ON the Beat | Bellosguardo in Fog and Song, LPO’s Majesty

This edition of ON the Beat was originally emailed to subscribers on October 17, 2024. To receive Josef Woodard’s music newsletter in your inbox on Fridays, sign up at independent.com/newsletters.

Like any hyper-curious and self-respecting Santa Barbaran who can claim having grown up here, I have been more than a little entranced by the mysterious mansion by the sea known as Bellosguardo (Italian for “beautiful lookout”). This lurking fascination extends long before the death and enigma of its absentee owner Huguette Clark and the subsequent questions about the fate of the lavish Reginald Johnson–designed, 1902 vintage compound became public in a national/global way.

In the way back when, the public-disinvited enclave on the cliff between the cemetery and East Beach seemed somehow apart and above the fray of everyday life, like a church property impervious to the greedy bump-and-grind of development and real estate dramas in this town. It’s a different story now, as the public is welcomed in for tours and pow wows of docent-guided awe.

But we pre-digress.

My very long-awaited introduction to this mystical property came courtesy of Janis Siegel, the ex–Manhattan Transfer singer whose concert there last week with pianist Yaron Gershovsky marked the first occasion of a public jazz concert on the property. We approve. The champagne has struck the bow: onward to the sea of love and jazz chords and riffs!

For this early evening show, despite meteorological reports of a clear skied vista from the mansion’s sprawling, ocean-facing lawn, the weatherperson did not get the cosmic memo correctly. Heavy fog and mist hovered over the occasion, the downside being an impeded views and chilled air; the upside of which was a definite film noir–ish atmosphere on the property, aiding in the vibe-making chemistry for a ripe set of songs by the late, great Cy Coleman — subject of this duo’s new album, The Colors of My Life.

Charter member of Manhattan Transfer Siegel and Gershovsky — the Transfer’s music director — found themselves with time on their hands and an itch for creative action after the retirement of the group last year (the retirement tour included a show at the Lobero). Taking on the gleaming and influential songbook of Coleman seemed like a worthy project.

As heard on the steps of the imposingly elegant Bellosguardo, Siegel fared boldly on her own and in duo form with her longtime ally, without the presence of four-part harmonies and a band. The pianist’s arrangements offered fresh perspectives on classics deserving new angles and love, from “You’ve Got My Number” (with Siegel’s limber scatting in cahoots with piano riffs), to the Peggy Lee co-write “That’s My Style,” and a cha cha costume change on “You Fascinate Me So.” Gershovsky issued his finest solo of the night on a brisk waltz version of “Witchcraft” and Siegel beautifully waxed wistful on the nostalgic ballad “The Colors of My Life.”

Deep into the set, Siegel broke into my personal favorite from the Coleman book, “The Best is Yet to Come,” opening in loose (foggy?) rubato and easing into the quirky cadences suiting the melody. She snuck in a winking addition: “The best is yet to come, but only if we vote.” It was a timely reminder of political realities very much before us in this moment, briefly breaking the spell of timelessness spun by the duo, the material, and seemingly time-conquering property and back story enfolded in the very word Bellosguardo.

A Grand Orchestra, a Madly Magnetic Violinist

Santa Barbara has become well-acquainted with the wonders of the LSO (London Symphony Orchestra), a welcome returnee making its way to Santa Barbara via the Music Academy of the West and CAMA in recent years. We’ll hear them again on February 18. It’s a different story with the LPO (London Philharmonic Orchestra), a rare visitor to the 805 which made its lustrous and refined presence known at The Granada Theatre last Saturday (hosted by UCSB Arts & Lectures and CAMA).
        
All of the LPO’s work here — from the riveting, sinewy atmospherics of Tania León’s 2023 Raices (Origins) to the epic, comfy chair business of Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony after intermission — was more than good, led with bold assurance by principal conductor Edward Gardner. But the real head- and ear-turning takeaway from the evening was the return of the uniquely powerful violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja (nicknamed PatKop), the entrancing Moldovan master who brought her highly personal and passion-fueled mastery to bear on Shostakovich’s Violin Concerto No. 1.

Last heard in these parts in 2018 as head of the Ojai Music Festival and in recital at Hahn Hall, Kopatchinskaja threw herself into the challenging and mercurial world of Shostakovich’s Concerto. She’s not one to stand-and-deliver onstage or restrain expressive impulses coursing through her on an “in the moment” way: she opened with ghostly gauziness on the eerie Nocturne and eagerly flung herself into more wildly kinetic — yet controlled — passages, occasionally stomping her bare feet in rhythm during the whirlwind wilds of the Scherzo and the slowly-building Cadenza. The final Burlesca is a wild ride showcasing the energized interplay of orchestra and soloist, made especially ecstatic via PatKop’s hands, heart, and head.
        
Hers was a command performance and triumphant return to our town. We must keep meeting like this.

LPO’s Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4 was true to form, highly-detailed, and masterful but felt anti-climactic after the bustling excitement of the first half. (It will be interesting to compare this Tchaikovsky reading with the Santa Barbara Symphony’s performance of the same symphony this weekend).

Coming home to British turf for an encore, the LPO’s swept grandly into the anthemic gestures of Elgar’s Variation on an Original Theme “Enigma.” Suffice to say, as the LPO concert affirmed, London’s orchestral scene is a rich and verdant one, and we’re fortunate to be privy to some up close and personal in-concert contact with said scene.

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To-Doings:

Speaking of things orchestral and in the embrace of the Granada, the coming well is resplendent in symphonic sounds (see story here). The Santa Barbara Symphony launches its 2024-25 season on Saturday and Sunday with a program of Tchai. 4, Rodrigo’s handsome warhorse Concierto de Aranjuez (with Pablo Sainz doing the guitar solo honors), and a special tribute to the late, formidable, and friendly Santa Barbaran composer Emma Lou Diemer, with her “Homage to Tchaikovsky.” Monday night finds CAMA launching its own season, with a return by the SoCal-rooted but globally esteemed Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra.

Over at SOhO on Monday night, Maria Muldaur will bring her sassy and music history–informed salad bar of blues, country blues, Caribbean cool, and other flavors. Yes, this is the ex-wife of nerdy hipster Geoff Muldaur who managed to break into pop hit collective unconscious with “Midnight at the Oasis” (with the slinky brilliance of Amos Garrett’s great guitar solo) and also to play the teasing temptress with her version of “Don’t You Feel My Leg,” among other feats along the way.

Hop over the 154 hill on Wednesday night (or stay in your own valley neighborhood if you’re a Santa Ynez Valley–ite) to catch the next edition of the wonder that is the Tales from the Tavern series at Maverick Saloon. This week’s spotlight goes to Robbie Fulks, the veteran Chicagoan singer-songwriter in the alt country orbit. Among his popular songs is a fang-bearing comedy kiss-off to mainstream Nashville, “Fuck this Town.” Last year, he released the album Bluegrass Vacation. Nashville still has not come calling, and that’s a badge of honor for folks like Fulks.