Cassandra Wilson Tickets

amazing, emotionally beautiful...maybe too short!!!

This is my first time at a Cassandra Wilson concert, I have heard a lot about her over the years. I did not always enjoy Ms. Wilson's approach to jazz. However, I respect what she accomplished. She is an interpretive musician and the pieces she performed were sometimes unrecognizable from the original. I did find her angry and aggressive version of "Strange Fruit" very appropriate and relevant to current events. I will purchase her album of Billie Holiday covers and take more time to understand her approach. I will attempt to see her again to hear more of her capabilities.

I enjoyed Cassandra Wilson. But 3 star... average. There was a certain sameness to her material. All slow, sultry, soulful. Nothing upbeat (with the exception of Strange Fruit, which was very moving and exciting). This is what she is known for, and what I expected - but, to a point. It was a lot of similar sounds. And the concert was short. After dropping $90 per tix I was disappointed that the show was under an hour with no intermission. Cassandra's range, while never broad, seems to be contracting with time, raspier and deeper. Maybe too close a Billie Holiday analogy? If she needed a rest - and she did - a purely instrumental number by the superb band would have been a better fix. I was disappointed by the venue. There was poor crowd management before the show. The ushers were more officious than helpful. The balance of the instruments was uneven to be annoying: the electronic musicians were too prominent, the bass was WAAY too loud, the guitar too loud; and the acoustic instruments: piano, winds, and backup strings too soft. Too bad, because her band is top. Wilson had trouble with both her floor mic (kept on slipping) and her pick up mic (requiring a wardrobe correction). In either (or both) cases she was too closely miced and unbalanced with the instrumentalists. The parties both to our left and to our right left early. While that did not affect me directly, it was telling to me that my opinion was not unique. Good... but could have been much better. I don't plan on seeing her live again, and I will be slow to see another concert at the Apollo

pretty disappointed - we were 8 people paying over $100/ ticket & Cassandra Wilson was overwhelmed by a 16 piece band!! her voice is a spectacular gift & we did not hear it except when she sang a song only with her pianist. also strange fruit encore was pretty good but would have been more powerful with onlly her voice!!! what else can I say ?

The Apollo Theatre is an iconic venue, but the acoustics there are not so great. I love Cassandra Wilson and I love the music of Billie Holiday, so I was so excited for this show. Sadly, I was terribly disappointed. I thought Cassandra phoned in the performance. She sang six songs and an encore and was very difficult to understand because of either her diction and/or the acoustics. The band was terrific and probably jammed and played more than Cassandra sang. At one point, she ran off the stage abruptly. It must not have been a good night for her. The total concert was under 90 minutes and to me, that is just short changing the audience. Tony Bennett sings over twenty songs in his concerts and he is twice Cassandra's age. I do not recommend seeing her in concert.

What a great show! Cassandra has mastered her ability to maneuver her voice over, under and around the notes of each song. She interpreted each song making them seem new. Her band was excellent!!! Appreciative crowd that held their applause til the very last note of each song. Really good time.

Cassandra Wilson has created music with such unique sounds, colors and styles that you recognize her from a couple of notes - like Miles' on the trumpet. Her combination of familiar songs with her unique arrangements and post-modern influences are daring indeed but they work. Who else could end Billie Holiday's "Strange Fruit" with a thrashing guitar break and make it seem appropriate? I came from New Zealand to hear her (she has actually played there a couple of times) and to be there in the famous Apollo Theatre for her performance of her Billie Holiday arrangements, on the latter's 100th anniversary, was an unforgettable highlight in a lifetime of listening to jazz.

Cassandra has a great, distinctive voice and delivery, and her band is SPECTACULAR. They wander outside the bounds of jazz wherever they want to go--mesmerizing.

run-of-the-mill easy listening jazz throughout, all songs are from Coming Forth By Day, except they left out Strange Fruit. It's almost like she thinks it'd be too challenging for the audience. Or for her, in 2015, where she no longer puts her heart into her reinterpretations.

they changed the tempo of EVERY song, did not sing all the most popular cuts, and she only sang for a combined 30 minutes. Between walking off stage twice, talking to the musicians and sitting in a chair on stage, she only sang for 30 mins. The bass player played at a high school level. The rest of the band was tight.