{"id":4223,"date":"2020-07-03T15:36:09","date_gmt":"2020-07-03T14:36:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/?p=4223"},"modified":"2024-07-29T09:45:14","modified_gmt":"2024-07-29T08:45:14","slug":"lisa-se-klavier-a-heartfelt-flop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/?p=4223","title":{"rendered":"Lisa se Klavier: A heartfelt flop"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Rochelle Thomas<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lisa, a woman shrouded in mystery. Everyone is taken by her, it seems. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Koos Kombuis wrote: \u201cJa, die\nhele w\u00eareld word stil \/ En luister in die donker uur \/ Na die\nnaggeluide \/ Van Lisa se klavier\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He meant it from the heart, and it\ncame to be one of his most popular hits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the music video, he sits smoking\na cigarette. He bears no other expression, except what comes across\nas deep devastation, or regret. Enveloped in darkness, only half his\nface is visible as he looks you square in the eye. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He\u2019s beginning his story \u2013\nlisten.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He uses beautiful poetry to describe\nLisa, melodically creating images in the minds eye to paint her in an\nethereal light. It feels as if you have walked into a memory,\npreviously hidden in a dark crevice, only now seeing the light of\nday. Lisa is in a velvet dress, her eyes shut as she plays slowly,\nexpertly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kombuis evokes emotion, taking us on\na journey, leaving us wondering, who is this Lisa who has become\n\u201celke boemelaar se droom\u201d?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So much\nheartfelt imagery from a simple setting, the love and nostalgia\ndisplayed in the music video left me with a longing to know more\nabout the mysterious relationship between Koos and Lisa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But now, in 2020, we seem to be\nstruggling with the concept of simplicity. Ian Strauss\u2019s cover,\nwhich is on the virtual National Art Festival Fringe programme,\ncrosses the line into melodrama, replete with poet blouse and the\nlone burning candle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strauss\u2019s version of the popular\nlove song leaves much to be desired. A dolled-up, tousled-haired\n\u201cLisa\u201d dramatically bashes away at the piano keys, making way for\nthe image of Strauss himself standing somewhat proudly in a corner\nwith his arms outstretched. He feigns the image of contentment as he\nbegins to perform, and proceeds to overdo every movement, heightening\ninsincerity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While he speaks it to us \u2013 not\noffering much in the way of melody or passion (although, an attempt\nfor passion was made) no real emotion surfaces. He\u2019s always\nsmiling, which creates a strange disconnect between his expression\nand what is being expressed. The musician\/actress playing Lisa does\nnot have the calm or free-spirited air the song attributes to her. In\nfact, she is largely unapproachable. I almost feel the urge to\nnervously laugh to break all the unintended tension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A lot could have been fixed before\nthe final edit. For instance, the lighting did not have to be a\nmedieval yellow. Lisa could have been less of a show queen and\nStrauss could have cut back the theatrics and focused on emotion. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the bar set so high by unique singers such as Dozi and Laurika Rauch, one cannot help but be disappointed. Strauss tries hard, but for someone who has experienced the song in its original form \u2013 this cover needs to be forgotten in order not to destroy something quite wonderful. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The show is on the vFringe programme here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Production Credits:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Music video: Shot and edited by Ian\nStrauss<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Musician at piano: unknown<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a cover of an original\nsong<\/a> by Koos Kombuis.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Rochelle Thomas Lisa, a woman shrouded in mystery. Everyone is taken by her, it seems. When Koos Kombuis wrote: \u201cJa, die hele w\u00eareld word stil \/ En luister in … Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":4224,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[7,10],"tags":[1094,1093],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4223"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4223"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4223\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4225,"href":"https:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4223\/revisions\/4225"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4224"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4223"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4223"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecritter.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4223"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}