Author Archives: Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardi

Dance and muisc show: Carolina Fonseca’s Gypsy Duende Dance & Sinan Gundogdu @ Theaterlab (NY)

Date: November 10th through November 23rd, 2011
Time: 9pm, except the 23rd at 7pm
Venue: Theaterlab (137 W. 14th Street, bet. 6 & 7 Avenues, NY)
Ticket: $15

This week the Portuguese Gypsy Duende dancer, choreographer, educator and dance producer Carolina Fonseca is joined by SoSaLa‘s Sinan Gundogdu who is not just an oud player but also a very talented guitarist.

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Interview: Sarah Rayani And The Band – Jazz, Lounge vocals delivered in a soulful manner, meets an old school Hip Hop and Funk band.

Text and interview by Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardi

The Brooklyn Independent Music Fest took place at Littlefield’s in Brooklyn from September 16th to 18th. For three days over 60 bands took to the two stages to perform music which ranged from Alternative Rock to Pop, Blues, Soul and Rap. I checked out the festival on the 16th. Listening to about 10 bands Sarah Rayani And The Band, a Jazz/Soul band, was the one which impressed me most. When I talked to Sarah after her performance I found out that almost all her songs were written by her. She told me how much she was into Jazz and Motown backing vocals. She also occasionally uses Indian tonality with heavy Hip-Hop samples and synthesized pop elements. But what makes her different from all the other singers of this festival is her laid back, sexy and cool voice.

About Sarah Rayani

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NY Street Musician – A Cowboy Plays Bach?!

Text by Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardi

Yesterday, when I changed trains at 14th Street on my way back home from my rehearsal in Williamsburg, I saw a guy in a cowboy outfit playing classical music on a keyboard which was kind of funny. Instantly I took out my iPhone from my pocket and thought this could be something for the “Musicians In New York” page. Before shooting him I gave him some money. He said “Thank you” with a big smile and started playing. I don’t know what he was playing, maybe Bach? After a couple of minutes I tried to start a conversation with him and asked for a short interview which he for personal reasons rejected. But I felt that he didn’t like to do an interview. So I just stopped shooting him and rushed to my C train.

Enjoy the video below!

Music listings – 11/7 through 11/13

1. Red Baraat w. REBEL DIAZ & The KOMINAS

Date: Monday, November 7, 2011
Time: 8pm
Venue: BROOKLYN BOWL (61 Wythe Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11211, 718-963-3369)
Ticket: $5
Genre: Bhangara/New Orleans Jazz

In just over two short years, the pioneering Brooklyn dhol and brass party juggernaut RED BARAAT have become known as one of the best live bands playing anywhere. Led by dhol player Sunny Jain, the nine piece (comprised of dhol ((double-sided barrel shaped North Indian drum slung over one shoulder)) drumset, percussion, sousaphone, and 5 horns melds the infectious North Indian rhythm Bhangra with a host of sounds, namely funk, go-go, latin, and jazz.

Check out Sunny Jain’s interview in DooBeeDoo Continue reading →

To D.H. Rosen’s Kodo’s Earth Celebration (Japan) PR: is Japan really OK?

Text by Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardi

Daniel H. Rosen was recently featured in a Japanese news story about the Earth Day Celebration in Sado (Western Japan), but what makes him particularly interesting is that he is an American who was put in charge of this celebration after years of involvement on the Japanese arts scene. This appointment also coincided with the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami that hit in March.

I had never met Daniel H. Rosen when I lived in Japan, but he was there when I was there. Last year in December I got a newsletter from Rosen which made me contact him to find out how he found out about DooBeeDoo. He told me that he found DooBeeDoo via internet just by chance and put us sporadically in the mailing list.

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