Fascinating Lady

Last night we saw Dianne Reeves perform with the Oregon Symphony. She's a jazz singer with 4 Grammy awards, but since I don't follow jazz, I would not have heard of her if it weren't for the movie Good Night, and Good Luck, where she was featured on screen as the Jazz Singer, and recorded the entire soundtrack. We were so impressed with the soundtrack that after we'd seen the movie, PH immediately bought 3 of her CDs.

A couple weeks ago I was checking out a story about Itzhak Perlman coming to Portland, when I saw that Dianne Reeves would be performing here on Valentine's Day. I thought that would be way better than a dinner out! And I was surprised when the tickets were pretty much front and center (8th row) considering that the event was only 2 weeks away.

It was such an impressive show, or rather, Ms. Reeves is such an accomplished singer that everyone was fascinated with her, including the symphony members. It occurred to me that we would not have been able to experience this in L.A. In L.A., she would only be booked at the Disney Concert Hall (where incidentally, she was the first singer to perform - and also happens to be booked there in May, if you're interested) or at the Hollywood Bowl. I have never been to a show at Disney Concert Hall, and it wasn't for lack for interest. Every season we looked at tickets and were blown away by the prices. Even the lowest tiers were waaaay out of our price range...I don't know how they think they can attract families at those prices, but every year it was the same, so I guess they fill the house somehow. And if we had seen her at the Hollywood Bowl, it would not have been from the 8th row, which again, would not only have been out of our price range, but likely would have been sold to a season ticket holder years in advance. It's unlikely she would ever be booked at a smaller venue, and if she were, all tickets would be immediately sold to industry insiders.

Though I miss the L.A. music scene, I have new respect for Portland and hope they can continue to attract quality performers like Dianne Reeves.