Words and Music

Guest Blogger Dept. : Bert Williams died on 4 March 1922 at the age of 47. He was a top stage entertainer, a headliner with Ziegfeld, with h...

From the Vault Dept. : My recent review of Troy’s Lo Porto Ristorante Caffè is actually my fourth such essay. I’ve tried to visit somewhat ...

DO YOU DANCE? Sure you do. I don’t. Or, at least, I try not to. It’s out of kindness, sparing the world any chance of witnessing my body att...

What’s for Dinner? Dept. : This week’s review is a re-visit to Lo Porto Ristorante Caffe in Troy.                                         ...

James Occhino as Tennessee Williams 24 April 2014 | Photo by B. A. Nilsson

From the Marley Dept. : Prokofiev’s original version of his “Romeo and Juliet” ballet left the lovers intact. Commissioned for the Bolshoi T...

Tuning Atonally Dept .: Hilary Hahn stopped by the Troy Music Hall last week to give a recital of works that proved a bit too demanding on t...

ALBANY MAY BE THE only minor major metropolitan area without bagel wars. My perspective surely is warped by the proximity of New York City, ...

The Rain in Spain Also Falls on the Pimentón Dept .: After writing this piece, I ordered a couple of pounds of the paprika in question. Ther...

I’M NOT IN THE HABIT of dressing any too quickly when I know I’ll be working at my desk in the morning, so when visitors showed up at my doo...

" ... playing with my collection of glass cocktail stirrers." As Lawrence in Christopher Durang's "For Whom the Souther...

Guest Blogger Dept .: Say hello again to Guy Wetmore Carryl, here to give us another of his Fables for the Frivolous . You’ll love the kicke...

From the Bookshelf Dept .: I remember reading the book; I remember writing the review. I just can’t figure out who I wrote it for. Local new...

What’s on Tap? Dept .: There’s a Welsh pub in Chatham, which is really all you need to know before heading there for a pint – peint, that it...

CAN YOU EVER RECAPTURE the thrill of a first-time experience? Second visits often have a lot to live up to, which also applies when musician...

From the Vault Dept. : I wrote in an earlier post about the experience of meeting conductor Erich Leinsdorf, who had invited me to get toge...

Notes on the Notes Dept .: One of the most fascinating interviews I enjoyed while writing liner notes for a series of Dorian CDs was with lu...

25 November 2003 | Photo by B. A. Nilsson

From the Bookshelf Dept. : Rare it is that a music book gets behind a moment – and the consequences of that moment – with the insight found ...

From the CD Shelf Dept .: Here’s a review I wrote in 2008, when the “Harps and Angels” was released – but it never ran, and I debut it here....