You know how the phrase du jour on social media is “I hate drama?” Well, Ute Lemper loves drama, and she’s got a voice to match — one of those singing styles that takes you on a roller coaster of feelings. She’s been associated with Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht for decades, but in this setting with a string quartet, she’s doing songs by the french masters Edith Piaf and Jacques Brel, a little bit of tango from Astor Piazzolla, and more. Just the heavy, dripping, romantic stuff. If the past couple times I’ve seen her are any guide, she won’t abandon Weill entirely: I’ll bet you $10 she sings “Mack the Knife” for an encore.
Ute Lemper and the Vogler String Quartet present “Paris Days, Berlin Nights” at Bing Concert Hall at Stanford on Saturday, March 17; details here.