Known as “America?s Ambassador of Song,” vocalist/pianist Michael Feinstein will perform with the BSO?s Principal Pops Conductor, Jack Everly, on Nov. 3 and 4. The two will collaborate on songs from the Great American Songbook, including the Gershwins? ” ?S Wonderful,” and “They Can?t Take That Away From Me,” and Irving Berlin?s “Alexander Ragtime Band.”
Q: You are known nationally as one of the premier interpreters of American popular song.
A: I have been singing what?s called the Great American Songbook since I was very little. These songs have grown in importance and perception to the world in the last three years. The songs of George Gershwin and Irving Berlin and Cole Porter, and hundreds of others, from songs that are just nostalgic, to songs that are considered the greatest American music ever created, are regarded as one of the true American art forms.
Q: Why the Great American Songbook?
A: I was attracted to the songs when I was a kid. My parents played them in our house when I was growing up. I found this music much more interesting and compelling, compared to what was playing on the radio when I was young. It was simply music that I wanted to explore. Even as a child, the pop music on the radio was, by comparison, black and white, while these songs were like Technicolor. So it was truly the songs that attracted me, before I even understood the brilliance of the lyrics or complexity of the musical construction.
IF YOU GO
BSO SuperPops: Michael Feinstein
» Where: Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, 1212 Cathedral St., Baltimore
» When: 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 3; 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 4
» Tickets: $15 to $84
