Stepping out
Cover storyJazzman delivers a thriller of his own
DURING October Avalon saxophonist Blaine Whittaker will be in a Royal Command Performance for the King of Thailand.
``I knew the king was a jazz buff, and how he flies in all these brilliant musicians,'' he said. ``In October he's flying in James Morrison and his band, of which I am a part.
Artistic show has a charitable bent
THERE is a philanthropic bent to this year's Manly Arts Festival with a number of artists and businesses helping charitable organisations.
Baby boomers bang away
WHEN Kevin Tucker told his wife he had always dreamed of being a drummer, she decided that she had heard that story for the last time.
Always in it for the long haul
FACE of The Whitlams Tim Freedman said the band hadn't reinvented the wheel musically but the lyrics were definitely original.
This is one of the reason he says The Whitlams have survived to the point of releasing a ``best of'' album.
Avalon to see return of the King
THEY'RE back - Andrew Blaxland and pianist Lionel Robinson in The King and I.
South Africa's changing face
CENTRAL to the themes of Valley Song is the need for change and this play is filled with metaphors for change.
Cellist gives life to obscure gem
ENGLISH cellist Steve Isserlis is distantly related to Felix Mendelssohn, so it was apt that he should perform ``probably for the first time in Australia, who knows?'' a piece by an obscure composer who was inspired by the great man's octet.
Formidable villain pulls all the right strings
Heroes and villains are the very stuff of dramatic opera, embodying the eternal clash between good and evil.
Awesome foursome
IN an age when hyperbole and superlatives fly willingly to our lips, it's hard to refute the claim that the Takacs is ``the greatest quartet in the world''.
Girl power with a war twist
WHEN I was 15, my father gave me a biography called Carve her Name with Pride: The Story of Violette Szabo.
