Jazz

Anyone who’s spent even a small amount of time on the African continent has a good idea of what people mean when they use the phrase “African nostalgia.”  Even if you haven’t traveled there, it’s easy to get a back-to-our-roots sense from the culture, art, music, and design available to us in the US.  Everything from HBO’s “No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency” to Youssou Ndour’s documentary I Bring What I Love shows this simple side of life, but not in a melancholy way.  Instead, we see this beautiful, rhythmic, traditional lifestyle in which tribal differences are as often respected as they are fought over.  A primary part of what we know, culturally, about the continent is the music of Angelique Kidjo – a singer who hails from Benin and whose voice sooths as it entices.

With formal jazz music training from the CIM in Paris, Kidjo performed last March at USC’s Bovard Auditorium and has worked with some of music’s greatest performers including Carlos Santana, Ziggy Marley, and Peter Garbiel on her recent album Djin Djin.  Her music will, we have no doubt, be of the strength and soul that it will fill the Walt Disney Concert Hall on Sunday evening (February 28) during her solo performance.  To make sure that we’re all on the same page with this brand of “African nostalgia,” we’re giving away tickets for Kidjo’s Sunday evening performance!

This is, indeed, an Extra! Extra! giveaway – a reluctant one, since we wanted to keep this tickets for our greedy little selves.  Just keep in mind that by entering into this giveaway, you’re automatically entered into the next three we agree to giveaway.  All we need is your first name, last name, and your email address and voila – you’ll feel like you’re picking through markets in Dakar in no time.

(Click here if the nostalgia is all too much and you’d rather buy your own tickets.)

The way you start off a new year is very important to the way the new year ends up going for you.  At least that’s what they say.  Put their theory into practice with some of January’s most promising arts events in our fair city – would you like your 2010 to look a little more Bond-like? Would you rather it looked a little more experimental than your 2009?  It’s so tempting to answer those questions with: there’s an app for that, but really your city has got what it takes to kick off your new year just the way you’d like.

Mr. Bond

Friday, January 1 is not likely to be your most shining and perky day.  That doesn’t mean you can’t start on a sleek, technologically advanced, Bond-like bend – from 7:30pm at the Egyptian Theatre there’s a double feature of Dr. No and You Only Live Twice.  You may not be at your sharpest on Friday, but you’ll soon make a better Bond than Mr. Connery.  If you’re less than interested in leaving your house that day, worry not.  Saturday evening (January 2) from 7:00pm, they’ll be screening Goldfinger and Thunderball – if you don’t have a love/hate relationship with villains after a weekend like that, you’re not cut out to be the next Mr. Bond.  And that’s no way to start a new year.

Please click here for the Egyptian Theatre’s full January 2010 calendar.

Barely There

At Sam Lee Gallery, just near Dodger Stadium, you’ll find local artist Jeff Gambill’s exhibit “Barely There,” on through January 23.  His paintings have this generally zen, colorful feeling that convey the transient, transitional message he’s going for.  Fresh from a trip to Japan, you’ll definitely see an East Asian influence in each of his works.  They don’t scream out at you, but they definitely make you want to look closer.  And what better message than looking closer at something that doesn’t shock and awe for a new year?  Time to delve a little deeper, kids.

The Sam Lee Gallery is located at 990 N. Hill Street #190.  Please call (323) 227-0275 or click here for more information.

New Year, New Music

It’s so easy to fall into an all-Mozart (or all-Beyonce) rut.  Take some time in January 2010 to break out of it.  It may not last the whole year, but at least you can say you tried.  On Saturday, January 16 at the First Presbyterian Church in Santa Monica,Jacaranda invites you to discover Thomas Ades, Benjamin Britten, Peter Maxwell Davies, George Benjamin, and others.  The concert, called Licorice and Rosin (“licorice” is a slang term for clarinet and rosin is a solid form of resin used on string instruments), will present some of Britain’s more exciting contemporary music from the last twenty-five years.

If a church is the last place you’d like to be, Monday Evening Concerts at the Zipper Concert Hall at the Colburn School kicks off 2010 on January 11 at 8:00pm with a concert called “Mostly Californian.”  Featuring compositions by Clint McCallum, Luciano Chessa, Michael Pisaro, and others, you will hear sounds of contemporary California.  (No, that doesn’t include woeful cries for our current economic situation.) The composers in question present lyrical, theatrical works that won’t sound like anything else you’ve heard before.

Please click here for more information about Jacaranda.  Alternatively, click here for information about Monday Evening Concerts.

Soundtrack for a Revolution

The Grammy Museum just celebrated their first birthday – still haven’t been? Monday, January 11 at 7:00pm they’re presenting Reel to Reel: Soundtrack for a Revolution, a documentary that looks at the American civil rights movement and the unparalleled soundtrack that went along with it.  Filled with archive footage, interviews with civil rights leaders, and a soundtrack of freedom songs sung by modern day R&B, Hip Hop, and Soul legends like Joss Stone, Wyclef Jean, The Roots, and John Legend.  Monday’s screening will be followed by a panel discussion chock full of everyone you’d like to get advice from for a soulful 2010 – Danny Glover, filmmakers Bill Guttentag and Dan Sturman, producer Dylan Nelson, and music producer Corey Smyth.

For more information, please click here.

We imagine that a great many of you, dear readers, have guests in town for the holidays.  If you’re lucky enough to have them staying at your house, you’ll appreciate this little listing of places to send them so that they can experience all the art and culture that LA has to offer. (Remind them that Woody Allen was wrong when he said it was only frozen yogurt and right turns on red…)

Bergamot Station

A healthy sized collection of art galleries in Santa Monica, Bergamot Station does actually have something for every walk of life.  Your sister-in-law prefers installations while your uncle is a photography nut? Send them west of the 405 to this once dilapidated train station for a day filled with some of LA’s most innovative galleries.  They’ve even got a café, salon, and vintage clothing shop on site, so let them know they could be occupied for hours!

Bergamot Station is located at 2525 Michigan Ave in Santa Monica.  Please call (310) 828-4001 or click here for more information.

Annenberg Space for Photography

Your guests will surely appreciate a jaunt to Annenberg Space for Photography’s latest exhibit: SPORT: Iooss and Leifer.  Read our take on it here.  It’s a spectacular collection that chronicles the recent history of sports including inspiring snaps of Serena Williams and Mohammad Ali.  They have no excuse to come back before grabbing a bite at the little café downstairs and then maybe catching a movie across the street at the Century City shopping center – drop a hint about your favorite shops in the mall.

The Annenberg Space for Photography is located at 2000 Avenue of the Stars #10 in Century City.  Call (213) 403-3000 for more information or click here.

Walt Disney Concert Hall

If you’ve got guests over New Year’s Eve, grab a couple seats to see Big Bad Voodoo Daddy take advantage of the unparalleled acoustics at Disney Hall.  There’s a show at 7:00pm and one at 10:30pm – we’d recommend a quick bite either before or after the performance at Kendall’s Brasserie across the street at the Dorothy Chandler to help ring in the New Year!

Walt Disney Concert Hall is located at 111 South Grand Ave. in Downtown LA.  Please call (323) 850-2000 or click here for more information.

Getty Villa in Malibu

There is no better place to remind your guests that you live in paradise than the Getty Villa in Malibu.  It’s free to view the ancient Greek, Roman, and Etruscan antiques and objets d’art, you’ve just got to make a reservation beforehand for parking.  On view now at the Villa is an exhibition called “Reconstructing Identity: A Statue of a God from Dresden.” Once you’ve gotten your fill of the gorgeous views and Roman-inspired architecture, head a bit farther down PCH to Cross Creek Road, where you’ll find Taverna Tony’s (delicious Greek food) and some dangerous shopping.

The Getty Villa is located at 17985 Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu.  Please call (310) 440-7300 or click here for more information.

If you still haven’t felt the holiday spirit this year, you’re a little late on the uptake.  The weather isn’t helping much – listening to “White Christmas” as you peel off your unnecessary scarf, for example, doesn’t encourage drinking hot chocolate and singing carols.  Well, where the weather disappoints (in a way), our fair city’s art scene comes to the rescue.

The quintessential ballet experience known far and wide as The Nutcracker is upon us again and Los Angeles Ballet’s production will be on view at Royce Hall and Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center in the coming weeks.  Click here to check out our behind the scenes look at what goes into such a magical production as theirs with Sugar Plum Fairies, Snow Flakes, Fighting Mice, and Princes to delight your child’s (and your inner child’s) every whim.

Musically, there’s nowhere that does the holiday season like the LA Philharmonic.  On Sunday, December 20, you can warm up those vocal chords for a Messiah Sing-Along with the Los Angeles Master Chorale.  Then on Tuesday, December 22 at 8:00pm, they’re presenting Holidays with Sweet Honey in the Rock – aka not your mama’s holiday songs, followed by Preservation Hall Jazz Band’s A Creole Christmas on Wednesday, December 23 at 8:00pm.  Those are also, not your mama’s holiday songs. Unless your mama is Creole.  If you’re at a loss for what to do on New Year’s Eve, spend it with the Big Bad Voodoo Daddy at Disney Hall.

Not everything that puts you in the holiday spirit has to scream Santa Claus, little elves, and red ribbons.  There are some films that put a smile on your face regardless of the time of year and two of them are on view at the Egyptian Theatre on Saturday, December 26 – maybe to take your mind off the family dysfunction from the night before.  Singin’ In The Rain and An American in Paris make up the double feature starting at 7:30pm.

Did we mention that Christmas can also be funny?  The Largo at the Coronet has an All Star comedy show on Monday, December 21 at 9pm benefiting St. Jude’s Christmas Charity.  It can also be whimsical if you get yourself to Royal/T in Culver City.  Now through December 31, their Winter Wonderland pop up shop

Everyone answers the question the same way.  “So, what kind of music do you listen to?” A little bit of everything, except country… right? Well, whether or not you’re hiding Carrie Underwood on your iPod, have you ever mentioned your penchant for “eclectic post-jazz?”

John Hollenbeck and his Claudia Quintet are betting they’ll be able to change your tune.  The New York-based band experiments with what we’ve thus far known as jazz, but not in an extremely esoteric way – their rhythms and sounds are playful, complex, and really get you thinking.  Since hearing them will undoubtedly give you a whole new genre to brag about (“I mostly love traditional Ghanaian drumming”), we’ve got some tickets to give away! Performing at REDCAT on Wednesday, October 28 at 8:30pm, Claudia Quintet includes Hollenbeck himself, Drew Gress on double bass, Maat Moran on “vibes,” Ted Reichman on accordian, and on the clarinet and tenor sax, Chris Speed.  They’ll be joined by guest pianist Gary Versace as well as a couple of curious and lucky Fine Arts LA readers!

Here are some Extra! Extra! details you’ll want to remember: by entering into this raffle, you’ll automatically be entered into the next three raffles we’ve got hidden behind our backs.  All we need is your first name, last name, and email address and voila – your eclectic musical taste speaks volumes about your open-mindedness.

(Click here if you don’t want to risk it and would rather just buy your own tickets.)

It’s very rare that you find a native Angeleno.  Whenever I meet someone and tell them that I was born and raised here, I get a cocked eyebrow almost as if to say “are you sure?”  In the same way that when I finally meet another native, we instantly share a common bond, like we’ve suffered the ups and downs of the city together.  As much as we natives joke about tourists on Hollywood Blvd. and Midwest transplants coming here to be a star, it is those people who (for better or worse) create the cultural makeup of the city and often; its those transplants that seem more at home here than us natives. 

Case in point, Pink Martini.  Hailing from Portland, Oregon, the “little orchestra” of eleven musicians has an old-Hollywood vibe that you’re hard pressed to find outside places like Musso & Franks.  Their worldly, lounge-y, Hollywood-in-the-70s feel fits so perfectly in this city that it seems unfair that we can’t claim them as ours!  Returning to the Hollywood Bowl on Saturday, September 19, Pink Martini brings with them a Copacabana style and a classical technique.  If you’re unfamiliar with the Martini, listen extra careful for songs like “Let’s Never Stop Falling in Love,” “Dansez-vous,” and “Donde Estas, Yolanda?”.  It makes you wonder how long one has to live in LA to be considered a local.  They’ve been performing with the LA Philharmonic for nearly ten years now… How much longer before we can just pretend they’re one of us?

Pink Martini performs at the Hollywood Bowl on Saturday, September 19 at 8pm.  For more information or tickets, please call (323) 850-2000 or click here.  

Here! Have a listen:

What do you get when you cross Langston Hughes with The Roots and vocalist de’Adre Aziza? Ask your mama.  What are the twelve moods of jazz? Ask your mama.  Where can you hear an intricate score accompanying quotes said by greats like Louis Armstrong and Bill Bojangles? Ask your mama. 

Langston Hughes knew something we should all know – Mama knows best!  His collaboration with composer Laura Karpman, “Ask Your Mama: 12 Moods for Jazz,” is a seriously exciting concert that encompasses music, film, and spoken word with such guests as The Roots, conductor George Manahan, famed soprano Jessye Norman, Nnenna Freelon, and de’Adre Aziza.  Within about 90-minutes, the concert weaves its way through jazz, German song, Latin music, Middle-Eastern styles, and Afro-Cuban sounds for your listening pleasure.  It was inspired by Hughes’ unparalleled career and his experiences with music and the people that love and make it across the globe.  Started in 1961, this visual, auditory, emotional, enticing poetry-cycle was well before its time, melding the sounds and senses of both fine arts and street talk.  It’s really the sort of project you can never say enough about – there’s always some intention or meaning that you’ve run out of time (or words?) for. 

To get a taste of what Langston Hughes’ mother must have taught him, “Ask Your Mama” is coming to the Hollywood Bowl tomorrow night! 

Following Mr. Hughes and his crazy, visual, musical poem project is a triptych of classic jazz, if you will, on Wednesday, September 2.  Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke, and Lenny White are heading to the Bowl for a musical conversation on all kinds of jazz from acoustic to electric and back again.  Their performance comes with guests artists you may have heard of like Chaka Khan, Jean Luc Ponty, and John Scofield. 

Don’t worry: mama would approve if you bought tickets to both concerts.  Jazz she liked; it’s that darn rock’n’roll she thought was just noise. 

“Ask Your Mama” is on at the Hollywood Bowl tomorrow night (Sunday, August 30) at 7:30pm.  Corea, Clarke, and White are performing at the Hollywood Bowl on Wednesday, September 2 at 8:00pm.  For more information, please call (323) 852-2000 or click here.  

How was the “Evening with Smokey Robinson?”  We know, we know.  The man, the myth, the legend!  If you missed it (or even if you didn’t) we’re planning to set you up right for the next legend on the Grammy Sound Stage lineup.  That’s right… tickets can be yours to see the ever cool, ever soulful Terence Blanchard! 

Less talk, more details: Enter into our new and improved ticket raffle (we’re gonna call it: “Extra! Extra!”) for these coveted Terence Blanchard seats and you’ll automatically be entered into the next three raffles.  If you’ve been paying attention to the tickets we’ve been getting lately, that’s a pretty sweet deal.  All you have to do is shoot us an email to info@fineartsla.com with your name and email address and voila! You’re so connected. 

LACMA has hosted some big names at their free concerts – their jazz lineup this month alone has included the Amstel Saxophone Quartet, Esther Segovia, and iPalpiti Artists International.  Your iTunes “Purchased” playlist has likely shifted from predictable to properly eclectic thanks to these free concerts!

Performing live (and for free) this Friday night is jazz vocalist Kathleen Grace.  She has made a name for herself by merging folk and jazz sounds and, as a true LA local, she’s finishing her summer tour at LACMA.  Her music is warm, jazzy, and encourages curling up with a glass of red wine… a perfect soundtrack if only it snowed in LA!  While some songs may seem pretty familiar, her voice has a stronger hold than other more breathy, raspy jazz vocalists.  Just as she ends her summer tour, this will be a wonderful concert to bring August to a close – even though it still feels like June. 

As always, the free concerts at LACMA are held at the BP Grand Entrance and are free with no need for reservations!  Click here for more information.  

A friend of mine who’s in a local, yet devotedly followed band recently asked me to videotape one of their performances.  I accepted, of course, not only due to the fact I would automatically get the best view in the venue, but because I had gone to film school and therefore possessed a secret pretension that my filming would be a work of pure, cinema-verité brilliance.  What I realized, however, was shooting a live concert is a lot harder than it looks, and simply because there’s so much to capture at once.  There’s the lead singer (always important, yet not too important), the bassist (expressionless but consistent—a good fall-back shot), the keyboardist (or more accurately, the keyboardist’s  fingers), the backup singers (whose title correlates with the proper amount of attention to give), lead guitar (a tricky one that varies depending on how good-looking they are), the  drummer (who should only be filmed during solos, drum rolls, or periods of extreme repetition), and of course the audience (if there is one).  The result of my music-doc debut was dismal at best and is never to be utilized by the band for any reason.

That doesn’t mean I’m giving up though; I just need a few pointers here and there and what better way to study that needed sense of touch than the first ever Music Film Festival, presented by the Downtown Film Festival, Los Angeles, and the Grammy Museum at L.A. Live.  Starting on Saturday, the festival features seven different films, focuses on seven different musical artists/phenomenons, spans seven distinct genres, and starts at 7:30 each night.

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