Arts & Life

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Written by: Connel Murray

Published: 13 February 2012

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – On Sunday, Feb. 12 – Abraham Lincoln's birthday – David Burgess brought his version of truth in guitar music to a small but enthusiastic audience at Kelseyville's Galilee Lutheran Church.

The concert was presented by Clear Lake Performing Arts, whose usual venue is Lakeport's Soper-Reese Community Theatre, but due to a conflict in dates, Galilee generously offered its picturesque church as a substitute.

Burgess, in making his third appearance in Lake County, chose this area to kick off a tour of West Coast cities.

In earlier appearances here he had concentrated on the music of Spain, with between-number discourses on the early development of the guitar and guitar music in the Mediterranean area.

This time, after spending nearly a decade studying the music of Brazil, he tailored his performance exclusively to the music of that country.

He explained that while most guitars have six or eight strings, the instruments played in Brazil usually include a seventh, providing for an extra bass line.

“Street musicians,” Burgess explained, “found they could perform with one fewer players with the addition of the bass string.”

He opened his program with “Sampa,” a piece written by Caetano Veloso as a protest against the military dictatorship ruling Brazil in the 1960s.

This was followed by two pieces by Ernesto Nazareth, who first conceived of the idea of combining the rhythms of the polka and tango, to achieve a uniquely Brazilian sound.

Burgess next transition was into what he called “The Good Old Days” of the music of Brazil, specifically the 1930s, headlined by the single-name composer Garato, who toured extensively with the Latin movie star Carmen Miranda and is also recognized as the originator of the popular Bossa Nova beat.

He ended the first half of his performance with music written by Raphael Rabello, one of Brazil's most popular and prolific composers in spite of his death at the early age of just 33.

Following intermission, with refreshments served by the ladies of the CLPA Auxiliary, Burgess returned with additional music from Brazil's contemporary writers including Armando Neves and Vinicius de Moraes, the latter being a well-known poet who turned his talents to music, including writing portions of the music for the movie “Black Orpheus,” with it's hugely popular theme “Cast Your Fate to the Winds.”

This was followed by two pieces from Brazil’s most popular current musical artist youthful Yamandu' Costa, including his “Samba Pro Rafa,” written as an homage to Raphael Rabello, with spectacular fingering by Burgess.

The concert concluded with two pieces from perhaps the most famed of all Brazilian guitarists and Bossa Nova practitioners, the late Antonio Carlos Jobim.

After the concert local classical guitarist Travis Rinker met briefly with Burgess to discuss the finer points of their respective instruments, as did guitar students Kayla Garcia and Sabre Bruffy.

Burgess also conducted a special clinic on Monday morning for music students at Lower Lake High School.

The next CLPA concert will take place on Mothers Day, May 2, at the Soper-Reese Community Theatre in Lakeport, and feature the full Lake County Symphony, as well as the CLPA Youth Orchestra.

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Written by: Ted Kooser

Published: 12 February 2012

At a time when a relationship is falling apart, sometimes the news of its failure doesn’t come out of a mouth but from gestures. Claudia Emerson, who lives in Virginia, here captures a telling moment.

Eight Ball

It was fifty cents a game

beneath exhausted ceiling fans,

the smoke’s old spiral. Hooded lights

burned distant, dull. I was tired, but you

insisted on one more, so I chalked

the cue — the bored blue — broke, scratched.

It was always possible

for you to run the table, leave me

nothing. But I recall the easy

shot you missed, and then the way

we both studied, circling — keeping

what you had left me between us.

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation (www.poetryfoundation.org), publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2005 by Claudia Emerson, whose most recent book of poetry is Figure Studies, Louisiana State University Press, 2008. Poem reprinted from Late Wife, Louisiana State University Press, 2005, by permission of Claudia Emerson and the publisher. Introduction copyright © 2012 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. They do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.

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Written by: Lake County News Reports

Published: 12 February 2012

JOURNEY 2: THE MYSTERIOUS ISLAND (Rated PG)

When I first learned of the upcoming movie “Journey 2,” I wondered what became of the first “Journey,” such that it did not ring a bell.

Only upon digesting the complete title of “Journey 2: The Mysterious Island” was my mind nudged ever so slightly by the thought of Jules Verne.

The problem, which remains for this film as well, is that the first film, titled “Journey to the Center of the Earth” and released in 2008, is entirely forgettable.

“Journey 1,” starring Brendan Fraser, now nowhere to be found and not even lost on a mysterious island, was a Jules Verne-type adventure, one that may have pleased kids.

The sequel is equally designed to satisfy the adolescent filmgoers, such that the teen hero remains Josh Hutcherson’s Sean, who’s been given permission by his mother (Kristin Davis) for another globe-trotting quest.

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who flexes his pectorals as if he were hanging out at Venice Beach, plays the role of Hank, stepdad to the peripatetic Sean.

In what is expected to be a bonding experience, Hank takes Sean on a journey to a mysterious island, following secret clues that Sean believes Jules Verne left behind.

Curiosity runs in the family because it is apparent that Sean’s missing grandfather Alexander (Michael Caine) was so obsessed with the writings of Jules Verne that he invented the familial craving for wanderlust.

Once in the South Pacific, Hank, in what appears to be a dubious idea, hires goofy, excitable helicopter pilot Gabato (Luis Guzman) to locate the island.

On the upside, at least for Sean, is that Gabato’s pretty daughter Kailani (Vanessa Hudgens) tags along for the ride. This, of course, sets up the film’s only love interest subplot.

Meanwhile, a crash landing on an island immediately brings to mind that “Journey 2” could detour into a missing episode of “Lost.”

Alas, that is not to be, for our intrepid travelers are exposed to the mystery of an upside-down world, where elephants are small and bees and lizards are giant prehistoric beasts.

Naturally, grandpa Alexander, who was busy sending out radio signals with his coordinates, is found on this exotic South Pacific island, which is notable for the fact that it is rapidly sinking into the sea like Atlantis.

The soon-to-be extinct tropical paradise is a wonder of special effects, none more thrilling than watching Sean riding bareback on a giant bee.

Since the story is family-friendly, “Journey 2” lacks the inherent menace of prehistoric threats found in “Jurassic Park,” though giant iguanas appear threatening.

To be sure, “Journey 2” is a formulaic adventure story relying heavily on special effects, which is as satisfying as a giant tub of popcorn and a big cone of cotton candy. It’s fun in the moment for the adolescent crowd.

The pairing of Dwayne Johnson and Michael Caine is interesting for some of the back-and-forth dialogue. The film benefits from the presence of these two titans of natural charm.

One good reason not to be late to the screening of this film is that it should be preceded by a funny animated short called “Daffy’s Rhapsody,” an adventure with Daffy Duck and Elmer Fudd.

Oh, just one more thing, you should know that both the Warner Brothers cartoon and the feature film are in 3-D.

DVD RELEASE UPDATE

This column has often extolled the virtues of British television programs that may find their way to BBC America and eventually to a DVD release.

“Northern Lights: The Complete Collection,” featuring all 12 episodes and two movies of this comedy series, is being released on DVD by Acorn Media, to go-to outfit for British imports.

The series followed lifelong friends and rivals Colin Armstrong (Robson Green) and Howard Scott (Mark Benton) on a hilarious series of misadventures – really classic British wackiness.

As schoolboys, Colin and Howard fought over girls, soccer teams and clothes. Now married men in their thirties, their competition has shifted to more important, if mundane, matters like jobs and cars.

The comedy comes from insane rivalry of one-upmanship, where they try to outdo each other, even with Christmas decorations. Meanwhile, their long-suffering wives endure the collateral damage.

“Northern Lights” is the kind of classic comedy that “The Guardian” rightfully called “warm and witty comedy drama.”

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.