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| In the Press : 2008 |
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| The
Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra: Truth in the Dark CD Review in Futureale Magazine (http://www.futureale.com) It's hard to critique a band like the Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra. It would be too easy and disrespectful to label their new CD, Truth In The Dark, as experimental. Truth In The Dark is more than your typical experimental album, full of eclectic sounds and complex notes. I's an album that makes an effort to provide songs which are memorable and can easily find a place on your ipod, sandwiched between an old hit from the Rolling Stones and the latest Madonna single. Despite its eclectic sound, the PRO attempt to have an album that reaches a large audience, rather than a small niche of music fans. Therefore, it is only fair to give a review without the simple cliches that would naturally go with an album like this one. Truth In The Dark brings together a wide assortment of sound. Each track will incite various feelings and emotions. Composer Benjamin Mueller-Heaslip ensures that every instrument is featured prominently. Bassist Michael Kaler and drummer Mike Rosenthal set the tone and pace for each song. Saxophonist Jennifer Wardle adds the needed punch, while cellist Kerri McGonigle and violinist Alex Cheung provide the direction. Rounding out the group is soprano Kristin Mueller-Heaslip, whose powerful voice is used as an instrument, matching the sounds with words. Every track can fit in perfectly with a musical or an opera, as they all tell a story using melodic language. However, the album's strength is in its ability to combine a pop sound with a classical orchestra. Truth In The Dark features tracks that have the make-up of a rock and/or pop song, but are successfully presented through woodwind, percussion and string instruments. Granted, there have been rock and pop songs which have used those types of instruments. However, Mueller-Heaslip's arrangement is recognized as a classical ensemble (integrating the classical and non-classical instruments). Consequently, the two distinct styles: the popish set-up and the classical presentation crash into each other, which leads toward a positive outcome. For example, the song 'Elevator' has a joyful pop sound with catchy lyrics (written by Karl Mohr). It could easily by covered by any band with a guitar, bass and drums. However, the PRO go the extra mile by giving the track an orchestral arrangement. In the end, 'Elevator' draws similar comparisons to The Beatles' 'Strawberry Fields Forever' and 'All You Need Is Love' - songs with a pop sound and feel, but accompanied by orchestral instruments. Other notable tracks on Truth In The Dark include 'I Didn't Sleep' and a cover the Ugly Bug Band's 'Let's Fall In Love.' This is an album that will appeal to all music fans - not just those who enjoy eclectic and experimental sounds. The PRO have made a solid effort by fulfilling a number of musical tastes. After listening to Truth In The Dark, one will find each track memorable and appreciate the musically complex arrangement. -Eric
Rosenhek
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Some nice photos from our show at the Music Gallery, taken by our
friend Susan Carey!  ....Alex and Adriana being their super-intense selves.
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| Bold Approach
Breathes New Life Into Classical Music Tuesday, April 29, 2008 - Nigel Hannaford in the Calgary Herald However, a few weeks ago, this space dealt with the sort of music that can pay its own way, with no top-ups from the Canada Council. I jested that if classical music was to rescue itself from its socio-economic isolation-- its audience shrinks, as it ages -- it would have to rebrand itself as something risque, to be enjoyed in seedy little rock-clubs where it's best to sit near an exit, with one's back to the wall. Only when it could make it without a grant, could it once more be considered an expression of contemporary culture. But, irony is hard these days. There's nothing so off-the-wall that somebody else hasn't thought of it, or done it. Thus, I got a letter: "You might be interested to know here in Toronto, my ensemble/band the Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra actually does what you've described - in this case keeping the musical and technical materials of classical music while dropping the cultural conventions... classical music happens in a bubble: the conventional view is that it needs to be protected from criticism (or any response at all, really) from anyone not entirely invested in the world of classical music. The understanding is these external views will create a pressure that will compromise, or destroy, this music. This is rubbish. What I do now means putting this music outside the bubble and -- this is important -- running a massive risk of failure or rejection. But without this risk of failure, there can be no real success." ....People want music that's safe, and they know what they're going to get. That's why they invest in Bach. But to invest yourself in forming new works requires a totally different spirit - risk. If the genre is going to go on, it has to engage beyond the little group already interested. It's not for me to pick winners and losers, but as somebody who's part of that shrinking, aging, fan base for classical music, I wish anybody luck who can take it off publicly funded life support. ( Yes, I did mention to Mr. Hannaford that we don't really do 'classical' music! But I like his concept for this editorial and so I'm glad to include it here anyway. He also says at some point in this piece that Kristin's a "size 0".... I don't know where he got that statistic from - all I said was that she is "small". But at least these are really well-intentioned misquotes and there are some strong ideas in the piece. Just don't believe everything you read in the papers... ) Read the full
article here
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 Live at the the Music Gallery: March 15 2008 photo by Susan Carey |
Toronto Star
Review of Truth
in the Dark March 12 2008 3.5 / 4 STARS! "There are performers around the world who demolish conventional wisdom by proving there doesn't have to be a chasm between classical and pop, that you can write and perform intelligently without resorting to sonic abstraction. Toronto's Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra is a shining example of that approach in this twelve-track debut. Most songs are new, others are arrangements of pieces by the likes of Brian Eno and Kurt Weill. Composer/arranger Benjamin Mueller-Heaslip is a master of texture, using voice, violin, cello, bass, sax, and drums to inventive effect. Kristin's soprano vocals and wide expressive range alternately glide and grate, depending on the mood. Top Track: "Truth in the Dark" by both Mueller-Heaslips." -John Terauds |
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Concert Review: No Shame w/ Jane Vain & the Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra: February 7 2008 @ the Drake Two-Way Monologues February 2008 "All one needs to do is listen to the frenetic, yet intensely beautiful energy that comes from the masterpiece "Driving me Backward" to realize how this band has the potential to turn the music industry upside down. Alex Cheung's violin work on this song and throughout the entire set was nothing short of brilliant. It makes you cognisant of how much power that instrument holds when someone knows how to wield it properly. Kristin's voice does take some adjusting to; she belts out the lyrics with so much energy that it can almost be abrasive at first. Give it time though, you'll come around. Later in the song, Jen Wardie takes an opportunity to shine with her saxophone stylings. It's like an indie-pop opera and I can't get enough of it. The level of musicianship and creativity that you got for five bucks this night from this band alone might be impossible to duplicate in this city. I sat there, completely fixated on the stage with that wonder that you get when you're a child and something has just shook the world beneath your feet. Even the covers that this band plays have been given such a robust backdrop that they are more original than a lot of bands' actual orginals." -
Dan Wolovick
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 At the No Shame concert series; the Drake Underground, February 7 2008 photo by Jenny Charlton
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Concert Review: The Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra in concert at the Tranzac Club (Jan 16 2008) Exclaim! Magazine February 2008 "...selecting wonderfully obscure and diverse material to reinterpret, the group tackled Toronto composer Karl Mohr's 'Elevator' to excellent effect. I actually preferred this rendition to the original; the soaring cello and violin of Adriana Pera and Alex Cheung are more suitable than keys for the song's haunting glory and Kristin's theatrical and operatic voice is a perfect fit... with radical reinterpretations from Brian Eno to Wire and a collection of engaging originals, it was an interesting musical experience I'm eager to repeat." -
Scott A. Gray
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Top of the CIUT radio charts!
November 07 - February 08 |
Review of our new record Truth in the Dark Exclaim! Magazine February 2008 "Composer Benjamin Mueller-Heaslip and live-in lyricist Kristin Mueller-Heaslip have created a curious cottage industry, a mini-opera company with one diva and a five-person orchestra... drummer Mike Rosenthal is key to making the ensemble come alive, as his interesting, off-centred fills in the title track and his relentless pounding on the leader's arrangement of Wire's 'Comet' demonstrate. The group's moving from unison to counterpoint provides plenty of interest for even the casual listener... While the PRO aren't everyone's cup of tea, they make challenging music for listeners looking to expand their musical palate." - Glen
Hall
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Campaign to Save The Parkdale Food Bank Inside Toronto January 2008 ',,,Benjamin Mueller Heaslip, Parkdale resident and a member of Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra, held a music marathon fundraiser at the Cadillac Lounge on Queen Street. Entry to see the twelve acts who performed was by donation and Mueller Heaslip said about nine hundred dollars was raised. Mueller-Heaslip said he couldn't stand by and do nothing while a staple in the community closed: "I used to live right across the street from it and I would see people coming and going. It has been in the community for a long time," he said. "I think about how the economics of the neighborhood have changed and how there is a lot more money in Parkdale than there used to be... so to see a food bank close now would have been a real disgrace."' -Erin Donovan
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In the Press : 2007 |
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 live at the Wavelength Series @ Sneaky Dee's - December 9 2007 from left to right: Alex Cheung, Michael Rosenthal, Kristin Mueller-Heaslip, Michael Kaler photo by Duncan
MacDonell
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December 2007: Review of 'Truth
in the Dark' in Eye Magazine:
"Supported by cello, violin and saxophone, Kristin Mueller-Heaslip's operatic delivery is the focus of this chamber-pop ensemble. The PRO players successfully meld Benjamin Mueller-Heaslip's dramatic, arrangements into concise little rock rhythms. Benjamin weaves together overlapping hooks into a rich harmonic tapestry, and the rhythm section occasionally steps out from behind the arrangements, as on their cover of Wire's 'Comet'." -
David Dacks
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 Our favourite
guest poet! Spencer takes over at Wavelength - December 9 2007
photo by Duncan MacDonell
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 At the CD release show! photo by Kirk Wheeler
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November
2007: Review of Truth in
the Dark in Now Magazine
"The Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra, an esoteric six-piece chamber ensemble, aren't likely to be booked at the Four Seasons Tea Room. The PRO are a
challenging brew of classical, art rock, opera and
punk, which looks nightmarish on paper but occasionally works. Benjamin
Mueller-Heaslip's arrangements are unique and uncompromised, taking on
music snob favourites like Wire and Brian Eno as well as Kurt Weill.
His band, violinist Alex Cheung, saxophonist Jennifer Wardle and rhythm
section Michael Kaler and Mike Rosenthal, competently keep up with each
song's shifting shape and form." -Benjamin Boles |
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Wavelength
Magazine, December 2007: An interview with Benjamin
Mueller-Heaslip of
the Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra:
The Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra is something of an anomaly; classical music that's inspired as much by David Byrne and Wire as Schubert. Also: they hate classical music crowds and shows. Composer Benjamin Mueller-Heaslip explained to Ryan McLaren why "high art" sucks and playing it safe is bullshit: Some excerpts: "I used to write concert music for some of the contemporary classical groups around Toronto. Eventually I realized that the performers are almost unanimously cynical and obscenely mercenary, the ensembles were culturally and artistically stagnant, the concerts boring, and that the fifteen tweed-wearing droolers who'd show up to them weren't the ideal audience for my music. So I gave that up and formed the Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra." ...
"We live in an extremely conservative culture, and the associations between space and expectation is really tight. People like to be comfortable and safe -- they like to know that in Context A they can anticipate Stimulus B. In a culture where individuals capable of making independent value judgments on their personal experiences are rare, people tend to want to know in advance precisely what to expect so they can research it and decide whether they ought to like it or not ahead of time -- and thereby avoiding the embarrassment of having to think for themselves and potentially disagreeing with their friends." ...
"...we're constantly playing venues where the audience is mostly people who listen to rock or folk or hip hop: generally, anything but what they're about to hear. We don't ask our audience to indulge us with their polite attention -- if we had to ask, what we're doing would be a waste of time." |
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August 2007: John
Terauds
Everything the band performs is by the composer's hand. It is an engaging, wonky mix of classical minimalism, art punk and early Brian Eno-inspired electronica translated into an acoustic medium. "You can hear Franz Schubert, Philip Glass and David Byrne," says Mueller-Heaslip about his musical aesthetic. There is something caustically off-balance at work, too - an echo of Kurt Weill's ironic voice from Weimar-era Germany. "I see what I do as an extension of the chamber Lieder-salon world. I work with a small, mobile force, like Chopin and Schubert." Mueller-Heaslip and many of the band members lived in the Parkdale-High Park neighbourhood when the band formed two years ago. "I was composing and working as a bicycle courier at the time." The "revolutionary" aspect of the band's name comes from Mueller-Heaslip's desire to break through the invisible barrier around contemporary classical music. Like many young artists and listeners, the composer thinks the new music scene is too insular. Unlike many
fellow
sonic warriors, you won't find Mueller-Heaslip onstage at one of the
Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra's monthly gigs at the Tranzac Club or
Clinton's. He is the creative force, leaving performing to wife Kristin
(soprano voice), Alex Cheung (violin), Kerri McGonigle (cello),
Jennifer Wardle (soprano sax), Michael Kaler (bass) and Michael "Rosie"
Rosenthal (drums)." -John
Terauds
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 Live
at the Tranzac Club (October 18 2007)
photo
by Kirk Wheeler
 Photo
from the Toronto Star (August 23 2007):
From left to right: Mike Rosenthal (drums), Kristin Mueller-Heaslip (voice), Michael Kaler (bass), Alex Cheung (violin), Benjamin Mueller-Heaslip (composer), Jen Wardle (sax). |
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August 2007 : Public Broadcasting.ca "It has been suggested to me that there is an influence from such people as Phillip Glass and Godspeed You Black Emperor - which is certainly true. But it is an evolution of that school, not merely a member of it... ...If you are truly not afraid of experimentation, of new directions or of bands that are willing to try something new rather than follow the crowd I'd strongly encourage you to introduce yourself to their music and consider going to one of their upcoming shows at the Tranzac Club." -Justin Beach |
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 The Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra in Performance at Mitzi's Sister (Toronto) July 10 2007 left to right: Kerri McGonigle (cello), Alex Cheung (violin), Michael "Blitz" Kaler (bass), Kristin Mueller-Heaslip (voice), Nick Fraser (filling in on drums), Jen Wardle(sax). Photo by Serge Chubinsky |
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June 2007 : Exclaim Magazine "Take new music opera, reduce the instrumentation to a manageable and mobile six-piece group and play bars, not stuffy, self-important venues for the self-appointed intelligentsia, and you've got a handle on the 'revolutionary' part of the Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra. Founded in 2006 by composer/lyricist Benjamin Mueller-Heaslip, the group has two strings, soprano saxophone, drums and bass, and soprano vocalist Kristin Mueller-Heaslip. The eponymously-titled EP features 4 representative pieces from the ensemble's considerable repertoire. The first song, "Imposter", based on lyrics by darkster Karl Mohr, features a melodic line passionately delivered by Kristin over Reich/Glass-like ostinato string lines. Soprano saxophonist Jennifer Wardle's crystal clear tone imbues "Recurrents" with a glistening sheen as string lines form a tapestry of shimmering patterns. In a musical genre known for feeding from government grant troughs, the Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra is making a bold and courageous statement by bypassing established outlets and playing for audiences where they go to have fun and a little adventure. What a concept!" -Glen Hall |
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The Parkdale Revolutionary Orchestra performing with Camille Greenstein, aerialist at Labspace Studio May 5 2007 |
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March 31 2007: The Arts Now Podcast hosted by Ella Cooper and Amil Niazi "...they do classical reworkings of Brian Eno: See Them Play!" -Amil Niazi |
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