Of all the concerts of the Seattle Chamber Music Society’s Summer
Festival, my favorite features a work of exceptional beauty, the
Sextet by Francis Poulenc (1899–1963).
Born into wealth, Poulenc could have ended up a louche dilettante
known chiefly for elegantly (and considering the era, bravely)
consorting with men. Yet apart from a few lessons with the
now-forgotten Charles Koechlin, a self-taught Poulenc helped pioneer
the neoclassic style in the early 1920s with his first big hit,
Les Biches, written for Diaghilev and his Ballets Russes.
Like Les Biches, the Sextet struts and frolics,
marrying the jaunty, high-stepping rhythms of French music-hall tunes
to the melodies of Scarlatti and Mozart. Anchored by horn and piano,
the Sextet begins by truncating what could be a grim,
Beethovenian fanfare into a fast Stravinsky-like ostinato. Flute,
bassoon, and clarinet quickly trade melodic fragments that suggest a
dancing marionette.
Composed from 1932 to 1939, Poulenc frantically pours every good
idea he can into the Sextet. I adore the
razzing, flutter-tongued flute and the hushed muted horn note in the
opening movement’s melancholy central section. Near the end of the
middle “Divertissement,” a lone B played on the piano opens a wistful
coda, a brief passage for winds that a lesser composer would milk for
an entire movement.
By the “Finale,” the Sextet‘s high-
spirited, sunny moods
begin abrading against the slower, mournful sections. A braying oboe
and a quick, last-chance march surrenders to an unforgettable
conclusion. We hear the start of what should be another ebullient
passage, but Poulenc creates a sonic frieze. He slows the tempo,
revealing loss and sadness lurking among those hurried high
sprits.
You can also tune in for free on KING 98.1 FM at 8:00 p.m. The
festival runs through Friday, August 1; see www.scmf.org for details on the remaining
concerts. 
Hear Poulenc’s Sextet Fri July 18, Lakeside School, 14050
First Ave NE, 283-8808, 8 pm, $8–$38.
Thurs 7/24
MICHAEL SHRIEVE’S SPELLBINDER
Shrieve, revered as the original drummer of Santana, leads a group
devoted to incubating fusion in its purest sense: not the slick,
radio-friendly pap critics love to hate, but a vintage, rough-hewn
translation of jazz and blues-based improvisation to rock through
amplification, an expanded timbral palette, and dilated forms that
liberate (and potentially delude) musicians with generous solo space.
Also Mon July 28 at ToST at 9 pm. City Hall, 600 Fourth Ave, 684-7171,
noon–1:30 pm, free.
EARTHA KITT
You remember her as Catwoman from the original Batman TV series, but
Kitt has been purring cabaret and show tunes in multiple languages for
over half a century. Kitt’s sharp, sometimes snarling, always sassy
enunciation marks her as a breed unto herself. Meow! Through Sun July
27. Jazz Alley, 2033 Sixth Ave, 441-9729, 7:30 pm,
$32.50–$35.50.
Fri 7/25
HOPE WECHKIN
Chiefly known for singing with the much-missed chamber group
Sorelle, Wechkin reprises her one-woman show, Charisma. The soprano
portrays a hospital patient who sings and plays the violin
simultaneously while coping with a cavalcade of unusual characters.
Also Sat July 26 at 2 and 7:30 pm. Seattle Academy of Arts &
Sciences Theatre, 1100 12th Ave E, 7:30 pm, $12 adv/$15 DOS.
KAREN SHIVERS
I love drummerless jazz combos. Freed of the steady broadband
percussive pulse of the cymbals and bass drum, the ears can focus on
the rhythmic interplay of the other instruments and really get inside
the tunes. As part of Pony Boy Records’s “Jazz & Sushi” series,
vocalist Shivers fronts such a trio with pianist Bill Anschell.
Hiroshi’s Restaurant, 2501 Eastlake Ave E, 726-4966, 7:30–10 pm,
free.
SCMS SUMMER FESTIVAL
Although the main 8 pm concert serves up interesting
pieces—some Tanayev, a Beethoven trio, and Variations on a Theme
by Schumann for four-hands piano by Brahms—the free 7 pm recital
looks more compelling. Nathan Hughes and Anna Polonsky present a
microfestival of works for oboe and piano, including Eugène
Bozza’s “Fantaisie Pastoral,” Britten’s aptly titled “Two Insect Pieces
for Oboe and Piano,” and the gorgeous Sonata for Oboe and Piano by
Francis Poulenc. Unlike the festival’s concerts, the 7 pm recitals are
not broadcast on KING 98.1 FM. You have to go to get the music. Through
Fri Aug 1. Lakeside School, 14050 First Ave NE, 283-8808, 8 pm,
$8–$38.
Sat 7/26
MICHAEL GENDREAU
While David Byrne recently garnered a ton of press for inducing
sonic vibrations from the Battery Maritime Building in New York, other
artists have been practicing similar sonic architecture for years,
notably Michael Gendreau and the fraternal team of Mark and John Bain.
Better known as one-half of Crawling with Tarts, Gendreau applies
sensors and other apparatus to wrest structural sounds from one of our
burg’s best performance venues. Don’t miss it. Fourth floor Chapel
Performance Space, Good Shepherd Center, 4649 Sunnyside Ave N,
789-1939, 8 pm, $5–$15 sliding scale donation.
PARITY 4
Pianist Gust Burns curates a summer series exploring connections
between improvised and composed music. The main difference between the
two rests not in content but the rate and pace of creation. Burns
juxtaposes a solo piano improvisation with Adrian Varner’s recital of
Music for Marcel Duchamp for prepared piano by John Cage, Lou
Harrison’s seldom heard Six Sonatas for Cembalo or Piano written in
1943, two pieces by Jarrad Powell, and the “Piano Pieces for Children”
of Toru Takemitsu. Gallery 1412, 1412 18th Ave, 322-1533, 8 pm, free,
but donations accepted.
Sun 7/27
TSSS CONCERT
The Tallis Scholars Summer School opens. Conductor and scholar Peter
Phillips leads the Tudor Choir and members of the renowned English
ensemble Tallis Scholars in choral works by William Byrd (including
“Laudibus in sanctis” and “Ave verum corpus”), Phillipe de Monte’s
“Super flumina Babylonis,” “Verbum caro” by John Sheppard, and more.
St. James Cathedral, 804 Ninth Ave, 382-4874, 8 pm, suggested donation
$20/students and seniors pay as able.
Tues 7/29
GRETA MATASSA
For those who love jazz but heed an early bedtime, this installment
of the downtown Out to Lunch series is a treat. Matassa sings the
blues, jazz, and pop standards with sass and arch wit. Occidental
Square, S Main St and Occidental Ave, noon–1:30 pm, free.
Wed 7/30
JOHN EDWARDS
A linchpin of London’s improvised music scene, bassist Edwards teams
up with a slew of local improvisers. Also Thurs July 31 with Amy Denio
and another Londoner, Seattle-born trombonist/vocalist Caroline
Kraabel. Gallery 1412, 1412 18th Ave, 322-1533, 8 pm, free, but
donations accepted.
