REVIEWS

TAKE3 Performance an ‘off the charts’ success

by:  JOSEPH ROSATO, a music educator who is retired from the Hazleton Area School District.

The Greater Hazleton Concert Series once again proved that it is one of the premiere suppliers of professional live entertainment to the area. Its off the charts presentation of TAKE3 was an overwhelming success.

The three in TAKE3 were three extremely talented ladies on violin, cello and piano. They were backed up by guitar and drums.

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I put the evening’s musical selections into two categories awesome and spectacular.

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The group’s leader, violinist Lindsay Deutsch, sprinted onto the stage to a dramatic performance of Neil Diamond’s “America.” Both string players wore sleeveless sequined jump suits and the stage lights created a strobe light affect. The opener received a rousing applause with cheers of approval as did every single song throughout the evening.

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The rich warm quality of the cello was heard in Willie Nelson’s “On the Road Again” and Lindsay displayed her lovely sweet voice.

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TAKE3’s sensitive and oneness of expression defined Leonard Cohen’s song of praise, “Hallelujah.” Lindsay’s mastery of pianissimo (extremely quiet) playing in the upper range of the violin was truly impressive.

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A wild mashup of Imagine Dragons’ cold hearted song “Natural” and Bizet’s opera “Carmen” was electrifying.

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First recorded by Ben E. King and later by Mickey Gilley, TAKE3’s version of “Stand By Me” started with a serene vocal solo and then transitioned into a fast jazzy instrumental.

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Continuing to display their versatility, the group received cheers for their medley of Beethoven classics that included “Moonlight Sonata,” “Fur Elise,” the opening theme from his “Fifth Symphony” and “Ode to Joy.”

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Their emotional delivery of the iconic ballad “Unchained Melody” and a powerful performance of “Game of Thrones” with its driving rhythms were both breathtaking in their own right.

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The crowd-pleasers kept coming with a brilliant arrangement of the always touching music of “West Side Story” and an equally brilliant performance of “Pirates Of The Caribbean,” which received a prolonged ovation.

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A touching performance of Louis Armstrong’s “What A Wonderful Word” was followed by “Orange Blossom Special,” which literally let out all the stops. The strings used pizzicato, double stops and a frenzy of bowing, which received whistles and another prolonged ovation.

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A mashup of a Bach melody against the beautiful “Amazing Grace” melody proved to be perfect and Elvis’ sweet “Can’t Help Falling in Love” transitioned seamlessly into his gyrating “Hound Dog.”

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TAKE3 closed this memorable entertainment experience with their driving bombastic version of “Misirlou,” an Eastern Mediterranean folk song played by bands in the 1920s.

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Bows were moving at an an amazing speed as Lindsay raced back and forth across the stage. What a vigorous finale that drew a huge ovation and earned an encore for the enthusiastic audience.

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The musicians were classically trained and that was evident in their mastery of technique, phrasing and expression. Lindsay with her fire cracker energy and personality was very entertaining.

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I don’t usually give ratings, but this surely was a five-star performance.

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TAKE3 heats up Burlington Memorial Auditorium

Civic Music's first concert of 2021 warms hearts and minds with popped-up classics.
by Bob Saar - The Hawk Eye

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The future came to Burlington Saturday night when Civic Music heralded the beginning of the end of endless coronavirus quarantines.

TAKE3 is violinist Lindsay Deutsch, cellist Mikala Schmitz and pianist Jason Stoll, Californians all, performing on the frigid banks of the frozen Mississippi River, their first live concert in nearly a year.

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But it was warm inside the auditorium, and the music on stage was hot.

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The musicians were dressed for a winter's-end party: Deutsch in black jeans and tank top, spangled with sequins from her neck to her white tennies, also sparkling; Schmitz in a multi-colored fishscale jumpsuit; Stoll staid by comparison to the women in black pants and an orange satin jungle-pattern shirt. Stoll also operated the drum machine and other musical effects including a background chorus. Three people can do only so much by themselves.

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And do they did: The opening instrumental instantly captured the audience, who were hungry for hot music after months of cold isolation. Deutsch pranced and danced and strutted and keened as Schmitz sat demurely at stage left and Stoll bounced and boogied at his keyboard on Deutsch's right.

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At times, Deutsch seemed the reincarnation of flautist Ian Anderson of rock band Jethro Tull as she leaped and frolicked and grimaced and grinned.

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TAKE3 then put forth a superb rendition of the Ben E. King classic, "Stand By Me" and Deutsch's smooth and hypnotic vocal rendition added to the illusion that the evening was taking place somewhere other than the icebox of Southeast Iowa.

More praise for BMA: the new lasers are fabulous. As TAKE3 drifted along through "Stand By Me," a cloud of blue electric fireflies swirled across the ceiling and back wall as though they'd been drawn by the music instead of the footlights.

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A mashup of a pop song and an opera led to the Leonard Cohen classic "Hallelujah," which presented the cello as a haunting solo voice before Schmitz slipped into a duet with Deutsch; the two instruments sounded almost human.Cohen didn't roll over in his grave during the song — he smiled up at the heavens.

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"We're going to get back to our roots with Beethoven," Deutsch announced, and the trio crammed six of the maestro's pieces into another mashup. After the "Moonlight Sonata" Stoll jumped into some Mozart and Deutsch ran to the piano to scold him. He just couldn't help himself.

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Deutsch said that during the past year of staying off the stage, the group recorded a CD in their homes, a "Quarantine Series" of songs filled with love and hope.

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"Imagine if, after this concert, we went home and tried to spread that to our families and friends," she said, and they stepped into the John Lennon classic, "Imagine," which sounded like the best classical chamber music we've ever heard. Lennon wasn't rolling to Deutsch's drawn-out taffy notes — he was imagining he'd found heaven right there on the Big Muddy.

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On they went, playing one long set to avoid the risks of mingling during an intermission, sailing through Aaron Copeland before alighting on the Louis Armstrong hit "What a Wonderful World," and our own world came to a quiet stop as Deutsch double-stopped our hearts into oblivion. Quick visits to "Sweet Home Alabama" and Billy Joel's "She's Got A Way" brought the evening into the final turn.

"It's been fantastic to be here," Deutsch said, and the band flattened the crowd with a stunning rendition of the Mediterranean folk song and Dick Dale surfer hit "Misirlou" that brought them to their feet again for a standing ovation.

And Schmitz did something we've never seen at a classical concert before: She got the audience — all of them — to clap along in a non-backbeat lope.

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Fantastic!

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The encore was marvelous, another mashup between Bach and "Amazing Grace," topped with yet another standing O.

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Amazing.

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At the very end of the show, Deutsch announced that their previous recordings were available in the lobby — for free, for a donation, for whatever we the audience cared to give.

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We could sense her leaning into the future as the group freed themselves of their past to make room for their new visions, just as the rest of the world is preparing to see the sun rise on the dawn of a new era: social gathering.

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TAKE3 Wows UNR Audience with Alluring Musicality
by Rylee Jackson - Nevada Sagebrush

Accompanying a packed crowd at the Nightingale Concert Hall on Nov. 7, the TAKE3 performance was bound to be a memorable one filled with a clever intermixing of classical and modern music—and that it was.

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Sporting a fiery red, sequined jumpsuit, Deutsch lit up the stage as she kicked off “Despacito,” the first song of the evening, which every one in the crowd instantly recognized. 

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It was clear that the group has an affinity for intricate mashups. Backed by intense red lighting and the theatrical fog surrounding the stage, their combination of Imagine Dragons’ “Natural” and Georges Bizet’s “Carmen” truly felt like a rock-esque experience. It was incredible to hear how each little nuance was executed and how the intensity of the song heightened toward the end, which coincided with the showmanship of the group as their arms shot up right at the end—causing the crowd to roar with rightfully earned applause.

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In between each song, Deutsch would interact with the crowd—telling stories regarding her love for classical music, which showed the group’s passion for all things music. As dramatic and emotionally dynamic the performances were, the trio balanced it out with their sense of humor as they discussed their retirement plans.

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Steering away from the fierceness of the mashup, the group turned to a gorgeous rendition of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” which represented their impressive versatility.

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The group went on to cram as many Bach and Beethoven hits into one collective song. During the mashup, the pianist jokingly played Mozart—turning into a cute bit where Deutsch stops and corrects him. The trio then transitioned into modern pop hits including the catchy “Sweet Alabama” and eventually, The Beatles’ “Yesterday”—surprising the audience as Deutsch and Metzler put their instruments down for a bit and sang the tune beautifully.

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Toward the end of the night, the “Game of Thrones” theme song received the most vocal reaction due to the show being a worldwide phenomenon. The trio’s rendition of the “Pirates of the Caribbean” score was so convincing it made the audience feel like they were in the movie theaters themselves. 

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Lastly, music from the hit film, “Pulp Fiction,” ended the intricate show on a high note—calling for a tremendous night of undisputed talent from some of the most passionate musicians around.

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Guest Musicians Help Symphony Start Year in Style

by Gwenn Friss; Cape Cod Times

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HYANNIS – Cape Symphony artistic director/conductor Jung Ho Pak introduced Wednesday’s guest performers as “four wonderful musicians who have a bridge to the past and a pathway to the future.” Nice words, but they could not prepare the audience for how exciting the New Year’s Day party would be.

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There were dozens of moments worth mentioning, but each one had a common thread: The guest musicians were so accomplished in classical music that they could easily incorporate modern techniques and twists for a sound that evoked the original piece but also made it bigger.

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Violinist Lindsay Deutsch kicked off the guest appearances, arriving on stage in a sequined jumpsuit that gathered every bit of light and cast it back into the audience. Even her flat-bottomed boat shoes were bedazzled. I never think of clothing mattering that much for symphony musicians, but this was a perfect metaphor for her performance style: She played like a column of fire – her head thrown back, her body an extension of the instrument.

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During the difficult-to-play “Summer,” from Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons,” Deutsch moved stealthily on stage, leaning in to play a passage with the orchestra and then pulling back, like dipping one’s toe into the summer creek before fully immersing.

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Cellist Leah Metzler and pianist Jason Stoll (of TAKE3) joined for mash-ups of “Natural” and “Despacito,” performances that really showed the potential for mixing music from different centuries.