This Weekend: The Houston Symphony’s Got Rhythm — for Jazz-Lovers and Kids Alike

This Weekend: The Houston Symphony’s Got Rhythm — for Jazz-Lovers and Kids Alike

Houston Symphony presents Get Up and Dance! for families (photo by Melissa Taylor)

THIS WEEKEND, THE Houston Symphony teams up with the pianist Marcus Roberts, bassist Rodney Jordan, and drummer Jason Marsalis for Jazz, Love, & Gershwin: A Century of Rhapsody in Blue, a unique unpacking of George Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, originally scored in 1924 for solo piano and Paul Whiteman’s jazz ensemble.


Beginning with a solo clarinet trill on a low F natural that with a sigh and a scream sails upwards two-and-a-half octaves into the stratosphere, Rhapsody is a melting pot of musical inspirations, including early 20th-century jazz, that era’s modern European composers, and the Jewish music of Gershwin’s youth. For this weekend’s performances, Roberts’s trio will transform Rhapsody’s piano solos, interludes, and cadenzas into newly conceived moments of improvised interplay, paying homage to the music of early 20th-century African-American originators Gershwin and many other Jewish American composers felt a kinship with. Rounding out the program is Grammy Award-winning jazz singer Catherine Russell, who will join Roberts and the Symphony, led by Principal POPS conductor Steven Reineke, for a set of love songs by Gershwin (with lyrics by his brother Ira), including “The Man I Love,” “Embraceable You,” and “I Got Rhythm,” songs that are now standards of jazz repertoire. The concerts take place Friday through Sunday (Feb. 2-4) at Jones Hall.

Cat Russell

Martin Jaffe

Jason Marsalis


For parents whose kids are already bobbing their heads to music, this Saturday’s PNC Family Series concert Get Up and Dance! is a great way to introduce the wee ones to dance rhythms from around the world. Houston Symphony assistant conductor Gonzalo Farias will lead the orchestra in such groovy numbers as Ary Barroso’s Brazil (samba), Scott Joplin’s The Entertainer (ragtime), and Aaron Copland’s “Hoedown” from Rodeo. (Did somebody say RODEO???) In the Jones Hall lobby, kids are invited to try out various orchestral instruments at the symphony’s popular “Instrument Petting Zoo” and enjoy dance ribbon crafting, coloring, and a performance by the Folklorico Dancers. Get Up and Dance! takes place Feb. 3 at 10am and 11:30am.

Art + Entertainment
Ancient French Wellness Cures Reimagined at Houston’s Escape Spa: The Power of Vichy

Serial entrepreneur and spa visionary LeBrina Jackson

NESTLED IN THE heart of France, the town of Vichy holds a rich history in the world of wellness and hydrotherapy. Acquiring fame for their alkaline springs in the 17th century, the Romans were among the first to recognize the therapeutic benefits of the springs. They established a French spa known as “Vichy,” which still exists today and continues to attract spa-goers from around the world to experience the transformative effects of hydrotherapy.

Keep Reading Show less

Betty Hrncir, Sidney Faust, Julie Baker Finck

ACTUAL WINTER WEATHER was in the forecast the night of the Winter Ball, benefiting the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation and honoring the Women of Distinction, a festive and fitting detail that sparked a flurry of conversation at the Omni Hotel.

Keep Reading Show less
Parties

Concert of Arias finalists on the Wortham stage, including first place and audience choice winner Geonho Lee of South Korea, third from left. (Photo by Michael Bishop)

LONG ONE OF the HGO’s most exciting evenings on the calendar — Artistic and Music Director Patrick Summers called it the best night of the year — the 37th Annual Concert of Arias and gala dinner afterward dazzled and inspired opera fans.

Keep Reading Show less
Art + Entertainment