1. Ben Tyree Solo Guitar + BT3 Acoustic (w/ Kevin Farrell & Sameer Gupta)
Date: Tuesday, February 17, 2015
Time: 8pm
Venue: Art Cafe (884 Pacific Street, Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, NY)
Ticket: $10
Genre: jazz/improv
8pm – Duet with Stephanie Rooker
10pm – Ben Tyree/BT3 all improv set (with Kevin Farrell: bass | Jeremy “Bean” Clemons: drums + special guests)
NYC-based guitarist and composer Ben Tyree presents Sonic Architectures LIVE residency at Art Café in Brooklyn every Tuesday evening in February 2015. The residency will allow Tyree to present new works in solo, duet and larger ensemble configurations collaborating with previous as well as new partnerships.
Stephanie Rooker is a composer, vocalist, cross-cultural music educator, and sound healing facilitator. Since 2007, Rooker has distinguished herself as a force of soul on the NY music scene with her band The Search Engine, duo work with guitarist Ben Tyree, and freelance work with ensembles throughout the city including Riverside Church Inspirational Choir & Alvin Ailey Dance Theater Company’s Revelations chorus. She has released two albums of original music – Tellin You Right Now (2008) and The Only Way Out is In (2010), with a third album currently in the works. In 2013, Rooker Voice Journey Sound Center, which offers a diverse array of vocal training & sound healing workshops, private lessons, community gatherings and sound healing services for the furthering of musical paths and enrichment of the holistic sonic experience.
Formed in 2009, BT3 has been astonishing NYC audiences at The Blue Note, (the now defunct) Black Betty, The Living Room, Rose Live Music, The Shrine, BAM Cafè and on 89.3 FM WKCR’s Live Constructions with their daring and unique style of instrumental, and heavily improvisational jazz/funk fusion. Performing all original material composed by guitarist/band leader Ben Tyree, BT3 also features rotating members Theo Harden (bass), Kevin Farrell (bass), Steve Jenkins (bass), Jeremy “Bean” Clemons (drums), Lawrence Qualls (drums), John Medeski (organ), DJ Logic (turntables), Stacy Dillard (tenor saxophone), and V. Jeffrey Smith (tenor saxophone).
2. Andrew Dury’s Content Provider
Date: Tuesday, February 17, 2015
Time: 8pm
Venue: The Roulette (509 Atlantic Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11217)
Ticket: $20
Genre: jazz/improv/free style
Andew Drury celebrates the release of two CDs being simultaneously released: Content Provider (featuring Briggan Krauss, Ingrid Laubrock, Brandon Seabrook, and Andrew Drury) and The Drum (a CD of solo music performed on a floor tom).
Andrew Drury is a composer, improviser, percussionist, and educator originally from Seattle. A student of the drummer Ed Blackwell and the writer Annie Dillard while at Wesleyan University, Drury’s early playing experiences included performances with Wadada Leo Smith, John Tchicai, and Brad Mehldau, as well as forays into street theater, performance art, and a series of drum solos performed and photographed outdoors in landscapes in nine western States. Since then he has performed in 25 countries and on nearly 50 recordings as a soloist, leader, and collaborator with a wide range of musicians including Myra Melford, Mark Dresser, Wayne Horvitz, Andrea Neumann, Christine Abdelnour, Michel Doneda, and many lesser known greats. In addition to leading Content Provider Drury is a member of the cooperative groups 1032K (with Frank Lacy and Kevin Ray), the Brooklyn Infinity Orchestra, and Conjure.
3. FLY MAGIC
Date: Wednesday, February 18, 2015
Time: 9pm
Venue: Whynot Jazz Room (14 Christopher Street, New York, New York 10014, 646-756-4145)
Ticket: $t.b.a.
Genre: jazz
FLY MAGIC‘s dynamic and emotive music merges the free spirit of Berlin with the urban vibrancy of NYC and combines elements of jazz with minimalism, classical, post-rock and today’s song culture. The quartet features Timo Vollbrecht– sax, Keisuke Matsuno-guitar, Sam Anning-bass, and Jason Burger-drums.
4. The Meaning of Life w. Painted Zeros/Happy You & New Myths
Date: Wednesday, February 18, 2015
Time: 8pm
Venue: Palisades (906 Broadway, Brooklyn, New York 112060
Ticket: $5
Genre: indie-alternative, dream pop
“The Meaning of Life is dream pop with a bite.” CULTURE COLLiDE
“…sonic narrative that touches on thedifficulties of modern relationships…and the inevitable paradox waiting on every corner of New York City.” – CREEM
5. FAITH
Date: Thursday, February 19, 2015
Time: 7:30pm
Venue: The Bowery Electric (327 Bowery, New York, NY 10003)
Ticket: $8
Genre: funk/r&b/reggae/soul & Gnawa Music
Faith has formed a musical style, “Unlike virtually any other sound out there” (J. Lien – CMJ). “If Nina Simone had a power trio with a rock/soul and reggae flair, it would sound something like this” (Doug DeFalco, Talent Buyer, Southpaw). Felice Rosser “Sings in a voice both plangent and wailing” (New York Times). With sweet and powerful guitars from Nao Hakamada and funky polyrhythms from drummer Paddy Boom (x-Scissor Sisters), Faith has developed an immensely colorful sound., “…tunes that are not rock, not funk, not r&b, so much as deeply soulful tone poems back by multiculti dream pop” (Village Voice).
Related Post
Concert review: InnoVe Gnawa Band & Faith at Mercury Lounge (NY)
6. Bill SIMS JR AND CHANEY SIMS
Date: Thursday, February 19, 2015
Time: 8pm
Venue: Duet Brasserie (37 Barrow St, New York, New York 10014)
Ticket: t.b.a.
Genre: blues
Bill Sims, Jr., is an American blues musician. He grew up in Marion, Ohio and began playing piano at the age of four. At age 14, he turned professional and joined the rhythm and blues band the Jacksonian Blues, which he left to attend Ohio State University.
In 1971, Sims joined another rhythm and blues group, the doo-wop-influenced Four Mints. He left the band in 1976 to form The Lamorians, an avant-garde jazz band influenced by traditional African drumming. In 1988, he returned to the blues, founding Bill Sims and the Cold Blooded Blues Band. He released his debut album, Blues Before Sunrise, in 1992, and in 1999, PBS did a 10-hour documentary on Sims and his interracial family (with Sims’s partner Karen Wilson).[2] Sims released another album to coincide with this broadcast.
7. Razia Said
Date: Thursday, February 19, 2015
Time: 9:30pm
Venue: Joe’s Pub (425 Lafayette Street, New York, NY 10003, 212-967-7555)
Tickets: $20
Genre: nu Malagasy music
After years of living abroad, Razia Said returned to Madagascar in 2007 to discover her country’s landscape ravaged by illegal logging, slash-and-burn agriculture and the impact of climate change. That trip inspired the production of her first album, the critically-acclaimed Zebu Nation, which was released by Cumbancha Discovery in 2010. The songs on her new album, Akory, address Razia’s life experiences as well as Madagascar’s struggles to cope with an ever-deteriorating political situation, the destruction of the country’s bio-diverse forests and the daily challenges faced by its inhabitants.
Akory, which means “What Now?” in the Malagasy language, was produced on four continents over the last four years and sees Razia diving even more deeply into her Malagasy roots. Featuring a more stripped-down approach than her debut album, Akory is full of upbeat songs with vibrant melodies and soulful collaborations with a number of Madagascar’s top musicians.
Razia describes her band’s sound as very endemic to Madagascar drawing on the country’s intricate and unique rhythms that inspire awe and fascination worldwide. As one of the few crossover musicians from Madagascar, Razia takes it upon herself to spread messages of environmentalism and social action by blending her country’s traditional music with a contemporary Western twist. Keeping her focus on the connection between the environmental destruction and political dismay in the country she calls home, Razia delivers an album full of soul, energy, and urgency that reaches into her most private thoughts and emotions.
For the release of her album at Joe’s Pub Razia will be accompanied by:
David Rajaonary on guitar
A.T.N. Stadwijk on accordion and keys
Samuel Torres on percussions
Mamadu Mba on bass
Harvey Wirht on drums
8. Dervisi
Date: Thursday, February 19, 2015
Time: 8:30pm – 10pm
Venue: Espresso 77 (35-57 77th Street, Jackson Heights, NY 11372, 718-424-1077)
Ticket: t.b.a.
Genre: Greek traditional music/Rembetika music
DERVISI performing exotic Greek Gangsta Blues called Rembetika. Rembetika originally the songs of hashish clans and outlaws; and Smyrnaika, the elaborate oriental cafe music of the refugees from Greek Asia minor.
CHECK US OUT on SoundCloud:
https://soundcloud.com/barba-yiorgi/sets/dervisi-live-2014-3-songs
9. Ursula Scherrer, Brian Chase & Kato Hideki
Date: Thursday, February 19, 2015
Time: 6pm – 10pm
Venue: Pioneer Works (159 Pioneer St, Brooklyn, New York 11231)
Ticket: donation $8-15
Genre: installation with music
Artist Ursula Scherrer presents afloat, an extended form installation event for one night featuring a near-holographic, animated, multiple projection video environment and a live soundtrack performed by percussionist Brian Chase (Yeah Yeah Yeahs) and bassist Kato Hideki (of the Tokyo and New York noise scenes).
For more information, go to http://clocktower.org/
URSULA SCHERRER
http://
http://
BRIAN CHASE
http://chasebrian.com/
KATO HIDEKI
http://www.katohideki.com/
10. RAT HABITAT
Date: Friday, February 20, 2015
Time: 7:15pm
Venue: Drom (85 Avenue A, NY, NY 10009, 212- 777-1157)
Ticket: $10
Genre: soul/electronica/hip-hop, Haitian music
Partnered-up w/ guitarist/Producer Jordan Peters, Melanie aka D’flower is introducing a new sound blending soul, electronica, Haitian & Hip-Hop music.
Melanie Charles aka D’flower– voc, flute
Jordan Peters aka Commissioner Wallace – guitar/MD
Jesse Fischer– keys
Nicholas Semrad– keys
David Frazier– drums
11. Kishi Bashi string quartet w. Busman’s Holiday
Date: Friday, February 20, 2015
Time: 9pm
Venue: Brooklyn Masonic Temple (317 Clermont Ave, Brooklyn, NY)
Ticket: $25
Genre: indie pop/rock/psychedelic pop
Kaoru Ishibashi, who goes by the professional name Kishi Bashi, is a singer-songwriter, composer and performing artist who appears both solo and with groups. He plays multiple instruments including violin, keyboard and guitar, and his musical repertoire ranges from indie pop and rock to psychedelic pop. He sometimes uses Japanese singing as one of many sound layers in his creations, helping to suggest (to Western ears, at least) a sense of the ineffable. His first EP, Room For Dream, was released on Aerobic International in 2011. The artist describes it as “a dance between the earthbound materialism of captured art and its airy origins.” A second album, entitled 151a, appeared in 2012 on the Joyful Noise label. (via TedMed)
Lewis and Addison Rogers are brothers who make pop-music together. When they do this, they go by Busman’s Holiday. The two bring a playful and enriching balance to one another. Lewis plays guitar, and Addison plays his modest drum kit.
Busman’s Holiday songs are finely crafted to tell exceptional stories of everyday lives, and they are able to do this with melodies that keep you singing along. Independently, the brothers have played in support of artists both various and sundry.
12. Elio Villafranca’s Music of the Caribbean
Date: Friday, February 20 and Saturday, February 21, 2015
Times: 9:30pm (on Friday and 7pm on Saturday
Venue: JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER‘s Apple Room (BROADWAY AT W 60TH ST., NEW YORK, NY 10019, 212- 258-9800)
Ticket: start at $45
Genre: Latin jazz
Free pre-concert discussions at 6pm (2/21) and 8:30pm (2/20).
An artist who incorporates elements of Bebo Valdés, Perez Prado, and Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Elio Villafranca is a leading voice of music today and part of an extraordinary lineage of Cuban pianists. Villafranca possesses a unique gift of conceptualizing projects that fuse the jazz idiom with his extensive knowledge of percussion and Latin rhythms. Along with special guests trumpeter Michael Rodriguez (2/20 only), who recently performed with Nuevo Jazz Latino at Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Dizzy Gillespie protégé Jon Faddis (2/21 only) and singer, cellist, and banjo player Leyla McCalla, as well as his band the Jass Syncopators, featuring alto saxophonist Vincent Herring, trombonist Steve Turre, tenor saxophonist Gregory Tardy, clarinetist Michele Wright, bassist Gregg August, drummer Willie Jones III, and percussionists Arturo Stable and Jonathan Troncoso, Villafranca will present Cinqué-Suite of the Caribbean, a debut work focusing on the influences of the Congolese traditions of rhythms, melodies, and dances through the music of Puerto Rico, Santo Domingo, Haiti, Jamaica, and Cuba. Via this five-movement work, Villafranca will showcase unifying elements of these islands, which share similar cultures despite their diverse histories.
Line up:
Elio Villafranca – piano
Jon Faddis – trumpet
Leyla McCalla – cello/banjo/vocal
Michael Rodriguez – trumpet
Vincent Herring – alto sax/flute/clarinet
Steve Turre – trombone
Greg Tardy – tenor sax/clarinet
Michele Wright – bass clarinet/clarinet
Gregg August – bass
Willie Jones III – drums
Arturo Stable – percussion
Jonathan Troncoso – percussion
13. Brooklyn Takht & Dolunay
Date: Saturday, February 21, 2015
Time: 11:30pm
Venue: Drom (85 Avenue A, NY, NY 10009, 212- 777-1157)
Ticket: $10
Genre:
Brooklyn Takht is a new ensemble led by vocalist Shelley Thomas and comprised of Arab and American musicians from the New York Arabic Orchestra. Presenting Classical Arabic Music of Egypt and Lebanon, they tell tales of unrequited love and inextinguishable passion through complex forms and modes. Lusciously ornamented melodies and evocative poetry stir the spirit of this rare musical form. Shelley Thomas- vocals; Samer Ali- violin; Brian Prunka- oud; Bridget Robbins- ney; Sprocket Royer- bass; Zafer Tawil- riq.
The Brooklyn, NY based trio Dolunay (Turkish for “full moon”) draws upon the songs from the Turkish people living across Rumeli, the former region of the Ottoman Balkans. Dolunay’s intimate sound, sparse in loudness and textured with the dissonance of eastern blues, gives way to a sound at once earthy and celestial, the size of which defies that of the small makeup of the band. Inspired to engage with the unique repertoire of lesser-known songs and empowered with a knack to enrich the uncovered sounds with a personal note, Dolunay creates the opportunity to breathe new life into melodies of a region culturally diverse and historically rich.
Jenny Luna – vocals and percussion
Adam Good – ud, tambura
Eylem Basaldi – violin
