By Ellen Chappelle

Settle down with a symphonic sound this weekend
This Sunday and Monday, Oct. 23 and 24, Cascade Symphony Orchestra will present the opening concert of their 50th Golden Jubilee season. Music Director Michael Miropolsky and the CSO will join with Edmonds travel guru Rick Steves in presenting “Rick Steves’ Europe: A Symphonic Journey.” The concerts will begin at 7:30 p.m. each evening at the Edmonds Center for the Arts. The performances will be aired later on national public television.

The evening will feature popular favorites from Europe’s greatest composers along with narration and travel video clips presented by Steves. Music will include “On the Blue Danube” by Strauss, The Moldau by Smetana, the Pomp and Circumstance March No.1 by Elgar, and excerpts from Verdi’s Aida and Grieg’s Peer Gynt suite, as well as Marche Troyenne by Berlioz, the Overture to Die Meistersinger by Wagner, and Beethoven’s soaring Ode to Joy from Symphony 9. At each performance, an audience member will be selected at random to receive a seven-day Rick Steves European city tour for two.

CSO season tickets are available by calling 425-776-4938. Tickets for individual performances are available only through the Edmonds Center for the Arts, either online or by phone at 425-275-9595. For more information, please visit the Cascade Symphony website.

Warm up with hot jazz
Bill Charlap and Renee Rosnes have a unique musical connection. Two of the premiere pianists in jazz, they are also married and have recently released their debut recording together on Blue Note Records.

DownBeat Magazine exclaimed of the album, “The counterpoint and compatibilities are so perfectly balanced, the selections and arrangements so handsome, that ‘Double Portrait’ is a prize.” Separately, Charlap and Rosnes have toured and recorded with a veritable who’s who of jazz, including Phil Woods, Tony Bennett, Wynton Marsalis, Wayne Shorter, Joe Henderson and James Moody, among others.

Bill Charlap grew up with music in his blood. His father, Moose Charlap, was a Broadway composer and songwriter who penned scores for Peter Pan, Alice Through the Looking Glass and many others. His mother, Sandy Stewart, performed with Benny Goodman and Perry Como and scored a Grammy nomination. Bill began playing piano at a young age, studying with jazz pianist Jack Reilly and classical pianist Eleanor Hancock. He also picked up pointers from jazz/popular song pianist Dick Hyman, a distant cousin on his father’s side.

In the late ‘80s he joined baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan’s quintet and in 1994 was enlisted by alto saxophonist Phil Woods for his band. Charlap served as the musical director of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, A Celebration of Johnny Mercer as a part of the JVC Jazz Festival in New York, later taking the revue on the road. He has recorded seven albums for the Blue Note label, including two Grammy-nominated projects: “Somewhere,” featuring the music of Leonard Bernstein, and “The Bill Charlap Trio, Live at the Village Vanguard.”

Rosnes grew up in Vancouver, B.C., beginning classical studies at age 3 and discovering jazz in high school. Upon moving to New York, she swiftly established a reputation as a major talent, touring and recording with many of the masters, including Joe Henderson, JJ Johnson, the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band and more. From 2004 through 2009, Renee held the piano chair for the SFJAZZ Collective, an all-star ensemble that featured many contemporary luminaries. Rosnes has released 12 solo albums, four of which have received Juno Awards, the Canadian equivalent of a Grammy.

The pair will perform on Saturday. Oct. 29 at 7:30 p.m. at Edmonds Center for the Arts.  Tickets are $15-$35 and are available online or by phone 425-275-9595.

March to the beat of your own drum
Don’t wait if you’re planning to enter Cascade Symphony Orchestra’s 2011-12 Rising Star Search! Talented young pianists and violinists who will be age 13 or younger on the day of the concert are eligible to enter the contest. The winners will perform as soloists with the symphony at its Children’s Concert on Feb. 25, 2012.

Applicants must complete the application found on the CSO website. They must also submit a CD of their performance of the appropriate concerto movement. The performance must be uncut, unedited, and unaccompanied. All audition materials must be postmarked by November 1. Finalists may be asked to audition in person. Winners will be notified by Dec. 15.

Winners must be available to rehearse with CSO on Feb. 19, 2012, as well as for the performance on Feb. 25, 2012.  The concert will be held at the Edmonds Center for the Arts. For further inquiries regarding the Rising Star Search, please contact hollysullivan@comcast.net or call 425-743-7968.

Scare yourself silly in a dark theatre
Driftwood Players prepares to welcome Halloween with its production of “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Spooky Halloween Tales.”

The classic story of Ichabod Crane and his mysterious disappearance is paired with other blood-chilling tales of suspense to create a night of spooky storytelling for the whole family. “The Monkey’s Paw” by W.W. Jacobs and “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe are deliciously frightening tales that will help set the mood for Halloween. (This evening is suitable for children ages 8 and above or at their parents’ discretion.)

The show runs Oct. 27-30. Thursday, Friday and Saturday performances begin at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday shows start at 2 p.m. All tickets are $12. For tickets, call 425-774-9600 or purchase online.

Phoenix Theatre meets this scary season in typical comedic fashion as they present The Haunted Through Lounge and Recessed Dining Nook at Farndale Castle. The ladies of Farndale Avenue Housing Estate Townswomenʼs Dramatic Society are back to stage a play – just in time for Halloween. This time they make another spectacle of themselves – complete with rigorous sound effects – in this sinister, spine-chilling mystery of murder and mayhem that is guaranteed to bring down the house – or at least a substantial part of the set.

Director Eric Lewis shares his thoughts on this production: “Like all classic farce, the characters are blinded by their own positive outlook. I think theatre maybe the only creative art where exposing our own failures is so much fun.”

The show opens Friday, Oct. 21 and runs through Nov. 13.  Tickets are as follows: General $18.50, Seniors/Students/Military $15.50, TPS Members $12.50. Tickets are available through Brown Paper Tickets or at the door. Call 206-533-2000 for reservations.

With a background in theatre and journalism, Ellen Chappelle is perfectly poised to covers the local arts scene for My Edmonds News. She also keeps busy writing and editing for artists and small businesses, publishing an informational site for dog owners and creating handcrafted jewelry. Please keep her posted about all things artistic in Edmonds by emailing her at arts@myedmondsnews.com.