radius Magazine Online Brick City and Beyond
March
Courtesy of NJPAC
WHO: New Jersey Symphony Orchestra
WHAT: Romantic Masterworks from Schumann & Brahms
WHEN: Thu • 3/17 • 1:30 PM
WHERE: Prudential Hall/NJPAC
Conductor Christian Arming and pianist Stephen Hough lead the NJSO in a performance of Schumann’s “Piano Concerto,” Brahms’s “Symphony No. 2” and Wagner’s “Siegfried Idyll.” Two of these composers of the Romantic era are linked by a common love. Clara Schumann inspired her husband’s only piano concerto. Brahms, who was championed by Schumann, had the misfortune to fall for Clara, yearning for her until the end of his days. But in a sunny moment, he composed his engaging Second Symphony.
Photo by Dwight McCann
WHO: Johnny Mathis
WHAT: 60th Anniversary Tour
WHEN: FRI • 3/18 • 8:00 PM
WHERE: Prudential Hall/NJPAC
Johnny Mathis, celebrating his 60th year as a recording artist, returns to NJPAC to perform his greatest hits and personal favorites from a career that has produced 50 Billboard hits, three songs in the Grammy Hall of Fame, and a #6 ranking in all-time album sales. Best-known for hits like “Chances Are,” “It’s Not for Me to Say” and “Misty,” Mathis is also Columbia Records’ longest-running artist.
Decca Records
WHO: The Who
WHAT: North American Tour
WHEN: SAT • 3/19 • 7:30 PM
WHERE: Prudential Center
“The Who Hits 50” North American tour stops at The Rock in March. It’s a rescheduling of the date that was postponed because of lead singer Roger Daltrey’s illness in 2015. From their first hit record (“I Can’t Explain”) through the chart-toppers of the 1960s and 1970s—and the rock operas Quadrophenia and Tommy—the band has turned out no fewer than 7 albums on Rolling Stone’s list of greatest albums of all-time—more than anyone other than the Beatles, Springsteen, Dylan and the Stones.
WHO: Joshua Bell
WHAT: Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto
WHEN: SAT • 3/19 • 8:00 PM
WHERE: Prudential Hall/NJPAC
Violinist and conductor Joshua Bell was called “one of the finest musicians of his generation” by The Washington Post. He will fill both roles during his stop at NJPAC, leading the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields orchestra, of which he is now Musical Director. Bell will perform as a soloist in a spectacular work he practically owns, Tchaikovsky’s “Violin Concerto,”as well as a breathtaking pairing with Pamela Frank to perform Bach’s “Concerto for Two Violins.”
Courtesy of NJPAC
WHO: Ethan Bortnick
WHAT: The Power of Music Tour
WHEN: WED • 3/23 • 8:00 PM
WHERE: Victoria Theater/NJPAC
At age 14, Ethan Bortnick made the Guinness Book of Records as the World’s Youngest Solo Musician to Headline His Own Concert Tour. The teen pianist, singer and composer is a must-see for the entire family. His performance includes his own band, a children’s choir and local guest artists. Expect to hear original compositions, along with songs by The Beatles, Elton John, Michael Jackson—and works by great classical composers.
April
Photo by Boris Kasimov/Kasio69
WHO: Rihanna
WHAT: Anti World Tour
WHEN: SAT • 4/2 • 7:30 PM
WHERE: Prudential Center
Global superstar Rihanna rocks The Rock with guest performer Travis Scott this April. With album sales of over 200 million, Rihanna ranks among the top-selling female artists of all-time; Billboard named her the Digital Song Artist of the 2000s. Constantly reinventing her image and style, Rihanna will no doubt have some surprises in store for her Newark audience.
Motown Records
WHO: Dancing in the Streets
WHAT: Motown’s Greatest Hits
WHEN: WED • 4/6 • 8:00 PM
WHERE: Prudential Hall/NJPAC
Dancing in the Streets, direct from London’s West End, makes its U.S. debut in 2016. A non-stop celebration of Motown’s greatest songs—performed by an electrifying cast of singers, dancers and an onstage band—features chart-busting hits of The Four Tops, The Temptations, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, Diana Ross & The Supremes, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Martha & The Vandellas, Lionel Richie and Gladys Knight.
Courtesy of NJPAC
WHO: Xian Zhang
WHAT: New Jersey Symphony Orchestra
WHEN: THU • 4/7 • 1:30 PM
FRI • 4/8 • 8:00 PM
WHERE: Prudential Center
A New Jersey Symphony Orchestra performance. Xian Zhang returns to lead the NJSO in an evening of rich, romantic melody, including Tchaikovsky’s passionate, foreboding “Symphony No. 4”—which evokes the awesome power of fate to shape human lives—and Barber’s “Violin Concerto,” an American classic, performed by Jennifer Frautschi.
Muse Records
WHO: Freddy Cole Quartet
WHAT: Dorthaan’s Place
WHEN: SUN • 4/10 • 11:00 AM & 1:00 PM
WHERE: NICO Kitchen + Bar/NJPAC
Legendary jazz singer and pianist Freddy Cole—brother of Nat “King” Cole and uncle to Natalie Cole—performs a treasure trove of popular standards at the first 2016 Dorthaan’s Place jazz brunch. Cole began his recording career in 1952 and has produced 30-plus albums, including 2013’s This and That and 1995’s This Is the Life.
Courtesy of NJPAC
WHO: Gary Mullen & The Works
WHAT: One Night of Queen
WHEN: SUN • 4/10 • 7:00 PM
WHERE: Victoria Theater/NJPAC
Fans of Queen will thrill to Gary Mullen & The Works’ note-for-note spectacular of mega-hits such as “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “We Are the Champions,” “You’re My Best Friend” and “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” during One Night of Queen, a faithful recreation of the band’s legendary 1977 Tour. The group has been hailed as the world’s premier Queen tribute band, and is the only one authorized by Brian May and Queen.
Courtesy of NJPAC
WHO: Michael Tilson Thomas
WHAT: San Francisco Symphony
WHEN: FRI • 4/15 • 8:00 PM
WHERE: Prudential Hall/NJPAC
The San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, under musical director Michael Tilson Thomas, has distinguished itself by making music with boundless energy and imagination. Their NJPAC performance includes a tribute to American composer Aaron Copland, as well as a glowing Romantic masterpiece, Schumann’s “Symphony No. 2.”
AMC
WHO: New Jersey Symphony Orchestra
WHAT: Music Of The “Mad Men” Era
WHEN: SAT • 4/16 • 8:00 PM
WHERE: Prudential Hall/NJPAC
Cheyenne Jackson, star of Broadway and TV hits Glee and 30 Rock, teams with NJSO to take you back to a time when the bossa nova was new, the lounges of Las Vegas were hip and everyone had a drink in one hand and a cigarette in the other.
SBME Special Markets
WHO: Michel Camilo
WHAT: Solo Piano
WHEN: SUN • 4/17 • 4:00 & 7:00 PM
WHERE: The Chase Room/NJPAC
Dominican pianist and composer Michel Camilo appears at NJPAC for the first time for a rare solo piano concert of his critically acclaimed songs, including “Caribe,” “From Within” and “Why Not.” The Grammy- and Emmy-winning artist has enjoyed a three-decade career of touring and recording with trios, big bands and symphonic orchestras.
May
Courtesy of NJPAC
WHO: Ron Blake
WHAT: Jazz for Teens
WHEN: SUN • 5/1 • 3:00 PM
WHERE: Victoria Theater/NJPAC
Wells Fargo Jazz for Teens, in its 18th season, presents a new generation of jazz musicians with featured guest artist, saxophonist, Ron Blake. A current member of NBC’s Saturday Night Live band, Blake will join our students in an inspirational performance of this uniquely American art form.
Courtesy of NJPAC
WHO: Cyrille Aimée & Kate McGarry
WHAT: Jonathan’s Choice
WHEN: SAT • 5/7 • 7:00 PM
WHERE: Victoria Theater/NJPAC
French jazz singer Cyrille Aimée and Grammy nominee Kate McGarry (right), join radio host Jonathan Schwartz for a concert and conversation in the intimate Victoria Theater. The performance will be taped for future broadcast on The Jonathan Channel and WNYC 93.9FM. Aimée s a past winner of NJPAC’s Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition, while McGarry has served on the faculties of Manhattan School of Music and New England Conservatory in addition to touring and performing.
Motown Records
WHO: Smokey Robinson
WHAT: In Concert
WHEN: SUN • 5/8 • 7:00 PM
WHERE: Symphony Hall
Grammy-winning recording artist, music pioneer and Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Smokey Robinson celebrates moms with a very special Mother’s Day Concert. A winner of the National Medal of the Arts. Robinson burst on the music scene as a songwriter and leading member of The Miracles. From “Shop Around” in 1960 to “The Tears of a Clown” in 1970, the group produced a string of mega-hits for Motown. Robinson continued to score hits as a solo artist, including the chart-topping “Being with You.”
Courtesy of NJPAC
WHO: New Jersey Symphony Orchestra
WHAT: Hadelich Plays Tchaikovsky
WHEN: THU • 5/12 • 1:30 PM
SAT • 5/14 • 8:00 PM
WHERE: Prudential Hall/NJPAC
Augustin Hadelich—who last wowed NJSO audiences in his 2012 appearance—dispatches Tchaikovsky ’s “Violin Concerto” solo with effortless panache, while rustic charm infuses every melody of Brahms’s “Serenade No. 1.” The program, conducted by Jeremie Rhorer, also includes Mendelssohn’s “Hebrides Overture.”
WHO: Scott Coulter
WHAT: You’ve Got a Friend: Music of The Brill
WHEN: SAT • 5/14 • 6:00 & 8:30 PM
WHERE: The Chase Room/NJPAC
MAC Award-winning vocalist Scott Coulter embarks on a musical journey back to the heart of Times Square and the fabled Brill Building—the music factory where Carole King, Neil Sedaka, Lieber & Stoller, Neil Diamond and Barry Mann and Cynthia Weill forever changed the sound of American pop songs. Rebecca LaChance, from the cast of Broadway’s Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, makes a special guest appearance.
june
Lunchbox LP
WHO: Selena Gomez
WHAT: The Revival Tour
WHEN: THU • 6/2 • 7:30 PM
WHERE: Prudential Center
Multi-platinum singer and actress Selena Gomez returns to The Rock for the first time since 2013 on her 41-city North American Revival Tour. She has sold over 22 million singles worldwide. The tour follows the release of her new album Revival; the lead single “Good For You” topped the charts for three consecutive weeks in the fall 2015.
