I met Yael Acher downtown on Monday when we played her Harbour Symophony. She is a very warm, friendly person, and I'm glad I got to see her perform last night at the Quidi Vidi Brewing Company. 
She opened with the first two movements of the 2nd Bach Cello Suite in D minor...this was a real treat for me as I love the cello suites; I've just never heard them rendered on flute before. This was followed by a Debussy piece, which she played back with effects and improvised over what she had previously played. Her setup was not unlike that of some guitarists: Digitech pedalboard, with a rack of effects off to the side. I heard echoes, delay and a harmonizer, among other things. She played Charles Mingus's "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat," again with the effects, which I thought sounded cool. She told us it was composed by Mingus in memory of a great jazz player who had died at the time, but she's couldn't remember his name. I hope I didn't come across as an ass when I called out "Lester Young!" Just tryin' to help.
Yael closed her brief set by inviting Curtis Andrews and Kurai Mubaiwa to play along with Duke Ellington's "Caravan" (actually composed by Juan Tizol). Kurai took out some shakers and Curtis looked around for a suitable 'instrument.' A few seconds later, he had a Quidi Vidi Brewing Co. crate in his hands, and they started to play. It was great.
I had a very nice chat with Yael afterwards; very engaging, friendly, and surprisingly concerned that her Bach and Debussy had gone over okay! Well...duh!
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