Two brilliant, devoted musicians playing the music they love—what could be better?

Boogie Stomp!

Variations Theatre Group at the Chain Theatre

L to R: BOB BALDORI and ARTHUR MIGLIAZZA in BOOGIE STOMP

By Joel Benjamin

Bob Baldori and Arthur Migliazza are two brilliant musicians with an overwhelming jones for Boogie Woogie music and its many artistic descendants.  Their encyclopedic knowledge of popular musical forms over the last century is breathtaking, but their playing of and dedication to their chosen repertoire is even more amazing.  Boogie Stomp! at the Chain Theatre takes the audience on a fascinating tour of more than a century of American music beginning with “Boogie Stomp” which was a classic of the form:  steady, repeated bass line in the left hand under a varied melody played by the right.  Strangely absent from the program was any representation of Ragtime, but, perhaps including Ragtime would have been too much of a good thing.

Bob, the older and more experienced of the two, was the congenial host and narrator of the evening, entertainingly revealing the lowdown origins of this music in bordellos, juke joints and street corners.  He spoke of many of the Boogie and Blues legends, beginning with Earl Fatha Hines, Bob Seeley and slightly more contemporary artists like Fats Waller and Chuck Berry all of whom provided the chronological arc of the music these two played.  Arthur’s “St. Louis Blues” took the tune from lowdown blues to thumping boogie.  Bob played the harmonica and sang in a twangy voice on “Shake That Boogie” recalling the memory of Sonny Boy Williamson while Arthur tickled the ivories.  The squeaks and squawks of the harmonica gave the tune a heft.  Hersal Thomas’s “Suitcase Blues” came with a colorful story of the institution of rent parties while “Okemos Breakdown” celebrated Bob’s hometown (with photos of the young Bob projected onto the cutout screens of the backdrop).  The first part ended with a rowdily improvised “Fourplay,” played four-hand on one piano leading to some hilarious choreography involving entwined arms and legs.

“Tennessee Waltz,” made famous by Patti Page, was given a refreshing interpretation by Bob, full of breathless hesitations and changes of tempo.  Arthur’s “Bumble Boogie” was astounding, his hands a blur as the notes tumbled out in a torrent.  Also brilliantly resuscitated was Benny Goodman’s “Sing Sing Sing” in a tribute to the Big Bands.  The two guys caught the pounding of Gene Krupa and the whoop of Goodman’s clarinet.  It was difficult to keep butts in seats! 

Bob’s son happened to show him how an electric keyboard could sound like a human voice leading to “By Myself,” a bluesy, but lighthearted evocation of deeply felt emotions.   Stirring up images of the trains that helped disseminate this music, “Honky Tonk Train”—backed up by appropriate show and tell on the screens—certainly caught the sounds of pistons churning and wheels pounding the tracks.

photos by Jim Randolph

The finale, “Mojo” came with stories of the legendary Muddy Waters and the sad disappearance of the Boogie Woogie (except as it was absorbed into Rock & Roll).  “Mojo,” which also included more energetic harmonica playing, was a fitting way to end the program with a bang.

Boogie Stomp! (through May 31, 2014)

Variations Theatre Group

The Chain Theatre

21-48 45^th Rd. (between 21^st & 23^rd Sts.)

Long Island City, NY

Tickets and Information:  866-811-4111 or www.variationstheatregroup.com  or www.boogiestomp.com