ZAPPACOSTA AND FRIENDS PERFORM ZAPPACOSTA HITS
by Helen Heubi
by Helen Heubi
Hear singer song-writer Alfie Zappacosta once, and chances are you’ll want to chance more of his romance. This was evident at the Gravenhurst Opera House on the evening of Wednesday 14 July. From the opening chords on Alfie’s guitar, audience members recognized songs they knew, and applauded in warm anticipation. They had experienced this music and artist before, and so they already knew that you never know what nuances, colours and fireworks he will invest in any particular composition of his, any time. On Wednesday evening, the mood, announced by Alfie at the beginning, was romantic.
Colour comes first to mind as I revisit last night’s performance, from the subtlest tones of guitar, viola, accordion, keyboards and voice to rich tapestries of melody interwoven by rhythm, to rhapsodic explosions of high intensity. Half the time I didn’t know where the three musicians on stage were going with their improvisations, and even then, it didn’t matter. That, according to keyboard virtuoso Ross Wooldrige, is Alfie’s intention - to send spirits floating on a plane of infinite possibilities.
Claudio Vena’s viola was a perfect voice to work intricate patterns with Alfie Zappacosta’s amazing instrument - his flexible voice with its wide range in pitch and flavours.
The Zappacosta voice is probably what singing teachers have in mind when they try to get pupils to realize. “Your voice isn’t just a voice; it’s your instrument.” Alfie Zappacosta’s 1984 Juno award recognized him as “Most Promising Male Vocalist”. Another Juno in 1988 was for the "Album of The Year".
During a career of more than 30 years, and still going strong, Zappacosta has been known as “rock to some, smooth to others, AC to many. Alfie is established enough that he's just Alfie - an incredibly gifted talent beyond any genre tag”, to quote his website, which continues: “In 1995, Zappacosta left his pop stardom behind to pursue a more intimate style of writing and performing.
“The roots of his new sound started when Zappacosta began playing solo before crowds at a Toronto club. Playing only guitar, he explored new harmonies and melodies, later combining rootsy elements such as harmonica and accordion, which eventually manifested itself in a contemporary Jazz/AC sound.”
Zappacosta derives his own creations from a deep well of invention that is as personal as it is universal. The concert in Gravenhurst was one of many based entirely on his own compositions, like “Passion”, “When I Fall in Love Again” and my personal favourite “Adelina”. Some of his hits are collaborations. “Nothing Could Stand in Your Way”, which he sang last night, was written with David Foster.
His American Music Award is for contribuing “Overload” to “Dirty Dancing”. He has played the lead in “Jesus Christ Superstar” and Che Guevara in “Evita” and the lead in “Hair”. He has several films to his credit, has performed for troops in Afghanistan and added his voice to the African famine relief project “Tears Are Not Enough”. Even this brief list cannot encapsulate the Alfie who appeared on the Gravenhurst Opera House Stage.
The poet, composer, musician and singer has written, “I wanted to get back into a form of music that I knew I was not only capable of doing but also a style of music that would fulfill me both artistically and spiritually. I realized that chasing down fads is really a losing proposition.”
This courageous manifesto works for Alfie Zappacosta, and worked on stage and for the audience of the Gravenhurst Opera House on Wednesday evening. I want him back, so that I and my friends can experience anew the magic that he and his colleagues weave out of the air together.
For more on this artist, with list of his CD’s, see his website:
A reminder of the Gravenhurst Opera House link:
No comments:
Post a Comment