Caffe Lena in Saratoga Springs will celebrate the life of Matt McCabe, owner of Saratoga Guitar and former Commissioner of Finance. The memorial will be livestreamed on Saturday. February 20th at 7pm.
Photo from Caffe Lena’s website
The event will be hosted by McCabe’s friend and fellow musician Rick Bolton. The online tribute will feature stories and musical performances by some of the community members who found McCabe’s shop to be a place of support and inspiration. The performances have been prerecorded and include: Leigh Gibson of the Gibson Brothers, Kate Taylor, Dan Berggren, Mark Tolstrup, Chuck Lamb, John Kribs, Michael Eck, Brian Melick, Ria Curley, Angelina Valente, Pete Pashoukas and many more.
Matt McCabe was an example of how a small business can have a huge impact. His goal was to raise the quality of life for everyone. That is why we’re celebrating him. He gave away instruments for fundraising raffles, he gave steep discounts to those in need, and he donated performances to make life a little brighter.
Sarah Craig, Caffe Lena Executive Director
Caffe Lena is a historic music venue located on downtown Saratoga Springs, opening up back in 1960. The café has seen a number of legendary act take it’s stage, from the likes of Bob Dylan in 1961 to recently Sawyer Fredricks in 2014. The Library of Congress has recognized Caffe Lena as “An American Treasure”; as well as being recognized by The Grammy Foundation for important contributions to the development of American music.
The Matt McCabe memorial will be streamed for free on all Caffe Lena social media channels. More information can be found at www.caffelena.org
Saratoga Springs company, Opera Saratoga, has announced that their series dedicated to highlighting BIPOC talent, America Sings, returns on February 21 to Caffe Lena.
America Sings Headliner Luis Alejandro Orozco
The free concert, America Sings, takes place at Caffe Lena after months of being paused due to the pandemic. America Sings was created to lift up the voices of the unheard and underrepresented racial groups on the opera stage. Texas native baritone, Luis Alejandro Orozco, is the first performer for this comeback, along with pianist Michael Lewis. The program will also feature music from classical composers, Schubert, Brahmsand Piazzolla.
Orozco is a Mexican-American opera singer and was apart of Opera Saratoga’s Young Artist Program. He is noted for his baritone and legato. For several seasons, Orozco performed in several shows for a plethora of operas. Due to COVID-19, the 2019-2020 season was short-lived, he performed at the Opera in Williamsburg and Opera Roanoake. While he has already performed nationally and internationally, he made his Swiss debut recently at Theater St. Gallen.
America Sings debuted in November 2020 with Mezzo-soprano Deborah Nansteel as the headliner for the first concert with pianist Giovanni Reggioli. COVID-19 put the series to a halt, however, it is ready to be put back in action. It is live-streamed and free to the public but viewers are encouraged to donate through a virtual tip jar. The tips are split evenly to support the Opera Saratoga and the performing artist since both parties have been financially impacted by opera shutdowns.
The series comes back this Sunday at 7 p.m. Future performers include soprano Brandie Sutton, baritone Justin Austin and composer and pianist Damien Sneed, who were originally supposed to perform in December and January. Leadership support for the show comes from Greenburg Traurig, LLP and hospitality sponsorship from The Hampton Inn & Suites Saratoga Springs. America Sings live-streams on Caffe Lena’s Youtube channel and Facebook and Opera Saratoga’s Facebook.
Madison Square Garden may be opening for live audiences sooner than one might think, according to President Andy Lustgarten. Their first in-person event will take place on February 23, 2021 for the Knicks game.
Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that arenas could open up to 10 percent capacity on February 10, 2021 using a testing- based program. People who provide a negative PCR test within 72 hours of the live event in question would be able to attend live entertainment like musical events according to the testing- based program.
At Madison Square Garden 10 percent capacity is about 2,000 people. Which means at the upcoming Knicks game against the Golden State Warriors 2,000 people can be cheering from the crowd. Although 2,000 isn’t that many, Madison Square Garden hopes that they “are on a path to continue to increase capacity,” according to Lustgarten. They hope that in time attendance will be able to increase beyond 10 percent before the basketball and hockey seasons end.
“This was earlier than we had expected,” Lustgarten told analysts on a Friday at the New York Post. And because of the fact reopening to live audiences was unexpected there are some things that are still up in the air. Like the fact there will be limited types of food for sale, but it’s unclear what types of food will be available in the upcoming events. Madison Square Garden says details will be coming soon on what options will be available.
This MSG reopening is coming just in the knick of time for the arena with its second fiscal quarter, ending in December of 2020, was down $23.1 million which is 94.1 percent from the previous year’s $394.1 million according to Billboard. The live entertainment industry has been harder than most industries by the COVID-19 pandemic. The fact that live shows are slowly but surely coming back is the light at the end of the tunnel the industry has been searching for.
For more information on Madison Square Garden visit their website.
Just as we were losing hope in live music and festivals, it looks like there is a light at the end of the tunnel. The Rochester International Jazz Festival is in the planning stages for their nineteenth edition which will be hosted on the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) campus.
Planning is a challenge when we don’t know what the future will bring. We do know that this year’s Festival cannot go on as usual. The way we work and how we live has changed. We are very encouraged that vaccines are becoming more available. And if public health guidelines allow us to proceed this summer, we must adapt to this new environment, which will require a more flexible and spacious festival footprint. The RIT campus meets that criteria.
Marc Iacona, Festival Producer and Executive Director
The original date for the festival was June 19, 2020. Unfortunately COVID-19 brought upon a nationwide shutdown of crowded concerts. Because of this, Iacona and his partner John Nugent had to postpone the festival a few times until their latest decision, July 30 through Aug. 7. Over 200,000 people attend the annual nine day festival, but this year Lacona and Nugent are orchestrating a safe way to go about the event.
Nat King Cole at 100 with Paul Mariano.
“With Covid-19 and health consequences squarely on the minds of all event-goers around the world, we again find ourselves at a crossroads,” said Iacona and Nugent. “We are deeply grateful to our loyal patrons and sponsors and for countless messages of support as uncertainty prevails. Early February now brings us to a critical junction as we explore how to potentially present a festival, secure programming, and put together the plethora of logistics.”
Throughout the course of the global pandemic, musicians have resorted to a different method of live performances. Live-streaming took to the internet in 2020 to provide a safe haven for those yearning to attend a live show. The Jazz Festival is the beginning to a new chapter for live music.
The CGI Rochester International Jazz Festival was founded in 2002, with performances by over 1500 artists from all over the world. Through the years, those artists have performed more than 350 shows at 20 venues. Lacona is a community and business leader, while Nugent is an experienced tenor sax player and the artistic brains of RIJF, but their goals for the festival are the same.
“The essence of our Festival has always been to bring our community together, drawn by the majesty of creative improvised music and celebrating as one entity,” said Nugent. “While this new location will be a change for us all, and the first time we are not downtown, we will still shine the musical spotlight on greater Rochester. We are committed to making every effort to include the City of Rochester and many of our downtown-based partners at this new location. We will create a festive atmosphere including a Jazz Street, assure the ability to walk between venues, and offer a shuttle service.”
Anyone can buy tickets from the RIJF website and club members can use their passes.
New York City announced it’s Curtains Up NYC government program which will work with the Federal Shuttered Venue Operators Grant process on February 8, 2021. This grant and program are available to help venues suffering from the COVID-19 pandemic with services provided by the city for free. The program will provide application assistance to live-performance venues, organizations and workers applying for federal relief.
The program and grant was announced by Mayor Bill de Blasio, NYC Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME), Commissioner Anne del Castillo, and NYC Department of Small Business Services (SBS) Commissioner Jonnel Doris. The Federal Shuttered Venue Operators Grant is made for businesses or nonprofits who are connected to live performances. These organizations could get a grant up to, or equal to, 45 percent of their 2019 gross earned revenue, capping out at $10 million. Shuttered Venue Operators Grant bloomed from the Save Our Stages initiative.
The Shuttered Venue Operators Grant is available to operators or promoters of live performance venues including, but not limited to: theater, music, arts organizations, movie theaters, talent representatives, museums, zoos and aquariums. In addition, they must meet certain guidelines including active operation as of February 29, 2020, and they must not have applied for a PPP loan on or after December 27, 2020.
The Shuttered Venue Operators Grant isn’t accepting applications yet, but people interested in applying are urged to start organizing their application. To prepare for the application process people should register for the federal System for Award Management (SAM), which will be a required part of the application. People need to know their D-U-N-S number to register in SAM. You can get a D-U-N-S number on the Dun & Bradstreet website. You should check the federal government’s website for the most recent updates on when and how to apply and for frequently asked questions. Watch the federal government’s webinar on YouTube and Register for email alerts from the federal government about the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant so you will be the first to know when applications open.
In the meantime, you should check out the Curtains Up NYC program. Curtains Up NYC provides free application assistance for the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant. Curtains Up NYC offers free webinars and one-on-one counseling for people interested in applying for the grant. The Services are free starting on February 10, 2021.
For more information on the Curtains Up NYC program and the Federal Shuttered Venue Operators Grant Process visit their website here.
The Hold Steady will be holding a live-streamed event, The Weekender , from Brooklyn Bowl on Friday, March 5th and Saturday, March 6th primarily for UK and European fans.
The Hold Steady
The Hold Steady is performing their annual multi-night Weekender event in an unprecedented way this year, bringing their European fans a virtual version of the recurring concert. Traditionally held in the renowned Electric Ballroom in Camden, London, this year it will be live-streamed from Brooklyn, New York. Both nights will commence at 8pm (20:00) GMT , 3pm EST (US).
At The Weekender, The Hold Steady will be performing two completely different sets, including fan favorites and new cuts from their upcoming album Open Door Policy, set for release on Friday, February 19th. Pre-order it here. Exclusive to The Weekender is a march bundle, unveiled in the weeks leading up to the main event. Following the final performance, The Weekender sets will be available on-demand for a limited time on March 6th.
Album Art For OPEN DOOR POLICY by The Hold Steady
OPEN DOOR POLICY arrives on the band’s Positive Jams label via Thirty Tigers on Friday, February 19th, 2021. It is currently up for pre-order digitally and physically, and with a pre-order one receives an instant-download of the recently released singles “Spices,” “Heavy Covenant,” and “Family Farm.” Their Bruce Springsteen and Hüsker Dü-influenced sound is something you should not miss!
Single-show tickets (£15.00/$20.00), two-night passes (£27.50/$35.00) and exclusive soundcheck tickets (£20.00/$25.oo) are on sale now exclusively on FANS.LIVE . The on-demand show, aired after the final performance, is also available on FANS.LIVE.
Chick Corea, a legend behind the keys, who fused jazz piano with numerous styles of music, has died. He was an innovator of jazz-rock fusion in the 1970s. Corea died at his home in Tampa, FL on Tuesday at the age of 79.
photo by Andy Hill
Best known for playing acoustic piano, Corea had a crispness to his sound, one that was easily identifiable, regardless of the genre. Whether he played classical, jazz, Latin or funk, Corea broke new ground throughout his career, especially with Return to Forever, his best-known band.
Corea played with Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock, met Stevie Wonder in the early 1970s at The Bitter End in New York City, and recorded an album with banjo virtuoso Bela Fleck, a testament to his dexterity as a musician. Additionally, Chick would use the strings inside the piano as a percussion instrument, influenced from his early years playing drums as a child. Corea also collaborated with Gary Burton, Pat Metheny, Al Di Meola, Christian McBride, a small sampling of an extensive list of musical peers.
photo by Andy Hill
Chick Corea wrote “Spain,” “500 Miles High,” “La Fiesta,” “Armando’s Rhumba” and “Windows,” all of which have become jazz standards. Corea was nominated for 60 Grammy Awards, taking home 23 over the course of his career.
Born Armando Anthony “Chick” Corea on June 12, 1941 in Chelsea, MA, he was introduced to piano by his father, a jazz trumpeter. In high school he performed in New York City, before attending music school at Columbia University and Juilliard, both of which he stayed at for only a short time. Corea remained in NYC to begin his music career.
Corea lived in Cambria Heights, Queens at 114-73 227th Street, and can be found on The Queens Jazz Trail Map, which was created as a part of Flushing Town Hall‘s Queens Jazz Trail Tour.
Corea’s technical facility on the piano was unparalleled and astonishing. He played together with other greats like Cab Calloway, Mongo Santamaria, Willie Bobo, Blue Mitchell, Herbie Mann, and Stan Getz, and he recorded with Donald Byrd and Dizzy Gillespie.
In 1967 he accompanied Sarah Vaughan with Miroslav Vitous and drummer Roy Hanes and in 1968 replaced pianist Herbie Hancock to play in The Miles Davis Band with bassist Ron Carter, saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and drummer Tony Williams — one of the best jazz ensembles of all time. He can be heard on Miles Davis’ iconic album “Bitches Brew.”
He formed Return To Forever and The Elektric Band, two groups that were on the cutting edge of the jazz fusion era that performed some intricate and memorable music. Corea was one of jazz’s great pioneers, helping to establish the synthesizer in fusion jazz. He received the NEA’s Jazz Master endowment in 2006.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-R3RqcVKVB0
The family of Chick Corea shared the following statement on his Facebook page:
It is with great sadness we announce that on February 9th, Chick Corea passed away at the age of 79, from a rare form of cancer which was only discovered very recently.
Throughout his life and career, Chick relished in the freedom and the fun to be had in creating something new, and in playing the games that artists do.
He was a beloved husband, father and grandfather, and a great mentor and friend to so many. Through his body of work and the decades he spent touring the world, he touched and inspired the lives of millions.
Though he would be the first to say that his music said more than words ever could, he nevertheless had this message for all those he knew and loved, and for all those who loved him:
“I want to thank all of those along my journey who have helped keep the music fires burning bright. It is my hope that those who have an inkling to play, write, perform or otherwise, do so. If not for yourself then for the rest of us. It’s not only that the world needs more artists, it’s also just a lot of fun. “And to my amazing musician friends who have been like family to me as long as I’ve known you: It has been a blessing and an honor learning from and playing with all of you. My mission has always been to bring the joy of creating anywhere I could, and to have done so with all the artists that I admire so dearly—this has been the richness of my life.”
Chick’s family will of course appreciate their privacy during this difficult time of loss.
It’s always been my mission to keep the music fires burning bright for myself, my family and friends and people everywhere. It’s the reason why I continue to travel and play. I think it helps bring the quality of the environment up a notch – helps remind us who we really are and that life can be creative and therefore pleasurable.
On February 8th, Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) unveiled “Too Darn Hot,” a video featuring performances by 104 fourth grade students who took part in SPAC’s public-school dance residency.
The popular in-school dance residency has continued this school year despite the pandemic with safe but immersive dance training for students at the Charlton Heights Elementary School and online fourth graders in the Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake school district.
Charlton Heights Elementary School students practicing “Too Darn Hot”
Led by SPAC Teaching artists Cristiane Santos, J. Michael Zygo, and Brian Melick as well as Dennis Moench, former Broadway star and Senior Director of Education at SPAC, a total of 104 students (both in person and virtual learners) took part in SPAC’s Dance Residency in October-November 2020.
The students participated in two in-person or virtual classes and continued with a series of video lessons on the SPAC Learning Library to learn Broadway-style choreography to the show tune “Too Darn Hot” from the musical Kiss Me, Kate.
The students then performed their dance by filming individual videos for the SPAC team to combine into the virtual performance that premieres today to celebrate the students’ achievements and share their work with their families, peers, and the community.
This program is a reimagined dance residency – a program that SPAC offers to elementary schools every year. As of last year, there were already eight local schools receiving the 5-10 week in-school dance program with SPAC teaching artists. This spring, SPAC plans to provide this virtual programming to other schools who participated last year to keep dance alive in their classrooms.
“We were concerned that we might see a decline in student engagement in comparison to previous years with this new, primarily virtual format,” says Moench. “But we were pleasantly surprised when we saw all of the students fully commit to the program and give 100% of their energy immediately on day one!”
“The arts are such an important part of the educational process, and it has been such a pleasure to work with the amazing and talented professionals from SPAC to bring dance to our fourth graders at Charlton Heights,” says Tim Sinnenberg, principal at Charlton Heights Elementary. “Our students have loved their experience, and practiced with all of their hearts for the recording of their moves.”
Fourth grader Kadynce Dahl summed up the experience this way, “I have a lot of energy and I like horsing around so the dance residency was so awesome because I got to use my energy!”
SPAC education partner Stewart’s Shops will be showing the video in its stores throughout Saratoga County from February 8-22.
Albany’s Capital Repertory Theatre (theRep) welcomes four renowned theatre figures into their Associate Artist Program this month for their 2021 class.
Among the newest Associate Artists are Gordon Greenberg, Barbara Howard, Stephanie Klapper and Jean-Remy Monnay. Each of these members has made major accomplishments throughout their career and has contributed greatly to the theatre world. The recent members join the Associate Artists from 2019, Kevin McGuire, Yvonne Perry, Freddy Ramirez and Josh D. Smith.
Gordon Greenberg is a writer and director who is currently based in New York. Some of his directing accolades include Broadway, Off-Broadway, London’s West End and 11 of theRep’s productions. Greenberg writes for television and stage productions and has developed and directed projects for art academies around the nation. He is currently co-writing and directing several works. He also has membership in Stage Directors & Choreographers Society, the Writers Guild of America, the Dramatists Guild and the Lincoln Center Theatre Directors Lab.
Albany native Barbara N. Howard has already been working with theRep as the storyteller for their virtual program for elementary students called Story Hour. Howard is also a teaching artist for theRep at Arbor Hill Elementary School and she’s performed on their stage in their production of The Trip to the Bountiful. She’s directed and acted in several plays and achieved several awards for her work. Her most notorious role as Lena Younger in A Raisin in the Sun gained her the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Theater Association of New York State. Howard also received the “Woman of Distinction” award from the Black Women’s Association of Albany.
Stephanie Klapper is a casting-director from New York and was theRep’s casting director for almost 30 years. She worked on productions with Broadway, Off-Broadway, nationally, internationally and on small screens and big screens. Klapper has a casting team called Stephanie Klapper Casting and they have been involved with many projects.
Finally, Jean-Remy Monnay was born in Haiti and moved to New York in the ’80s. After living in New York for over a decade he moved Upstate and began performing in different theatres. He’s worked with theRep onstage and as a part of their Community Bridge Building Program Neighbors for Neighbors. Monnay founded and is the producing artistic director of the Black Theatre Troupe of Upstate NY, Inc. Monnay produced the collaboration 8:46 which theRep contributed to as well.
Their duties as Associate Artists consist of acting as ambassadors for theRep and participate in one production per season of their three-year term. They become a part of the artistic leadership team and serves as the spokespersons for theRep to the community and vice versa. Members give their input on playwrights, directors, actors and more to the projects and work with the Producing Artistic Director Maggie Mancinelli- Cahill and Associate Artistic Director Margaret E. Hall. The program is meant to help breed more art from the associates.
Governor Andrew Cuomo announced his plans for reopening large sized venues throughout the state on February 10, 2021. This will help bring live music back to the state in combination with the “NY Pops Up” program which is bringing 300 live performances for free.
Empty Madison Square Garden in NYC. Photo by Steve Malinski
Cuomo plans to use a testing- based program, which was used by the Buffalo Bills, to bring live performances back to any large stadium or arena later this month. How the testing- based program would work is the people who provide a negative PCR test within 72 hours of the live event in question would be able to attend live entertainment like musical events. The program would also be able to be made into person for sport events like baseball, soccer, football and basketball games possible. Arenas can open to the public on February 23, 2021.
According to NBC New York though there will be certain rules and restrictions in place to make this possible. Some of the restrictions include a, “strict 10 percent capacity limit in arenas and stadiums with more than 10,000-person total capacity. Venues have to submit their plans to the State Department of Health for approval. Core mitigation efforts like mask-wearing, temperature checks and mandatory assigned seating to ensure social distancing will also be required.”
NYS Governor Andrew Cuomo conducts press briefing and makes a presentation at the 3rd Avenue office in New York on July 23, 2020. Governor, announced that President Trump will not send federal agents into New York City. He again pleaded to young people to be responsible, keep social distances and wear masks. (Photo by Lev Radin/Sipa USA)(Sipa via AP Images)
On top of this excitement of the prospect of live music in person in venues there is also the announcement of the “NY Pops Up” program starting on February 20 through Labor Day bringing over 300 live performances. Cuomo announced that the first performance will happen on February 20 in New York City with a free performance especially for healthcare workers featuring big names like Jon Batiste, Anthony Roth Costanzo, Cecile McLorin Salvant and Ayodele Casel. The ‘pop up’ will be traveling across the city’s five boroughs to perform in different parks, on street corners, and outside hospitals.
With COVID-19 still raging on throughout the world the prospect of some sense of normalcy is extremely intriguing and exciting. People across NY can be attending live events again before the beginning of March with these new programs.
