It’s nearly summertime in Chicagoland. As the weather turns warm, our minds inevitably turn to music festivals, picnics, and long lazy nights filled with cold drinks, good friends, and somewhere that combines all of these into one experience: Ravinia. Ravinia opened their 2018 season in May and has since had a continuous string of award winning and talented artists of all genres. The first week of June brought cool offbeat rhythms with Stephen Marley and Matisyahu.
Stephen Marley, the Jamaican-American reggae artist opened the evening as the warm air began to turn cold. Guests bundled under blankets and sipped warming liquors from the new Lawn Bar as the eight-time Grammy award winning musician took the stage and filled the night with the unmistakable elements of calypso, blues, and jazz filled the night air. The musical prowess of the Marley family never ceases to astound me. Like his father, Bob Marley, Stephen plays so naturally. The slow tempo of the music lent itself perfectly to Ravinia’s laid back charm.
After the sunset, and the temperature dropped, Matisyahu took the stage to a thinning crowd; a colorful light show emanated from the stage and a man flooded in white light took the stage. His beatboxed segued into a heavy bass, fast paced song complete with electronic keyboards and the familiar calypso from the previous performance. While stylistically his set had some familiar reggae elements, the blending of hard rock and hip-hop beats distinctively changed the mood and feel of the night. Matthew Paul Miller, most commonly known by his stage name, Matisyahu, is a Jewish-American reggae artist blending Orthodox Jewish themes with reggae, rock, and hip hop beatboxing sounds. The music was far more quick paced than Marley’s opening set, and didn’t quite fit the feeling of Ravinia. Listening to Matisyahu’s music alone with headphones you can hear where he draws his inspiration. From the Jamaican inspired rhythms with klezmer elements it is as unique as Reggae’s initial influence in the sixties. Unfortunately, it didn’t translate well in this venue. Given the chance to see him perform at The Riv, Metro, or Aragon Ballroom, again with Stephen Marley, I’d jump at the chance.
To be a good show, the artist and the venue must be a good fit. Both are needed otherwise the experience falls short. Still, the feeling of summer is alive and well at Ravinia. With the impressive 2018 lineup scheduled, be sure to put Ravinia on your 100 days of summer list. Scheduling and tickets for Ravinia can be found at https://www.ravinia.org/.
