REVIEWS
2012
Classical music: Madison's Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society is Musician of the Year for 2012
"Even as so many other newer and younger groups are trying to innovate in untraditional ways and untraditional venues in the hopes of drumming up new and younger audiences for classical music [...] BDDS has been trying to achieve the very same goal for 21 years now. And they do it successfully..."
"Still young at heart and rebellious, BDDS nonetheless has a history, a long and distinguished record..."
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Jack Stockinger, Well Tempered Ear blog, December 31, 2012
Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society again mix it up masterfully
"It's too easy to come up with metaphors that extend the mixology theme — we can raise a glass to BDDS's musical accomplishments, compare the group to a wine that's aging well, or note that like a good cocktail, their performance is complex and multi-faceted, a little sweetness here a little unexpected punch there. So be it. All of those things are true.
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Jessica Courtier, Capital Times, June 30, 2012
Stage Presence: Flutist finds inspiration in classical, pop music
"Most inspiring moment on stage: Most recently, at BDDS, we've performed Astor Piazzolla's music with live tango dancers in front of a beautiful stage set designed by Carolyn Kallenborn. The combination of incredible lighting, the dancers, the set design and Piazzolla's music was one I'll never forget. It brought the house down."
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Gayle Worland, Wisconsin State Journal, June 16, 2012
Blockbuster Tchaikovsky trio opens Bach Dancing & Dynamite Society series
"I must say that many of the most memorable performances of chamber works I have ever heard have been at BDDS programs…"
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John Barker, Isthmus, June 16, 2012
2011
Bach Dancing & Dynamite Performs Bach, Vaughan Williams, Bermel, and Haydn in Striking 20th Anniversary Series Opener
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Isthmus
by Sandy TabachnickLook Who’s Bach In Town: Chamber Festival Celebrates 20 Years
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Wisconsin State Journal
by Lindsay ChristiansBach Dancing & Dynamite Society Knows How to Reel Them In
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Wisconsin State Journal
by Jessica CourtierSounds of the Summer
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Isthmus
by John BarkerClassical Connections: Bach to Bach Explosions
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and
Twenty Candles, Please: “Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society” Celebrates Two Decades
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Dane 101
by Greg HettmansbergerArt Smarts
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Madison Magazine
by Katie Vaughn
2010
"Real people are creating art right in front of you. No re-mixing. No dubbing. No second chances. Each musician has practiced and trained. Every audience is different. Each concert is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, valuable, and fleeting.
Audiences can be coaxed, coached, stretched, and delighted simultaneously. Their music changes lives for the better."
—Pat McCorkle, audience member
"…each time, the BDDS concert proved a winner – offering a superbly planned and well executed event that should leave no doubt in anyone's mind about the artistic merits and audience pleasures offered by the BDDS. BDDS is, in a word, first-rate."
"BDDS' trademark informal approach to serious art couldn't have worked better."
"The BDDS concerts must now be considered as a highlight on the entire concert season. Period. Winter or summer, it doesn't matter. BDDS easily stands comparison with the best classical music-making you'll find in the Madison area."
—Jake Stockinger, The Well-Tempered Ear Blog
"This was a very impressive concert, no surprise for BDDS. BDDS presents a diverse array of chamber music in a very welcoming, friendly context... They consistently provide outstanding musical and artistic experiences and make classical music very accessible."
—audience member
"What separates the Milwaukee Symphony from the Madison Symphony? I'd venture the names of two mesmerizing Milwaukee musicians as the difference: Frank Almond and Joe Johnson. Violinist Almond and cellist Johnson (who's since moved on to the Toronto Symphony) are elite musicians, and it's why I so anticipated their appearance with BDDS' regulars Stephanie Jutt and Jeffrey Sykes. Wow! Almond, who has a star's haughty confidence, captured the drama of Schumann's Violin Sonata in D minor from the very first note, while the churning dynamics of Mendelssohn's Piano Quartet in B Minor had me on seat's edge. String ensembles never sound as good recorded as they do when the music swirls up in a live moment like this."
—Marc Eisen, The Isthmus from "My 17 favorite concerts of 2010, from Milwaukee to Stoughton to Madison 14. Dynamite for sure Bach Dancing & Dynamite Society, June 11, Stoughton Opera House"
2009
“Thanks for coming to Capitol Lakes! We truly appreciate your beautiful music!”
—Mary Hanson, Capitol Lakes Retirement Community
“From 'Leapfrog' to 'The Dating Game,' [BDDS] chamber music festival focuses on fun.”
—Lindsay Christians, The Capital Times
“We are SOOOOO spoiled!
—BDDS fan
“Dear Stephanie: I think about you and Jeffrey every day. The reason: you pulled my name out of the door prize basket at your concert in Overture!”
—Bea Dewey, Lucky Audience Member
“Once again, the stars came out and gave us a wonderful series of chamber music concerts… Not only was the music and the musicianship excellent, but the lighthearted banter that opens each half of the concert makes this a distinctively SUMMER chamber music series.”
—BDDS audience member
“Maurice Ravel's Trio of 1914 was given a dashing performance by our three players, as a superb sendoff for the season ahead.”
—John Barker, Isthmus
“There is nothing else quite like it in Madison or the surrounding community.”
—BDDS audience member
2008
"Among the joys of the Bach Dancing & Dynamite Society's annual operations has been their outreach beyond Madison. I love their performances at the Stoughton Opera House, a restored jewel."
—John Barker, Isthmus"If you want up-to-the-minute news on what composers are writing, a Bach Dancing & Dynamite concert is the place to start. But it's not limited to au courant."
—Sandy Rucker-Tabachnick, Wisconsin State Journal
2007
“The audience was in awe of the skill and passion evidenced in Saturday’s concert. Several curtain calls brought the musicians back before admiring fans. Chamber playing doesn’t get much better than this.”
—Sandy Rucker-Tabachnick, Isthmus“And the people stood in noisy ovation after hearing duet and ensemble instrumentals played with such joy, dynamism, and skill as to rattle the pressed-metal ceiling in the old theater.”
—David Giffey, Home News, Spring Green
2006
“BDDS rocks!”
—Hillside Theater audience member“BDDS’s formula for chamber music festivals has always been a volatile mix of highbrow artistry and sideways-brow attitude. That approach has earned it a reputation of a group that seesaws gleefully from the ridiculous to the sublime.”
—Kevin Lynch, The Capital Times“BDDS continues to challenge us with a range of programming choices, bringing us an array of superlative performers both local and imported.”
—John Barker, Isthmus“The emotion, the drama and the show-stopping beauties in these shows will come not from daytime drama, but from an eclectic range of musical scores.”
—Gayle Worland, Wisconsin State Journal“The impact/public service value of the BDDS Festival centers around its essential inclusiveness. The Society aims to share music from all corners of the classical universe. It does this with infectious enthusiasm and without pretense.”
—Playhouse audience member/evaluator
2005
“Gripping? Exciting? Darn near exhausting? Yes, and that was just the music…”
—Jay Rath, Wisconsin State Journal“With the joyous snap, crackle and bang that its name implies, this wonderfully entertaining and skilled group of classical musicians devoted its 2005 summer season to a 'United Nations' theme. The final program blew us away, thanks to the BDDS' selections of “Presto II” and “Salon Buenos Aires” by Uruguayan-born composer Miguel del Aguila. And pow! – the composer was even in the audience.”
—Gayle Worland’s “A Top 10 List The Arts Can Be Proud Of” Wisconsin State Journal
“Whether they’re zany, brainy, old-world or au courant, their musicianship is near flawless and fans keep coming back for more.”
—Sandy Rucker-Tabachnick, Isthmus
2004
"What glorious music—spirited, reflective, joyous. Our five players dug into it with skill and dedication, expertly probing its textures and feelings. These Bach Dancing players truly love their work."
—John Barker, Isthmus"This gifted group invariably manages to produce compelling programs, by force of its prodigious collective talent and passion for lusty music making."
—Kevin Lynch, The Capital Times"The group's stellar ensemble performance was rewarded with more shouts of 'Bravo!' and a standing ovation."
—Michael Muckian, The Capital Times"This year, as it seems every year, the quality of the music-making excels."
—John Aehl, Wisconsin State Journal
2003
"This summer, Madison's most interesting music isn't found on the Square, in the park or at any of the major area music festivals. Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society is once again cutting new turf from a variety of small venues, producing chamber music with an attitude and ear to explore new aural frontiers."
—Michael Muckian, Special to The Capital Times, 2003"Expect passionate playing, striking stage visuals and offbeat surprises."
—Kevin Lynch and Rob Thomas, Capital Times, 2003"BDDS maintains superlative performance standards -- and dares to be off-beat, conceptual, theatrical and entertaining, like the Kronos String Quartet without the quasi-punk attitude."
—Kevin Lynch, Capital Times, 2003"After twelve years, BDDS has become a Madison summer tradition."
—Jacob Stockinger, Wisconsin State Journal, 2003
2002
"BDDS uses irreverence and flair to dust off the classics and broaden their appeal."
—Jacob Stockinger, Capital Times, 2001"Bach Dancing, in its 11th summer, still programs lovely and interesting music–and plays the music exceptionally. Very impressive."
—John Aehl, Wisconsin State Journal, 2002"[BDDS] left the audience justly wowed."
—John W. Barker, Isthmus, 2002
2001
"BDDS is known for many things, but most of all for the spontaneity of its outstanding performances that highlight the tightness and vibrancy of ensemble playing. It is also known for exploring the corners of chamber music repertoire."
—Jacob Stockinger, Capital Times, 2001
2000
"[BDDS] achieved that all too-rare perfection of ensemble and spirit that just carries one away and earned them shouts of 'Bravo!' at the end."
—Jess Anderson, Isthmus, 2000
1999
"[The music] brought the house down in wild applause."
—Jess Anderson, Isthmus, 1999"As the massive work [Brahms] unfolded, increasing excitement seemed to grip the players, and by the end of the difficult finale, it's amazing that everyone, including the audience, didn't just keel over."
—Jess Anderson, Isthmus, 1999
1998
"Simply breathtaking playing. It was everything it should be."
—Jess Anderson, Isthmus, 1998
1997
"BDDS concerts have included some of the most virtuosic, subtle and memorable performances of chamber music I have heard anywhere at any time by any one–and that includes prize-winning recordings by superstar names. And I am hardly alone in my assessment. Critic after critic has praised the group for its top-notch performances as well as its ability to attract a crossover audience at a time when many classical music organizations–including major symphonies–are struggling to reverse a decades-long downturn in attendance, especially among young people."
—Jacob Stockinger, Capital Times, 1997
1996
"Once again, BDDS's blend of serious music-making and high spirits proved to be an irresistible combination."
—Christopher Freitag, Capital Times, 1996
1995
"The ensemble [is] renowned for juggling on-stage high-jinks with high-grade, serious chamber music [and with] artistry that is a little eccentric, stubbornly personal, impassioned and committed to invigorating old traditions with an ever-youthful attitude."
—Kevin Lynch, Capital Times, 1995"Some think of them as the un-concerts–unusual, untraditional, unplugged. Actually, we've never seen chamber music that's performed in such an unstuffy manner. Or that's so much fun to participate in."
—Jen Winiger, Madison Magazine, 1995"It smoked. It sizzled. It was Brahms–played by BDDS. The cheers and immediate standing ovation from the near sell-out crowd...were well deserved."
—Elizabeth Brixey, Wisconsin State Journal, 1995
1993
"As for the playing, I'm out of superlatives before I even start; it was just plain fabulous, and it only got better....The ensemble held us spellbound."
—Jess Anderson, Isthmus, 1993"While BDDS braved some rough waters, in choosing difficult and often unfamiliar pieces, true to the group's purpose they brought each piece to life with great precision, great expression, and a little of the smell of ozone.... BDDS zipped into the music with a passion that left everyone in the audience gaping."
—Pam Chickering, NewsRepublic, 1993