Robben Ford

Saw Robben Ford perform last night at the Cactus Cafe, with Roscoe Beck and Brandon Temple. Great show, great guitar work, great rhythm section.

This was the same venue that I had seen Al DiMeola recently. It was sort of the polar opposite of DiMeola's show. This time, the music took a front seat to the technique, instead of being sacrificed to the technique.

The night was highlighted by special guest appearances of Eric Johnson and David Grissom. While watching Robben play, it became suddenly apparent that Eric was a big fan of Robben's and had incorporated a lot more of his style than I had realized.

Taylor Campbell opened. He was a singer/songwriter who played acoustic guitar. He had the line of the night when he said, "When I open for Robben Ford, I'm a guitar owner, not a guitar player."

Touched by the Sound

I had the great pleasure tonight of seeing Evelyn Glennie perform with the Austin Symphony, at the Bass Concert Hall. If you've never heard of Evelyn, she is the subject of a documentary film, Touching the Sound. She is a world class percussionist and quite adept at a number of Tuned percussion instruments including the Vibraphone. What is absolutely amazing, is that she has been deaf since childhood.

Evelyn performed two pieces

1. Schwantner's Percussion Concerto - An interesting piece with 3 movements. Evenlyn had a large array of instruments both in the front (Vibraphone, Timpanis, Gongs, Triangles and a Large Bass Drum) and the back (Marimba, Toms and Bass Drum) of the stage. It had a very 20th century feel and ostinatos clearly borrowed from or influenced by Javanese/Balinese Gamelan music. There were at least 6 or 7 other percussionists on stage playing Bass Drum, Tubular Bells, Xylophone, playing with her for the first movement. The last 2 movements were filled with extensive soloing and did not disappoint.
2. Evelyn's arrangement of Vivaldi's Piccolo Concerto - Played with a smaller string ensemble, harpsichord and Evelyn playing Vibraphone. This was absolutely incredible to watch. It was performed flawlessly at a very fast tempo, with considerable variation in the dynamics.

She performs barefoot, which I assume provides some additional tactile feedback for her. I also spent considerable time trying to comprehend how she manages to play so impeccably, given her challenges.

Bottom line: If you have the chance to watch the film or better yet, see her live. Do it. If I didn't already have tickets to go see Robben Ford tomorrow night, I might be tempted to go catch tomorrow night's show, as well.