Epoch Arts 9-25-2015

COURTESY OF SEAN NEUKOM

Classical Music Still Has Places to Go

China’s MidAutumn Festival

Composer Sean Neukom: Musicians should push human consciousness forward.

TAO YIN/EPOCH TIMES

On a spiritual level, the full moon on this day is regarded as a symbol of completion.

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Gabriel Maroof ’s Newest Capsule Collection

His Most Daring Yet A gold and polished cabochon marquise ring from the Isfahan capsule collection of Phillip Gavriel Privé.

By Sarah Matheson | Epoch Times Staff

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EW YORK—Determined, beautiful, Renaissance-style women, their hair swept into smooth mohawklike styles, shower attention on a shirtless man with chiseled features lounging on a table.

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Solid gold and silver cuff bracelets cover the women’s forearms; extravagant gold and silver belts adorn their waists. An intricate gold eyepiece through which one woman peers totally exemplifies the unleashed creativity of Phillip Gavriel’s latest collection.

The cuffs, belts, and eyepieces are from the Phillip Gavriel Mantis collection, a capsule collection of the designer’s new Privé line. Privé also features striking gold hair pieces, as well as more subtle bracelets, rings, and necklaces that draw their inspiration from the bolder pieces.

Jewelry designer Phillip Gabriel Maroof.

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September 25–October 1, 2015 TheEpochTimes.com/EpochArts ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF SHEN YUN PERFORMING ARTS

A New Sound at Carnegie Hall

Conductor Milen Nachev and the Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall in New York on Oct. 5, 2013.

Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra seamlessly harmonizes classical Chinese and Western instruments creating an exquisite sound Shen Yun continued from W1 A graduate of the St. Petersburg Conservatory in Russia, Nachev has had extensive experience interpreting music of different styles and composers from different centuries. He has conducted major orchestras in Eastern Europe, but he said none of them has been as diverse, as challenging, or as rewarding as Shen Yun. He conducted 115 Shen Yun performances during last year’s season. The Shen Yun musicians are from Europe, the Americas, and Asia and speak various languages.

Nachev said it’s very difficult to achieve the perfect intonation with any orchestra, and it’s even more challenging with Chinese instruments. Shen Yun has actually created exclusive arrangement methods to convey an ancient culture that was nearly lost in the past 60 years.

Nachev attributed the power of the music itself to the thoughts of the orchestra members. “Once the door of your consciousness is open, you can easily find the right tempo, the right articulation, and the right phrasing,” he said.

Reviving Traditions One of the orchestra’s composers, a China Conservatory and Oxford University scholar, Jing Xian said in the company’s introductory video, “As composers we need to have a foundation in both Eastern and Western traditions.”

The original pieces draw from a rich heritage of the Middle Kingdom’s diversity of over 50 ethnic groups and of dynasties spanning 5,000 years, ranging from grand imperial court music to lively, rhythmic folk tunes.

Each dynasty used distinct musical forms.

While rich in texture, the melodies are elegantly simple with identifiable beginnings, middles, and ends.

With its exquisite harmonization of Western and Chinese musical systems, and drawing from ancient Chinese stories, characters, and moods, Shen Yun is creating a new frontier in concert music.

Besides tapping into the rich content of traditional Chinese culture Shen Yun also focuses on reviving bel canto’s genuine high-note technique of classic Italian opera, forgotten both in Europe and in China.

Soprano Haolan Geng said, “It’s different from the bel canto used today, which has diverged from its earliest form. Shen Yun sopranos train in this classic method, meaning we vocalize and articulate from a different vocal position. Of course, it’s also harder to master because our lyrics are in Chinese.”

Spiritual Exchange Shen Yun solo violinist Fiona Zheng shared her thoughts before her Carnegie Hall debut. She said, “Although our compositions are contemporary, they give people a sense of closeness to

The seamless blend of Chinese instruments with the Western orchestra is one of the most unique features of Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra. Here are some of the ancient instruments that produce this distinct sound.

We want to give the audience not only emotional pleasure, but the experience of discovering a completely different world behind the music.

Conductor Milen Nachev

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Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra

Carnegie Hall 57th Street & Seventh Avenue Tickets: From Shen Yun: 800-818-2393, ShenYun.com From Carnegie Hall: 212-247-7800, CarnegieHall.org Running Time: 2 hours (one intermission) Date & Time: Saturday, Oct. 10 2 p.m. & 8 p.m.

1 ERHU The erhu (are-who) is one of China’s most important instruments. It has a history of over 4,000 years, and was an integral part of folk performances, operas, and imperial banquets throughout the dynasties.

Despite its simple construction, the erhu is extraordinarily expressive.

ancient China. For me, the music evokes early Buddhist and Taoist thought, and the ancients’ faith in the divine—it’s a very sacred feeling.”

The Chinese character of Shen translates as “divine being,” and Yun literally means “rhyme” or “rhythm,” but actually refers to the entire bearing of a person. The two characters combined can be interpreted to mean “the beauty of divine beings dancing.”

With its mission to revive traditional Chinese culture, Shen Yun looks back at a China that was once known as the land of the divine bestowed from the heavens.

Shen Yun has profoundly touched many people who’ve given rave reviews after performances. The music director of the New York City Symphony, David Eaton, said, “It was very uplifting and inspiring, and at times very deep.”

When asked about the most memorable moments while performing in Shen Yun, soprano Geng said, “Sometimes, if the theater is bright enough, I can see audiences wiping away their tears. I’ve witnessed this many times, and every time it’s really stirring to see it happening right before me.”

What happens to move the audience involves the Shen Yun artists working as one.

Nachev said that during rehearsal of a piece for three erhu soloists accompanied by the orchestra there was unspoken communication: “Just watching the eyes of the three soloists, I already knew what they needed— what kind of tempo they needed, what kind of support they needed, how we could develop the phrase together—and my feeling was that they also implicitly understood. When I desired to start the phrase from one point and bring the phrase to the arrival point, they were completely with me.”

Geng described how that spiritual exchange among composer, conductor, and musicians— transcending beyond words—is communicated to the audience.

“To reach a higher realm as an artist, I think morality plays a vital role. It’s about leading a life of integrity. If you go about pretentiously offstage, you won’t be able to express any sincerity onstage. When the sounds and feelings you let out are pure, your song will be able to truly touch your listener,” Geng said.

It may seem paradoxical how such a timeless art form as classical music can draw so much fresh inspiration from the past. Audiences have become accustomed to innovation in classical music involving the shattering of old forms. Given the audience reactions to Shen Yun, perhaps a wiser way to be progressive and touch audiences most profoundly involves looking back in time and across cultures.

Shen Yun may soon prove to be widely known as setting a new path for expanding on traditional concert music. When asked what the audience can expect, Nachev said, “I honestly believe that they will be surprised.”

Having no frets or fingerboard allows for a free array of vibratos and slides, as well as tremendous tonal flexibility.

2 PIPA For thousands of years, the pipa reigned as “the King” of Chinese instruments. The Chinese lute gained its regal title because of its wide range of playing techniques,

expressive depth, and dominance in both folk music and legend.

The pipa’s construction epitomizes ancient Chinese beliefs about the universe and natural world. Its half-pearshaped body measures (by traditional Chinese metrics) 3 feet 5 inches. These correspondingly represent the three realms—heaven,

Conductor Milen Nachev of the Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra at Chicago Symphony Center on Oct. 14, 2014.

Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra solo violinist Fiona Zheng.

Erhu soloists (L–R) Mei Xuan, Xiaochun Qi, and Lu Sun of the Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra at Chicago Symphony Center on Oct. 14, 2014.

Soprano Haolan Geng of the Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall on Oct. 5, 2013.

earth, and man—and the five elements of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. The pipa’s four strings represent the four seasons.

3 THE GONG Every gong is unique because each is handcrafted with hammered bronze, and has a subtly different pitch.

Gong mallets—ranging from

round to flat-faced—create a scope of rich and powerful vibrations.

Shen Yun composers employ the gong’s legato qualities to enhance the music’s power, accent its beat, or express sacred majesty. Its resounding energy grasps you instantly, sweeping you away to another world.

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September 25–October 1, 2015 TheEpochTimes.com/EpochArts PETER TAYLOR/PARAMOUNT PICTURES

Film Review

Ex-assassin Mentors High School Student A possible alternative to the traditional boyhood-to-manhood rite of passage

By Mark Jackson | Epoch Times Staff One of this reviewer’s favorite topics lately is the cultural phenomena of how the boyhoodto-manhood rite of passage has gone missing from modern, “civilized” society.

Another favorite topic is the reason so many movies are being made about assassins and ex-assassins.

Imagine my delight upon learning the premise of “Ashby”: a fatherless, high school boy moves next door to an ex-assassin. Bingo!

We predicted and explained the connection between boys who lack guidance, and assassins, in the article “Why We Like Movies About Reformed Assassins so Much,” and now they’ve gone and made a movie about that very thing.

Would that this perfect premise had been able to deliver a well-told tale of a boy becoming a man before our popcorn-stuffed faces, but it was not to be. In the way an artist does a “study” (a sketch for a painting concept), “Ashby” is a study for the engrossing, coming-of-age movie that could have been.

Geek Establishment “You’re a bunch of Ritalin-addicted porn freaks,” says the high school English literature teacher to his class, more matter-of-factly than disapprovingly. Then he asks new-kid Ed Wallis (Nat Wolff), what he knows about Hemingway. Ed knows a lot. Which instantly lands him in the nerd box.

But Ed wants to be a football star. Didn’t we all? We buy that. What we don’t buy is the elaborate, multi-thousand-dollar-looking backyard football-practice setup Ed has, replete with one of those ball-rocketing catapults we know from movie scenes featuring wealthy people who practice tennis.

We don’t buy it because we know Ed’s recently divorced mom (hilarious, normally foul-mouthed comedian Sarah Silverman, underutilized here) doesn’t have the wherewithal to buy her boy such a pro-level training facility. She’s busy looking for love in mostly the wrong places for the duration of the movie, much to her son’s mortification.

Actually Ed does have a dad. But he’s a promise-breaking, self-involved, “Heeey buddeee!” schmoozing kind of dad. Everyone’s got a favorite word for that kind of guy; feel free to use it here.

Anyway, back at school, the homework assignment for English is basically to have a talk with a wise old person and write about it.

So Ed goes next door and states his intentions to the older man there, who looks like Mickey Rourke in a fright wig.

It’s Rourke alright; it’s also his hair, but it’s got a blue tint to it—not like a Floridian, pale blue dye-job, but a little bit rock ‘n’ roll. Like if Mickey Rourke talked to the hair department with some ideas. Because a little known fact is that Rourke’s day job as a young actor was as a hairdresser; he has professional opinions about hair.

Ashby Rourke’s character is named Ashby and apparently he sold napkins. That was his (cough) “profession.” This is in keeping with the timehonored tradition of operators hiding their military or spy professions by saying, “I wax dolphins for a living,” or, “I’m the guy who sits inside the ATM machine and dispenses cash.”

Ashby, reluctant at first, finally agrees to be interviewed while the kid drives him around to do “errands” in his car. Because Ashby’s got an agenda of his own—young Ed’s initial prying questions have revealed to Ashby that he’d

been taken advantage of as an assassin. He’d ended up terminating some people that didn’t need terminating because of selfish reasons on the part of his employers. Ashby goes to seek out a priest for some answers.

Thus former CIA black-ops agent Ashby “grows a conscience,” and wants to “right” some wrongs, but in that particular way that assassins tend to do. And so the kid conducts his interviews while doubling as an unwitting getaway driver for hits; a running gag that warrants a few chuckles.

So There’s That And then there’s also a cute romance between Ed and Eloise. Cute actress Emma Roberts has put on some geek glasses and jumped in the nerd box with Nat for the role. Eloise has an MRI machine in her parent’s basement with which she would very much like to study Ed’s brain. She’d also like to study the brain of each member of the football—imagine all that exciting concussion data!

Nat’s Not Nearly Nerdy Enough Nat Wolff may be single-handedly ushering in a new form of movie nerd—the non-nerd. We just saw him in “Paper Towns,” and I wrote the following about what’s going on with Nat and nerd-dom: “Geeks nowadays are borderline seriously cool compared to geeks of yesteryear—maybe they can’t even be called nerds or geeks anymore. They have witty patter, they’re highly fluent in Ebonics (and the accompanying body language thereof), they have dance moves, and they’re almost comfortable enough in their own skins to be taken seriously by the coolest of mean girls.”

Well Nat’s doing it again here. His character Ed is way too fearless and has too smart a mouth when hanging around, and even dissing, a known assassin. He furthermore can’t be taken seriously in this regard, because even though he can quote Hemingway, he can also waltz his alleged nerd self with his trained-up football skills into the football team meeting and proclaim himself the new wide-receiver.

Sure, he gets laughed out of the locker room— but then he comes right back in and backs up his outrageous claim! Who does that? Alpha teens. But he does look nerdy. So Nat’s confusing the classic storylines.

Nat Wolff as high school geek/football star wannabe Ed Wallis in “Ashby.” also know looks fade, and their big brains will only get bigger, and make mo’ money.

And you really need to think twice about messing with nerds these days, due to the proliferation and accessibility of automatic weaponry. Which is why, more than ever, it’s a good idea to pair unpopular boys with reformedassassin mentors. Especially ones named Dylan. Do I need to spell it out? Two words: Klebold, Roof.

Rite of Passage So, be all that as it may (the fact that this is not the greatest example of mentoring because Ed’s a smart mouth, substantial autodidact who would appear not to need much gui

‘Ashby’ Director Tony McNamara Starring Mickey Rourke, Sarah Silverman, Nat Wolff Running Time 1 hour, 40 minutes Release Date Sept. 25 Rated R

ance), still, on the other hand, as self-confident and borderline cool as he might be, the Eds of the precocious, cyberhip iGeneration still need forging. All boys do. Because cool or uncool—they’re still boys. They need to learn how to become men.

The assassins and the spec-ops warriors that have overrun movie-plexes lately embody the essence of the warrior, which is what all boys need to learn from older males in order to become real men. Moms and feminists can’t teach boys to become men, and so the morally reformed assassin is (has been, is trying to be) the potential ticket to our seeing, in the movies, a satisfactorily performed forging of a boy into a real man. One who knows how to assert himself, face his fears, set boundaries, stand guard over truth, look up to the noble, decide for the good—and attract the girl of his dreams.

It’s a Study “Ashby” is a study of boyhood-to-manhood mentoring, because there’s just a smattering of that. Ashby does call attention the fact that Ed’s dad is definitely a loser, when it comes to caring for Ed. Ashby shows the boy how to take a punch, and stop being afraid of taking the hit in football. He dispenses with some elder wisdom along the way. But it’s mentor-lite. And the soundtrack’s dreadful. A teen film must have a rockin,’ stand-alone soundtrack. Other than that, it’s a good study.

Now let’s hope someone steps up and, ahem, “executes” the real picture of how this is supposed to go.

Nerd Nixing There would seem to be a movie-nerd paradigm-shift afoot, that can probably be traced to Judd Apatow. Just saying “nerd” might even be a little … racist? Classist? It might soon be the other “N” word. Just who in high school is a true, old-school, high school nerd nowadays? Anybody? Bueller?

Because what have American movies been for the last 40 years but instructional videos on how to achieve coolness? How to be popular, how to be a mean girl, how to win friends and influence people. Where have all the unpopular kids gone?

Well, they say the business of America is business, but what it really is is show business.

From an early age people are now aware of how to package their personal product and how to promote it via social media. Nerds now know their worth. They know the market value of having a big brain. A bunch of them know Brazilian jiu-jitsu, too.

Nerds have to navigate a whole new, potent level of cyberbullying; they have to be savvier than in the nerd days of yore to survive. They know good looks are the predominant high school calling card for the club of cool, but they PETER TAYLOR/PARAMOUNT PICTURES

Nat Wolff (L) as high school student Ed Wallis and Mickey Rourke as ex-CIA assassin Ashby Holt in “Ashby.”

Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) Thirty-Six Views of Mt. Fuji: Umezawa Hamlet-fields in Sagami Province (detail) 9 7⁄8 by 14 5⁄8 in., 25 by 37 cm

145 West 58th Street, suite 6D New York, NY 10019 tel. 212.585.0474 fax. 212.585.0475

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September 25–October 1, 2015 TheEpochTimes.com/EpochArts COURTESY OF SEAN NEUKOM

Composer Sean Neukom says the classical composers of the past have left us a “treasure trove.”

Composer Sean Neukom:

Classical Music Still Has Places to Go

By Sharon Kilarski | Epoch Times Staff

experience and typically leave them without their musical expectations being fulfilled—they cannot hear a pattern in many contemporary compositions and thus find it difficult to digest.

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or young classical musician and composer Sean Neukom, the classical composers of the past are most important for their legacy as visionaries. The greatest classical composers pushed human consciousness forward, and he believes that musicians today should want to emulate them.

What the great composers of the past were able to achieve is astounding. “Without the technologies we now have, without the audio recordings, without marketing (as a thing unto itself), they pushed human consciousness,” he said in the phone interview on Aug. 20.

People were forced to find a language in order to talk about the work of these composers.

Music theory, “always a retrospective study,” he says, developed afterward in response to what the musicians had already achieved.

Neukom has spent a good deal of time thinking about classical music. Born into a family of musicians, he and his brother Jason began playing violin at 3 and 4 years of age, respectively. Their father instructed them through their high school years, shaping their love and approach to music.

He continued his violin studies at Minot State University, and then after deciding to pursue an orchestral career, he obtained his master’s degree in violin performance at the Cleveland Institute of Music.

Contemporary Classical Music We can listen to Mozart today “and it can pull up the same sentiments for us as for those listening when it was written.” Thus, it’s important to hear the music, just in and of itself, because we can still pull something meaningful from it, Neukom said.

Part of the meaning we get is derived from that fact that classical music of the past centered on one key. However much it wandered, it returned home to that key, which established an understandable pattern for the listener.

People cannot relate in the same way to contemporary classical music, however. It’s not because classics of the past “were simpler or less convoluted,” Neukom said, but they emerged from a narrower range of circumstances that gave them definition.

“A composer writing in 1780 has one key center to think about; one, maybe two performances to consider, a local audience at hand, and perhaps 100 years of music that had come before that he and his audience might know.

“A composer writing in 1850 has a general key center plus secondary key centers to consider, maybe various performances in different countries for a larger demographic, and almost 200 years of great music to follow.

“A composer writing in 2015 has any choice of key center or no key center or multiple or simultaneous key centers to contemplate, a worldwide audience with infinite possible digital or analog performances, and every amazing composer you or I have ever heard of, every amazing work we’ve ever heard, to follow,” Neukom explained in a follow-up email.

All these possibilities complicate the listeners’

A solid education for today’s composers would involve recreational listening and serious playing of the classic repertory at a high level, in addition to compositional studies.

Classical Music as Inspiration For Neukom, it is important that composers today remain in close touch with the past.

Composers of the past gave us a lot of musical ideas to explore, and if “we don’t look back we miss the treasure trove that the past genius has for us,” he said.

This should not be a difficult task. In theory, a solid education for today’s composers would involve recreational listening and serious playing of the classic repertory at a high level, in addition to compositional studies.

In the past, composers were virtuosic in one (if not multiple instruments), they conducted, and they composed. Players who sat and practiced the works of previous masters for 20 years would bring that background with them to their own compositions and to the development of musical ideas.

Yet many music programs today compartmentalize training. Performers are trained to perform and composers are trained in theory.

At 18 years of age, when musicians decide on their course of study, prospective composers study theory and composition rather than sit in an orchestra and play. So the past has less importance for them.

“Classical music entails three essential elements: someone to compose and write it down, someone to read it and interpret, and someone to listen. Someone engaging in all three of these elements has the potential to approach music with a depth of understanding that might be lost if one were only ever to engage in two of the elements.

“Writing for a string quartet having never played chamber music at a specific level is similar to cooking a gourmet meal after years of only smelling such spreads. Of course

approach, understanding, and product is going to be different for a performing violinist writing for the violin as opposed to a very skilled, learned engineer, who understands the technical elements available for the instrument, writing for the violin,” he wrote.

Thus, new music can best challenge people when approached with an innate understanding of music of the past.

‘Places for It to Go’ Taking the past as groundwork for the present is not to say that musicians can out-compose their predecessors. Neukom believes that we cannot write better symphonies than Beethoven did, but composers can still push listeners beyond their current levels of understanding.

Classical music, string music, can still grow.

“There are places for it to go,” Neukom said. For a composer today, past classical music can and should function “as a philosophic basis to hint at or give insights as to where one can travel.”

“Classical music of today can continue to expose uncharted sentiments, angles of humanity, and auditory colors. As has always been the case, listeners have the opportunity to travel and reflect on these paths. (Paths arrived at only through music.) This reflection may generate new language and perhaps even increase our awareness of consciousness. Listeners, of course, can choose to simply experience these exposed paths, and in doing this have their lives wholly enriched,” Neukom wrote.

Taking up where composers of the past left off, new music can offer an imperative for the future. “Artists should want to do that today,” he said.

The series “The Classics: Looking Back, Looking Forward” asks those in the arts whether and why the classic forms are worth keeping. ept.ms/LookingAtClassics COURTESY OF SEAN NEUKOM

The Beo String Quartet: (L–R) Jason Neukom, Sean Neukom, Sandro Leal Santiesteban, and Hannah Whitehead.

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Roland Hayes: The Greatest Opera Singer Who Never Appeared in an Opera

By Barry Bassis

T

he book “Roland Hayes: The Legacy of an American Tenor” by Christopher A. Brooks and Robert Sims begins with a remarkable scene. In 1926, the famous African-American singer traveled to Georgia to meet with Joseph Mann, who had owned Hayes’s mother and other relatives and on whose property the singer had been born.

Hayes wanted information about his family history and learned that some of his ancestors were known for their singing ability. At the time of the meeting, Hayes was prosperous and the former slave-owner was destitute. The meeting was cordial, especially considering that Mann had been brutal toward his slaves and had had Hayes’s maternal grandfather beaten to death for running off. Hayes had the satisfaction of buying the property and then informing Mann that he could stay on for free as a tenant.

After that prologue, the biography goes back to the beginning of the singer’s life. From an impoverished background, Hayes (1887–1977) overcame many hardships, including the early death of his father. His deeply religious mother was an inspiration as was the church. His first exposure to classical music was hearing a recording of Enrico Caruso, after which he decided to pursue singing as a career.

This took extraordinary determination since there was no precedent. The South was segregated; and even in the North and in the rest of the world, opera houses and symphony orchestras did not perform with black artists.

The biography details Hayes’s efforts to gain an education and to perfect his art. Not only did he study opera but also German lieder as well as French and English art songs. You can’t do better than to be coached by Gabriel Fauré in the proper way to sing his compositions.

In addition to mastering Western classical music forms, Hayes had the foresight to include in his concerts spirituals performed with piano accompaniment, a practice that many prominent black opera singers still follow today. He used the term “Aframerican,” which the authors point out he didn’t create but was uncommon at that time.

Hayes realized that to establish a career in this country, he had to make his reputation in Europe. He achieved international renown after performing before the King of England. The biography recounts a dramatic incident in Germany in 1924, where he encountered a hostile audience and won them over with his sensitive singing of a song by Schubert. Hayes came back to this country as a celebrity and made music history as the first black man to sing with a major orchestra: the Boston Symphony. He subsequently sang at top halls around the country, including New York City’s Town Hall and Carnegie Hall.

There are myriad details about his business dealings. Hayes knew his own worth and

Hayes had to walk a racial tightrope because of the politics of the era.

‘Roland Hayes: The Legacy of an American Tenor’

By Christopher A. Brooks & Robert Sims Indiana University Press 424 pgs; $40.00

Roland Hayes in 1954 (L); Hayes in circa 1935 when Maud Cuney-Hare’s book “Negro Musicians and Their Music” was published. demanded the most the market would bear, usually getting it. At the same time, he was tight-fisted with money and paid his accompanists as little as he could get away with. He outsmarted himself by failing to reach a deal with a record company when he was in his prime.

However, it should be noted that even his late recordings reveal an artist with the ability to touch the emotions.

The biography veers into soap opera with Hayes’s romance with a married countess, Bertha Colloredo-Mansfield. They had a daughter, and the liaison was even picked up by some newspapers in Europe. While Hayes apparently considered adopting his illegitimate daughter Maya, he ultimately decided against it. He treated Bertha and Maya quite shabbily, basically breaking off contact with both of them.

Hayes later married his cousin Alzada and had another daughter, Africa (later changed to Afrika).

Hayes had to walk a racial tightrope because of the politics of the era. He maintained cordial relations with both Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois, though his own views were closer to the former. He occasionally received negative publicity for performing at segregated concerts. On the other hand, he sought to obtain better treatment for black GIs during World War II, and he encouraged younger African-American classical singers. When Marian Anderson broke the color bar at the Metropolitan Opera, Hayes was in the audience. He also sent a note of congratulations at a Met performance by George Shirley (the first black tenor to star at the Met).

Despite his fame and aristocratic bearing, Hayes was the victim of police brutality during 1942. The incident began innocuously when Hayes and his wife were living on his Georgia property and took his daughter into town to buy a pair of shoes for her. They were ordered to leave the white section of the store, and the police arrested both Roland and Alzada and mercilessly beat the singer. His expression of forgiveness is similar to that of the families given by the recent Charleston, South Carolina, victims: “I cannot help my adversaries by hurt nor hate, hence the only way to remind them of their brutality is to be kind to them.”

Hayes received sporadic offers to sing on the opera stage. One was for Verdi’s “Otello,” a role inappropriate for his lyrical voice. He claimed he preferred singing concerts where he was the center of attention, but this was probably sour

grapes. He knew that no opera house would allow a black man to play the romantic leads for which his voice and technique were perfect.

“Roland Hayes: The Legacy of an American Tenor” is an impressive work of scholarship, shedding light on a significant figure in American music and the time in which he lived.

The co-author of the biography, Robert Sims, happens to be a wonderful singer of spirituals.

The Gold Medal winner of the American Traditions Competition, he has a new CD, “Robert Sims Sings the Spirituals of Roland Hayes” (on Canti Classics).

One notable aspect of the CD is that it contains spoken introductions to some of the songs

by Hayes himself, taken from interviews during the 1960s. Also, the first piece, “Keep Me From Sinking Down,” has Sims singing a duet with a recording of Hayes. Although Sims is a baritone, he is a lyric one.

Also notable is the inclusion of “The Life Cycle of Christ,” a collection of spirituals assembled

by Hayes to tell the life of Jesus. When you hear the powerful performance of “Mumberlin’ Word” about Jesus’s suffering on the cross, it’s clear (at least to us, though apparently not to the plantation owners) that the slaves were singing about the torments to which their people were subjected. And the chariots and morning train and good news that they sang about in other spirituals represented their prayers for freedom. Sims brings out the beauty and pain of these pieces with great artistry, carrying on Hayes’s tradition.

Sims will perform African-American spirituals on Oct. 4 at 2 p.m. at Lincoln Center’s Bruno Walter Auditorium (65th Street and Amsterdam Avenue); George Shirley (who recently received a National Medal of Arts from President Obama) will act as narrator.

The concert will be followed by a panel discussion with Christopher A. Brooks, Robert Sims, George Shirley, tenor Paul Spencer Adkins, and Deborah Mims, joint producers of a PBS documentary about Hayes. The venue is especially appropriate because in 1925, Walter had conducted a performance of Bach’s “St. Matthew Passion” with Roland Hayes as soloist, an important event in the singer’s career.

For tickets, call 773-262-9655 or go to RolandHayes.bpt.me or RobertSims.com Barry Bassis has been a music, theater, and travel writer for over a decade for various publications.

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Book Review

‘Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life’

By Chelsea Scarnegie Surfing is a mere sport, some might say—one that has performance value comparable to skateboarding and other X Games events. Others can appreciate surfing as an intricate art, similar to the physical beauty of the ballet. Yet in order to understand surfing as a lifestyle, one needs a detailed and honest guide like William Finnegan’s memoir “Barbarian Days.

Finnegan’s books have hitherto focused on political unrest—protests in Mexico, wars in Sudan, apartheid in South Africa. As he well knows, it would be folly to “dumb down” any of these life-altering experiences for an audience of outsiders. The best way for an audience to understand something is for them to get as close to experiencing it as possible.

This is Finnegan’s mission in “Barbarian Days”: to give readers an intimate understanding of a surfer’s life and all of the physical and emotional trials that accompany it.

Surfing, in the author’s mind, begins with the beauty of the sea—its vastness, its many shades of blue and bluish green, and its ability to produce constant, powerful waves. Next comes a feeling of isolation; no matter how many companions are sharing the ocean with the surfer, the surfer feels that he is alone with the ocean. In fact, the sea acts as the surfer’s closest friend and biggest enemy who sometimes tries to drown him.

“The wind was light, the channel looked

safe. The waves were big and hard-breaking but makeable, even precise.” Finnegan writes this description of the Hawaiian sea from the perspective of his middle-school self, and it is these remarkably vivid details from every stage of Finnegan’s life that pull readers in to the complex world of the surfer.

He describes the challenge of predicting which wave will give him the best ride, and once that promising wave is spotted, it must be mounted like a wild horse. The surfer must ask himself: “How do I ride this wave so that I look cool from the shoreline without wiping out?” These questions must be answered in a matter of seconds because there’s no telling what an untamed wave is likely to do. But once a wave has been successfully mastered, Finnegan expresses a sense of power over this intense force of nature.

These raw emotions are what keep Finnegan, and surfers like him, drawn to the waves.

The author’s past experiments with marijuana and LSD do not prove to be anywhere near as addictive as the pull of the ocean and the drive to conquer a perfect wave. But not every person who surfs in his or her youth feels that unrelenting draw back to the sea.

In “Barbarian Days,” it becomes clear that a surfer’s life is centered on a complicated form of balance. Of course, there is the physical challenge of balancing on the surfboard itself, but there is a much deeper balance that must be achieved in order to retain a sense of sanity.

This is a task that many of us face: how to balance work life and responsibilities with recreation and passion.

For a surfer, this means tracking the seasons for the best waves. It means studying the times of day when the waves swell just right. In Finnegan’s case, it means waking up at the first light of dawn to squeeze an hour or so of surfing in before work. Many of his comrades who traveled the world with him lost that sense of balance. For them, surfing has become only a vacation activity. But for Finnegan, the vast power of the ocean and the rush of his heartbeat are too strong to keep him away.

“Barbarian Days” begins in the widely accepted surfing haven of Honolulu and ends on the unexpected city shoreline of New York City. In between, Finnegan has grown from an awkward preteen boy with a surfing obsession and transformed into an established man with a surfing passion.

Yet it is these early years in Hawaii that feel the most compelling—perhaps because Finnegan’s writing is so honest that it draws the reader back to his or her own youthful foolishness. He recalls trying to fit in, discovering girls and the weirdness of puberty, and dropping out of school to go chase a dream (which, in Finnegan’s case, took the form of a perfect wave).

While reading “Barbarian Days,” it is possible to feel like a close confidant to a surf-crazed

wanderer as you stay up late and share a drink while listening to him tell you about his stories, his secrets, and his desires. But surfing and the author is not all that the reader learns about. Some of the most interesting parts of the book describe the places and cultures, both ancient and modern, that act as the backdrop for many of Finnegan’s adventures.

For example, in the passage that describes the significance of surfing to the ancient Hawaiians, he writes, “Their winter harvest festival lasted three months—during which the surf frequently pumped and work was officially forbidden.” Of course, with the arrival of the missionaries, these cultural leisure activities were replaced in favor of work and education and prayer.

There is something vaguely “Siddhartha” about “Barbarian Days.” It must be the spiritual journey that William Finnegan undertakes to come to a deeper understanding of the world and his place in it. Although Finnegan doesn’t reach nirvana, he does reach a poignant conclusion about surfing: that while he was out chasing waves, the waves acted as a divine catalyst, guiding him from one stage of his life to the next. Perhaps only a true surfer would fully understand, but “Barbarian Days” makes it a little clearer for the rest of us.

Chelsea Scarnegie, with a degree in writing, lives and writes in the Chicago area.

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September 25–October 1, 2015 TheEpochTimes.com/EpochArts

THINGS TO DO COMMUNITY EVENTS NEW IN MANHATTAN Autumn Crafts Festival Oct. 3, 4, 10, 11 Saturdays 11 a.m.–8:30 p.m. & Sundays 10 a.m.–6:30 p.m.

Lincoln Center Plaza 64th Street at Columbus Avenue Juried craft displays selected from every region of the United States. Continuous entertainment, craft demonstrations. Free.

CraftsAtLincoln.org

VISUAL ARTS NEW IN MANHATTAN Collecting Paradise: Buddhist Art of Kashmir and Its Legacies Through Oct. 19 Rubin Museum of Art Exhibit traces the continuity of the art of Kashmir in the Western Himalayas for over a millennium. $10–$15.

RubinMuseum.org

ENDING IN MANHATTAN Trajectories Art Exhibition Through Sept. 26 Friedman & Vallois, 27 E. 67th St. French Art Deco gallery Friedman & Vallois presents Vladimir Montufar’s fanciful artwork that pays a homage to the Mayan culture and expresses different aspects of man’s universal condition.

Vallois.com Discovering Japanese Art: American Collectors

and the Met Through Sept. 27 The Metropolitan Museum of Art Showcasing more than 200 masterworks of every medium, this exhibition tells the story of how the museum built its comprehensive collection. $12–$25 suggested.

MetMuseum.org America Is Hard to See Through Sept. 27 Whitney Museum of American Art (99 Gansevoort St.) Examines the themes, ideas, beliefs, visions, and passions that have preoccupied and galvanized American artists over the past 115 years.

Whitney.org

ONGOING IN MANHATTAN Exploring France: Oil Sketches from the Thaw Collection Through Oct. 4 The Morgan Library & Museum Explores the practice of working outdoors or in the studio on a modest scale to capture the landscape. $12–$18.

TheMorgan.org

PERFORMING ARTS NEW IN MANHATTAN Swan Lake Through Sept. 29 David H. Koch Theater Peter Martins’ staging of Swan Lake infuses the preeminent story ballet with New York City Ballet’s signature musicality,

speed, and sharpness of attack. $60–$185.

NYCBallet.com Fall for Dance Festival Sept. 30–Oct. 11 New York City Center 131 W. 55th St. Experience the very best the dance world has to offer at New York City Center’s 12th annual Fall for Dance Festival, where you’ll see world-renowned companies performing alongside daring new artists. $15.

NYCityCenter.org NYC Ballet Fall Gala Sept. 30 at 7 p.m.

David H. Koch Theater Both balletomanes and fashionistas will have their eyes on the 2015 Fall Gala, which will continue NYCB’s tradition of pairing coveted couturiers with contemporary choreographers. $30–$95.

NYCBallet.com Anna Bolena Sept. 26–Jan. 9 Metropolitan Opera 30 Lincoln Center Plaza Soprano Sondra Radvanovsky embarks on her quest to vocally conquer all three of Donizetti’s historic Tudor queen operas in the same season, here as a young royal grasping at power and paying a terrible price. From $27.

MetOpera.org

MUSIC NEW IN MANHATTAN John Perry on Piano, 80th Birthday Celebration Sept. 27 at 2 p.m.

Carnegie Hall

Essence of China 57th Street & Seventh Avenue Artist and teacher John Perry is Professor of Piano at the Glenn Gould School Royal Conservatory and California State University Northridge.

He has performed extensively throughout Europe and North America. Works by Mozart, Brahms, Beethoven, and Schubert. $45–$55.

CarnegieHall.org Victor Paukstelis on Piano Sept. 27 at 7:30 p.m.

Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall 57th Street & Seventh Avenue Victor Paukstelis performs “The Recital of Restless Paintings,” a program of music from the Baroque and Romantic eras seen through the eyes of the pianist, who is also a painter.

From $25.

CarnegieHall.org Trio Solisti and Friends Sept. 28 at 7:30 p.m.

Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall 57th Street & Seventh Avenue Trio Solisti and guests present the complete piano chamber music of Johannes Brahms in a three-concert series. Part one of the series, Brahms in Love, features works written with love for Clara Schumann. $35–$40.

CarnegieHall.org The New Goldberg Variations Sept. 30 at 8 p.m.

Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall 57th Street & Seventh Avenue Zoe Black and Joe Chindamo are a new voice in contemporary classical music. The duo performs Bach’s Goldberg Variations, with newly composed counterpart for the violin by Joe Chindamo. $25–$40.

CarnegieHall.org The Viennese A String Quartet, Vanessa Perez on Piano Oct. 2 at 7:30 p.m.

Carnegie Hall, Weill Recital Hall 57th Street & Seventh Avenue The Viennese were founded by Prof. Günter Seifert, a member of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, and debuted in the summer of 2008 during the orchestra’s Mediterranean cruise. Violinists Günter Seifert and Clemens Flieder, violist Hans Peter Ochsenhofer, and bassist Josef Pitzek bring the music of Vienna to Carnegie Hall. In this concert, the quartet performs together with special guest Venezuelan-American pianist Vanessa Perez. $60. CarnegieHall.org

ENDING IN MANHATTAN Dine and Dance With Sinatra Sept. 26 at 5 p.m.–11 p.m.

‘21’ Club 21 W. 52nd St. Hosted in the sophisticated Puncheon Room and Gallery, crooner Nick Drakides and his band will play for your dining and dancing pleasure. $165.

21Club.com TeRra Han, Kayageum Sept. 29, 8 p.m.

Carnegie Hall, Weill Recital Hall 57th Street & Seventh Avenue Korean musician TeRra Han plays the kayageum, or 12-string zither. $50.

Dear Readers If you have an event to suggest, please send details to NYC_Arts@ EpochTimes.com in the format you see here.

Separation, Reunion, and the Traditions of China’s MidAutumn Festival

By Leo Timm | Epoch Times Staff

T

he Mid-Autumn Festival is one of China’s most ancient and popular traditions, best-known as a time for families and friends to get together and feast on mooncakes while they remember the legend of the lunar goddess Chang’e. This year, it will come on Sept. 27.

Called “Zhongqiu” in Chinese, the festival has its first recorded origins in the 3,000-year-old rituals of the early Zhou Dynasty (1046–771 B.C.). It falls on the 15th day of the eighth month in China’s traditional calendar, which combines 13 lunar months with 24 “jieqi,” usually rendered in English as “solar terms.”

Zhongqiu is a joyous occasion that celebrates the solar term of the autumnal equinox, when farmers traditionally collected their hard-earned summer harvests. On a more spiritual level, the full moon that often appears on this day is regarded as a symbol of completion, so the Mid-Autumn Festival is the day of union for families and lovers, especially those long-separated.

Cycles of the Moon and Sun Because the Chinese calendar combines both lunar months and solar terms, it is called a lunisolar calendar. The names of the 24 solar terms, six per season, each correspond to a change in weather important for pastoral life around the Yellow River Valley, China’s cradle of civilization.

There are 13 lunar months in the Chinese year, each 29 or 30 days long, beginning at the new moon and reaching a full moon by mid-month. At this time, the visible hemisphere of the lunar surface finds itself fully illuminated by the sun and reflects the light to earth’s surface.

The Mid-Autumn Festival has great meaning as an event to celebrate the season’s harvest. By the Chinese calendar, autumn begins in what we know as early August and ends toward the beginning of November.

A combination of “crops” and “fire” make up the Chinese character for autumn. In old China, farmers would burn the dry stalks following harvest, turning the ashes into soil fertilizer useful for the next season.

Between Summer and Winter Dividing the year and the four seasons into meaningrich lunar and solar cycles gives users of the Chinese calendar a deeper understanding of and connection with the rhythm of nature.

The start of the Chinese autumn, called “Liqiu,” comes in early August. It is associated with preparations for the harvest, as well as wild variations in temperature, with a week or two of what is called the “Autumn Tiger.” The accompanying solar term, “Chushu,” signals the end of the hottest season, in what is now late August.

Variations in temperature are brought about by early autumn rains, which, coming in waves, foreshadow the colder days and months to come. This rainy period, when summer transitions into autumn, is a time of ploughing, new planting, fishing, and worship. Peasants pay their respects and give offerings to the god of the fields, hoping for a good harvest that will sustain them through the winter.

Following this, morning dew begins to appear—lightly at first—weighing heavier and heavier upon the leaves as the days get cooler. This is reflected in the name “Bailu” or White Dew, the solar term just ahead that of the autumnal equinox that balance of summer and winter in which the Mid-Autumn Festival is celebrated.

Under the Watch of the Moon Goddess Mid-Autumn comes at an opportune time; having toiled through summer and autumn, farmers now celebrate the fruits of their labor under the bright, full moon.

Round mooncakes, perhaps the best-known and loved aspect of mid-autumn in modern times, would be split up among family members, reaffirming and celebrating the household’s unity.

In ancient China, not just the common folk but also officials and nobles would take part in the religious ceremonies to respect and worship heaven, earth, and the myriad deities. On the day autumn, officials prayed to Chang’e, goddess of the moon, for this is the time that she is said to reign over the earth.

When it gets to the Cold Dew, flowers and weeds start to wilt, leaving only the hardy and venerable chrysanthemums in the field. With the Frost Descent comes deep autumn, when leaves fall.

With its themes of completion, union, and separation, the spirit of the Mid-Autumn Festival is contained in the ancient legend of Chang’e. Many variations of the story exist, but most agree that Chang’e was once a mortal woman, the beautiful wife of the master archer Hou Yi, before making her fateful ascent to the heavens.

As reward for destroying nine unruly sun deities before they reduced the earth to a lifeless conflagration, Hou Yi was given a heavenly potion that could grant immortality. Chang’e, confronted by a villain in the absence of her husband, decided to drink the potion sooner than surrender its divine effects.

Chang’e rose toward the firmament, stopping only when she arrived at the lunar palace. There the goddess is said to live in the company of a jade rabbit, observing in blissful yearning the joys and sorrows of the mortal world.

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September 25–October 1, 2015 TheEpochTimes.com/EpochArts BENJAMIN CHASTEEN/EPOCH TIMES

Jewelry designer Phillip Gabriel Maroof at his appartment in the East Village, Manhattan, on Sept. 13.

Gabriel Maroof ’s

COURTESY OF PHILLIP GAVRIEL

Newest Capsule Collection

Filigree gold cuff bracelets with black onyx (longer cuff) and black spinel from the Isfahan capsule collection of Phillip Gavriel Privé.

His Most Daring Yet Privé continued from C1 COURTESY OF PHILLIP GAVRIEL

The Phillip Gavriel team shot the ads at a neoclassical-style palace in Milan, the Palazzo Serbelloni. It is one of the many glossy spreads that promotes some of the boldest jewelry from Privé in the high-end fashion magazines, including Vogue, Elle, InStyle, and Harper’s Bazaar. The spreads demonstrate just how edgy the Phillip Gavriel aesthetic can be.

Celebrities adore it. Christina Aguilera wore pieces from his rock candy collection on “The Voice”: a golden rutilant quartz ring with citrines cut in an asymmetrical way. Actress Regina King, model Jessica White, and singer Jennifer Hudson, have also worn Phillip Gavriel pieces.

A headdress from the Isfahan capsule collection of Phillip Gavriel Privé.

Born to Design Phillip Gabriel Maroof was literally born into the world of jewelry. His father, Paul Maroof, is the CEO of the Phillip Gavriel parent company, Royal Chain Group. From a young age Gabriel Maroof developed his tastes as he traveled the world with his family, especially soaking up the aesthetic of highly skilled gold artisans in Italy, where he studied. One of his earliest memories is watching his father at a desk in their home counting and organizing pieces of jewelry.

Gabriel Maroof has a very different aesthetic to many jewelry designers, because the collections he produces are so varied and rich. “Many designers out there have a very specific look and a very specific aesthetic, and you either don’t like it or you like it,” he said. “I find that a little bit boring, because as a person my tastes change from day to day.”

To illustrate the point, Gabriel Maroof said that as a man, he might wear J.Crew one day, and the next day something more luxurious, like Giorgio Armani. If he is feeling a little more flamboyant or edgy, he might go for one of his funky Etro suits, with a bold print or a striking lining.

COURTESY OF PHILLIP GAVRIEL

The new Privé collection is where I really want people to see the extreme creativity that I have.

Phillip Gabriel Maroof, designer, Phillip Gavriel COURTESY OF PHILLIP GAVRIEL

Jewelry from the Mantis capsule collection of Phillip Gavriel Privé.

“So I think jewelry has to compliment the taste in style that you’ve evolved on a day-today basis over time, and with the trends and everything like that,” he said. “So by creating my jewelry in a particular aesthetic, I find that not in line with my brand or my personal style, therefore, that is why there are so many collections within the brand.”

“The new Privé collection is where I really want people to see the extreme creativity that I have,” he said. “I would like that people see it in a different light, realizing that it’s not for everybody and it’s not for the faint of heart, but in that sense, I would like people to also see how creative me and my team can be at putting things together.”

Filigree Gold Weave Phillip Gavriel’s second capsule collection within Privé is Persian-inspired. Called Isfahan, it draws on the intricate art and architecture of Iran’s third largest city.

This capsule collection is perhaps Gabriel Maroof’s most extravagant to date. It taps into the filigree gold weaving technique native to the Mediterranean and the Middle East, where threads of gold are scrolled and styled into intricate designs.

The subtler pieces in the collection draw their aesthetics from two centerpieces: a gold filigree corset and a gold headdress. The headdress is similar in shape and length to the traditional burqa worn by women of the Islamic faith. It would make a stunning adornment for a burqa.

The corset is intricate filigree gold metalwork woven together into something resembling a bustier from a fashion company but made entirely of gold.

“All the jewelry is very silowy,” Gabriel Maroof said. “Very dimensional and very detailed, much like the mosaics of the archi-

tecture of Isfahan itself.”

All Phillip Gavriel jewelry is crafted from precious metals, sterling silver, 18-carat gold, and natural gemstones.

Privé is a departure from the traditional price points of the Phillip Gavriel brand, which have be driven by the designer’s desire for a “democratization of jewelry,” or jewelry that everyone should be able to afford. After studying at NYU’s School of Business, Gabriel Maroof developed an aversion for corporate America with its goods off a production line. He wanted to make beautiful, handcrafted jewelry that holds real value.

He wanted to adhere to tradition, so he decided to start his own label within the family business.

Before Privé, Phillip Gavriel bracelets, necklaces, earrings, and rings, have traditionally retailed for an average of $500 to $600. Price points for Privé will average around $1,500, with some of the larger pieces likely to exceed the $20,000 mark.

Gabriel Maroof’s personal jewelry style, like his fashion preferences, incorporates classics with a more modern twist. Each day he wears his own sterling silver woven bracelets on one wrist, and on the other wrist, his stainless steel Rolex Daytona with a plain black face, three mini-chronographs, and the larger dial, a gift from his father.

Today, Gabriel Maroof’s jewelry is crafted by artisans around the world, depending on the collection, and the types of skills required. Many of his pieces are made in Italy and a northeastern province in Thailand, others in Bali, Indonesia, and Istanbul.

Phillip Gabriel Maroof will have completed his third Privé capsule collection by the end of the year.

Look for Phillip Gabriel Maroof’s work on his website, PhillipGavriel.com

COURTESY OF PHILLIP GAVRIEL

Stoney Creek Cremation & Burial Society 3024 QUENTIN ROAD BROOKLYN, NY 11234

718.339.0700 STONEYCREEKCREMATION.COM STONEYCREEKCREMATION@GMAIL.COM Primarily an online service, serving families conveniently at their own home — through a computer.

A gold and black onyx ring from the Isfahan capsule collection of Phillip Gavriel Privé.

A filigree woven gold corset from the Isfahan capsule collection of Phillip Gavriel Privé.

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September 25–October 1, 2015

In

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Bloom Spring 2016 trends from New York Fashion Week

Fringe is even showing up on pockets at Diane von Furstenberg.

The Spring Swing The fall fringe trend sweeps into spring 2016 without being overly bohemian or ‘70s focused.

The fringe was spotted in flapper-style movement on evening gowns at Prabal Gurung, Givenchy, and Marc Jacobs. We witness the fringe in more casual expressions; swaying on military coats at Alexander Wang and flirting unexpectedly through pockets at Diane von Furstenberg. Still not ready to adopt the style going strong for three seasons? Try a fringe in accessories from earrings at Oscar de la Renta to bags at Tory Burch.

By Pialy Aditya & Sonaly Aditya

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pring 2016 Fashion Week ended with drama on Sept. 17 with Marc Jacobs presenting at the Ziegfeld Theatre on 54th Street. This season was decidedly different as fashionistas said goodbye to Lincoln Center and hello to the new Skylight Studios locations in Midtown at Moynihan Station and Clarkson Studios in West SoHo. Everyone arrived chauffeured to the almost-80 shows in their Uber and Lyft car services.

While Alexander Wang celebrated his 10-year anniversary by going back to his streetwear roots, there was new blood at DKNY with Public School designers Dao-Yi Chow and Maxwell Osborne at the helm this year.

Other firsts included Riccardo Tisci presenting the Givenchy spring collection in New York for the first time instead of Paris with live performances on the Hudson River, under a dramatic sunset finale on Sept. 11, exposing the two beams of light from the World Trade Center tribute as backdrop. In a sign of fashion being democratized, Givenchy gave away 820 tickets to the show via the brand’s website.

The dust has now settled on NY Fashion Week as all the editors, fashionistas, and models have made their way to London for the next round of shows. We take this time to highlight the top 4 trends we will be wearing next spring.

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Pialy Aditya and Sonaly Aditya are twin entrepreneurs in the New York fashion startup scene. Reach them @pialyaditya and @sonalyaditya on Instagram and Twitter.

Fringe on skirts, tops, and bags at Tory Burch.

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Fringe on military coats by Alexander Wang.

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Cold shoulders at Proenza Schouler.

Red floral embellishment at Jenny Packham.

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Red Roses in Full Bloom Spring is coming up roses … red that is! It’s fitting that fashion week started off with rain showers given all the reds that were in full bloom. The runways of Oscar de la Renta, Michael Kors, Monique Lhuillier, Reem Acra, Anna Sui, and Naeem Khan showed red florals in the forms of intricate prints, embroidery, crochet, and lace.

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Cut It Out Springtime leads us to remove the layers and begin to expose some skin. This spring, it looks like we’ll be giving others the cold shoulder. The exposed shoulder silhouette was seen everywhere in the updated form of cut outs on dresses and knits at shows including Prabal Gurung, Hervé Léger, Rebecca Minkoff, and Proenza Schouler. So, put away the crop tops and grab some scissors. This begs the question, “How do you work out the collar bone?”

Red roses and floral patterns at Oscar de la Renta.

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Shoulder cut outs on knits at Prabal Gurung.

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Pajama Party, Innerwear as Outerwear, Pajama Dressing The short-lived pajama dressing trend is back but has extended to include other sleepwear, including the slip dresses made popular in the ‘90s by Calvin Klein and Prada. So, who better than Francisco Costa to revive the slip dress once again at Calvin Klein—in light satin tones with wide straps, exaggerated breast stitching, and fringes falling from shoulders. Givenchy showcased a more traditional slip dress in sheer black silk and lace with exposed nude lining.

Thakoon invigorated the pajama trend in a light blue culotte romper while Ralph Lauren sent a pajama jumpsuit in satin down the catwalk.

A satin jumpsuit at Ralph Lauren.

Slip dresses were back at Calvin Klein in light tones with wide straps.