Boston Conservatory

REVIEW: Vivo Performing Arts presents ‘What Makes it Great?’ with Rob Kapilow highlights the brilliance of Broadway’s Lerner and Loewe

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

What elements contribute to a great song?

On a grand piano alongside a trio of talented singers at center stage, NPR’s popular composer, conductor, and master music analyst Rob Kapilow continues his 27th year captivating audiences with his vast musical knowledge, sense of humor, and careful analysis of what makes the best songs tick.  Every note, lyric, and rhythm is meticulously constructed to bring out the excitement and enrich the scope of the piece and Rob Kapilow shows you just how they do it.  Though music styles and genres inevitably change, Rob Kapilow may make you see your favorite songs in a whole new light.

Rob Kapilow as Vivo Performing Arts presents ‘What Makes It Great’ Credit Robert Torres

Vivo Performing Arts, formally Celebrity Series of Boston, presented What Makes it Great? with Rob Kapilow live and in person at New England Conservatory’s Jordan Hall in Boston, Massachusetts for one night only Saturday, January 17 at 8PM.  This semi-interactive performance ran 90 minutes and included a short question and answer session.  Click here for more information on the performance and here for a closer look at Vivo Performing Arts’ upcoming events. Click here to learn about all of Rob Kapilow’s works including his next stop in his What Makes it Great series.


Whether you are music virtuosos or a casual music listener, Kapilow consistently offers something new that in some way will change the way you hear music for the better.  Though often speaking to a large audience, Rob Kapilow is so personal, relaxed and friendly during his talks, it often feels like a one-on-one session on a baby grand piano.  He is so popular with the Vivo Performing Arts crowd, he offers at least two appearances a season tackling everything from swing to dance to classical to Broadway music revealing each song’s inherent brilliance.

Rob Kapilow, Emily Albrink and Ben Jones in Vivo Performing Arts Presents ‘What Makes it Great’ Credit Robert Torres

Featuring a few of American lyricist and librettist Alan Jay Lerner and Austrian composer Frederick Loewe’s classic Broadway songs from Camelot, My Fair Lady and Brigadoon, Kapilow uses a mix of sophistication, humor and an easy to follow delivery to explore each song’s appeal and emotional undertones through its carefully selected musical notes. 

Delving into the Golden Age of Broadway as well as Lerner and Loewe’s dynamic history, Kapilow chose a selection of lighthearted and dreamy songs as well as pivotal numbers from musicals that leads to a character’s imminent transformation.  With humor and grace, Kapilow also reveals what each song might have sounded like without its individuality and as he peels back each layer, What Makes It Great? becomes an eye-opening experience. 

Calling on a couple of Broadway love songs, Kapilow was accompanied by soprano Emily Albrink and stirring singer, actor, and musician Ben Jones.  Jones and Albrink share gorgeous harmony and lighthearted chemistry for duets Brigadoon’s Almost Like Being in Love and playful Heather on the Hill.

Rob Kapilow, Ben Jones, and Emily Albrink as Vivo Performing Arts

Touching upon Rex Harrison’s complex casting in My Fair Lady, Kapilow ties in music and lyrics which waltz together teetering on so many emotions for I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face in which Jones articulates in an animated and humorous rendition.

Rob Kapilow, Emily Albrink and Hayden Lockhart as Vivio Performing Arts presents ‘What Makes it Great’ Credit Robert Torres

In an elegant flowing dress, Albrink brimmed with excitement evident is her full and rich vibrato as she delivered an exuberant rendition of My Fair Lady’s I Could Have Danced All Night.  In a jacket, tie, and bathed in rose lighting, Jones croons, mastering the complex and emotional weight of Camelot’s stirring ballad If Ever I Should Leave You, before concluding with a bold finish. 

Rob Kapilow, Emily Albrink, and Ben Jones as Vivo Performing Arts presents ‘What Makes it Great’ Credit Robert Torres

From classic songs and American Standards such as It’s Almost like Being in Love from Brigadoon to the high-spirited I Could Have Danced All Night from  My Fair Lady to a humorous and not to be missed I Remember it Well from Gigi, Rob shows how compulsive American lyricist Lerner of the famed retail stores and poverty-raised and frugal Austrian composer Loewe poured themselves and their imaginations into their music to create some real Broadway magic.

Vivo Performing Arts, formally Celebrity Series of Boston, presented What Makes it Great? with Rob Kapilow live and in person at New England Conservatory’s Jordan Hall in Boston, Massachusetts for one night only Saturday, January 17 at 8PM.  Click here for more information on the performance and here for a closer look at Vivo Performing Arts’ upcoming events. Click here to learn about all of Rob Kapilow’s works including his next stop in his What Makes it Great series.

REVIEW: Featuring Grammy award-winning mezzo-soprano Krista River and special guest musicians, A Far Cry ended season with a stirring ‘Sunset’

Posted on by The Sleepless Critic

Having witnessed A Far Cry’s triumphant return to performing live and in person last September as they kicked off their 15th season with Circle of Life, it was an honor and fitting to review Sunset, A Far Cry’s final concert of the season.  Sunset was originally scheduled for March 2020 and this Grammy-nominated, self-directed chamber orchestra was thrilled to finally present it onstage.  With a heartfelt introduction by Sarah Darling, Boston-based A Far Cry brought a diverse repertoire of suspense, tragedy, and soaring vocals by mezzo-soprano Krista River before joining a collection of promising musicians including Project STEP for a robust finale.

A Far Cry criers at Jordan Hall Boston MA Photo credit to A Far Cry

Following opening group Project STEP, A Far Cry took the gorgeous Jordan Hall stage in Boston, MA for their final concert on Friday, May 13 for 90 minutes with no intermission.  A Far Cry will cap off their 15th season with a Spring Soiree on June 1 at the Nathaniel Allen Center for Arts and Culture in Newton, MA.  The event includes a sneak peek of next season, outdoor cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and a charity auction with the option to attend in person or virtually.  Click here for more information and here for a look at A Far Cry’s upcoming season.

Grammy-nominated Chamber Orchestra A Far Cry Photo courtesy of A Far Cry

Elegantly dressed in flowing dresses and suits, A Far Cry opened their final concert with all 18 criers for Julius Eastman’s Joy Boy.  A piece likened to the feeling of falling in love, Joy Boy has a trickling and mounting intensity as the orchestra gradually comes to life.  It is fascinating to watch the ebb and flow in Joy Boy’s soothing opening rhythms which escalate to a gripping crescendo before lulling into its resonating finale.

Imagine moments before a stunning discovery in a suspenseful film.  That’s the escalating tension built around Lutoslawski’s fiery Musique Funebre, Spanish for Funeral Music.  A Far Cry performs this chilling and somber dirge with rich, Hitchcockian flair enhanced by a stroke of the viola and plucking, creeping rhythms.  Fueled by searing drama and violin-tinged, pulsing urgency, A Far Cry plays furiously to bring this masterful work to an exciting and astounding climax that might leave you with a few goose bumps by the finale.

‘Il Tramonto Photo credit to Sarah Darling/A Far Cry

Led by Grammy award-winning mezzo-soprano Krista River’s airy and soaring vocals, A Far Cry took on Respighi’s classic piece, Il Tramonto, which is an Italian phrase translated as The Sunset.  It is a popular piece having been featured in films such as the western classic, The Good the Bad and the Ugly.  Adorned in a shimmering blue gray gown with her hair swept into an updo, River’s expressive vocals and her stirring countenance brings out the surreal poignancy of this tragic romance.  Based on a poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley, Il Tramonto has a moving story behind it and possibly inspired by a real life disaster in Indonesia. 

Mezzo-soprano Krista River Photo credit to A Far Cry

A Far Cry recalled how music has been “cathartic journey” and like many in the arts and beyond, the love for the arts has been tested, especially in the last few years.  Joined by promising musicians in New England Conservatory, NEC Prep, and Project STEP, A Far Cry brought this concert to a robust and wondrous close with Vicente Lusitano’s Aspice Domine and Ralph Vaughan Williams’s Fantasia on a Theme, the latter dedicated to an inspiring teacher that encouraged young musicians to pursue their musical aspirations.  Highlighted by a duo of skilled violinists, this group of musicians brought A Far Cry’s 15th season to a glorious close with a mix of fragility, power, and a stirring finale.

Students in Project STEP Photo credit to Project STEP/A Far Cry

A Far Cry will cap off their 15th season with a Spring Soiree on June 1 at the Nathaniel Allen Center for Arts and Culture in Newton, MA.  The event includes a sneak peek of next season, outdoor cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, and a charity auction with the option to attend in person or virtually.  Click here for more information and here for a look at A Far Cry’s upcoming season.