Sonata: A Memoir of Pain and the Piano by Andrea Avery

Summary from Goodreads:
Andrea, already a promising and ambitious classical pianist at twelve, was diagnosed with a severe case of rheumatoid arthritis that threatened not just her musical aspirations but her ability to live a normal life. As Andrea navigates the pain and frustration of coping with RA alongside the usual travails of puberty, college, sex, and just growing-up, she turns to music—specifically Franz Schubert's sonata in B-flat D960, and the one-armed pianist Paul Wittgenstein for strength and inspiration. The heartbreaking story of this mysterious sonata—Schubert’s last, and his most elusive and haunting—is the soundtrack of Andrea's story.

Sonata is a coming-of-age story that explores a “Janus-head miracle”—Andrea's extraordinary talent and even more extraordinary illness—in a manner reminiscent Brain on Fire and Poster Child. As the goshawk becomes a source of both devotion and frustration for Helen Macdonald in H Is for Hawk, so the piano comes to represent both struggle and salvation for Andrea in this extraordinary debut.

Sonata is a beautifully written, unflinching look at how a pianist has fought and accommodated her disease, even as it tried to close off her instrument. This is not Inspiration Lit. Avery doesn't triumph over adversity to nab a Juilliard scholarship, recording contract, and massive acclaim as a concert pianist. She allows us to see her anger, her loss at not being given a fair shake to see where her talent might take her before RA decided that she wasn't allowed to know if her joints would reliably function. That some days are good, some days are bad, and some days are awful. How being an adult with a chronic illness and disability impacted her relationships, romantic and otherwise. Mixed into Avery's story are the stories of Franz Schubert, a gifted composer ahead of his time who wrote the B-flat sonata that calls to her, and Paul Wittgenstein, a concert pianist who lost an arm in WWI.

Avery has a very nice writing style.  Straightforward but also illustrative without getting ornate. Someday, I hope she writes about being an English teacher, too, since she gives us a small glimpse into her life as an instructor and it sounds like she can give us some stories there, too.

Dear FTC: I received a digital galley from the publisher via Edelweiss.

Gone: A Girl, a Violin, a Life Unstrung by Min Kym

Summary from Goodreads:
The spellbinding memoir of a violin virtuoso who loses the instrument that had defined her both on stage and off -- and who discovers, beyond the violin, the music of her own voice

Her first violin was tiny, harsh, factory-made; her first piece was "Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star." But from the very beginning, Min Kym knew that music was the element in which she could swim and dive and soar. At seven years old, she was a prodigy, the youngest ever student at the famed Purcell School. At eleven, she won her first international prize; at eighteen, violinist great Ruggiero Ricci called her "the most talented violinist I've ever taught." And at twenty-one, she found "the one," the violin she would play as a soloist: a rare 1696 Stradivarius. Her career took off. She recorded the Brahms concerto and a world tour was planned. Then, in a London cafe, her violin was stolen. She felt as though she had lost her soulmate, and with it her sense of who she was. Overnight she became unable to play or function, stunned into silence.

In this lucid and transfixing memoir, Kym reckons with the space left by her violin's absence. She sees with new eyes her past as a child prodigy, with its isolation and crushing expectations; her combustible relationships with teachers and with a domineering boyfriend; and her navigation of two very different worlds, her traditional Korean family and her music. And in the stark yet clarifying light of her loss, she rediscovers her voice and herself.


Gone is a really interesting memoir about musical talent and identity. Kym is a violinist who is one of the true child prodigies, who conquers the the toughest pieces in the violin literature at an impossibly young age, and whose 1696 Stradivarius violin was stolen at the height of her career. Her memoir looks at not just her career, but the toll it took on her, how much her career and training pushed against her Korean upbringing, and how she succumbed to a bad relationship that may later have led to some really bad decisions.

The writing style is very interesting. It isn't very polished but winds around, almost stream of consciousness at times. She really tries to get at the heart of performing at such a high level so young. Kym also pushes into the period of depression and mourning she went through after her violin was stolen.  A violinist's relationship to the violin as instrument becomes very personal, almost like a child or a partner, which is a much different relationship that one I am familiar with as a pianist.  As a pianist, you can't tote your instrument around and get to make-do with what you find at your venue (if you're super-famous/fancy/loaded, you can rent the piano of your choice as you tour).

You may start reading Gone to see whether Kym gets her violin back, but you'll stay for her journey.

Edited to add: Kym is releasing an album of violin music played on her Strad on July 18, 2017.

Dear FTC: I received a digital galley from the publisher via Edelweiss.

Florence Foster Jenkins: The Life of the World's Worst Opera Singer by Darryl W. Bullock

Summary from Goodreads:
"Probably the most complete and absolute lack of talent ever publicly displayed." —Life Magazine

Madame Jenkins couldn't carry a tune in a bucket: despite that, in 1944 at the age of 76, she played Carnegie Hall to a capacity audience and had celebrity fans by the score. Her infamous 1940s recordings are still highly-prized today. In his well-researched and thoroughly entertaining biography, Darryl W. Bullock tells of Florence Foster Jenkins meteoric rise to success and the man who stood beside her, through every sharp note.

Florence was ridiculed for her poor control of timing, pitch, and tone, and terrible pronunciation of foreign lyrics, but the sheer entertainment value of her caterwauling packed out theatres around the United States, with the 'singer' firmly convinced of her own talent, partly thanks to the devoted attention for her husband and manager St Clair Bayfield. Her story is one of triumph in the face of adversity, courage, conviction and of the belief that with dedication and commitment a true artist can achieve anything.

*Note: This is not the movie tie-in book, which can be found here and which I have not read.

I knew of Florence Foster Jenkins back when I was still singing (read: before I ruined my voice in college).  My voice teacher brought her up whenever she thought my singing was too "wooden" - Madame had a terrible voice, but so was very entertaining.  But I had never actually heard a recording of her voice.

Florence Foster Jenkins came out to somewhere between "good" and "ok." The actual book construction feels a little uneven and jumps around which gives the biography a "soapy" feel (he quotes the wretchedly bitchy Simon Doonan - in a soundbite that should just die and I'm not going to repeat it here - who wasn't even born when Madame died in 1944). However, what Bullock did do was evoke a lot of sympathy for his subject.  Florence Foster Jenkins was a moneyed Society lady who clearly LOVED classical music, had once been a talented classical pianist, and had the wherewithal to indulge her passion despite (or because of) her lack of voice.

You can still purchase Madame's recordings (just search "Florence Foster Jenkins" on iTunes and it appears they are being reissues on vinyl/CD). I can only take listening to the iTunes samples because it's just too awful. The recordings were made when she was in her 60s/70s and if she ever had a decent voice it is long gone. It's too cruel to laugh at her for merely being an eccentric elderly lady.

Dear FTC: I received an ARC of this book from the publisher at Book Expo America.

Your Song Changed My Life by Bob Boilen

Summary from Goodreads:
From the beloved host and creator of NPR’s All Songs Considered and Tiny Desk Concerts comes an essential oral history of modern music, told in the voices of iconic and up-and-coming musicians, including Dave Grohl, Jimmy Page, Michael Stipe, Carrie Brownstein, Smokey Robinson, and Jeff Tweedy, among others—published in association with NPR Music.

Is there a unforgettable song that changed your life?

NPR’s renowned music authority Bob Boilen posed this question to some of today’s best-loved musical legends and rising stars. In Your Song Changed My Life, Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), St. Vincent, Jónsi (Sigur Rós), Justin Vernon (Bon Iver), Cat Power, David Byrne (Talking Heads), Dave Grohl (Nirvana, Foo Fighters), Jeff Tweedy (Wilco), Jenny Lewis, Carrie Brownstein (Portlandia, Sleater-Kinney), Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens), Colin Meloy (The Decemberists), Trey Anastasio (Phish), Jackson Browne, Valerie June, Philip Glass, James Blake, and other artists reflect on pivotal moments that inspired their work.

For Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, it was discovering his sister’s 45 of The Byrds’ “Turn, Turn, Turn.” A young St. Vincent’s life changed the day a box of CDs literally fell off a delivery truck in front of her house. Cat Stevens was transformed when he heard John Lennon cover “Twist and Shout.” These are the momentous yet unmarked events that have shaped these and many other musical talents, and ultimately the sound of modern music.

A diverse collection of personal experiences, both ordinary and extraordinary, Your Song Changed My Life illustrates the ways in which music is revived, restored, and revolutionized. It is also a testament to the power of music in our lives, and an inspiration for future artists and music lovers.

Amazing contributors include: Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), Carrie Brownstein (Sleater-Kinney, Portlandia, Wild Flag), Smokey Robinson, David Byrne (Talking Heads), St. Vincent, Jeff Tweedy (Wilco), James Blake, Colin Meloy (The Decemberists), Trey Anastasio (Phish), Jenny Lewis (Rilo Kiley), Dave Grohl (Nirvana, Foo Fighters), Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens), Sturgill Simpson, Justin Vernon (Bon Iver), Cat Power, Jackson Browne, Michael Stipe (R.E.M.), Philip Glass, Jónsi (Sigur Rós), Hozier, Regina Carter, Conor Oberst (Bright Eyes, and others), Courtney Barnett, Chris Thile (Nickel Creek, Punch Brothers), Leon Bridges, Sharon Van Etten, and many more.

This is going to be a very quick review, since the value of Your Song Changed My Life is in the reading.  I really enjoyed the combination of interview, musicology, and memoir that Boilen used to construct each chapter of the book.  He also got a nice range of artists, although I would have liked one or two beyond Phillip Glass who leaned more toward classical music (just my personal preference).  Boilen has a huge musical range - he would have to, given the sheer number of musical acts he sees every year - and he makes it all very readable.  Some of the artists' inspirations are very surprising.  Definitely a great book for any aspiring musician.

Dear FTC: I started with a DRC of this book then bought a hardcover.

The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee

Summary from Goodreads:
Lilliet Berne is a sensation of the Paris Opera, a legendary soprano with every accolade except an original role, every singer’s chance at immortality. When one is finally offered to her, she realizes with alarm that the libretto is based on a hidden piece of her past. Only four could have betrayed her: one is dead, one loves her, one wants to own her. And one, she hopes, never thinks of her at all. As she mines her memories for clues, she recalls her life as an orphan who left the American frontier for Europe and was swept up into the glitzy, gritty world of Second Empire Paris. In order to survive, she transformed herself from hippodrome rider to courtesan, from empress’s maid to debut singer, all the while weaving a complicated web of romance, obligation, and political intrigue.

Featuring a cast of characters drawn from history, The Queen of the Night follows Lilliet as she moves ever closer to the truth behind the mysterious opera and the role that could secure her reputation -- or destroy her with the secrets it reveals.

The second I heard that Alexander Chee had a novel coming out about a Belle Époque opera singer with a secret I went on a mission to figure out how I might ferret out an advance copy.  I put The Queen of the Night on pre-order in hardback but I knew I was going to need time to read, and re-read, and digest.  Basically, I just want to snuggle the book and pet it because it is that good so I'll try and write something reasonably coherent.

Lilliet Berne is what is known as a Falcon soprano (named for the first such singer, Cornélie Falcon), with a voice of incredible darkness and power but a very fragile physical instrument.  Lilliet's secrets have secrets, secrets that could be deadly.  When she is offered an original role, an accolade that would cap her career, the opera's libretto threatens to bring her secrets to light.  The librettist is an unknown, the novel it is based on unknown to Lilliet.  As she recalls her life, delving through many layers of intrigue and disguise to determine which person betrayed her, the reader begins to wonder: who is Lilliet and what will happen to her?

The Queen of the Night is a novel at the intersection of Romanticism and Realism, two major movements in nineteenth-century art.  The surreal nesting of Lilliet's many-layered life inside the harsh reality of an orphan in Paris during the Second Empire.  The sturm und drang of the opera next to the monotony of being a grisette in Empress Eugénie's vast wardrobe.  The glittering heights of celebrity outline the horrifying years when Lilliet is treated as a possession.  Were this to become an opera, Verdi would have to compose the music.

Throughout the novel, Lilliet muses on the ideas of fate, hubris, and vengeance, giving us a glorious line:

...the gods did not kill for hubris - for hubris, they let you live long enough to learn. (p46)

Lilliet is the Queen of the Night - a role she loves for its dark power and famous for the fiendishly difficult "Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen"/"The vengeance of hell boils in my heart," is Carmen - trapped by the hand of cards dealt to her, is Violetta - caught between her heart and her past as a courtesan, is Leonora - the casualty of a revenge plot decades in the making.  As Lilliet notes: "victory, defeat, victory, defeat, victory, defeat."  As I was re-reading the book, I noticed that I wanted to listen to Mozart's Don Giovanni and Pucinni's Tosca.  Odd, because Giovanni is a baritone role, clearly not something Lilliet would sing, and Tosca did not premiere until 1900, well after the events of the book.  But there is something echoed in Lilliet's struggle against what she views as a curse brought on by hubris: Giovanni brazenly inviting his doom to supper and Tosca singing her haunting aria "Vissi d'arte" about art and prayer.

Tucked in among all the activity with circuses and Emperors and celebrity and opera, there is the simple story of a teenage girl who believes she is to blame for a karmic misfortune.  In her haste to get away she commits error after error as any inexperienced, grieving teenager might do, stumbling into misfortune and by sheer strength of will and cleverness keeping herself alive.  She becomes the famous Lilliet, leaving the adult woman to salvage what is left of the little girl from the Minnesota prairie.  Whatever your thoughts on opera as a music form, this coming-of-age tale with its mysterious twists and turns is the heart of Chee's novel.  A brilliant book to start 2016. 

Bellissima.  Bellissimo. Bravo.

PS: If you aren't familiar with opera - it isn't all Valkyries with blond braids and Viking hats, trust me - I suggest the following list of discs to check out:
Renée Fleming, "The Beautiful Voice", "Bel Canto", "Renée Fleming"
Jonas Kaufmann, "The Verdi Album", "The Best of Jonas Kaufmann"
Bryn Terfel, "Bad Boys", 1996 Don Giovanni recording
Joyce DiDonato, "Drama Queens", "Diva Divo"
José Carreras, "Passion"
The #1 Opera Album and The #1 Opera Album II - these are compilations with both older and newer recordings but wide range

Dear FTC: I did a first-read of this novel using a DRC provided by the publisher via Edelweiss and then I bought a copy because why the hell wouldn't I?

The Piano Shop on the Left Bank

Summary from Goodreads:
Walking his two young children to school every morning, Thad Carhart passes an unassuming little storefront in his Paris neighborhood. Intrigued by its simple sign — Desforges Pianos — he enters, only to have his way barred by the shop's imperious owner.
Unable to stifle his curiosity, he finally lands the proper introduction, and a world previously hidden is brought into view. Luc, the atelier's master, proves an indispensable guide to the history and art of the piano. Intertwined with the story of a musical friendship are reflections on how pianos work, their glorious history, and stories of the people who care for them, from amateur pianists to the craftsmen who make the mechanism sing. The Piano Shop on the Left Bank is at once a beguiling portrait of a Paris not found on any map and a tender account of the awakening of a lost childhood passion.

I picked up a copy of this book quite some time ago - certainly before I moved and was able to purchase my piano - but never got around to reading it until now.  This is a lovely short memoir - with a bit of history about piano construction thrown in for flavor - that demonstrates that a chance meeting can cause the return of a childhood passion.  For Carhart, that was the discovery of a piano restoration workshop/store in his Paris neighborhood; he had played a lot as a child but had let his lessons lapse.  Befriending Luc and purchasing a restored piano brought his love of music back.

I've been there.  Shortly after I moved into my new house I watched a documentary on the making of Steinway pianos, visited the Steinway website out of curiosity, asked for a catalogue to be sent via email, and then got an email from the local Steinway dealer about an upcoming factory sale.  Fast forward about a month and I purchased a beautiful upright - I play more now than I did during my last year of high school when I had a full schedule of practice and performances.

All the Great Operas in Ten Minutes (short)

Back when Bravo and A&E actually had arts programming (in the dark ages of the early 1990s before anyone discovered the ickiness of "reality" television competitions), they would occasionally air short films between the longer programs.  Wicked cool.  I re-found this piece will looking for something else.

It's a Kim Thompson short entitled "All the Great Operas in Ten Minutes".  I love this because a) it's animated using paper art and b) it has a body count.

Play It Again: An Amateur Against the Impossible

Summary from Goodreads:
As the editor of The Guardian, Alan Rusbridger’s life is dictated by the demands of the twenty-four-hour news cycle. It is not the kind of job that leaves time for hobbies. But in the summer of 2010, Rusbridger determined to learn, in the course of a year, Chopin’s Ballade No.1 in G minor, one of the most beautiful and challenging pieces of music ever composed. With passages that demand feats of memory, dexterity, and power, even concert pianists are intimidated by its pyrotechnical requirements. Rusbridger’s timing could have been better. The next twelve months witnessed the Arab Spring and the Japanese tsunami and were bookended by The Guardian breaking two major news stories: WikiLeaks and the News of the World phone-hacking scandal. It was a defining year for The Guardian and its editor.

In Play It Again, Rusbridger recounts trying to carve out twenty minutes a day to practice, find the right teacher, the right piano, the right fingering—even if it meant practicing in a Libyan hotel in the midst of a revolution. He sought advice from legendary pianists, from historians and neuroscientists, and even occasionally from secretaries of state. But was he able to conquer the piece? A book about distraction, absorption, discipline, and desire, Play It Again resonates far beyond the realm of music, for anyone with an instinct to “wall off a small part of . . . life for creative expression.”

If you didn't know, I play the piano. Not spectacularly well (something of Elizabeth Bennet's line about not playing as well as she would wish to because she never took the time to practice hits home here), but I can play some advanced pieces. Albeit with a lot of mistakes and only in the privacy of my own home. But that is why I bought an Essex upright during a Steinway sale - I play well enough to care about having a good quality piano.

Alan Rusbridger's book Play It Again caught my eye because we are in similar positions - amateur pianists - but he takes it one step further than me: he actually plays with other amateur and professional musicians, even taking piano intensives in France.  Lucky duck.  While at one of those intensives, a fellow participant suddenly blows everyone away by playing Chopin's Ballade No. 1 in G minor.  So Rusbridger decides that, yes, he, too, can learn to play this amazingly hard (not because it is fast but because holy-crap-there-are-a-lot-of-notes-squashed-into-it) piano solo.  It's one of the holy grails of the piano literature.  Rusbridger overhauls his practice time, finds a teacher, and sets to work...then, of course, everything goes spectacularly haywire.  If it hadn't, there wouldn't be any book to read, in my opinion.

Rusbridger, in his capacity as the editor of the UK's Guardian, is uniquely poised at the outset of what turns out to be the most exhausting and exhilarating news year:  Wikileaks, the Japanese tsunami, the Arab Spring (which, as a side story, necessitates Rusbridger needing to fly to Libya to rescue a reporter), and the News of the World phone hacking scandal.  As much as Rusbridger tries to keep practicing, building his lovely music room, and interviewing major pianists - even the brilliant actor Simon Russell Beale is interviewed because he, too, is a talented pianist - he keeps later and later nights and weekends as the world's news keeps getting bigger and bigger.  A normal person might lose his or her sanity.

In a way, one could argue that music helped Rusbridger keep everything together during such a stressful year and he is successful in his quest to master such a difficult piano piece.  He inspired me to get a little more serious about my own practicing - even to the point of owning up that I never learned "proper" music theory and looked up a few workbooks to help me out (apparently, if you know and practice all your scales and arpeggios in all the keys the runs in piano pieces are much easier - who knew?).  Play It Again is a great book for aspiring pianists and even aspiring journalists - a great look at what goes into a major news publication.

Songbook

Summary from Goodreads:
McSweeney's is excited to release Songbook \226 a brand-new collection of short, personal essays by Nick Hornby on 31 of his favorite songs and songwriters. This hardcover book has 4-color illustrations by Marcel Dzama throughout and comes complete with a CD featuring 11 songs discussed within.

My dad, who loves just wandering around on eBay, had a really cool idea last year - he took my wishlist and went looking to see if any were available on eBay as signed or special copies.  And he surprised me with several things, including an original edition of Nick Hornby's Songbook complete with the original music CD.  I love Hornby's Stuff I've Been Reading columns from the Believer, and have all his essay collections, and I really wanted to read Songbook to get his perspective on music.  Each chapter is one song (in some editions, the title is actually 31 Songs) and it's interesting to read what music turns him on.  It's completely different than what turns me on, to the point that I was really unfamiliar with a few artists.  The included CD was really helpful.  The structure of the chapters is very much like his Stuff I've Been Reading writing; if you like those columns, and are a music lover as well, then give this a try.

Turn Around Bright Eyes: The Rituals of Love & Karaoke

Summary from Goodreads:
Turn Around Bright Eyes picks up Sheffield's story right after Love Is a Mix Tape. He is a young widower devastated by grief, trying to build a new life in a new town after his wife's death. As a writer for Rolling Stone, he naturally takes solace in music. But that's when he discovers the sublime ridiculousness of karaoke, and despite the fact that he can't carry a tune, he begins to find his voice. His karaoke obsession takes him to some strange places, whether that means singing a Frank Sinatra song in a senior-citizen community in Florida, attempting a Merle Haggard classic at a cowboy saloon in the Mojave desert, or clearing the room at an after-hours dive in Chinatown. But he finds the music leads him to the most surprising place of all--a new life and a new love.

Turn Around Bright Eyes is a story about finding the courage to start over, move on, and rock the mike. It's about falling in love and navigating your way through adult romance. It's about how you can learn the weirdest things about yourself just by butchering a Hall & Oates song at 2 A.M. under fluorescent lights in a room full of strangers. It's about how songs get tangled up in our deepest emotions, evoking memories of the past while inspiring hope for the future. But most of all, it's a book about all the strange ways music brings people together.

Sweet, funny, honest, and full of the music you love, hate and love to hate, Turn Around Bright Eyes is Rob Sheffield at his very best.

After jumping back to Sheffield's teenage years with Talking to Girls About Duran Duran he comes back to his adult life.  Love is a Mix Tape was a rip-your-heart-out-and-ugly-cry memoir about how he met his first wife and lost her suddenly to an aneurysm.  Turn Around Bright Eyes starts in that lost post-grief space and covers how music, specifically karaoke, held him together. It reads like a cross between memoir and music reporting (which is fun, because he writes for Rolling Stone). This is a very sweet and tender story, his writing about this tall, skinny white dude belting out "Crazy in Love" or "Church of the Poison Mind" in a seedy karaoke joint and telling us he really can't sing for realz but there is just something transformative about karaoke that makes him get up and do it.  (He gets a lot of props from me because I have only done karaoke a few times and, as a singer, sucked balls at it and so never wanted to try it again.) Also, I'd love to meet his second wife because she sounds awesome.

The Voice: Live Eliminations April 24, 2012

Yet another Tuesday elimination on The Voice. 

Ooh, Florence + The Machine!!!!  New single, "New Light, New Light" (I really have to buy Ceremonials).  I love how it's a great mix of rock, pop, and New Age-y (hey, there's Team CeeLo up there, too).

Who did America save (apparently Tony and Juliette hit #1 and #2 on the rock charts on iTunes)?
Team Adam:  Tony (I was pretty sure he would get through - it was a performance that people would really like)
Team CeeLo:  Jamar (this was a toss up between Jamar and Juliette for me - both gave really heartfelt performances but I was hoping Juliette would get through)

Team Adam sing-off:

• Mathai - she chose "Cowboy Casanova" and it sounded pretty good. I'm not sure if she connected with the song well; I got emotion in that arm that was flailing around but not in her voice.  The band overshadowed her a bit much so maybe not the best arrangement.  (I'm not sure why Carson talks to the coaches for the first performer, then rushes the others)
• Katrina - she chose "Perfect".  A good choice for her since the words fit the situation and she could really belt, use the emotion.  Great praise from Christina - I'd like to hear original material from Katrina for sure.

Adam saved: Katrina.  Thank god - Adam rambled so long I had no idea where he was going (I just realized that it has to blow standing up there while the other three coaches say who they would save and none of them say your name - I would barf fer shiz while waiting).  Mathai is a doll, though, and I hope that the record execs are watching and give her a chance.

Team CeeLo sing-off:

• Cheesa - she chose "Already Gone".  Eeep, she started off with the breathy thing and it was pretty flat all over.  Ack.  Hmmm, even the chorus was a bit flat, but better as she went on.  Oh Blake, just because you hit the big note doesn't erase the poor breath support throughout.  Even though not everyone is perfect all the time, you have to do it when it counts.
• Juliette - she chose "Torn".  Also, another great choice because she could use the power and the nerves to get into the song.  She just kills it, every time.  I said it yesterday, I love her.  Love. Her.  AND she hit every note.  (I'm a technical singer - remember?  You get off pitch, you find your way back, ASAP)

CeeLo saved: Juliette, yes!!!! (uh, did Adam duck out?  No Adam commentary on who CeeLo would save?  Oh, CeeLo - Cheesa is SO NOT CLASSICALLY TRAINED.  CHRIS MANN IS CLASSICALLY TRAINED.)

Side notes:

• Dear audience: STOP YELLING while the coaches are talking; if Adam says "Shut it" then you shut it.  End of story.

The Voice: Live Quarterfinals April 23, 2012

Knowing that the coaches on The Voice (i.e. CeeLo and Adam) will have to immediately cut a singer, let's see if the performers throw down.

• Jamar - singing "It's My Life" by Bon Jovi
• A really interesting, heavy metal arrangement.  Perhaps a bit on the slow side but I was really listening to the words and Jamar's performance as opposed to comparing the performance to Bon Jovi's.  He did a great job, sang his heart out.  I hope going first doesn't hurt him in the voting.
• Katrina - singing "Jar of Hearts" by Christina Perri
• Did they get her extensions?  Or did her hair grow that much before the live rounds and it was always up before today?  I'm glad she stuck with the full voice rather than try and make it wispy, it was a much better performance.  Really solid this time, very confident.  Even the little cracks over her break worked in this song.

CeeLo and his team performed "Dancing in the Street" - the old TV/retro look wasn't quite as fun as the disco possibilities for staging (CeeLo wore a truly awful James Brown wig).  Everyone sounded pretty good.

Commercial break had a new iPhone4S ad (or, at least, new to me) with Zooey Deschanel.  A great improvement over the kid with the stupid music questions/band names.

• Mathai - singing "I'm Like a Bird" by Nelly Furtado
• Hate to say it Adam, but Mathai sounds A LOT like Nelly Furtado (and she totally got upstaged by the awesome acrobat up on the fabric trapeze or whatever it's called).  She sounded less like like Nelly Furtado by the end.  It was a good performance - I wasn't blown away but she did a good job.
• James - singing "Just the Way You Are" by Billy Joel
• Gotta hand it to CeeLo - he knows just how to pick songs to suit his artists this season.  This song really fit James's style and vocal type.  He has a really smooth tenor sound.  I personally would like a bit in a dynamic range out of him (I'm with Blake - he sang well but it just laid there).  Adam had a good idea - maybe some old school Sinatra would be good, from early-on in his career.  While James doesn't do it for me, the teen girls love him so they'll probably carry him.

Goody Mob?  Sorry, Goodie Mob.  I am not well-versed in Southern hiphop.  Should there have been more rapping?  CeeLo sounded good until the light-up grill he sported gave him a lisp.  Adam was really into it but I really didn't get it.  Maybe I had to be in the auditorium for it to work.

• Tony - singing...Carson didn't say??
• wait, what is he singing?  Oh, my god, he's singing Britney Spears.  I love it.   I love that arrangement of "Hit Me Baby One More Time" with the rock rhythm rather than the pop.  I like him so much better this week than with the Peter Gabriel.
• Cheesa - singing "I Have Nothing" by Whitney Houston
• I got goosebumps.  This is the first performance where she knocked it out of the park for me.  She didn't shy away from those high notes and just killed it.  Fantastic perfomance, very well-done (the staging looked a bit like "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" from Evita).  CeeLo looked like the cat who got the cream.
• Pip - singing "Somewhere Only We Know" by Keane
• Thank you for not wearing the bow-tie (and he does have a similar voice type to Adam).  This is a much better song choice for him.  Except for the falsetto - not my favorite part.  It was good otherwise, perhaps not better than his other three team members.

Team Adam performance (and I could do without the Christina Millian filler) of "Instant Karma".  I love how they did the accompaniment with a little assist from the Voice band (Adam didn't sing, also kind of cool).

• Juliette - singing "Crying" by Aerosmith
• Her hair is getting lighter, not sure if I like the blond.  Aerosmith is a great choice for her, just the grittiness of her voice suits the tempo and the emotion of the song.  That voice just pulls at you (what record exec listened to her and thought "girl band"??  not a smart person).  I love her.  Love. Her.  (Next week, can we please have her do some classic sixties rock?  Please?  It would be so awesome.)

Ugh, instant elimination.
CeeLo sent home (so heart-felt that he took the time to write out what he wanted to say on his BlackBerry): James.  A good choice.  Of the four singers, he was the only one not to really stretch.  He's a good singer, but not quite at the level of Juliette, Jamar, and Cheesa.
Adam sent home (poor Adam, babbling since he's stalling):  Pip.  Also a good choice.  He was pretty much neck and neck with Mathai, in my opinion. 

Tomorrow night's show should be interesting.

The Voice: Live Eliminations April 17, 2012

So after last night's cut-one-team-member bad-surprise The Voice is back to cut another member from Team Blake and Christina.

First up - a performance by British group (?techno boy band) the Wanted with an assist by Blake's team.  I wasn't really familiar with them and it was an...adequate performance.  I wasn't impressed by the song or group (and you couldn't hear Blake's team members).  I was actually more worried for the dancers considering at least one of them nearly tripped over the white backdrop when it was dropped right where they were danced.  Bad staging decision.

Who was saved (after Carson stalled for frickin' ever - srsly?)?  From Team Christina it was Chris (FUCK YEAH!!!!!!!) and America voted through Jermaine on Blake's team (surprising, I thought it would be Erin but I like him, too).

Team Christina singoff:

• Ashley chose "You and I" - I didn't quite like the quieter ending, needed a bit more of a bang but she sounded good.
• Lindsay went with "Please Don't Go" - such a good choice for her because she tapped into the coffeeshop roots she is used to; she's grown a lot because I think the Lindsay from the blind auditions wouldn't have looked at the audience or shown so much emotion

Oh, look, what a surprise (I'm with Carson - that was so not a surprise) it's Justin Bieber.  He brought a clip from his new video from "Boyfriend".  Eh, color me bored.  It was barely thirty seconds of video where he looked like an overly groomed tweener being groped by hands.  He rapped, it was OK.  (Aaaaand, he's going to be on The Voice in three weeks.  Meeeehhh)

Christina saved: Lindsay!  (I really don't have an opinion, they're both good singers and either would have been a good choice)

Team Blake singoff:

• Erin went with "Proud Mary" - it's a great choice for her vocally because she's got a big voice and she uses it.  Go Erin!
• Then RaeLynn sang "If I Die Young" - ok, that much styling is really annoying; she doesn't really talk like with such an exaggerated accent so why sing like that?  If it were my choice, I'd certainly not keep her with that accent.  Also, this song is really poignant (and sad) and she so doesn't pull that off.

Blake saved: Erin!  (Thank you, because I don't think I could have handled another week of RaeLynn.  She's cute and all but the yowling was getting out of control)

Side notes:

• caught the trailer for Dark Shadows - is it just me, or is Johnny Depp just playing yet another facet of his always-witty-and-wacky Captain Jack persona only more Nightmare Before Christmas in color palatte as opposed to Alice in Wonderland Technicolor?  It's supposed to be wierd.  Not daft.
• CeeLo has had Dorothy's ruby slippers enlarged and made into a fabulous blazer.  Love it.
• People, it is RUDE AS HELL to yell "We Love You, [fill in the blank]" while the person is trying to talk to the performer on the stage.  You look like a moron, please be an adult and a good audience member.
• Carson needs to not stall so much early in the show then he wouldn't get that harried/freaked out look as the show starts to run long.

The Voice: First Quarterfinals April 16, 2012

For the quarterfinals of The Voice, not only will the audience "save" a singer from each team but each coach will have to immediately cut one team member.  Ouch!  None of the coaches are happy about that surprise.

Surprise!  Xtina performed "Stronger" with her team and the Crenshaw High School Choir.  Great sounding performance but she needs to rethink the bustier/panties outfit.  It wasn't flattering.  Although I did enjoy her little country intro just to tease Blake.  I do like how Christina tries to give her team good pointers, getting them exposure outside the show.

Maroon5 (drool, Adam!) premiered their new single "Payphone" featuring Wiz Khalifa (and I just cheated to look up the spelling on iTunes).  Definitely a Maroon5 song.  I liked it.

Team Blake also performed with their coach on his single "Heartbreak".  Of the two group performances I liked this one better.  It showed the singers to better advantage.

The performances!

• Raelynn - singing "She's Country" by Jason Aldean
• I have to admit it, she is cute as can be.  I have trouble putting her voice together with how young she is.  If I close my eyes, she totally works for me as a country artist.  If I watch her, I just don't believe the "sexiness" she adds to her performance.  She isn't old enough and she doesn't really need it.  Her diction was much better this performance which was something I didn't like two weeks ago.  I also worry that she sings and growls so hard that she's doing some vocal damage.  I'd like to see her do a softer piece once.
• Jesse - singing "Halo" by Beyonce (total aside: Xtina's red studio mic/stand cracks me up everytime)
• It's an interesting choice.  Initially I was worried that they had set the arrangement too high but he warmed into it as the song along.  The staging was so sweet with all the pictures of his little girl.  He really does put his heart into every performance and he deserves to move forward.  He's one of my favorites.
• Jordis - singing "A Little Bit Stronger" by Sara Evans
• This is such a change from her rock performances.  Hearing her sing with vulnerability, so lovely.  I really liked this choice for her.  She had such a nice tone to her voice and I hadn't heard that before.  She is one of my favorites, too.
• Ashley - singing "Foolish Games" by Jewel
• The introduction wasn't my favorite - she was lost behind the guitar until the second phrase when she brought up the volume.  She really went for it but she sounded like she was pushing way too hard.  It got really pitchy, especially the big climax note - that one was sour.  The arrangement was really good, since I don't think she could have carried the original arrangement.
• Erin - singing "Set Fire to the Rain" by Adele
• Erin is absolutely one of my favorite singers on this show.  Not only is she crazy-talented she has got the strongest backbone.  She is the only singer on this show as yet to take on Adele and make the performance and song her own.  Absolutely solid.  I loved it - voted, bought the single.  I'd love to see her in the finals.  (I thought the phrasing was good - but you know you did a great job when the criticism is a point that most singers don't even get to).
• Lindsay - singing "Part of Me" by Katy Perry
• I'm not a gigantic Katy Perry fan (I think she's annoying) so Lindsay's performance was pretty fresh for me (CeeLo hasn't heard this song before, either?  Random).  I think she sounded better on the whole than last week but she really needs to keep her breath support up because she loses her pitch on the longer notes (as pointed out by the coaches).  Her pants, however, are an egregious party foul and ought to be burned.  Hideous.
• Jermaine - singing "Against All Odds" by Phil Collins
• This was a great choice for him.  He connected more with this performance and it was less "polished".  He took the song a little more soul than rock power ballad and it worked for him.
• Chris - singing "Viva la Vida" by Coldplay
• Such a great choice for him.  The long phrases show off his breath control to perfection.  And that is what voice training is for.  Also, his pitch is absolutely rock solid.  I love him, I want to see him win.  We need more classical singers in this world! (Note to Adam: while I also would like to see him sing opera, or a more classical piece, it would probably go over better in the style of the East Village Opera Company.  Hmm, speaking of, they do a great "E lucevan le stelle" from Tosca that he would totally kill).

Christina is up first for an elimination:  wow, she chose to let Jesse go.
(Jesus, this is harsh - worst idea the producers for this show ever had because it felt like the air got sucked out of the auditorium when Christina announced his name).  I perhaps might have gone with Ashley, but as long as it wasn't Chris I was good.
Blake's choice: JORDIS!??!????  WTF?????  Blake, that was so wrong.  What a cop-out.  Of the four performances of his team tonight she gave one of the best.  He totally has a favorite *cough* RaeLynn *cough* - she gave the weakest performance of the four and so, following the premise that the judging is based on the performances as given, ought to have been let go.

*Total sidenote: You can't even purchase the single for the two singers eliminated - Jordis, I love you, I think you totally got a raw deal, and I would so buy the song from your performance tonight.

The Voice: Live Elimination April 10!

It's The Voice!  Four more singers will go home but first Jessie J (wearing an odd combination of a military-inspired romper and a sheer curtain for a skirt) performed "Domino" with an assist (sort-of) from Team Christina.

Team Adam:

• Mathai
• Tony Lucca
• Pip
• I am really surprised that Katrina didn't get into the top three but she did have to sing first and that is a hard spot to be in.  People can forget your performance with eleven other singers.

Team CeeLo:

• Juliet Simms
• Jamar Rogers
• James Massone
• I am not surprised to see Juliet and Jamar voted through.  They gave the two best performances of the night (and I voted for them!).  I'm a little surprised the voting went with James not Cheesa - but I did say he appealed to the teenager portion of the public and you know they all voted as many times as possible. 

The Sing-offs!

Team Adam:

• Kim: She choose "Spotlight".  This is a song that is right in her wheelhouse and she did a great job with it.
• Karla:  She sang "I Can't Make You Love Me".  It was good - she tried for some dynamic contrasts and it went much better than last night's "Airplanes".  I would have liked to see "Bertha" come out.
• Katrina:  She went with "Don't Speak".  I am really surprised by her choice because she's never come off with much of a "rock" attitude.  She did a great job - the song let her really belt for one.
• The non-Adam judges went with Katrina...and so did Adam.  I thought he might go with Kim, might, but Katrina did really put the emotion into her performance.

Team CeeLo:

• Tony: He picked "Sweet Dreams are Made of This".  Weird.  He sounded better tonight than last night but the posturing is definitely not my favorite thing.  As much as he says he wants to get way from the Broadway thing he always looks like he's acting.
• Cheesa: She sang "All By Myself".  I don't know what was up with her mike but her aspirants were really loud.  She went for it on the last chorus but her pitch sounded a bit funky to me.  Not quite as good as last night.
• Erin:  First things first, she looks really cute tonight not like Grace Jones, Jr.  She sang "Your Song" which got a bit overdone with Moulin Rouge.  I still don't like her voice.  Not only is it too squeaky for my taste I think she puts on a lisp.  Gah!
• Please CeeLo, for the love of God pick Cheesa or Tony.  He went with Cheesa (although it was a little mean for him to go "My head says Tony but my heart says Cheesa...a little mean)

Side notes:

• Yay, Adam, you listened and unbuttoned your top buttons.  Whew.
• Also, I agree with Adam - the contestants have to sing from the heart all the time, not just when it can save their bacon.  They have to be hungry.
• Xtina looked really nice - a good contrast to the "boobs-out" looks she's had recently (oops, she forgot Tony's name).

The Voice: First Live Rounds (part deux)

According to Carson, if you're anywhere near electricity you can vote for your favorites.  This week on The Voice, Team Adam and Team CeeLo took the stage.

• Katrina Parker - singing Smashing Pumpkins' "Tonight, Tonight"
• Definitely a different take on a Smashing Pumpkins song.  Katrina has a lovely voice.  It sounded a little pitchy at the beginning - the breathy phrases need a more breath support - but she ended on strong notes
• Cheesa - singing Thelma Houson's "Don't Leave Me This Way"
• A great song choice for her.  I am much more impressed with her on this song than with both her blind audition and battle round performances.  She sounded much better so props to CeeLo's coaching and her hard work.  (I agree with Blake.  It looked like a Solid Gold performance but that also makes me think of the original performance by Thelma Huston)
• Tony Lucca - singing Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes"
• He sounded really, really good in a song that is extremely well known.  That said, I felt he was straining for the higher notes and that might hurt him in the long run.  I'd like to see him do more of a "rock" song than a "pop" song
• Kim Yarbrough - singing Adele's "Rolling in the Deep"
• God, this is such a hit or miss song because Adele is so big right now.  The second the intro kicks in you think of Adele.  I liked how Kim gave it a little more of a soul/R&B vibe, used the growls, etc.  The verses were better than the choruses, in my opinion - that first "We should have had it aaaallllllll" was definitely off on the pitch.
• James Massone - singing Norah Jones' "Don't Know Why"
• First of all, I have to say I loathe that hairband he wears (the letterjacket is an affectation but it annoys me less than the hairband).  There's enough grease in his hair to start with that he shouldn't need a hairband, too.  About the performance....  He has a very N*SYNC/Backstreet Boys/Justin Bieber (ugh, I can't believe I just wrote that, I am not a "Belieber") vibe so the sweet little melody of the song fit his voice.  His voice is changing (as he admitted) so the higher notes were shaky at times.  (He works the crowd, playing to all the little teeny-boppers so I have a feeling he'll make it through on the strength of the voting)
• Juliet Simms - singing the Police's "Roxanne"
• I loved her performance.  Juliet has this great Janis Joplin/Florence Welch vibe.  I love the hard rock edge in her voice.  I would love to see her in the finals - I voted for her and bought the single (and, for someone who never votes in these reality competitions, that is something).
• Mathai - singing John Legend's "Ordinary People"
• Ordinarily I don't like the "little girl" voice-types but something in her voice is really interesting.  It was a nice take on the John Legend song.  I thought the jazz club/lounge style fit her very well.
• Tony Vincent - singing Tears For Fears' "Everybody Wants to Rule the World"
• It was a good performance.  I think I was expecting more "rock" in the performance.  I kept losing him in the lower register ("the world" kept getting lost).  I do have to say that he has an affectation where he tips his back to the right on certain vowels - it's distracting and perhaps ought to be ironed out.  (Congrats to Tony on being a new daddy!  That has to be so tough with all the new baby things to add the pressure of a competition on top.)
• Karla Davis - singing B.o.B's "Airplanes"
• I give her a lot of credit for going against her comfort zone with this song.  The first chorus was a little off (nerves) but the next was better.  The "rap" sections weren't awesome but she did spit the words out so they could be understood.
• Erin Martin - singing The Bangles' "Walk Like an Egyptian"
• I. Do. Not. Get. Her. At. All.  I know CeeLo thinks she's hot shit but I just don't get it.  She blew the introductory "Walk Like an Egyptian" - the backing vocal was on pitch and she was not.  It's really hard to ignore at that point.  I thought that was a terrible performance as a whole.  It was boring (aside from the dancers, they were hot) and she wasn't engaging at all.  This is a case of a voice affectation I can't stand.  Sorry, CeeLo, I have NOT acquired that particular taste.
• Pip - singing The Killers' "When You Were Young"
• The Killers was a good choice for him to go a little more rock.  He has a similar sound to Brandon Flowers, not quite as rough though.  He has a good sound and I agree with Adam - he needs to look less "trustworthy".  If he wants to be more rock'n'roll he needs to get rough around the edges (both vocally and appearance-wise - try not shaving and lose the bow-tie/suspenders).
• Jamar Rogers - singing Lenny Kravitz's "Are You Gonna Go My Way"
• Awesome.  He killed it.  I would also love to see him in the finals - I voted for him, too.  (Poor Blake and his dislike of production numbers)

Side notes:

• Dear CeeLo: thank you for not wearing that fringed jumpsuit, you look very spiffy in your suit
• Adam, unbutton your top button.  You are not Forrest Gump (whom, with that hair, you are starting to resemble).
• Poor Carson.  I also didn't quite know what to do when Blake, who I find to be the nicer judge in general, pretty much dissed Adam's entire team.  Then Adam commented that Blake's jacket was the color of crap.  Petty, dudes.  Petty and not fun to watch.
• Xtina needs to find another adjective besides "dope".
• The eyeballs in the backdrop of the staging for Tony Lucca's song were too on the nose and excessively creepy.  CREEPY.
• As per usual, the band is freaking awesome.

The Voice: Live Elimination April 3!

I had to DVR the live elimination of The Voice (like I did the performances last night).  Although I really wouldn't want to be in the shoes of the "bottom three" from each team, I do love how the coaches are given the opportunity to keep one singer off each team.  One more chance for each artist to stay alive.

Team Blake saves:

• Erin
• Jeremiah
• RaeLynn
• I am definitely happy that Erin and Jeremiah were voted through.  I'm a bit surprised with RaeLynn, I thought Jordis would be through for sure but they were probably close.  I wish Naia had got through but Erin, Jeremiah, and RaeLynn did have big performances that did stick in the mind more than Naia's lovely, more nuanced song.

Team Christina saves:

• Jesse
• Lindsey
• Chris
• So, so happy to Jesse and Chris voted through.  I am really surprised that Sera was not part of the top three for Team Xtina.  I thought she sounded a bit more secure than Lindsey.

The sing-offs!

Team Blake

• Naia:  She chose "If I Were a Boy" which I thought fit her really well.  Her first run through the chorus felt a little shaky (nerves) but she ad-libbed really well.  I don't think it helped when Blake said he wished she did something reggae when he most likely knew she didn't have the opportunity to choose that from the song list.
• Charlotte:  She chose "Iris".  I think her nerves were getting to her.  The performance felt pitchy and forced (what, no commentary from Blake before commercial?).
• Jordis:  She chose "Wild Horses" and nailed it.  It was a different choice for her as a rocker but it worked in that moment.
• Blake did go with Jordis.  I love Naia's style and I hope she sticks with it - she's so talented - so I was sorry to see her go.

Team Christina

• Ashley:  She chose "Paris, Oooh, lala."  She had the right sound for the song but I was losing a lot of her words.  Rock solid nerves, though, and she came out and had fun.  It showed.
• Sera:  She chose "Vision of Love" - a good fit for her voice.  She souded really good, nice runs and ad-libs. 
• Moss:  He chose "Break Even/Falling to Pieces."  He came out and sang.  He did a good job.  He doesn't have the voice to compete with Ashley and Sera - some of the higher pitches just weren't there - but he did a really good job. 
• Christina kept Ashley.  I was sure she would go with Sera since she had that connection with her at the blind auditions.

Side note:  Christina is making better clothing choices this season.  I would have gone with a different shade for her dress tonight, though, since that orange wasn't lighting well with her tan.

The Voice: First Live Rounds

The Voice went live this week, giving the voting public the opportunity to cut each team in half - then the bottom six will have to sing for their lives in the hopes that their coach will keep them.

This week the artists from Team Christina and Team Blake took the stage to appeal to the voting public for the first time.  I have my favorites, but it is interesting to see how the newer/younger artists do with "real" staging and the pressure of going up "live."

• Jermaine Paul - singing Bon Jovi's "Living on a Prayer"
• I love his voice and energy.  As an experienced performer and backup singer he already knows how to use the stage and make eye-contact.  The only drawback, for me, was that it felt like he was hiding from the highest notes on the chorus, swallowing them/pulling the mike away instead of really going for it.  Maybe they should have taken the song down a half step if he felt that nervous.
• Chris Mann - singing "Bridge Over Troubled Water"
• I am totally in Chris Mann's corner.  I am classically-trained singer (I don't sing much anymore, just in the shower - great acoustics) and I can tell you from personal experience that it is so hard as a classical singer to get noticed because there are so many of us and so few recording contracts.  Classical singers don't get to fall back on runs or trills to hide bad notes - we hang on to the high ones for life.  Chris is following in Josh Groban's path as a cross-over artist.  I would love it if he won.
• RaeLynn - singing Maroon5's "Wake Up Call"
• This brings up an issue I have - age appropriateness of performance types.  I do not believe RaeLynn for a second when she talks about catching another girl in her man's bed.  That said, she was really entertaining with that very country-stomp performance.  She sells it but if she's going to really be a vocal stylist then she needs better diction (as my coach used to say: more words).  The band gets props on this song - very fun.
• Moses Stone - singing Kanye's "Stronger/Power"
• I have to agree with Blake - this really is a singing competition.  Moses did really well singing against The Line in "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" but this week he didn't sound solid as a singer.  On the other hand, he is easily as good an MC as all those other guys on the radio and TV.
• Naia Kete - singing Adele's "Turning Tables"
• I think I would have liked to see this done with more of a reggae style.  Doing it straight did make me compare her too much to Adele's vocal choices.  She does have really nice styling and I enjoyed the dynamic contrasts.
• Lindsey Pavao - singing Gotye's "Someone That I Used to Know"
• I got so excited when Christina chose this song for Lindsey because I like the song and I think it fits her personal style.  I quite don't know what I was expecting but I was waiting for her to just rip it on the chorus.  She's such a shy singer that it works against her a bit but I hope she makes it through - she has so much room to develop.
• Jordis Unga - singing Heart's "Alone"
• I loved this choice for Jordis, giving her a chance to belt and scream on the chorus.  She has a great rock voice and I want to see her make it farther in the competition.
• Sera Hill - singing Drake's "Find Your Love"
• Sera has a great voice.  She can work the song, work the runs, work the tricks - very smooth.  She definitely has a career as an R&B/soul singer.  Props to the band again: loved the funk vibe.
• Erin Willett - singing Stevie Wonder's "Living for the City"
• Erin is another singing that I want to see go far.  She's got a big (big!) voice and I love it.  Like Jordis, she's a bit of a head-case so she just needs to believe.  We believe, Blake believes - she needs to believe because she has it.
• Ashley de la Rosa - singing Alanis Morissette's "Right Through You"
• I like Asheley OK.  I don't dislike her and her performance was good.  But next to Erin and Sera and Jordis, she didn't quite get "angry" enough for me.  And this is an Alanis Morissette song - it has to go there.  She get's props for the boots - not everyone up there has to rock the super-high heels.
• Charlotte Sometimes - singing Paramore's "Misery Business"
• She started out a bit flat, got back on pitch, then lost it a bit again (PS Adam: pointing out pitch issues is not hypercritical; she needs better breath support in quiet sections).   She has a round sound and I started losing her in the middle of the orchestra (can I just say again how the band for The Voice kills it every song).  She needs to brighten up her sound so she doesn't get lost.
• Jesse Campbell - singing Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonderful World"
• This song kills me every time I hear it.  Every time.  Jesse has such an emotional past he can draw on for a song with these words and the gospel feel to the arrangement suited him so well.  He made me tear up.  I would also love it if he won.

Side notes:

• Dear CeeLo - I love you, and the jumpsuit can stay, but please don't wear that wig.  It looks like one of Elton John's rejects
• Adam, I love you, please keep being awesome.
• The coaches need to not be bitchy to one another.  It gets old.

New Music Obsession: Gotye

I was driving along the other day and heard a song on the radio (I don't always listen to the radio, usually I have an audiobook on my iPhone).  It was catchy, with a loping-lazy bounce and a little marimba hook.  I would have sworn it was John Mayer - not his style, but maybe he was branching out.  Nope, not him.  I did some Googling and the artist is the Belgian/Australian multi-instrumentalist Gotye.

The song?  "Somebody That I Used to Know"




I. Am. Obsessed.  It's got such a great hook and yet it's so simple in construction.  It's from his 2011 album Making Mirrors.  How did I miss it?  Buy, buy, buy!

And then Kate (via her friend Jeruen) turned me onto this:



There are five, FIVE, people around that guitar. They are Walk Off the Earth.  I will obsess over them, too.

May 2011 at Literature by Women

Please join Literature by Women in May as we read and discuss Anne Bronte's controversial novel The Tenant of Wildfell Hall.  We're taking five weeks for the discussion so it doesn't become too compressed.

In other news, I am the proud possessor of a new piano courtesy of a once-in-a-lifetime deal at West Music.  I love it, LOVE IT!  I can't wait to dig all my piano music out of my parents' basement (although, I'm afraid mom might have appropriated a few due to weddings, etc., and I think a few of my favorite pieces are actually hers...le sigh) and I ordered my first new book of music in fifteen years - Harry Potter!