by Sally-Page Stuck photos provided by Serkan Zanagar
Always innovative, Open Classical just raised the bar. Headed by violinist and composer, Mark Landson, Open Classical has produced over 125 classical events in the last three years. Their latest endeavor is its new series, Classically Jazzed. The premiere performance was on Friday, March 20 in Richardson’s Eisemann Center. Inspired by the music of classically trained jazz artist Eddie South, Classically Jazzed takes traditional pieces and reinvents them in the modern genre.
The works chosen are familiar: Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins in D Minor, Für Elise, Mozart’s Symphony in G Minor and more. Mark Landson “wanted to create these in a way which stayed true to the motivic development that the composer wrote instead of just using the basic melodies and then doing improv.” To the untrained ear, it will sound reminiscent of French gypsy jazz of the mid-twentieth century (Think Django Reinhardt). Trained musicians will have much respect as they hear rhythms altered, chords modified and seemingly improbable components joined. Continue reading
