Daily Archives: March 10, 2011
Esperanza Spalding @ Weinberg Center for the Arts Recap
I was quite excited when I got off from work on Friday and headed out to Frederick to see Esperanza Spalding live for the first time. The concert was at the Weinberg Center for the Arts. It was a older venue that seemed more likely to host a stage play than a live concert. Unfortunately the attendants at the Weinberg were quite strict when it came to cameras, so I was only able to get this one photo at the end of the show. Although I did not come away a big fan of the venue, the atmosphere seemed fitting for the artist.
Esperanza strolled out from the floor and made her way to the stage. On the right of the stage in front of the curtain was a set up you might have seen in an old movie or even in your grandmother’s house. There was a living room chair, a small table and a tall lamp. Once on stage she turned on the lamp, slid off her shoes, slowly unbuttoned her jacket, and calmly took a seat in the living room chair. Violins began to play as she poured herself a glass of wine and lean back in the chair for a few moments. She took a few sips as the curtain raised to reveal three violinists, one drummer, one pianist and one female backup vocalist. Esperanza than made her way to the stage and begin to pluck away at the bass twice her size.
She started a bit slow with a few of the more mellow songs from her 2010 album, Chamber Music Society. Things picked up as she introduce her voice as an instrument, skatting and singing. She has a beautiful voice that reminds me alot of Amel Larrieux. At one point Esperanza stopped plucking and leaned the bass on a chair and started tapping it, in a back and forth rhythm with her drummer. There was also a moment when she and her back up singer teamed up to create music via skatting and clapping with the musicians filling in the background. It seemed they used everything on the stage to make music except the chairs. Just as it seemed they were hitting the peak in their set, the show was over. The curtain drew back down and Esperanza made her way back to her chair with the violins played in the background. She buttoned her jacket as the audience gave her a standing ovation.
Esperanza Spalding @ Weinberg Center for the Arts Recap
I was quite excited when I got off from work on Friday and headed out to Frederick to see Esperanza Spalding live for the first time. The concert was at the Weinberg Center for the Arts. It was a older venue that seemed more likely to host a stage play than a live concert. Unfortunately the attendants at the Weinberg were quite strict when it came to cameras, so I was only able to get this one photo at the end of the show. Although I did not come away a big fan of the venue, the atmosphere seemed fitting for the artist.
Esperanza strolled out from the floor and made her way to the stage. On the right of the stage in front of the curtain was a set up you might have seen in an old movie or even in your grandmother’s house. There was a living room chair, a small table and a tall lamp. Once on stage she turned on the lamp, slid off her shoes, slowly unbuttoned her jacket, and calmly took a seat in the living room chair. Violins began to play as she poured herself a glass of wine and lean back in the chair for a few moments. She took a few sips as the curtain raised to reveal three violinists, one drummer, one pianist and one female backup vocalist. Esperanza than made her way to the stage and begin to pluck away at the bass twice her size.
She started a bit slow with a few of the more mellow songs from her 2010 album, Chamber Music Society. Things picked up as she introduce her voice as an instrument, skatting and singing. She has a beautiful voice that reminds me alot of Amel Larrieux. At one point Esperanza stopped plucking and leaned the bass on a chair and started tapping it, in a back and forth rhythm with her drummer. There was also a moment when she and her back up singer teamed up to create music via skatting and clapping with the musicians filling in the background. It seemed they used everything on the stage to make music except the chairs. Just as it seemed they were hitting the peak in their set, the show was over. The curtain drew back down and Esperanza made her way back to her chair with the violins played in the background. She buttoned her jacket as the audience gave her a standing ovation.