Gramofon
Hungary
Automatic translation: The venture that the festival organizers will be going to on October 13 at the Millennium Theater is almost hopeless. It is extremely difficult to evoke the spirituality of Frank Zappa, one of the most inimitable, most form-breaking and self-governing performers in the universe, but if this is achieved by up to 95 percent, the goal has already been achieved.
Frank Zappa, who died in 1993 at the age of 53, was not only a singer and guitarist, but also had a significant legacy as a drummer, composer, producer, graphic artist and filmmaker. It is appropriate, therefore, that on this day, prominent domestic and international representatives of various stylistic and genre categories line up in honor of Zappa's memory.
The Modern Art Orchestra, conducted by Kornél Fekete-Kovács, will open the one-day concert series, performing Zappa works for large orchestras in their bold, energetic, virtuoso form. After them, Ed Mann sits behind his drum kit - he once worked as a percussionist for Zappa and was thought to be able to play anything he wanted with both hands and two feet. His solo improvisation will be quite an exceptional experience. At the evening concert starting at 8:30 pm, he plays the material of the 1984 Zappa album Perfect Stranger, partly commissioned by Pierre Boulez, conducted by the Hungarian Radio Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Adám Fischer. It is known that Zappa also particularly appreciated the art of other contemporary composers, including Stravinsky, Stockhausen and Varése, who recorded his first Boulez record in high school. Boulez, though restrained about it, also respected Zappa’s musicality and vitality.
The last attraction of the evening will be the performance of the Hungarian Zappa Memorial Orchestra. The musicians will be assisted by Mike Keneally, a former Zappa guitarist (co-contributor to Broadway the Hard Way and The Best Band You Never Heard in Your Life) to authentically evoke the master’s figure. (In the summer, by the way, a street was named after Zappa in Berlin.)
Source: adt.arcanum.com