Dowland to Dylan: A Sunday Song Recital at the Chan
Most recitals stay politely inside one century. On Sunday, November 8, at 3pm, mezzo-soprano Ema Nikolovska and guitarist Sean Shibe bring a programme called Orlando to the Telus Studio Theatre at UBC's Chan Centre, and it travels from John Dowland's lute songs to Bob Dylan's Masters of War and Laurie Anderson's O Superman in a single afternoon. The Vancouver Recital Society presents it, and general admission is $68.
One knight, many centuries
The thread is Orlando, the wandering knight who turns up in the medieval Chanson de Roland, in Ariosto's epic poem and, much later, in Virginia Woolf's 1928 novel. Nikolovska describes the project as courtly love, conflict, identity and the life of the troubadour, and the set list follows that idea across the centuries: Schubert, Thomas Adès and Detlev Glanert's Orlando songs sit beside Pauline Viardot, Linda Catlin Smith and two new commissions, from Sasha Scott and Cassandra Miller.
It is one voice and one guitar for the whole programme, so this is a listening afternoon rather than a spectacle. Seating is general admission, which means the couple who arrives early gets the better view.
Who it suits
This is a date for two people who like music that tells a story, and it works especially well when one of you knows Schubert and the other knows Dylan. Each of you will hear something familiar and something new. If either of you needs a full orchestra to stay awake on a Sunday, skip it. At $68 a seat it is not a cheap afternoon, but a programme built this carefully, with two new pieces in it, is worth the money for anyone curious about where song has been.
Making an afternoon of UBC
Get coffee at Great Dane on campus first, then walk over to the Chan Centre for the 3pm start. Afterwards, Koerner's Pub is a couple of minutes away for an early pint and a friendly argument about whether O Superman belongs next to Dowland. The 99 B-Line and the R4 both run to UBC if you would rather not park.
The Recital Society takes 15% off when you buy three or more of its concerts in one transaction. If this one lands, harpsichordist Jean Rondeau plays the following Sunday, November 15.
Make a date of it
See Ema Nikolovska and Sean Shibe at the Chan Centre. Build an itinerary with nearby stops, at your pace.
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