The Trio took their places on stage, the rest of the room was darkened, and without more ado, Diane Hoffman got up on stage and began singing, with complete and professional assurance, “Sunday in New York.”  She and her Trio filled the room with a groovy New York kind of feeling, her terrific alto voice perfect for that swing number.  After it, she introduced the Trio: Jeremy Bacon on piano; Tim Givens on bass; and Christian Finger on drums.  The next song, in contrasting rhythm, had a samba beat, emphasized by the drums.  It seemed a quintessential New York act, with its wise, take-charge, wise-guy attitude.  Hoffman’s New York accent (though her husband said she was born in Boston) did nothing to diminish this feeling.  The change of tempo from song to song continued throughout the act.  So did the lack of patter, but in this case it wasn’t missed, nor was the lack of a title or mentioned theme. The act, despite all this, had a strong sense of unity.

Yes, there was the occasional bit of patter, such as: “This is an Alec Wilder tune,” with which Hoffman introduced “I’ll Be Around,” referring to its composer/lyricist.  With another change of tempo, she sang this ballad movingly, soulfully. Enunciating clearly and using thoughtful phrasing, she wonderfully captured the narrative of a lover who, despite the end of a relationship, “will be around when she’s gone.”  The bass solo captured the tone of regret, but of one who hasn’t given up. The integration of singer and musician was splendid.

What mainly provided that sense of unity were the performers themselves. This was not the sort of act in which the “front,” or singer, is merely accompanied by the musicians.  Instead, the songs chosen and their arrangements so often integrated the parts of all the performers that Hoffman seemed to use her voice as another instrument, and the cadence produced sounded at times like a quartet.  That the four performers were on the same wavelength was clear from start to finish.  In addition, Hoffman was extraordinarily generous in sharing the stage by giving many solos to individual musicians and to the Trio itself.  The act was a true collaboration.

The Musical Director of the show was Oliver von Essen.  However, Diane Hoffman herself was the Director.  One could easily believe that, given her brief conferences with and cues to the musicians, and it wouldn’t be much of a stretch to imagine a baton magically appearing in her hand.

What provided a sense of unity, however, were the performers themselves.

Gloria Taplin
Cabaret Scenes
April 21, 2009
www.cabaretscenes.org