Steve Reeder, Author at Northwest Public Broadcasting

Simone Dinnerstein: ‘A Character Of Quiet’ For Troubled Times

By Steve Reeder October 15, 2020

The gifted American pianist Simone Dinnerstein has always taken a thoughtful--even bold--approach to her art. Now, Dinnerstein has emerged from a pandemic-induced period of reflection with an impressive new recording, “A Character of Quiet,” which combines etudes by Philip Glass with Franz Schubert’s last sonata. She and her longtime producer laid down the tracks over two Read More

FILM REVIEW: A Luminous Performance By Rosamund Pike Elevates A Radioactive Biography

By Steve Reeder July 24, 2020

Radioactive Pike Screenshot - Woman pouring drink

Rosamund Pike stars in Radioactive, a biography of the pioneering scientist, the first woman to win a Nobel Prize and the only person to claim it in two different scientific disciplines (physics and chemistry). The director, Marjane Satrapi, the Oscar-nominated Iranian-French graphic novelist and filmmaker (Persepolis), tells the story in an ambitious but uneven fashion. Read More

‘Tis The Season Of Firsts: December Classical Music Premieres Through The Years

By Steve Reeder December 14, 2018

‘Tis the season for all manner of festivities, from celebrations of the holidays at home to premieres of new works for the theatre. In fact, many productions enjoyed their first performances at this special time of year. Continue Read More

Finding Inspiration Amidst Chaos: Classical Music Of The First World War

By Steve Reeder November 7, 2018

November 11 marks the centennial of the end of World War I, otherwise known as the “Great War” and the “War to End All Wars.” Simply put, it was a cataclysm, a conflict that marked a threshold in modern history. In the world of classical music, composers responded in many different ways. Read More

Leonard Bernstein: How ‘Noise That Keeps People Awake At Night’ Helped Ignite A Brilliant Career

By Steve Reeder August 6, 2018

Black and white photo, Gazebo with musicians

The first known photograph of Leonard Bernstein (left) as a conductor, taken at a summer camp on 1937. CREDIT: Library of Congress, Music Division “Moynik!” (“Music!”), the young Leonard Bernstein would exclaim, even before his second birthday. He was clearly fascinated by the sounds emanating from his parents’ Victrola at home in Lawrence, Massachusetts and… Read More

FILM REVIEW: Style Over Substance In ‘Ant-Man And The Wasp’

By Steve Reeder July 6, 2018

Let’s face it. Paul Rudd has an ageless, amiable persona which translates perfectly to the big screen. It served him and the story really well in the first Ant-Man movie (2015). He’s now back as ex-thief Scott Lang, joined by Evangeline Lilly (Hope Van Dyne/Wasp), Michael Douglas (Dr. Hank Pym), and Laurence Fishburne (Dr. Bill Foster). However, there’s a fundamental Read More

FILM REVIEW: An Ethical Purgatory At The Southern Border In ‘Sicario: Day of the Soldado’

By Steve Reeder June 29, 2018

Day of the Soldado reunites CIA agent Matt Graver (Josh Brolin) and the “hitman” of the title, Alejandro Gillick (Benicio Del Toro). With the initial blessing of the Secretary of Defense (Matthew Modine) and the supervision of a CIA handler (Catherine Keener), Graver and Gillick engineer a false-flag kidnapping to turn two Mexican cartels against each other. Read More

FILM REVIEW: Pontiff Gets Cinematic Pulpit In ’Pope Francis: A Man Of His Word’

By Steve Reeder May 18, 2018

In German director Wim Wenders' new picture, an Argentinian nun who has known Pope Francis for many decades compliments him as the "shepherd of the world." While he modestly deflects that praise, he clearly has the charisma of a movie star. Read More

FILM REVIEW: A Meta-Hero Makes A Welcome Return in ‘Deadpool 2’

By Steve Reeder May 18, 2018

Superheroes now rule our world. At least the box office receipts tell us so. We’re just here to admire them, and assume the roles of background players. Thank goodness, then, we have the return of Wade Wilson in Deadpool 2. Continue Reading FILM Read More

FILM REVIEW: Motherhood Isn‘t Perfect, Just Real, In ‘Tully’

By Steve Reeder May 15, 2018

It’s tough being a mom, even though it’s “such a blessing” to bring another life into the world. The central character in the new comedy-drama 'Tully' knows it all too well. Continue Reading FILM REVIEW: Motherhood Isn‘t Perfect, Just Real, In Read More

FILM REVIEW: ‘A Quiet Place’ Updates The Creature Feature

By Steve Reeder May 9, 2018

Emily Blunt and Millicent Simmonds, as mother and daughter, in ‘A Quiet Place’ CREDIT: Jonny Cournoyer/Paramount Pictures/AP

The story of A Quiet Place spans approximately thirteen months, in the year 2020. Posters and aging newspaper clippings quickly reveal humankind has been ravaged by a merciless alien force. A family of five tip-toe into the nearest town to take supplies from the shelves of ransacked stores. Read More

The Bernstein Centennial Year: Every Score Has Its Story

By Steve Reeder April 13, 2018

Leonard Bernstein loved the stories behind the music he conducted, and insisted that every story has a moral. As a young man, Bernstein discovered many specific sources of inspiration. Continue Reading The Bernstein Centennial Year: Every Score Has Read More

FILM REVIEW: Historic Drama Becomes Political Comedy In ‘Death Of Stalin’

By Steve Reeder April 13, 2018

That director Armando Iannucci succeeds here is a minor miracle. He adheres to the outlines of the historical record, but fleshes it out in Kafkaesque fashion. Continue Reading FILM REVIEW: Historic Drama Becomes Political Comedy In Read More

FILM REVIEW: The Return Of Heavy Metal In ‘Pacific Rim: Uprising’

By Steve Reeder March 27, 2018

In 2013, the latest Academy Award-winning director, Guillermo del Toro (“The Shape of Water”), brought his keen visual sense and vivid imagination to “Pacific Rim,” a tale of giant, robotic fighting machines activated by their human pilots. Fast forward 10 years to “Uprising.” Read More

FILM REVIEW: A Dancer Transformed Into A ‘Red Sparrow’

By Steve Reeder March 2, 2018

With the awkward state of Russian-American relations back in the headlines, "Red Sparrow" as the latest starring vehicle for Academy Award-winner Jennifer Lawrence seems perfectly timed. She plays Dominika Egorova, a prima ballerina with the Bolshoi in Moscow. Continue Reading FILM REVIEW: A Read More

The Man Who Made The Guitar A Serious Instrument

By Steve Reeder February 27, 2018

CREDIT: DUTCH NATIONAL ARCHIVESWIKIMEDIA COMMONS Andres Segovia in recital at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, 1962 The “grandfather” of his instrument. Virtuoso, transcriber, mentor, innovator. Andres Segovia, the quintessential master of the classical guitar, earned all of those designations, and more, during his long and distinguished career. Feb.21 marks the 125th Read More

Revisiting A Furry Favorite

By Steve Reeder February 7, 2018

SONY PICTURES/ In theatres from February 9 The title character in director Will Gluck’s new film adaptation of “Peter Rabbit” describes an unlikely plot twist as being “right on the verge of believability.” True enough. This updated and expanded version of Beatrix Potter’s classic tale, first published back in 1902, combines live action with animation,… Read More

Remembering A Legend: Leonard Bernstein

By Steve Reeder January 11, 2018

Leonard Bernstein in 1971, during rehearsals for his “Mass” CREDIT: MARION S. TRIKOSKO/U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT With the start of 2018 comes a major anniversary on the world’s musical calendar: the centennial of the birth of America’s most versatile musician, Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990). “Lenny,” as he was affectionately known to family, friends, Read More

‘Tis the Season for Premieres

By Steve Reeder December 18, 2017

Tchaikovsky’s ‘The Nutcracker’ has been a major soundtrack of the season since its premiere in 1892. gabrielsaldana / Flickr ‘Tis the season for all manner of festivities, from celebrations of the holidays at home to premieres of new works for the theatre. In fact, many productions enjoyed their first performances at this special time… Read More

Movies To Creep You Out

By Steve Reeder October 23, 2017

When it comes to motion pictures associated with Halloween–films that can really scare us–they can succeed in many ways. Sometimes a picture can literally shock us with its imagery; in other cases, it may disturb us (in an entertaining way, of course) on a deeper, purely psychological level. Here’s a short list of Steve Reeder’s… Read More

Seattle Symphony Announces Thomas Dausgaard As New Music Director

By Steve Reeder October 4, 2017

Thomas Dausgaard with OSESP Photo by Natalia Kikuch The Seattle Symphony has taken a major step toward continuity on the podium, naming Danish conductor Thomas Dausgaard as its music director-designate. The 54-year-old native of Copenhagen has served as the principal guest conductor of the orchestra since 2014. He will succeed Ludovic Morlot, the Read More

Thomas Dausgaard with OSESP Photo by Natalia Kikuch

By Steve Reeder February 2, 2016

“The H8ful Eight” marks the fifth film colaboration for director Quentin Tarantino and composer Ennio Morricone, pictured here. Olivier Strecker / Creative Commons As the annual Academy Awards presentation approaches, we have a special interest in the five nominees for Best Original Score, a category recognized by the Oscars since 1934. Three of Read More

The Scores That Haunt You

By Steve Reeder October 1, 2013

A recreation of one of the most iconic scenes in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. The score that accompanied this moment is a staple of classic horror film music. Credit Rain Rannu / Flickr With another Halloween approaching, horror, thriller, and supernatural films come to the fore. Many of these pictures feature original music by composers… Read More