Raphael Saadiq x India.Arie live in Vancouver on March 20.

Two of the smoothest R&B/soul singers today, Raphael Saadiq and India.Arie, are coming to Vancouver on March 20th as part of the Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad.

Vintage rhythm and blues by potent young artists. India.Arie’s Grammy-winning R & B, which recalls such soul masters as Roberta Flack and Stevie Wonder, makes “faith, goodness and positive thinking seductive,” according to The New York Times. Raphael Saadiq is a throwback, a retro-soul practitioner who has mined a rich vein of old-school R & B and Motown cool since his days with 80s hit-makers Tony! Toni! Toné!

Tickets are already on sale at Tickets.com, starting at $42.50. The concert will be held at the Orpheum Theatre, and starts 8pm on Saturday, March 20th. This is going to be such a sick, sick, sick show. I am so excited.

Videos of both India.Arie and Raphael Saadiq after the jump. Don’t sleep!!

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Tao – Taiko show at Orpheum Theatre.

The Japanese taiko drum group, Tao, is coming to Vancouver on January 28th, at Orpheum Theatre.

While the Japanese Taiko drum is a simple traditional instrument, it has the world’s greatest sound pressure and is an instrument that conceals infinite possibilities.

Enchanted by this instrument, Tao have freed the taiko from its confines of being the “successor of Japan’s traditional culture” and developed a totally new genre of entertainment.

Tao brought together highly skilled technical staff and produced a show with their meticulous eye for detail and performance mastery. They built a powerful management force and using their wonderful sales skills began actively performing.

They then set up base at a site of 40,000 square meters, surrounded by nature in a national park at Kyushu’s Kuju Plateau, prided as one of Japan’s most picturesque areas. While receiving inspiration from the rich natural environment that engulfed them, they grappled with the meaning of real music, undertook the strenuous training of athletes and continued to produce totally unique pieces of music that totally overturned Japanese taiko’s traditional image. In the blink of an eye, word of their activities spread like wild fire. Tao received explosive support in Japan, renowned as a “Japanese Taiko Group with a difference”. In just 7 years from it’s formation, Tao achieved incredible popularity with an audience exceeding one million.

TAO’s Worldwide Whirlwind The rest of the world could not help but notice such a conspicuous Japanese troupe. In 2004, with outstanding success, Tao took the powerful performances they developed in Japan to the world’s most renowned Arts Festival, the “Edinburgh Fringe Festival”. From among the 1800 artists that gathered from all over the world, Tao continuously achieved the record of No. 1 daily ticket sales. Judged by the media as “undoubtedly the best masterpiece”, Tao received a 5 star rating. Promoters around the world noted this amazing success and thus Tao began their first, real world tour.

Will be a good show for sure. Last I checked, the best available seats were balcony seats. The show will likely sell out soon, the closer we get to Olympic season. Tickets are on sale now at Ticketmaster, starting at $42.00.

Nosferatu x Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.

No Halloween plans this year in rainy Vancouver? The Orpheum offers something different: the old-school Nosferatu movie showing with live music accompaniment courtesy of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra.

The great 1922 Silent Film Nosferatu is the original Dracula movie. No charming aristocrat like later Draculas, this vampire is scary and macabre, a living corpse who feeds mercilessly on his victims. Hailed as one of the greatest movie adaptations of the vampire legend, aided by Max Schrek’s frightening performance as Count Orlock, Nosferatu will be presented with the music performed live by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. You’ll never have more fun being scared!

Tickets are either $25 or $30, depending on the section, available at the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra’s website. The show is for this Saturday (natch), 8pm.

Vancouver Symphony Orchestra x Final Fantasy.

On October 8, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra will be performing Distant Worlds: Music from Final Fantasy at the Orpheum Theatre. The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra will be led by conductor Arnie Roth.

To accompany the music composed by famed Final Fantasy music-guru, 植松信夫 (Nobuo Uematsu), there will be video game sequences projected on a big screen.

Tickets go on sale July 27 at 10 a.m., from Vancouver Symphony Orchestra website or by phone at 604-876-3434.

(via Georgia Straight)