Hip Harpist's NYC Double-Bill: "One Way...And Another" - 03/12/08 06:47 PM
Known as the "wild woman of the harp," GRAMMY-nominated composer/performer Deborah Henson-Conant brings her fusion of music, theater, stories and humor to Manhattan's Symphony Space. "One Way...and Another" showcases two separate concerts: "One Way" at 7:30 pm, featuring her favorite works from the past 15 years; and "...and Another" at 9:30 pm, premiering new pieces. Both concerts are soaked with cross-genre music ranging in style from flamenco and blues to heart-wrenching ballads, all complimented by Henson-Conant's singing and story-telling.
Known for her renegade image, evocative singing voice and a stage presence that combines bigger-than-life with down-to-earth authenticity, her shows blur the line between musical performance and theatrical event. Over the past 25 years, she has revolutionized harp-playing and the instrument itself by collaborating with builders to create a new hybrid harp she straps on and plays like a 31-string guitar. According to the The Denver Post, she's "doing for the harp what Chuck Berry and Elvis did for the guitar." Considered the world's premiere jazz harpist in the '90s, she has since evolved her own personal style melding classical, jazz, cabaret and musical theater values.
Henson-Conant's most recent project, Invention & Alchemy, an original work with symphony orchestra, is three-tiered: a GRAMMY-nominated CD, a PBS TV special and a full-length concert DVD. Over the years, she has toured as a soloist with the Boston Pops; premiered her own eclectic-concertos with ensembles from the National Symphony Orchestra to the Prague Radio Orchestra; played jazz clubs and opera houses in Germany and Celtic Festivals in France; opened for Ray Charles at Tanglewood; headlined at the Edinburgh Fringe; jammed onstage with Bobby McFerrin and offstage with Aerosmith's Steve Tyler; been featured on NBC, CBS, CNN and NPR; and hosted TV shows for BET and BBC Affiliates.
WHEN: Friday, March 21 - 7:30pm & 9:30pm
LOCATION: 2537 Broadway at 95th Street, NYC
DIRECTIONS: Train 1/2/3 to 96th
Tix: (212) 864-5400 / SymphonySpace.org
$20-25; Extra discount if you buy tix to both shows
Known for her renegade image, evocative singing voice and a stage presence that combines bigger-than-life with down-to-earth authenticity, her shows blur the line between musical performance and theatrical event. Over the past 25 years, she has revolutionized harp-playing and the instrument itself by collaborating with builders to create a new hybrid harp she straps on and plays like a 31-string guitar. According to the The Denver Post, she's "doing for the harp what Chuck Berry and Elvis did for the guitar." Considered the world's premiere jazz harpist in the '90s, she has since evolved her own personal style melding classical, jazz, cabaret and musical theater values.
Henson-Conant's most recent project, Invention & Alchemy, an original work with symphony orchestra, is three-tiered: a GRAMMY-nominated CD, a PBS TV special and a full-length concert DVD. Over the years, she has toured as a soloist with the Boston Pops; premiered her own eclectic-concertos with ensembles from the National Symphony Orchestra to the Prague Radio Orchestra; played jazz clubs and opera houses in Germany and Celtic Festivals in France; opened for Ray Charles at Tanglewood; headlined at the Edinburgh Fringe; jammed onstage with Bobby McFerrin and offstage with Aerosmith's Steve Tyler; been featured on NBC, CBS, CNN and NPR; and hosted TV shows for BET and BBC Affiliates.
WHEN: Friday, March 21 - 7:30pm & 9:30pm
LOCATION: 2537 Broadway at 95th Street, NYC
DIRECTIONS: Train 1/2/3 to 96th
Tix: (212) 864-5400 / SymphonySpace.org
$20-25; Extra discount if you buy tix to both shows