writing by Libby Hanssen
It is difficult to believe that, despite the fact this blog is ostensibly about sandwiches and evokes the name of Proust, I was not aware of le croque-monsieur, the French version of grilled ham-and-cheese, or of its presence in volume II of Proust's masterwork In Search of Lost Time. To have stumbled across this oversite... Continue Reading →
I reviewed the Kansas City Young Audiences' concert performance of "A Gilbert & Sullivan Christmas Carol" for KCMetropolis.org. This version of Dickens' tale pulls inspiration from famous melodies from Gilbert & Sullivan's extensive output. Read it here.
As a music critic, it's essential to my development to study the cultural commentary of the past. Though in recent times critcs have become speciliasts in a genre (to even more recent times when budgets mandate that critics became specialists on whatever they're going to see that night...), it used to be that critics were... Continue Reading →
Forgive him - he just flew in from Moscow. Paul D. Miller, AKA DJ Spooky That Subliminal Kid, presented an eclectic performance/lecture loosely connected to the work of Romare Bearden, whose work and process are currently exhibited at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Friday evening’s lecture was disjointed, jumping from topic to topic, making narrative... Continue Reading →
I reviewed Chanticleer's Helzberg Hall debut performance for the Kansas City Star. The all-male a cappela ensemble is a favorite touring group of Kansas City audiences.
I reviewed the music for Maury Yeston's ballet "Tom Sawyer - A Ballet in Three Acts." It was performed as the Kansas City Ballet's inaugural event in the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. Read it here.
A quote from one of my reviews has ended up on Wordsmith's A.Word.A.Day, which in itself is pretty neat. I love words and to have unwittingly contributed to a web service about words warms my heart. The weird thing is that that particular post has taken a rather odd trip through the interwebs and ended up on... Continue Reading →
I reviewed the second program for Summerfest, Kansas City's summer chamber music concert series. Though there were great performances across the board, the highlight for me was Thomas Albert's "Thirteen Ways."
I reviewed the Simon Carrington Chamber Singers at the performance at Grace and Holy Trinity Catholic Church for the Kansas City Star. Because the AC unit was making so much noise and ruining the ambiance of a cappella singing it was turned off (an aesthetic decision I supported), but man alive was it hot! Fortunately,... Continue Reading →
I reviewed the Bach Aria Soloist's "Bach & Jazz Inventions" concert, which featured saxophonist Bobby Watson and bassist Jeff Harshbarger. The program contained many selections of J.S. Bach's work, obviously, along with some jazz pieces, a few jazz-ish interpretations of Bach, and songs from Brazilian composer, Guinga. And you can read a review of my review... Continue Reading →
Proust Eats a Sandwich 