The Jazz Voyager
On the way back to South America now that I have my all night street cred established again after hanging out at Carnival, for a visit to the outside jazz party at Nova Lapa Jazz at R. Luis de Camoes, 30 – Centro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil is in order.
It is here patrons listen into the wee hours to the jazz band bringing local and international tunes to life between the arches. Musicians will spontaneously show up to play, as they always do in Brazil. There’s nothing like sitting at a cafe and seeing musicians come in to jam with the band. Local vendors sell drinks – from beer to caipirinhas – all in plastic cups. It’s a casual, friendly vibe this Jazz Voyager will enjoy. Tomorrow, it’s Carnival!!! #wannabewhereyouare
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The Jazz Voyager
As I depart a wonderful stay in Amsterdam and shipping my purchases home, The Jazz Voyager leaves for Vienna, the city that has strongly identified with the masters classical music – Haydn, Mozart, Strauss but now very much appreciates the likes of of jazz musicians Charlie Parker and Duke Ellington. It’s all done at Porgy & Bess, the modern club located at Riemergasse 11, 1010 Wien, Austria.
Boasting ambience of a state-of-the-art mini concert hall, and room for 350 it has been designed to present top players to maximum advantage. The crowd at Porgy is respectful and attentive and an evening here is a pleasurable and comfortable experience – depending on who’s playing. A wide variety of top-of-the-range jazz is booked, from dazzling jazz and Latin musicians to the dark experimental broodings of central European virtuosi.
As with the name, the owners understand that jazz is historically defined as Afro-American music and innovative pulses still come from the “motherland of jazz”. These are two great reasons why the great American soloists of the music on the one hand, and the future generations on the other, are given programmatic consideration.
Admission about €20 with music every night, though the venue takes a summer break between mid-July and end of August. Reservations are advised at +43 1 512 8811. #wannabewhereyouare
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The Jazz Voyager
The Jazz Voyager is leaving Bahia on a jet plane after an exhaustive but fun week of Carnival and headed towards The Netherlands to partake of one of my favorite pastimes – bin diving for new, classic and rare jazz vinyl. The final destination is the record store Concerto that first opened its doors in 1955. Taking up four storefronts, this five story hotspot for music lovers has an enormous selection of new and second-hand compact discs, records and DVDs. The store is designed to have a department for each genre complimented by knowledgeable specialists who can effortlessly present the latest releases.
Located at Utrechtsestraat 60, Amsterdam, beyond records the store also houses a cozy cafe for collectors to relax and possibly do some reading after perusing the shelves and bins. As always more information can be gathered by calling +31 20 261 2610. And when the sun goes down I will be carousing the streets for jazz at nighttime jazz haunts like Cafe Jazz Alto or maybe Casablanca. No point in limiting my voyage to just hunting for records and wasting the opportunity to hear some good jazz in the process. #wannabewhereyouare
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The Jazz Voyager
The Jazz Voyager is in Salvador do Bahia, Brazil for the largest annual street festival and celebration of Carnival that begins this year on Friday afternoon of the 9th, 51 days before Easter and the 14th, Ash Wednesday at noon, which marks the beginning of Lent, the forty-day period before Easter. The term carnival originated from the word carnelevare, which means to remove meat, as on certain days of Lent, Roman Catholics and some other Christians would traditionally abstain from the consumption of meat and poultry. Not a problem for this voyager as meat has been off my menu for more than thirty years.
The black population commemorated the days of Carnival highly marked by Yoruba characteristics, dancing in the streets and playing instruments. Thought primitive by the upper-class white elite, they banned the groups from participating in the official Bahia Carnival, but the groups defied the ban and continued to do their dances. This voyager will be among the millions to be enticed to dance to samba, samba-reggae and axé presented by the groups Afoxês, Trios Elétricos, Amerindian, and Blocos Afros. For those in the know, samba is the basis for the adaptive bossa nova that came to the jazz world via a host of jazz musicians such as Charlie Byrd, Stan Getz and Cannonball Adderley. #wannabewhereyouare
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The Jazz Voyager
The Jazz Voyager is back in New York City heading to Murray Hill to an Intimate little spot for Jazz at Kitano. Located at 66 Park Avenue 10016, the Kitano Hotel boasts live music Monday through Saturday nights with legends and the next generation, eclectic contemporary American fare with Pan Asian influences and a Sunday jazz brunch.
The club offers up a versatile array of music each night from jam sessions to piano solo series and more. Cover charges vary from evening to evening but approximately range between $0.00 Monday and Tuesday to $32.00 on the weekend, with food and beverage minimum from $15.00 to $20.00 per person. So ask when you call to make reservations at 212-885-7119. Dress is casual but suggest you be chic. It is Eastside New York. #wannabewhereyouare
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