Thu Jun 20 House Concert: Blato Zlato

[Santa Cruz House Concerts]

Our Downtown Sounds series kicks off the summer with an explosive Balkan quintet from New Orleans:

                                     Thursday, Jun 20  7:30 PM

                     Blato Zlato: Bulgarian fusion from New Orleans

Details below.  Please RSVP as soon as possible, to ensure your reservation and to get directions to our downtown Santa Cruz home.

We are asking a donation of $25/sliding scale ... all proceeds go to the artists.  There will be room for dancing!

For reservations, email <Conc...@InstantHarmony.com>

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Other musical events of interest:

   Wed Jun 12, 7:30pm: UMC of Santa Cruz, 250 California St

        World Harmony Chorus Spring Concert   *free*

Upcoming shows in our series:   (visit our calendar link)

  Sat, Jul 13: Três Baías: Brazilian choro trio

  Thu, Sep 12: Laurie Lewis: Queen of California Bluegrass

  Thu, Oct 15: Gileno Santana Duo: Brazilian choro

  Fri, Nov 15: True Life Trio: Eastern Europe & American vocal harmonies

        

__________________________________________________________________

                     Blato Zlato: Bulgarian fusion from New Orleans
                                     Thursday, Jun 20  7:30 PM

     “Alternately exuberant and plaintive, with sweet singing, sturdy Old World

      percussion, and lively New World folk dance fiddling. The shimmering

      voices are strong enough to stand alone.”   –Lorena Moore, Bandcamp review

  Based in Louisiana yet rooted in Balkan traditions, Blato Zlato (“Swamp Gold”

in Bulgarian) features dreamy three-part vocal harmonies over hard-hitting

instrumentals.  Inspired by the ancient traditions of their heritage and steeped

in the diverse cultural influences of the New Orleans music scene, the band

breathes life into new, contemporary arrangements of traditional Eastern

European melodies while also composing a new generation of folk songs.

  With many band members raised in Eastern Europe and having ancestry there,

the band’s music aims to explore and preserve the traditional elements of Balkan

music that make it so unique – the rhythm, melody, harmony and storytelling – but

musically translate these songs with influences of each member’s unique musical

background. Elements of modern and New Orleans jazz, contemporary classical,

and even psychedelic and metal seep through the folk arrangements forming

Blato Zlato’s unprecedented genre of progressive Balkan folk-rock.

Visit their website

Lou Carrig: accordion, vocals

  Lou grew up outside of Boston and began formal musical training at an early age

on classical piano.  Raised in an immigrant family with strong roots in Europe, her

thirst for tradition and culture led her to find her true voice with the accordion.  After

ten years of summer pilgrimages to study with accordionists in Bulgaria, Serbia,

Romania, Hungary, Germany, Bosnia and Belgium, she decided to pursue her

passion academically and now holds a B.A. in Accordion Performance.  In addition

to performing with Blato Zlato, Lou is also the founder and director of Eastern

European polyphonic choral group Trendafilka, and performs with several other

New Orleans-based world music groups on accordion, voice, and trumpet.

Ian Cook: violin

  Ian was raised in the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York. As the son of an

audio engineer who has worked with a lot of world music groups, the exposure

to eastern music sounds, percussion and modalities lead Ian on a personal

exploration of culture and heritage through Klezmer music and beyond. Drawn to

the sounds that influence Klezmer music, Ian has traveled to Bulgaria, Romania,

Hungry, Greece, Turkey and more studying and gathering tunes along the way.

He lives in New Orleans and also performs with the G String Orchestra, Painted

Honey, Terza and Evers.

Annalisa Kelly: vocals

  Annalisa grew up mostly outside the United States in Russia, Serbia, Austria,

Turkey, and Italy. An avid lover of Bulgarian folk music and vocal traditions, she has

been singing Bulgarian music for 15 years and currently performs with Trendafilka.

Ruby Corbyn-Ross: vocals

  Ruby grew up outside Charlottesville, Virginia and began singing Balkan music in

high school. Aside from singing and playing percussion with Blato Zlato, she now

sings with Eastern European choir Trendafilka, sings and plays guitar in folk-country

duo Crossing Canal, and teaches English Reading Remediation at a Spanish-

immersion school in New Orleans.

Boyanna Trayanova: percussion

  Boyanna originally hails from Sofia, Bulgaria, and escaped Communism with her

family and immigrated to the US as a 9 year old child. Growing up in New Orleans,

Boyanna absorbed the rhythms of the Crescent City, where she became one of the

city’s premier percussionists. Blato Zlato gives Boyanna a platform to reconnect with

her Balkan roots and bring the music of her native homeland to a global audience.

In addition to Blato Zlato, Boyanna leads and performs with many groups, including

One Love Brass Band, Anareta, and the Backyard Balkan Brass Band.

[Santa Cruz House Concerts]

There is still plenty of room at this Thursday's concert with a dynamic Balkan quintet from New Orleans:

                                     Thursday, Jun 20  7:30 PM

                     Blato Zlato: Bulgarian fusion from New Orleans

Details below.  Please RSVP as soon as possible, to ensure your reservation and to get directions to our downtown Santa Cruz home.

We are asking a donation of $25/sliding scale ... all proceeds go to the artists.  There will be room for dancing!

For reservations, email <Conc...@InstantHarmony.com>

--------

[Santa Cruz House Concerts]

The next show in our Downtown Sounds series will be:

                               Saturday, Jul 13  8:00 PM

                            Três Baías: Brazilian choro trio

Details below.  Please RSVP as soon as possible, to ensure your reservation and to get directions to our downtown Santa Cruz home.

We are asking a donation of $25/sliding scale ... all proceeds go to the artists.

For reservations, email <Conc...@InstantHarmony.com>

Três Baías will also be appearing:

   Sun, Jul 14  The Sound Room, Oakland, CA  (get tickets here)

           11am Choro workshop at the Jazz School

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Upcoming shows in our series:   (visit our calendar link)

  Thu, Sep 12: Laurie Lewis: Queen of California Bluegrass

  Thu, Oct 15: Gileno Santana Duo: Brazilian choro

  Fri, Nov 15: True Life Trio: Eastern Europe & American vocal harmonies

__________________________________________________________________

                            Três Baías: Brazilian choro trio

                               Saturday, Jul 13  8:00 PM

   Três Baías is inspired by the three bays of Salvador, Rio de Janeiro and

San Francisco from which each of the band members come. This Brazilian

choro trio navigates the genre with ease and playfulness but with intensity and

flair.  Their music harkens back to the nostalgia of the golden age of  Brazilian

Choro but with a creative/international flare that reminds us just how much this

music is alive today and how far it can go tomorrow in the hands of such tasteful

masters.  This concert tour celebrates the release of their first CD together.

Almir Côrtes: mandolin
   A native of Bahia, Brazil, multi-instrumentalist Almir Côrtes is equally at home

on mandolin, acoustic and electric guitars, viola caipira (Brazilian ten-string guitar)

and the rarely-seen Bahian guitar. His repertoire of styles is equally broad, including

choro, frevo, samba, maxixe and Brazilian jazz among others. He has performed

throughout Brazil as well as the United States, Europe and Cuba, with David

Grisman, Mike Marshall, Nailor Proveta, Howard Alden, Armandinho Macêdo

and many other luminaries, as well as leading his own Trio, featuring many of his

original compositions.

   "Almir is a virtuoso instrumentalist who swings like mad in a variety of

     musical styles and improvises with great energy and creativity. He is a
     world class teacher and performer on mandolin and guitar."   - Mike Marshall

Nando Duarte: 7-string guitar

   Nando, a Rio de Janeiro native, started his musical career at a young age
playing electric guitar on tour with pop bands in Brazil. Moving to the seven-string

acoustic guitar he became one of the catalysts of Brazil’s popular music

re-awakening with Dino 7 cordas as his mentor and Luiz Otávio Braga, Hélio Delmiro

among others as his professors.  His career as a seven-string guitarist led him to

play, record, and/or produce some of the biggest names in Brazilian music, including

Elza Soares, Gal Costa, Zélia Duncan, João Bosco, Nicolas Krassik, Yamandú Costa,

Martnália, Moska, Maria Gadú, Adriana Calcanhoto, Walter Alfaiate, Zeca Pagodinho,

Soraya Ravenle, Ney Matogrosso, Moyses Marques, Diogo Nogueira, among others.

Brian Rice: percussion
   Brian has devoted much of his musical career to playing Brazilian music, and choro

in particular. His great expertise on the pandeiro (“Brazilian tambourine”) has led to

performances with Mike Marshall, Jovino Santos Neto, Danilo Brito, Dudu Maia,
Alessandro Penezzi, Paulo Sergio Santos and Rogerio Souza among others. In 2017,

he performed at the Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, Savannah Music Festival and on

NPR’s famed “Tiny Desk Concert” with the Danilo Brito Quintet. Brian teaches Brazilian

percussion at UC Davis, California Jazz Conservatory and California Brazil Camp and

has taught workshops at several universities in the US and Brazil. He is the co-founder

and artistic director of the Berkeley Festival of Choro, now in its fifth year presenting

choro music to the San Francisco Bay Area.

[Santa Cruz House Concerts]

There is still plenty of space available for:

                               Saturday, Jul 13  8:00 PM

                            Três Baías: Brazilian choro trio

Details below.  Please RSVP as soon as possible, to ensure your reservation and to get directions to our downtown Santa Cruz home.

We are asking a donation of $25/sliding scale ... all proceeds go to the artists.

For reservations, email <Conc...@InstantHarmony.com>

[Santa Cruz House Concerts]

We're kicking off the fall season with the Queen of California Bluegrass:

                                      Thursday, Sep 12  7:30 PM

                            Laurie Lewis: Bill Monroe Birthday Tribute

Details below.  This show will certainly fill up, so please RSVP as soon as possible, to ensure your reservation and to get directions to our downtown Santa Cruz home.

We are asking a donation of $25/sliding scale ... all proceeds go to the artists.

For reservations, email <Conc...@InstantHarmony.com>

Laurie and friends will also be appearing:

   Fri, Sep 13  8pm Freight & Salvage, Berkeley, CA  (get tickets here)

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Upcoming shows in our series:   (visit our calendar link)

  Thu, Oct 15: Gileno Santana Duo: Brazilian choro

  Fri, Nov 15: True Life Trio: Eastern Europe & American vocal harmonies

Other musical events of interest:

    Fri Aug 30: 8pm   Valley of the Moon Fiddle Extravaganza

           Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium

    Fri Sep 6: 8-10pm   Briana Di Mara Ensemble

         Pacific Cultural Center 1307 Seabright Ave, Santa Cruz

    Sep 18-22:  Berkeley Old-Time Music Convention

__________________________________________________________________

                            Laurie Lewis: Bill Monroe Birthday Tribute
                                      Thursday, Sep 12  7:30 PM

   Laurie Lewis, Tom Rozum, Patrick Sauber and Brandon Godman, of Laurie’s band,

the Right Hands, will be joined by Joshua Zucker on bass and Elise Leavy on accordion,

to explore Sally Ann Forrester’s contribution to the bluegrass repertoire with the 8 sides

she recorded on accordion with Bill Monroe in 1945. This evening, the band will

concentrate on the music of Monroe, in anticipation of his birthday, September 13.

They will also be playing some of Laurie’s original songs and duets with Tom, with a

grab bag of tunes from their 20+ albums.

Laurie Lewis: fiddle, vocals

  Twice named "Female Vocalist of the Year" by the International Bluegrass Music,

Grammy-winning artist Laurie Lewis has recorded more than 20 albums – with the

Good Ol’ Persons, Grant Street, Kathy Kallick, and her current band Laurie Lewis &

the Right Hands, as well as several solo projects.  She also works with many talented

new artists, helping them find their way in the recording business.

Tom Rozum: mandolin, vocals

   Since joining forces with Laurie in 1986, Tom’s versatility and diverse musical

influences come to the fore every night on stage with the band. He plays primarily

mandolin with the band, but is also an accomplished fiddle, mandola, and guitar player.

His background as a rock and swing musician adds a uniquely satisfying flavor to the

band. His rhythmic approach to mandolin especially punctuates the band’s repertoire,

adding to their on-stage shows a verve and excitement that has become a distinctive

feature of their performances. Tom can be heard on most of Laurie’s recordings; their

other duet albums, Guest House and Winter’s Grace; and the band’s The Golden

West, Live, and Grammy-nominated latest album, The Hazel and Alice Sessions.

Brandon Godman: fiddle
   From the great Bluegrass state of Kentucky, Brandon joins Laurie on fiddle. By his

late 20’s, Brandon had played with Karl Shiflett, Wildfire, Newfound Road, and Dale

Ann Bradley, among others. A scholar of classic bluegrass fiddle, he plays with great

verve and intensity.  Brandon is a luthier and violin dealer, and has an infectious

love for all things fiddle.

Patrick Sauber: banjo
   Patrick, a native of Arcadia, CA, has been playing old-time, Cajun, and bluegrass

music ever since he can remember. His introduction to performing came at the knee

of his father, old-time master fiddler and claw-hammer banjo player Tom Sauber, a

stalwart of the traditional music scene in Southern California. Patrick’s first gigs found

him playing triangle, and, at 10 years old, he was playing accordion in a Cajun band

with his dad. Under the guidance of his father (with whom he still performs), Patrick

has developed a keen ear, unusual depth to his playing, technical expertise, and an

encyclopedic knowledge of traditional music forms. Patrick has recorded or performed

with many artists, including Doc Watson, Herb Pedersen, Weird Al Yankovic, Dirk

Powell, and many others. In 2003, Christopher Guest asked Patrick to be the banjo

player in The New Main Street Singers in the folk-music satire movie, A Mighty Wind.

Patrick also played on the soundtrack CD and toured with the film’s cast. A formidable

talent on banjo, Cajun accordion, mandolin, and guitar (“He’s the kind of guy who

could probably get music out of anything he puts his hands on,” says Laurie), he

primarily plays banjo in The Right Hands, also taking a tasty turn on guitar and

accordion on selected numbers.

Elise Leavy: accordion

   Elise met Laurie when she was an annual student at the Big Sur Music Camp. Elise

has since graduated from the New England Conservatory of Music, and is embarking

on a singing and songwriting career. This foray into the music of Sally Ann Forrester

dovetails perfectly into Elise’s mission to bring the accordion back to folk music.

Joshua Zucker: bass
   Joshua has played bass with Houston Jones, and The Jones Gang, the Rowan

Brothers, Caren Armstrong, and numerous other Bay Area musicians and bands.

His versatility, studiousness, and great ear for harmonies make him a valuable

member of any ensemble. In addition, he plays with the Zucker Family Band.

He is also a writer for the San Francisco Chronicle.

[Santa Cruz House Concerts]

The next show in our series features an extraordinary trumpet player from Brazil:

                                      Tuesday, Oct 15  7:30 PM

                            Gileno Santana Duo: Brazilian choro & jazz

Details below.  Please RSVP as soon as possible, to ensure your reservation and to get directions to our downtown Santa Cruz home.

We are asking a donation of $20/adults ... all proceeds go to the artists.

For reservations, email <Conc...@InstantHarmony.com>

Gileno Santana Duo will also be appearing in Berkeley:

   Oct 12 & 13:  Berkeley Festival of Choro

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Upcoming shows in our series:   (visit our calendar link)

  Fri, Nov 15: True Life Trio: Eastern Europe & American vocal harmonies

  Tue, Jan 14: Fru Skagerrak: Scandinavian fiddle trio

  Thu, Feb 27: Maeve Donnelly w/Kyle Alden: Irish fiddle & guitar

Other musical events of interest:

    Fri Oct 4, 8pm: Grey Larsen & Cindy Kallett: Songs, Old-time, Irish & Scandinavian tunes

           Coyote Crossing, Western Dr, Santa Cruz

    Sat Oct 19, 8 pm:  Trio Mulatos: Classic Cuban repertoire

           Palenke Arts, 1713 Broadway Ave., Seaside, CA

    Fri Oct 25, 7pm: Halloween Contra Dance: Vets Hall, Santa Cruz

          featuring Shira Kammen, Rebecca Richman, Jim Oakden, Daniel Steinberg

Two Special Appeals:

    Sol y Canto, who have performed in our series many times, are raising money to finance

    a live recording project with their daughter Alisa Amador.  They are far from their goal.

    Contributions are welcome!

    Choro das Tres, the extraordinary choro family that played here last year, is raising

    money to replace instruments and equipment that was stolen from them in Spain.

    They are nearly at their goal, but all contributions help.

________________________________________________________________________

                            Gileno Santana Duo: Brazilian choro & jazz

                                      Tuesday, Oct 15  7:30 PM

   Two outstanding Brazilian musicians from the younger generation, Gileno Santana and

Henrique Neto cover diverse styles.  They will play selections from their CD, Inevitál,

which is mainly choro, and other works including samba, bossa nova, bãiao, and jazz.

Both are prolific composers and will include their own compositions.

Gileno Santana: trumpet

   Born in 1987 in Salvador (Bahia, Brazil), trumpeter and composer Gileno Santana

began his musical studies in Brazil, and moved to Portugal in 2006 to study at the

Hot Club Portugal and the Superior School of Music and Performing Arts.  He performs

as lead trumpet in the Orquestra Jazz de Matosinhos, a big band in Porto, and has

performed at the Wiener Konzerthaus (Austria) and Birdland, Jazz Standard and the

Blue Note in New York.  He has recorded with Hermeto Pascoal and Hamilton de Holanda.

He is currently a professor of jazz trumpet at the Music Conservatory of Oporto.

Henrique Neto: 7-string guitar
   From Brasilia, guitarist Henrique Neto has been an instructor at the Escola Brasileira

de Choro Raphael Rabello in Brasilia since 2006 and has served as its Deputy Director

since 2012. Henrique has been a member of the traditional Choro Livre group for ten

years and accompanies guest artists at Clube do Choro in Brasília. In that capacity and

others he has worked with some of the biggest names in Brazilian música popular:

Dominguinhos, Sivuca, Hamilton de Holanda, Paulinho da Viola, Danilo Caymmi,

Sebastião Tapajós, and Hermeto Pascoal. He has performed in more than fifteen

countries in four continents and won the Geração Musical national award granted

by Furnas in 2009 together with the group, Trio Cai Dentro.

with special guest Jane Lenoir: flute

   From a family of professional musicians, flutist Jane Lenoir grew up in Tampa, Florida,

and left home at 15 to attend the Interlochen Arts Academy and Oberlin Conservatory of

Music. A performer comfortable in many diverse styles, Jane appears regularly as a soloist,

chamber player, orchestral musician, and jazz performer. She first began her study of

Brazilian music in 2006, and has since studied and performed with Marcos Silva, Jovino

Santos Neto, Hermeto Pascoal, and recorded with Carlos Oliveira and Ceilia Medeiros,

and the Brazilian Choro Ensemble. She is principal flutist with the Music in the Mountains

Festival Orchestra in Grass Valley, and also performs with Sexteto Matiz, an Afro-Cuban

ensemble, and numerous jazz, new music, and chamber ensembles in styles ranging from

early music (baroque flute) to free improvisation. 

[Santa Cruz House Concerts]

There is still plenty of room available to hear this extraordinary Brazilian trumpet player:

                                      Tuesday, Oct 15  7:30 PM

                            Gileno Santana Duo: Brazilian choro & jazz

Details below.  Please RSVP as soon as possible, to ensure your reservation and to get directions to our downtown Santa Cruz home.

We are asking a donation of $20/adults ... all proceeds go to the artists.

For reservations, email <Conc...@InstantHarmony.com>

Gileno Santana Duo will also be appearing in Berkeley:

   Oct 12 & 13:  Berkeley Festival of Choro

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Upcoming shows in our series:   (visit our calendar link)

  Fri, Nov 15: True Life Trio: Eastern Europe & American vocal harmonies

  Thu Dec 12: Rare Birds: Soulful songs, savory melodies

  Tue, Jan 14: Fru Skagerrak: Scandinavian fiddle trio

  Thu, Feb 27: Maeve Donnelly w/Kyle Alden: Irish fiddle & guitar

Other musical events of interest:

     Sat Oct 19, 8 pm:  Trio Mulatos: Classic Cuban repertoire

           Palenke Arts, 1713 Broadway Ave., Seaside, CA

    Fri Oct 25, 7pm: Halloween Contra Dance: Vets Hall, Santa Cruz

          featuring Shira Kammen, Rebecca Richman, Jim Oakden, Daniel Steinberg