Sigma Alpha Iota

24 Spring 2023 • sai-national.org THE REAL AMBASSADORS: DAVE AND IOLA BRUBECK AND LOUIS ARMSTRONG CHALLENGE SEGREGATION By Keith Hatschek University Press of Mississippi, 2022 K eith Hatschek's book tells the little- known story of the jazz musical conceived by Dave and Iola Brubeck as a commentary on the racial segregation that afflicted the United States in the middle of the 20 th century. Long interested in social justice before that concept entered the zeitgeist, the Brubecks had a strong desire to use music to demonstrate the absurdity of segregation and advocate for a more tolerant country. Inspired by the U.S. State Department's practice of sending musical groups (a large percentage including African American performers) to tour foreign countries during the Cold War era and demonstrate the benefits of a democratic society, the Brubecks' musical called attention to the double standard these same musicians faced when they returned home to discrimination and injustice after being lauded and appreciated abroad. Eventually titled The Real Ambassadors, the musical was begun in 1956 and featured music by Dave and words by Iola. However, it did not receive an actual performance until the Monterey Jazz Festival in 1962 after many years of setbacks and frustrations. Hatschek describes the genesis and evolution of the musical, including efforts to secure the right performers. The Brubecks agreed early on that Louis Armstrong would be perfect for the main role, and although he was eager to take part, matters were complicated by Armstrong's manager, Joe Glaser, who was reluctant to endorse anything that would take Armstrong away from his lucrative touring schedule. Eventually, a confluence of timing and situation allowed this to work out. Other musicians, in addition to Armstrong and Dave Brubeck, included the vocal group Lambert, Hendricks & Ross, and jazz singer Carmen McRae, who became the female lead. In addition, the many aborted attempts to find a performance venue and efforts to make a recording of the musical, which actually preceded the first performance, are explained in detail, but in readable fashion. (For anyone interested in hearing this original recording of the Brubecks' musical, it is available on the streaming service Spotify, and has been released on compact disc under the Columbia Jazz Masterpieces series.) Hatschek has made excellent use of archival resources and extensive interviews with those associated with The Real Ambassadors to provide valuable documentation of an essential part of jazz history. Kathi Bower Peterson is a graduate of Indiana University, where she majored in music history and oboe, and was a member of Iota Epsilon chapter. She also has an MM (in musicology) from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and an MLIS from San Jose State University. She has been the librarian at the Athenaeum Music & Arts Library in La Jolla, California since 1997 and currently serves as the treasurer of the San Diego County Alumnae Chapter, as well as the Coordinator of Scholarships for SAI Philanthropies, Inc. Reviews PLAYING WITH FIRE: THE STORY OF MARIA YUDINA, PIANIST IN STALIN'S RUSSIA By Elizabeth Wilson Yale University Press, 2022 A lthough not widely known no in this country, pianist Maria Yudina (1899- 1970) was highly gifted and popular in the Soviet Union during her lifetime. Elizabeth Wilson's new book illuminates the details of a fascinating life, one full of music and the uncertainty caused by the constant upheaval that plagued her part of the world during most of the 20th century. Maria Yudina was, before anything else, an amazing performer. She easily learned and retained music, and her sometimes idiosyncratic interpretations of elements such as tempo and dynamic indications on the music gave her a distinctive voice. However, she was much more than just a pianist. A convert from Judaism to Orthodox Christianity, she never wavered in her religious convictions, and was frequently censured by her country, because these beliefs conflicted with Communism, and the Soviet Union was desperate to show the rest of the world how successful their new economic and cultural system could be. Periods of great support from her government were interrupted by times when she was forbidden to perform professionally, travel, or maintain teaching positions. Nevertheless, her life was lived in service to others. She was a tireless promoter of talent in many fields, including the writer Boris Pasternak, philosopher and scholar Mikhail Bakhtin, and composers Igor Stravinsky and Dmitri Shostakovich, just to name a few. She also devoted many years to the translation of German Lieder into Russian. Furthermore, she was known for her constant penury, due to her lack of interest in material possessions and her habit of giving away her money to others who needed it for various reasons. Author Elizabeth Wilson, who lived in the Soviet Union for many years and studied cello with Mstislav Rostropovich, has done an impressive amount of research on her subject, and because Maria Yudina was a public figure, there was a lot of documentation to go through and synthesize. She has provided us with a detailed and compelling portrait of an extraordinary woman.

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