Presented by San Jose Jazz, the Break Room is an all ages pop up venue where fans can see unique artists in a temporary setting for a show unlike any other.
I'm glad we're starting to look at historical figures through the lens of neurodivergence (Documentary explores whether JMW Turner may have been neurodivergent, 10 November). But why give JMW Turner the benefit of 21st-century advances in neuroscience and not afford the same courtesy to his mother, Mary, who was believed to have had a psychiatric disorder and would fly into a dangerous temper? This language could have come straight from the admission papers that got her committed to a mental asylum. Jill Metcalfe Bottens, Switzerland
This new series, "The Hang," promises to explore the music of exciting artists and examine the music that inspired them to take it up. The first show features one of the Bay's best and most versatile saxophonists, Howard Wiley, who incorporates elements of funk and a whole lotta soul into his playing. Wiley has toured or played with a plethora of artists like Miss Lauryn Hill, Christian McBride, and Sheila E.
At a 1976 concert featuring American saxophone superstar Stan Getz and Brazilian singer and guitarist João Gilberto, Getz welcomed his partner to the stage in a tone of voice that reveals just how gobsmacked he remained by his genius. "The most individual singer of our time, a true originator," he enthused. "His curious ability to sing warmly without a vibrato, his impeccable and inimitable rhythmic sense, his intimacy, all coupled to his wonderful guitar work, make him unique." If that sounds dry, Miles Davis put it so: "Gilberto could sound seductive reading aloud from the Wall Street Journal."
Becca Stevens is one of the premier jazz musicians working today, effortlessly blending jazz harmonies with indie pop hooks, resulting in a sound that's gripping, intimate, and sublime. Since founding the Becca Stevens Band in 2006, she has toured internationally and become a desirable collaborator. This has led to projects with David Crosby and Jacob Collier. Her impressive soundscapes have resulted in two Grammy nominations.
She's surrounded herself with mentors, paid dues as a side player in creatively challenging settings, and built up a reputation as a composer and bandleader with an ear for the stand-out younger players coming up just behind her. After several four-night residencies at Black Cat, the Tenderloin jazz spot that's turned into an early-warning system for heat-seeking young musicians, she's back in the Bay Area to make her SFJAZZ Center debut with two shows at the Joe Henderson Lab Sept. 20 and a Sept. 21 performance at Bach Dancing & Dynamite Society in Half Moon Bay.
The first song I fell in love with When I was seven and I started playing the trumpet, my mum would take me to the library. They just happened to have Afro by Dizzy Gillespie, and I fell in love with Con Alma, which Dizzy plays on the trumpet with so much soul that it feels like a voice. I remember thinking: Wow, this is something else.
Cyndi Lauper is coming to the Bay Area to say goodbye. And she'll do so during three highly anticipated stops on her Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Farewell Tour: Aug. 23 at Toyota Amphitheatre at Wheatland; Aug. 24 at Shoreline Amphitheatre at Mountain View; and Aug. 26 at Toyota Pavilion at Concord. The swan song trek has consisted of 60-plus shows in four continents since kicking off in Montreal in October.
The Art Lande Quartet has carved its unique place in modern jazz with its UnStandard approach, presenting familiar material in innovative ways.
Improvisation as a musical practice transcends mechanical routines, emphasizing coherence in musical articulations over mere recall of scales or fixed phrases, which leads to true artistic expression.
Miles Davis' 'Kind of Blue' revolutionized jazz, influencing all of music with its modal approach, showcasing a fun blend of rising and falling arpeggios in 'So What.'
Ken Peplowski melds swing traditions with modern sensibility, performing as a world-class jazz tenor saxophonist and clarinetist, exploring melody and cross-genre influences.
