The Racquette

Issue date: 10/2/09 Section: A&E

Media Credit: Julie Koehler Manhattan Transfer members Cheryl Bentyne, Tim Hauser and Janis Siegel perform in Hosmer Hall.

Last Saturday, September 26, The Manhattan Transfer descended upon the stage at Hosmer Hall. The Manhattan Transfer has been a popular vocal quartet since 1974, and has maintained consistent membership since 1978. They are known for a variety of musical styles, and the concert showcased their versatility, with the performance ranging from jazz, swing and bossa nova to Brazilian rhythms, doo-wop and rockabilly. The show was hosted by Community Performance Series.

Beyond revealing the group's remarkable chemistry and skilled interplay, the structure of the concert allowed for a solo piece by each of the four vocalists to share their personal favorites. Each of their accompanists had several moments to shine, and on the whole, the talent represented on the stage was staggering.

The crowd seemed to represent a fair mix of ages, including several students and some members of the community, but one is left to suspect that Family Weekend was the ideal time for this show. The auditorium was nearly full, and the mood of the audience was one of excitement; clapping and thumping of feet was quite common. The band was treated to a near-unanimous standing ovation after the show, and returned for a double encore that featured their most popular song, "Operator," which was called for by several members of the crowd.

The only sour note to the proceedings was the lighting: a constantly moving set of colored spotlights. One suspects an attempt was being made to hearken back to the psychedelic color choices of the 70s, but against the white backdrop of Hosmer Hall the colors seemed garish and the motion frenetic-and on several instances blinding, as spotlights shone directly at the audience.

Reactions from Crane students were mixed. "I wasn't that impressed with Manhattan Transfer in general; they were out of tune quite a bit and it was too cheesy for me. However, I did highly enjoy Janis Siegel's performance," said Emilia Costantini, a senior Music Education major. "While I was in the concert, I couldn't help but feel like I was somebody's grandmother," said Beccy Sachs, also a senior music education major. "[It was an] amazing performance. Everything but the lighting was on point. They proved that age doesn't make a difference," said Brandon Manning, sophomore music education major.

All in all, the performance was excellently put together, and The Manhattan Transfer has once again established their excellence, to say nothing of their staying power. Students are advised to look into their music if not already familiar, and to take the opportunity to see future performances if at all possible.

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