Leonard Bernstein en Gran Canaria

a film by Pedro Schlueter

There is precious little material on the subject that one can actually show. No footage. Some photographs. Old newspapers. Some anecodotes told by Justus Frantz. Still, thanks to this film produced by Espacio Digital — it’s a bit of a stretch to call it a documentary — I learned a few things. Why, I didn’t even know that Bernstein visited Gran Canaria. But apparently, starting mid-1970s, he lived here for extended periods and even was considering buying a house in the south of the island. Now if he did, we would see much more than drone photography of the hills.

Jon Lord’s 80th

by Timur Kulikov

Happy belated 80^th birthday, Jon Lord.

Video Blues

a film by Emma Tusell

Filmoteca Canaria kicks off the new cycle of films that, um, won something at the Rizoma festival — we’ll see what it’s all about. I was not particularly impressed with the opening feature. I mean, there is a limit how much bad quality home video and equally bad sound one could (let alone should) endure. To misquote a quote misattributed to one Bill Gates, ten minutes ought to be enough for anybody. Instead, we have 74 minutes of poorly edited footage that might, or might not, be of sentimental value for the director’s family. For the rest of humankind, it’s not funny, not touching, and not so interesting.

Bezimena

by Nina Bunjevac
translated by Montse Meneses Vilar

Exquisitely illustrated, dark and pretty disturbing tale, found by chance in our public library. It’s said to be a modern take on the myth of Artemis and Siproites, although it appears to be fused with that of Artemis and Actaeon. I found the frame story featuring the titular Bezimena (“nameless” in Serbian) superfluous and, consequently, the graphic novel as a whole lacking a closure. Well worth reading and maybe re-reading nonetheless; just don’t give it as a gift without reading it yourself first.

The afterword relates the author’s own experience of attempted sexual assault and, in part, explains why the book was created.

Una Habitación Propia con WiFi

by Raquel Riba Rossy

The first and the last time I’ve been to the Gran Canaria Espacio Digital was 12 March 2020, to see Mujeres al alba. Immediately after that I received the message that all activities in this centre were suspended until... well, much later than they (and everybody else) expected. The nationwide state of alarm was declared on 14 March. So no Lola Vendetta workshop for us, and no Amparo Sánchez talk either.

One year later, RRR published one more Lola Vendetta comic. To my joy, Lola dumps the cuddly boy acquired in the previous book and adopts a dog instead. Which, we know by now, is a wise move in times of pandemic. Oh, right: in between these events, pandemic starts and goes on; Lola moves to the titular own room (a nod to that essay by Virginia Woolf) and leaves her katana behind... Surprisingly, the new, katana-less Lola continues to be cool. To the degree that God finally engages in conversation with her (confessing that the internet connection is not that good up there). For me, Lola’s witty and touching chats with Death (a woman) are the best.

Free live music in Las Palmas, May 2021

There are twelve months in all the year, As I hear many men say, But the merriest month in all the year Is the merry month of May.

Folk ballad

The state of alarm ended on 9^th of May, and with it many annoying restrictions, such as the nighttime curfew. We went to see live music every single weekend!

• 1 May: La Local Jazz Band + Tributo Chick Corea @ Auditorio José Antonio Ramos, Parque Doramas, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
  What I have misinterpreted, at the moment of ordering the tickets, as Tribute to Chick Corea by La Local Jazz Band, turned out to be a fabulous double bill:
  1. La Local Jazz Band presenting their new album Paisajes sonoros: Miqui Delgado (piano), Samantha de León (double bass), Ernesto Montenegro (trumpet), Miguel Ramírez (sax) and Suso Vega (drums).
  2. Jaume Vilaseca Trio with Jaume Vilaseca (keyboards), Ramón Díaz (drums) and Dick Them (bass) presenting their tribute to Chick Corea.
  Altogether the two concerts lasted for almost three hours.

• 2 May: Joven Borondón Big Band feat. Joan Chamorro and Elia Bastida @ Auditorio José Antonio Ramos
  The concert started with Trio featuring Èlia Bastida (violin), Joan Chamorro (double bass) and José Alberto Medina (piano), the continued with Joven Borondón Big Band. Joan Chamorro was directing a few songs and then joining on sax. (You can watch the complete performance here, here, here, and here.) This concert concluded the LPA International Jazz Day, a four-day-long celebration of the International Jazz Day in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.

  

• 8 May: Bohemia Lanzarote «Inmarcesible» @ Auditorio José Antonio Ramos
  A 12-strong band led by Juanma Padrón presented a mix of folk songs and Latin and Spanish standards such as Gracias a la Vida, Orgullecida, Mediterráneo, Candela, Ojalá que llueva café...

• 13 May: Trinidad Jiménez @ Teatro Guiniguada, Plaza F. Mesa de León
  Another masterclass organised by Mousikê La Laguna. I don’t know how it is for the teachers who normally perform the same evening but for the attendees 4:30 pm is not the best time. I have to confess that I even briefly fell asleep during the class. Sorry, Trinidad!

• 15 May: Fabiola Trujillo «La flor de la canela» @ Auditorio José Antonio Ramos
  In her new programme, Ms Trujillo, accompanied by Daniel García, Juan Carlos Sierra, Luis Montesdeoca and Ivanoff Rodríguez, revisited the repertoire of the great María Dolores Pradera, with songs like La flor de la canela, Milonga Sentimental, Ojalá que te vaya bonito, María la Portuguesa and, quite unexpectedly, very much Canarian Palmero, Sube a La Palma.

• 22 May: Cantadores @ Auditorio José Antonio Ramos
  Like Bohemia Lanzarote, Tenerife-based Cantadores (formed in 2008 as Jóvenes Cantadores, obviously not as young now) presented a mixed bag of folk and Latin standards of which, in my opinion, the best were cumbias: La Piragua by José Barros, A Dios le Pido and La Gota Fría.

• 26 May: Concierto Extraordinario Día de Canarias @ Edificio Miller, Parque Santa Catalina
  La Banda Sinfónica Municipal de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, conducted by Daniel Abad Casanova, with special guest Germán López (timple). The programme included:

  Alvamar Overture Nuevos Tiempos * Malagueña Embrujada * Muelle Viejo † Chipude * Arizona Nana Para Jar † De Isla a Isla * A Punto de Nieve * Folías † Nunca Me Iré de Aquí — with Ana Gil (vocal) Isa del Parralito * — with Javier Montero (cajón) Los Cuatro Gigantes * * Soloist: Germán López (timple) † Duet Germán López (timple) and Augusto Báez (piano)

• 29 May: Toñín Corujo Quartet «Raíz» @ Auditorio José Antonio Ramos, Parque Doramas
  What was advertised as “Toñín Corujo Quartet” turned out to be a 11-piece band featuring Toñín Corujo (timple), Carlos Pérez (sax, flute, keyboards), Yarel Hernández (bass), Israel Curbelo (keyboards, cajón), Tony Cantero (guitar), Alex Jiménez (drums), Sergey Saprychev (percussion), Domingo Corujo (lapas, timple, guitar), Almudena Hernández, Ciro Corujo and Rubén Fariñas (vocals).

Bring on June!

How to Steal a Country

a film by Rehad Desai

A billion here, a billion there, pretty soon you’re talking real money.

Misattributed to Everett Dirksen

According to Wikipedia, Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma’s middle name means “one who smiles while causing you harm” in Zulu.

The harm his rule caused to South Africa is estimated to be at least 1.5 trillion rand — a third of the country’s GDP. Smile and wave.

I surely learned a thing or two from this — highly recommended — documentary but was I shocked? Not really. The only truly surprising thing was that old JZ appeared in front of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture at all. So far he has not been convicted. We can only dream that certain “first-world” presidents, chancellors or prime ministers (ex- or otherwise) find themselves in a courtroom, let alone locked up.