to staff producer 3 Brian Jones, his is a really special voice. ‘lt’s wonderful to have him around. He’s been marvellous, he smiles his way through the day. He’s not been away during the rehearsal period, but has been rather inscrutable about where he’s off to next, either in English or Mandarin!’ ; Also new to this production is a i much-improved titling system, with l the flexibility to change texts at the last minute. For the purist who finds this distracting, there are always seats from where you can’t see the titles. (Peter Cudmore) Verdi: I Due Foscari - Scottish Opera (International Festival) King’s Theatre, leven Street, 225 5756, 16/18 Aug, £1 O—£35.
so The List 13—19 August 1993