There Stands the Glass

The Top Ten Albums of January 2025
1. Bad Bunny- Debí Tirar Más Fotos
My review.

2. Ambrose Akinmusire- honey from a winter stone
Bittersweet.

3. Carl Allen- Tippin'
My review.

4. Mike- Showbiz!
Like no business I know.

5. Ebo Taylor, Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad- JID022
Highlife.

6. James McVinnie- Dreamcatcher
My review.

7. François Couturier and Dominique Pifarély- Preludes & Songs
Duo français.

8. Ethel Cain- Perverts
Pop star drones.

9. William Basinsky and Richard Charter- Aurora Terminalis
Drone star drones.

10. The Weeknd- Hurry Up Tomorrow
Thriller.

The Top Three Reissues, Repackagings and Reimaginings of January 2025
1. Mary Halvorson Quartet- The Bagatelles, Vol. 1
Zorn-y.

2. Mac Miller- Balloonerism
Wavy highs and lows.

3. Iggy Pop- Live at Montreux Jazz Festival 2023
Still your dog.

The Top Ten Songs of January 2025
1. Marshall Allen featuring Neneh Cherry- “New Dawn”
Sunshine.

2. Damon Locks- "Holding the Dawn in Place (Beyond pt. 2)"
Ra.

3. Khadija Al Hanafi- "Let It Bump"
Right here.

4. Larry June featuring 2 Chainz and the Alchemist- “Bad Choices”
Decisions, decisions.

5. Celeste- "Everyday"
All day.

6. Ledisi- "Love You Too"
Always.

7. Skiifall featuring Jorja Smith- "Her World"
Gregory Isaacs lives.

8. TheBabeGabe and the Human- "PSA"
My review.

9. Zach Bryan- “Blue Jean Baby”
Out in the street.

10. Bonnie “Prince” Billy- “Turned to Dust (Rolling On)”
This too shall pass.

The Top Ten Performances of January2025
1. Traxman and Dewey at miniBar
My review.

2. Garibaldi Quartet at the 1900 Building
My review.

3. Carl Phillips at Arrupe Hall
My Instagram snapshot.

4. Kristina Reiko Cooper with the Kinnor Philharmonic at White Theatre
My review.

5. Emmanuel Pahud’s masterclass at Helzberg Hall
My review.

6. Made in France at the Market at Meadowbrook
My Instagram clip.

7. Matt Hopper and Gerald Spaits at Green Lady Lounge
My Instagram clip.

8. Rich Wheeler, Jackie Myers and Sebastian Arias at the Market at Meadowbrook
My Instagram snapshot.

9. Marvin Gruenbaum Quartet at the Market at Meadowbrook
My Instagram clip.

10. Cynthia van Roden at the Market at Meadowbrook
My Instagram snapshot.

The previous monthly recap is here.

Original image by There Stands the Glass.

I often joke that disruptive people fiddling with paper at worship services and concerts sound as if they’re practicing origami. I suppressed a smile when I turned to see who was incessantly crinkling a program at White Theatre on New Year’s Day. A kid was actually engaged in an elaborate origami project.

Nevertheless, I glared at the noisemaker until his mother made him cut it out. I didn’t want anything impinging on my appreciation of cellist Kristina Reiko Cooper’s extraordinary playing on Mieczyslaw Weinberg’s dramatic “Fantasy for Cello & Orchestra” with the Kinnor Philharmonic. Having paid $19 for the concert, I intended to get my money’s worth.

The disruption by the crafty kid was merely a preview of the casual audience behavior. Many members of the audience of about 400 behaved as if the event was an outdoor picnic. A Tootie-worthy outburst compelled Cooper to momentarily pause during reading of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “Variations on a Rococo Theme.”

Yet Susan Goldenberg’s invocation of Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning after intermission helped me take the tantrum in stride. By the time a rendition of "Hatikvah" concluded the concert, I’d resolved to be more patient with inevitable irritants in the new year.

January 2025 Recap: A Monthly Exercise in Critical Transparency

Concert Review: Kristina Reiko Cooper and the Kinnor Philharmonic at White Theatre