[Dixielandjazz] Critics and Stage Presence

[Stephen G Barbone]

On Jan 7, 2010, at 2:49 AM, dixielandjazz-request at ml.islandnet.com  
wrote:

> From: "pj.ladd" <pj.ladd at btinternet.com>
>
> As for Steve weighing in  and comparing what I might have said about  
> his
> protege violin player, I don`t think I have ever expressed an  
> opinion about
> him but just for the record I think he is terrific.

Hi Pat:

I didn't say anything at all about what you said or might have said  
about Jonathan Russell, who BTW is certainly not my protege. More  
likely the other way around.

Getting back to stage presence, which is what the issue was with  
Nikki, I offer this perspective. IMO, very few performers are born  
with a natural stage presence. So we need to factor that in when  
discussing young performers. Russell, for example, at 8 lacked it as  
does Nikki as we saw her in that clip. I think someone has to teach  
most performers about stage presence. I agree with you that she has  
great talent

Those of us who have sat up close and personal at a Las Vegas Stage  
show with Sinatra, Aretha Franklin, Peggy Lee, Ella, or any other big  
time performer can see quite readily that the gestures, the movement  
across the stage, the smiles and placement of arms for emphasis,  
placement of microphone to mouth are all carefully choreographed.

As was the instrument waving of the swing bands in the 1930s. <grin>

Or if we watched Ed McMahon laughing at Johnny Carson jokes, what  
seems on a TV screen to be natural, is obviously a learned trait when  
you see it from the first row of the studio audience.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone
www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband