A COUPLE OF NOTE
Dankworth and Laine still making beautiful music together
British husband and wife team John Dankworth and Cleo Laine have a harmonious relationship: he writes the music, she sings the songs. They've toured the world on that formula for four decades, winning acclaim and armfuls of awards along the way. They bring their act to Blackman Auditorium April 17.
Dubbed "the first couple of jazz," Laine and Dankworth are known for her impressive array of vocal styles and his eclectic, unpredictable musical compositions. You name it, Laine sings it; besides jazz, her repertoire includes classical and popular tunes. Indeed, she is the only female singer to have been nominated for Grammys in all three categories. The Los Angeles Times says her "everamazing voice ranges from low and sultry to treetop high."
What's most remarkable about the couple, though, is the range of their musical and entertainment talent. She has made her mark as a singer and actress, and soon will as an author; he as a composer, performer, and arranger. Laine's singing netted her a 1983 Grammy Award for best female vocalist. But she is almost as well known for her acting, having appeared in productions ranging from Sondheim's Into the Woods to Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream and winning a Tony Award nomination in the process. She uses her dramatic skills to tell stories and fully convey the words and meanings of her songs. "I'm very much interested in words," says Laine, from her home in Wavendon, England. "I like getting my tongue around good words." In fact, Laine is now writing a book on singing.
For his part, Dankworth not only composes and performs jazz but also composes film scores, writes musicals, and conducts "pops" music with many of the world's finest symphonies. His film scores include Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, Darling, and Modesty Blaise. He founded the London Symphony Orchestra pops program. He has nominations for Grammy and Academy Awards under his belt. Both Dankworth and Laine have received Order of the British Empire laurels from Queen Elizabeth and honorary doctorates from the Berklee College of Music.
The couple met in 1958 when Dankworth was seeking a vocalist for his band. A budding singer named Cleo tried out, and they married soon after. She became the featured vocalist for the Dankworth Seven in the 1960s and, later, the Dankworth Big Band. In 1970, the couple established the Allmusic Center, devoted to "allmusic"-similar to world music today. In 1979, Dankworth wrote the musical Colette for his wife. Their collaboration continues, most recently on Solitude, a musical tribute to Duke Ellington, which they performed with the Duke Ellington Orchestra.
The couple's work interests don't always coincide-a fact that Laine credits with keeping them together. "We've lasted this long because we haven't always been in each other's pockets," she laughs. "We both have other interests and we go our own way from time to time." Fortunately for their fans, Laine and Dankworth always rejoin for touring and performing. Their N.U. appearance starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets range from $15 to $25. Call the Northeastern ticket center at 617-373-2247.
-Meghan Irons
New Talent: Works by Huey Chiho and Lisa Orlando March 6, African-American Master Artists-in-Residency Program gallery, Jamaica Plain. Reception, 4 p.m. 373-3139.
Three Houses April 126, Ryder Hall lobby. Contemporary Spanish architectural drawings featuring works by Monica Ponce de Leon and Nader Tehrani. 373-2347.
Black Women's Postwar Resistance in South Africa and the U.S. South March 7, 420 Classroom Building, 3 p.m. With doctoral candidate Pamela Brooks. 373-2660.
Community Policing: Making America's Cities Livable Again March 13, Faneuil Hall, 7 p.m. With former New York City police commissioner William Bratton. Sponsored by Ford Hall Forum. 373-5800.
Global Responses to British Imperialism March 21, 420 Classroom Building, 3 p.m. With doctoral candidate Eric Martin. 373-2660.
Contemporary African and African-American Artists April 2, 396 Ryder, 3 p.m. With artists Keith Washington and Khalid Kodi. 373-3139.
Communist Experiments in Reshaping Human Beings: The Russian and Chinese Revolutions as Example April 4, 420 Classroom Building, 3 p.m. With doctoral candidate Yinghong Cheng. 373-2660.
Working Women, Working Wives, Working Mothers, Working Lives April 6, Egan Research Center, 7 p.m. With Faye Wattleton, president, Center for Gender Equality. Sponsored by Ford Hall Forum. 373-5800.
The Nineteenth-Century Indentured Labor Trade: A New Slavery or Forgotten Immigrants? April 18, 420 Classroom Building, 3 p.m. With David Northrup, professor of history, Boston College. 373-2660.
In the Wake of O. J.: Some Lessons for Forensic Laboratories and Their Stakeholders May 8, 130 Hurtig, 4 p.m. With Carl Matthew Selavka, director of forensic sciences, New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services. 373-2822.
The Irish Rovers March 5, Blackman Auditorium, 7:30 p.m. Canada's veteran ambassadors of musical merriment will deliver a performance packed with good cheer, jokes, and classic sing-along tunes. $25; N.U. students $15. 373-2247.
Northeastern University Concert Band March 8, Blackman Auditorium, 8 p.m. $5; N.U. students $3. 373-2671.
African-American Institute Unity Ensemble Choir Concert April 30, Curry Student Center Ballroom, 7 p.m. Free. 373-4919.
The following events are held in celebration of Women's History Month.
Wham, Bam, Thank You Ma'am: Gratuitous Violence Against Black Women in Feature Films March 4, 90 Snell Library, 11:45 a.m.
Health Status and Needs of Lesbians: Results of the Boston Lesbian Health Study March 6, Frost Lounge, 8 p.m.
Women, War, and Peace: Mothers and Daughters as Survivors March 7, 205 Classroom Building, 11:45 a.m. to 12:50 p.m.
Collaborative Couples Who Wanted to Change the World: The Social Policies and Personal Tensions of the Russells, the Myrdals, and the Mead-Batesons April 10, Clifford Lounge, 8 p.m.
Women's Scholarship and International Development Policies May 8, Frost Lounge, 8 p.m.
Poetry Slam, May 9, Blackman Auditorium, 8 p.m. Cosponsored by women's studies and Sojourner magazine.
Call Joanne Murphy or Maureen Feeley, 373-3186.
March: Greater Boston and Alumnae, art auction, March 2, Henderson House, Weston, 1 p.m. (preview); 2 p.m. (auction). West Coast Florida, Bruins-Lightning hockey game, March 8, Ice Palace, Tampa, Florida, 3 p.m. Southeast Florida, scholarship presentation, March 16, Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach, Florida, 2 to 4 p.m. Sigma Epsilon Rho, tour, March 16, WGBH, 125 Western Avenue, Allston, noon. Alumnae, March 19 (snow date March 26), scholarship presentation, Egan Research Center, 5:30 p.m. Greater Boston, breakfast, March 27, 7:30 a.m., location to be announced.
April: Civil Engineering, banquet, April 16, Curry Student Center Ballroom, 5:30 p.m. Criminal Justice, brown bag luncheon, April 24, noon, location to be announced.
