Friday February 20, 2004 arts.michigandaily.com artseditor@michigandaily.com ag11smaa 5 5 Journey' follows Kahn's other life By Jason Roberts Daily Arts Editor MOVI E R EVI EW ** Louis Kahn died suddenly of a heart attack in a men's room at Penn Station, alone, broke and unidentified in 1974. He left behind a wife and daughter. The untold story, however, is about the two mistresses he had and the two illegitimate children he rarely saw. When he was 11 years old, Nathaniel Kahn remembers reading the obituary of the little about. He was surprised to find that his name wasn't listed as one of the archi- tect's survivors. It is Nathaniel who now, 30 years after Kahn's death, father he knew so My Architect: A Son's Journey At Madstone New Yorker Courtesy of New Yorker Yes, I am pensive. brings to light the life beyond the architect, one of the world's greatest masters of the late 20th century, in "My Architect: A Son's Journey." Often thought of as rebelling against the modernist ideals of his time, such as the glass and steel designs of Mies van der Rohe, Kahn worked in a style that glorified mate- rial for its tactile, spatial and timeless qualities. His completed works - though there weren't many - were often compared, in quality and aes- thetics, to the ancient ruins of Rome. He played with heavy materials like brick and stone while manipulating light in an almost spiritual way. Though Kahn's public life was well known, his personal life remained very isolated, even from the people he loved. His two long- term mistresses, including Nathaniel's mother, lived within miles of where Kahn and his wife resided. Even fellow architects, such as Philip Johnson and I. M. Pei - both of whom Nathaniel interviewed - were quite unaware of the life Kahn lived outside of the office. It would be very easy for Nathaniel to be angry at his father for his seem- ingly selfish acts, but "Architect" crafts a far different picture. In inter- views with those whose lives he touched, including Nathaniel's own mother, there is nothing but love and respect, tinged with sorrow, for not fully understanding the man they thought they knew so well. A mean- dering tale, "My Architect" follows Nathaniel in his journeys across the globe, meeting people that knew Kahn in life and visiting the architec- tural works that he left behind. It's in these places where the film- maker paints a truly cinematic mas- terpiece. Cinematographer Robert Richman captures Kahn's works beautifully. Sometimes saying more than the people with whom Nathaniel speaks, these well crafted sequences are not only artistic, but also add to the underlying theme of emptiness. Nathaniel often used an elegant jux- taposition of long, steady shots and old black and white photos of himself and his father to paint this multilay- ered tapestry. In the end, the question remains: Who is Nathaniel actually making this documentary for? Not only is it a beautiful and passionate tribute to one of the world's most fascinating archi- tects, it's a personal endeavor - a chance for a son who barely knew his father to reconcile with his childhood and find his place in the present. If I put my ear close enough to this wall, I can hear West Germany. FAMILIAR GROUND MCGEE'S TROUPE TAKES ITS ROCK ON THE ROAD 'Broadway a c By Rachel Berry Daily Arts Writer FINE ARTs PREVIEW The Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra is welcoming Spring Break with a tribute to Judy Dow Rumelhart as part of its "Best of Broadway" series celebrating the orchestra's 75th anniversary Sponsored by the Ahn Arbor News and Mckinley real estate, this program will include per- formances by Doug Labrecque, the first and best Phantom of the Opera, Larry Henkel, Melody Racine, Deanna Relyea, S-A-T-B Quartet, members of University's Musical Theater and a finale by Rumlhart herself. Maestro Arie Lipsky commends Lipsky Rumelhart for her involvement in the community saying, "Judy certainly plays a major role in Ann Arbor, having been on the stage and behind the scenes." He considers her a "community ambassador to Broadway." Rumelhart was educated at Denison University as well as the University of Michigan, and was honored with the School of Music's Distinguished Alumni Award. Judy has gone on to hold lead roles in legendary musicals such as "Gypsy," "South Pacific," "The Mikado" and "Hello ommunity treat Dolly." Her experience as associate producer of the Broad- way hit "Swenny Todd" earned her a Drama Critic Award as well as a Tony Award. Additionally, she has made time in her busy schedule to be a devoted and committed volun- teer for nonprofit boards and organizations. The Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra is known for playing classical music. The performance on Saturday will mark the only time this year that the orchestra willplay show tunes of Best of this nature. Lipsky promises quite a show for the community. My goal as Broadway a conductor is to be a musician who Saturday at 8 p.m. puts the music first, and to make Tickets: $19-$36 sure what the composers wrote is Atthe Michigan delivered to the audience." Theater Lipsky, who has served as conduc- tor for the last four years, received extensive training as a cellist and as a flutist in his native Israel. He is also a member of the New Arts Trio, in residence at the Chau- tauqua Institute, where he serves as director of chamber music. He has garnered high praise from some of the world's best conductors, including Semyon Bychkov, music director of L'Orchestre de Paris, and Yoel Levi, former music director of the Atlanta Symphony Orches- tra, both of whom have noted his excellent technique. The performance this Saturday will highlight the softer side of the Symphony Orchestra, promising a fun time for all music lovers. In the words of Lipsky, "It will give the community the opportunity to laugh." By Jared Newman Daily Arts Writer CONCE RT REVIEW When most bands hit the road, the primary goal is to play concerts and, if possible, make a few promotional stops at radio stations and other media outlets along the way. This is not so for the Pat McGee Band, who are hyping their upcoming album, Save Me, by packing their schedule with radio promos all day, then settling Pat McGee down with a concert to top off the Band evening. That's exactly what happened Wednesday, Feb. 181 on Wednesday evening when Virginia- At the Blind Pig based pop rockers got off the tour bus to play the Blind Pig. Their latest promotional strategy allows them to make stops at such tiny venues. "We want to go out and do this college set-up tour for the record and reconnect." said Pat McGee, who sings and plays guitar for the band. "There are a lot of markets that I really wish we were able to do when the record comes out, but if we played every college that we've been used to playing; we'd never leave the mid-Atlantic." The album, 3riginally slated for February, was pushed back to April, iiih to the dismay of the group's devoted fans. McGee made it a point to apologize for the album's delay at the show, but was not hesitant to show off the new material. The second song of the night, "Set Me Free," featured the kind of melody-driven bass line that is often lacking in today's radio tunes. While the song was enjoyable, the bobbing head ratio in the crowd was low, despite hand gestures and other such efforts by drummer Chris Williams. There's no doubt that the crowd was waiting for some familiar material off of which to feed. McGee knows that this kind of thing needs to be addressed. "We have a setlist, but all of the time we're like "You know what, this room needs to hear this song right now." It was the opening chords of the slow ballad "Haven't Seen for a While" that finally drew the reaction that the band was looking for. All around the room, mouths could be seen echoing McGee's heartfelt lyrics. By now, some of the bar-hoppers had cleared out, making room for a more intimate session with the fans. The band loos- ened up accordingly, taking a stab at Billy Idol's "Eyes Without a Face" and occasionally passing shots of Crown Royal to McGee. There wasn't time for a set break, but McGee and gui- tarist Brian Fechino gave their bandmates a rest as they played a warm duet that got the crowd clapping in rhythm. There was even a little bit of extended improvi- sation that could have surprised the most devout Phish fan. Pat McGee and his sextet couldn't quite rock the pig in the usual way, probably due to the boatload of unfa- miliar material and the unsettling stress of exam week. Still, their solid brand of pop rock was an enjoyable way to let off steam before the last midterms. Futurists present their pop at the Pig 'Celebrity Spelling Bee' lays it on Thicke By Abby Stotz For the Daily will face off for spelling bragging rights while raising money for charity. As it turns out, celebrities aren't especially competent spellers. The first four to spell got their words Did you ever wonder if Norm from "Cheers" (George Wendt) can spell? How about Mr. Seaver (Alan Thicke, "Growing Pains")? What about the guy on "Designing Women" (Meshach Taylor)? To discover the spelling skills of these three and 13 other pseudo-celebrities, FOX has released "The Great American Celebrity Spelling Bee," smack dab in the middle of February sweeps. "The Great American Spelling Bee" is a three-part special, complete with a "Weakest Link" style set and hosted by John O'Hurley, a frequent "Seinfeld" guest star. Four teams of four C-list celebrities started out and by the end of the first episode, one team was eliminated. In the second episode, another team will be cut. For the third episode, it's every man for himself as the teams are disbanded and the eight individual celebrities right, but then a dry spell set in as nobody got a word correct for at least a half- hour. Nobody can spell, not Mr. Jef- ferson (Sherman Hemsley, "The Jeffersons"), Bud The Great American Celebrity Spelling Bee Fridays at 8 p.m. FOX word, pause with glassy eyes, then shout, "Simir! I need you!" Magi- cally, Simir appears on the screen, spews a one-liner and proceeds to spell the word right. "Silly celebri- ties," the little boy said at one point. "They should have called on me sooner." Watching "The Great American Spelling Bee," you can't help but agree with Simir. Seeing marginally famous people look terrified at the prospect of spelling 'cappuccino' is entertaining, and watching them plead to an 11-year-old boy for assistance just adds to the fun. So thank you famous people for being dumb, Simir for being a smart-ass and FOX for adding yet another show of good, clean, low- brow fun to the reality genre. By Emily Liu For the Daily CONCERT REVIEW Lately, Toronto has been churning out talented musical acts, such as pop-rockers Broken Social Scene and electronic noodler Manitoba. The Russian Futurists are yet another up- and-coming Toron- to band. The group features Matthew The Russian Adam Hart, a 25- Futurists year-old who com- Tuesday, Feb.17 poses heartfelt pop At the Blind Pig songs in his bed- room with his keyboards and drum machines. Hart's musical style is rem- iniscent of early Magnetic Fields, with a voice more akin to Wayne Coyne's of the Flaming Lips. The Russian Futurists envelop their sound with lush cave-like echoes, which are present on 2003's critically acclaimed Let's Get Ready to Crumble. The crowd at the Pig was sparse, due to the show's lack of publicity and the fact that it was a Tuesday night. Most of the patrons were supporters of the opening act, local band OttO Vec- tor, who need to rehearse more before unleashing their mediocre sound on the suffering public. The Russian Futurists played a short but pleasant set, performing songs This bench is awfully uncomfortable. from their two albums as well as a few new ones. Clad in endearingly nerdy polo shirts and nodding to the beat, Hart and his three bandmates appeared to enjoy themselves, despite the dead atmosphere. Hart jokingly introduced "Precious Metals" as a rap song, though it actually juxtaposed bouncy instrumentation with sadly reflective lyrics. A syncopated bass keyboard line made "Let's Get Ready to Crum- ble" an infectious song that would have been danceable if there had been more people in the audience. The Russian Futurists closed their set with "You and the Wine," a catchy pop song with mechanized handclapping. It's unfortunate that few people were present at this show, as The Russian Futurists' well-crafted pop songs trans- late nicely to the stage. Ann Arbor was the last stop on the band's brief U.S. tour, before it embarks on a tour of Spain in May. After that, Hart hopes to release his new album this summer. With any luck, more people will be lis- tening to The Russian Futurists' appealingly earnest pop songs by then. Bundy (David Faustino, "Married With Children") or even Alice Coop- er. And that's funny. There was a saving grace for the celebs though. Kept backstage is a little boy named Simir, who won the Scripps-Howard National Spelling Bee and seems to be smarter than all of the celebrities combined. When a celebrity is stuck, they can use Simir as a cheat sheet. For the last 20 minutes of the show, nearly every celebrity would listen to the By Special Arrangement with Matthew Sprizzo... Ania Marchwinska, Pianist The Incomparable Polish Contralto S S G :F'.N1 Fill , ;;' q ilsip"ll elections by: tanislaw Moniuszko 3ioacchino Rossini arol Szymanowski Jaquin Turina Antonin Dvorak EWA PODLES a