One Down - Four To Go

     The first month of the new semester has been quite busy here in Durham.  Nan has three sections this semester which means that she been spending more time working than playing.  We have had a couple of opportunities to step-out and enjoy some of the attractions Durham and Duke have to offer.
     The first came when we went to see a production of  "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" presented by Hoof 'n' Horn at Duke. Hoof 'n' Horn is a student drama group that performs musicals.  When I say 'student drama group' I mean it.  Everything is done by the students and generally they're pretty good.  This production was very entertaining.  Considering almost half the cast were freshman, they did a great job..  'The Spelling Bee' got its start at Barrington Stage in Pittsfield, and is just a fun ride.  The cast included some audience members who were drafted to be participants in the Bee.  The cast also inserted a few Duke oriented jokes which I'm sure were not in the original script.  It was a fun night.  We're looking forward to their April show 'Parade', a much different type of musical.
     One of the neat things about Durham is the music scene.  Many places feature both local and nationally known artists.  You can have a good meal and listen to great music at the same time.  One of these spots is the Beyu Café in downtown Durham.  We went on a Monday night had a great meal(many vegan options for Nan) and heard some equally enjoyable piano jazz delivered by Gary Brunette.
     Often times the Duke Music Department will present concerts which feature faculty members.  Such was the case on January 26th, when we went to see the Red Clay Saxophone Quartet.  This group, celebrating their 10th anniversary, is made up of  Susan Fancher(Duke) on soprano sax, Robert Faub(High Point University) on alto sax, Steven Stusek(UNC-Greensboro) on tenor sax, and Mark Engebretson(UNC-Greensboro) on baritone sax.  They played a variety of different selections.  We particularly liked the second movement of Every Thing Must Go by Martin Bresnick.  The Quartet showed their versatility in Drastic Measures by Russell Peck.  In the second movement they used a technique known as slap tongue accents that is the saxophone equivalent of violinists plucking their strings.  Their final presentation was a work written by Mr. Engebretson which used electronic tracks looped and played with the quartet.  It had a rock feel to it and was a great way to end a very satisfying concert.
      We closed this month's cultural activities by seeing Emanuel Ax in concert.  Originally this concert was supposed to feature both Mr. Ax and his wife, pianist Yoko Nozaki.  However, due to Ms. Nozaki's illness we had to 'suffer' through Mr. Ax's solo presentations.  Mr. Ax holds a special spot in our hearts as Nan and I saw him play Brahms 2nd piano concerto on the lawn at SPAC back when we were first starting to date.  It was a very romantic night.  In this concert he played 4 pieces by Beethoven and Brahms(2 each) including Beethoven's very recognizable Pathetique.  It was wonderful.  It turns out that Ms. Nozaki's father taught at Duke and Mr. Ax and she were married in Durham.  When we go to a concert featuring the piano we always try to sit in seats where we can see the performer's hands.  We were lucky enough to be in a perfect position to see Mr. Ax.  It was great to watch, and he did it all "without a lick of music in front of him", as my father used to say.  It was an equally romantic evening.