– Molly Blank Concert Series returns with Israel-born clarinetist digging deep into Brazilian music, other styles –
The Breman Museum is pleased to announce that its beloved Molly Blank Concert Series returns after a two-year pandemic-caused pause with Anat Cohen Quartetinho in concert on Sunday, November 20. The 4 p.m. concert and reception will launch the Breman’s three-program Molly Blank Concert Series.
Quartetinho (pronounced “quar-te-CHIN-yo”) is Brazilian for little quartet, and on the tour that brings prolific jazz star Cohen to Atlanta, she is playing with her brand-new group. In addition to its namesake leader (clarinet and bass clarinet), Anat Cohen Quartetinho features Vitor Gonçalves (accordion and piano), Tal Mashiach (bass and 7-string guitar) and James Shipp (percussion, vibraphone and electronics). The group was birthed from Cohen’s Grammy-nominated ensemble Tentet (of which each musician in Quartetinho also is a member) that released the highly lauded album “Triple Helix” in 2019.
Hailing from Israel, the U.S. and Brazil, this new quartet expands the deeply rooted Brazilian influences of Cohen’s music to embrace exciting new sonorities, including acoustic and electronic sounds.
“We are thrilled to welcome back the Molly Blank Concert Series with a talented lineup starting with Anat Cohen Quartetinho,” Breman Executive Director Leslie Gordon says. “As an Israeli musician known for explorations in Brazilian music, Anat well represents the diverse expressions of Jewish culture that our Breman Museum audience embraces.”
Reuniting for a concert titled “Joe Alterman & Houston Person: Together Again” at the Breman Museum on March 19, pianist Alterman and saxophonist Person will dig into standards of the Great American Songbook.
Togetherness is a key component for these musicians who are decades apart in age but totally simpatico on stage. “Houston and I have such a fun time performing together,” Alterman says of his collaborations with legendary saxman, “and there are smiles all around when we play -- both on our faces and those in the audience.”
The late, great Ramsey Lewis called Alterman’s music, Happy music with tasty meat on the bones. The pianist believes that description describes what’s in store for “Together Again” perfectly, with swing, funk, soul and blues on the menu.
George Gershwin (1898-1937), “America’s Composer,” synthesized jazz, classical music, opera, and ragtime into his unique style. His brother Ira (1896-1983), collaborated with George as a lyricist, and together they wrote some of the most memorable songs of the Twentieth Century.
The Gershwins were born Yakov and Israel Gershowitz to Ukrainian Jews in New York City. George was a charismatic extrovert who became a huge celebrity. When he attended parties, he was always at the piano or dancing. He never married and supposedly said, ““Why should I limit myself to only one woman when I can date as many women as I want?” Ira was the polar opposite: shy, bookish, and a dedicated family man. Together they changed American popular music.
In this delightful hybrid of concert and cabaret, performers will weave the Gershwins’ fascinating life story with performances of some of their biggest know songs like “I Got Rhythm,”, “S’Wonderful,” “They Can’t Take That Away from Me,” “Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off,” and “A Foggy Day (in London Town).”
