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Mariza turns up heat again at HotHouse
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Chicago Tribune, Mariza turns up heat again at HotHouse >>
By Howard Reich
Tribune arts critic
Any doubts about the popularity of HotHouse, which was closed last week by the city of Chicago for license violations, were erased over the weekend, when a capacity audience filled the music club once again.
Seeking to abide by licensing terms, which allow only "theatrical" presentations and limited liquor sales, HotHouse briefly reopened its doors on Sunday evening for a performance by the Portuguese fado singer Mariza.
By selling liquor before the performance only and by accommodating customers in formal seating (rather than in standing-room-only fashion), HotHouse attempted to follow city regulations while catering to a full-house audience apparently eager to return to the South Loop arts center.
But HotHouse chief Marguerite Horberg hastened to let listeners know that the club was not open for business as usual.
"We're not really open," Horberg told the audience.
"We're only open on a very limited basis," she said, indicating that HotHouse would host future concerts only if they allowed for the same theatrical setting as the Mariza show.
Other events, she said, would be presented in other venues, or not at all. The future of HotHouse may be determined on May 30, when the city will hold an administrative hearing. In the meantime, HotHouse is trying to obtain the correct licenses, Horberg said before the show.
Paradoxically, the theatrical performance by Mariza proved more appealing than many HotHouse shows, in that drinks were not served during the performance and the wait staff was not constantly blocking sight lines and making noise. Moreover, the seating that HotHouse provided was vastly preferable to standing during concerts.
As for Mariza, her performance justified the lavish critical praise she has been receiving internationally, her voice ranking among the prevailing wonders of the musical world.
For starters, Mariza's clarion instrument probably would be persuasive in many musical idioms, her ability to nail a pitch head-on or bend it for expressive effect also distinguishing the best jazz and blues vocalists.
The art of fado, which many observers have likened to black American vernacular forms, also beautifully accommodates Mariza's gifts. Her knack for articulating the intricate melismas and plaintive pitch shadings that are at the heart of fado, as well as her ability to convey to listeners the expressive purpose of a song despite barriers of language, make her an ideal ambassador for this Portuguese folkloric idiom.
The three guitarists that Mariza brought with her added significantly to the textural depth and harmonic sophistication of this music, the singer wisely giving her band ample room in which to explore sounds that even a voice as adept as Mariza's could not replicate. 05/20/03 >> go there
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