Friday, April 9, 2010

Jazz Pianist Carmen Staaf Plays the Lily Pad in Cambridge on April 9

Jazz pianist and composer Carmen Staaf performs tonight at the Lily Pad in Cambridge at 10:00 p.m. She is joined by Kendall Eddy on bass and Austin McMahon on drums.

Winner of the 2009 Mary Lou Williams ' Women in Jazz Piano Competition,' Staaf brings an original and wholly unique sound that suggests Eric Satie, Keith Jarrett and Mary Lou Williams herself, among other influences.

The Lily Pad is at 1353 Cambridge Street in Inman Square. Suggested donation is $8.

For details on jazz year round in Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Great Vibes with Gary Burton at Berklee, April 8, 2010


Gary Burton celebrates his amazing musical career with a special concert at the Berklee Performance Center, 136 Massachusetts Avenue in Boston on Thursday, April 8, 2010, starting at 8:15 p.m.

The six-time Grammy-winning vibraphonist is being joined by other musical giants like Joe Lovano, John Scofield, Steve Swallow, Julian Lage and others.

Tickets are $25-$35 for reserved seating, and can be purchased at the box office or at Ticketmaster by calling 617 931-2000.

Burton has been associated with Berklee College of Music for 50 years, as a student, professor and adminstrator.

For jazz year round in Boston and throughout Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

April is Smithsonian Jazz Appreciation Month

The Smithsonian Institute in Washington DC announced its 9th annual celebration of Jazz Appreciation Month (JAM) throughout April. The national celebration of America's jazz heritage started in 2001 and now takes place in all 50 states as well as 40 countries around the world.

In addition to a schedule of events taking place in DC during April, JAM is also offering a free poster of JAM 2010 featuring an illustration of pianist Dave Brubeck.

To request a copy of the poster, contact jazz@si.edu.

For details on jazz in Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.

Friday, April 2, 2010

Kenny Barron Trio Plays at Regattabar, Cambridge, April 2-3, 2010


Kenny Barron, one of the great lyrical pianists of jazz, is playing four concerts at the Regattabar Jazz Club at the Charles Hotel in Cambridge this weekend, April 2-3, 2010.

He is joined by Kiyoshi Kitagawa, bass and Jonathan Blake on Drums. Tickets are $25.

Barron is regarded as one of the most influential pianists of his generation. He was recently honored with a 2010 Jazz Master Award bestowed by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), one of the nation's most prestigious awards.

To find jazz any time of the year in Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

JazzBoston announces this year's Jazz Week, April 23-May 2, 2010


(Boston) -- Jazz Week ’10: “Made in Boston, Played in Boston” celebrates the special role the Boston jazz scene plays as incubator and stage for some of the most creative musicians in the world.

The ten day celebration, which runs from April 23 to May 2, offers more than 230 events at over 80 venues, many of them inspired by this year’s theme, Made in Boston, Played in Boston.

In addition to live concerts, JazzWeek also features rare films, jazz dance, and children’s events, plus tributes to influential figures in the city’s rich cultural history.

Jazz Week is coordinated and promoted for the fourth consecutive year by the nonprofit organization JazzBoston.

Jazz Week ’10 events are being added daily. Check the JazzBoston website for the full JazzWeek ’10 schedule of events.

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Favorite (Jazz) Spot in Massachusetts? Nominate Your Choice

Wally's Cafe Jazz Club in Boston's South End

From Boston to the Berkshires, Cape Cod to the North Shore and everywhere in between, Massachusetts is filled with thousands of great places, and the state’s tourism office -Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism - is narrowing them down to the Top 1,000.

MOTT is seeking nominations for the 1,000 best places in the Commonwealth, drawing upon the abundance of exceptional historical sites, cultural venues and natural landscapes all over Massachusetts. According to the guidelines, all of the sites selected must be open and available to the public.

The nomination period closes this Thursday, April 1, 2010 and the winners will be announced in May.

MOTT has set up a website to accept nominations from the public: www.massvacation.com/1000/index.php.

MassJazz
is urging jazz lovers from across Massachusetts to submit their favorite jazz club or historical landmark to this project!

Sunday, March 28, 2010

Jazz on North Shore Today!


The North Shore Jazz Project is presenting an afternoon of Latin Music: Jazz & Gypsy Flamenco, at the Chianti Tuscan Restaurant in Beverly, MA.

The event features Maxim Lubarsky Quintet (pictured above), Alexei Tsiganov Quintet and Peruvian master guitarist D Rafael.

Show times are 1:00 - 2:30 p.m. and 3:00 - 4:30 p.m.. Tickets are available at the door for $20 ($15 for students with ID).

Chianti Tuscan Restaurant is located at 285 Cabot Street in Beverly.

For year-round details on jazz in Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.

Friday, March 26, 2010

Irish Film Festival features The Bass Player: A Song for Dad, on March 27


The 11th annual Irish Film Festival Boston is presenting The Bass Player: A Song For Dad by Irish filmmaker Niall McKay, at the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square, Somerville, MA. on Saturday, March 27, at 2:30 p.m.

In this eloquent, witty homage to his father, McKay wrestles with his family's unsettling past to overcome his fear of commitment. As he helps his elderly father Jim, a jazz bass player, return home to Ireland, a parallel journey unfolds into an admiration for his dad and his innermost thoughts about love.

Tickets to the screening are $9 per person and can be ordered online here.

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Governor Deval Patrick Donates His Father's Jazz Archives to Boston's Berklee College of Music


Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick is honoring his late father's musical and cultural legacy by donating the vast collection of jazz musician, composer, and arranger Laurdine Kenneth "Pat" Patrick to Berklee College of Music's Africana Studies archive. The historical Pat Patrick Collection comprises hundreds of scores, photographs, personal materials, and recordings.

Best known for his 40-year association with the avant-garde artist Sun Ra, Patrick also played with jazz greats John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk, Duke Ellington and many others, according to The Boston Globe.

The materials represent a treasure trove for musicians, educators and cultural historians, says Bill Banfield, director of Africana Studies at Berklee.

For details on jazz in Massachusetts year round, visit MassJazz.

Monday, March 15, 2010

Boston Jazz Club Celebrating St. Patrick's Day with Celtic Band


To celebrate St. Patrick's Day in America's most Irish city, the Beehive Jazz Club in Boston is hosting its third annual Irish celebration on Wednesday, March 17, from 5:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m, featuring Celtic band Tri.


Tri consists of award-winning bagpiper Matthew Phelps, fiddler Doug Lamey and guitarist Cliff McCann. They’ll be joined by step dancers Pamela Campbell and Christine Morrison.

Beehive Chef Rebecca Newell has created several Irish-inspired specials including corned beef and cabbage flatbread with sauerkraut and cheese, Finann Haddie Smoked fish & chips, and Grilled Lamb Chops with colcannon mashed potatoes.

There is no cover charge and dinner reservations are recommended.

The Beehive
541 Tremont Street
Boston MA 02116

beehiveboston

For more details on Irish music in greater Boston year round, visit
IrishBoston.

For more details on jazz in Massachusetts year round, visit
MassJazz

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Toots Thielmans Playing at Sculler's Jazz Club in Boston, March 12-13, 2010

Toots Thielmans - regarded as the world's greatest jazz harmonica player - plays at Sculler's Jazz Club in Boston on Friday and Saturday, March 12-13, 2010.

He is performing with Kenny Werner and Oscar Castro-Neves.

In 2009, Mr. Thielmans was named an American Jazz Master by the National Endowment for the Arts.

For more details, visit Sculler's Jazz Club.

For a complete list of jazz in Boston and throughout Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Cape Cod Honors Singer Patti Page with Her Own Street


Jazz and popular singer Patti Page, whose rendition of the song, Old Cape Cod, was a hit in 1957, now has a street officially named after her on Cape Cod.

The Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce and the Town of Barnstable unveiled the Patti Page Way sign at Shoot Flying Hill in Centerville, Cape Cod on February 26, which was also officially declared Patti Page Day on the Cape.

Ms. Page attended the ceremony and was there to greet fans and admirers of the song.

Tourism officials say the song Old Cape Cod accentuated the many charms of the Cape and helped make it a tourism destination over the last 50 years.

Cape Cod has long been a jazz haven, with summer festivals in Provincetown, Chatham and Falmouth, and year round jazz clubs and concerts throughout the Cape.

For more information on jazz on the Cape, visit MassJazz.

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Berklee Teaching Jazz in Dublin, Ireland in April 2010


Boston's Berklee College of Music is returning to Dublin, Ireland, April 5-11, to conduct improvisation workshops and to hold auditions for aspiring student musicians seeking scholarships to the prestigious university.

The program, now in its second year, is taking place at the Newpark Music Centre in Blackrock, Co. Dublin. Students must apply online for the workshop by March 19.

Participating Berklee faculty members include Greg Badolato, Jim Kelly, John McGann, and Ken Zambello, along with Ronan Guilfoyle, artistic director of the Newpark Music Centre.

For more details, click here.

For year round jazz in Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.

Monday, February 22, 2010

New Jazz Series at Boston's Historic Wilbur Theatre


Boston’s historic Wilbur Theatre, renovated and revitalized by Bill Blumenreich Presents, has initiated a new series of jazz, world music, Latin, blues and other related music.

The series is being produced and developed by Boston jazz entrepreneur Fred Taylor.

Upcoming concerts include

Sunday, February 28 at 4:00 p.m.
John Pizzarelli (image above) and The Swing Seven

Wednesday, March 24 at 7:30 p.m.
Tower of Power

Thursday, April 8 at 7:30 p.m.
Lizz Wright
Opening Act: Yoko Miwa Trio

For more information visit thewilburtheatre.com/.

For information on year round jazz throughout Massachusetts visit massjazz.com/

Friday, February 12, 2010

Elan Trotman is the main course at Valentine's Day Jazz Dinner at Café Fleuri in Boston

Café Fleuri at the Langham Hotel in Boston is offering a special dinner on Sunday, February 14, Valentine's evening, featuring contemporary jazz saxophonist Elan Trotman with special guest Myanna.

The three-course Valentine’s Day dinner menu, available from 6:00 p.m., includes a glass of sparkling wine and dessert buffet at the Café’s famous Chocolate Bar.

Originally from Barbados, Trotman graduated from the Berklee College of Music and is one of Boston’s most popular jazz performers.


6:00 p.m. - Three-course Dinner, Chocolate Bar, and Glass of sparkling wine. Price: $75.00 per person

7:00 p.m. - Chocolate Bar and Glass of sparkling wine. Price: $50.00 per person

8:00 p.m. - Entertainment and Glass of sparkling wine. Price: $35.00 per person

Reservations are recommended, please call (617) 451-1900, ext. 7125.

The Langham Hotel is located at 250 Franklin Street in Downtown Boston.

For more information on jazz events during Valentine’s Day weekend and throughout the month, visit massjazz.com

Sun Broadcasting Corp Launches Sun Music Live Shows at Wally's Cafe Jazz Club this Fall

Sun Broadcasting Corporation (SBC) has begun production of Sun Music Live. The inaugural shows set at  Wally’s Café  in Boston will f...