Scenes from The Affordable Art Fair, April 2nd-6th, 2014, Metropolitan Pavilion, N.Y.C.

By E. Joyce Glasgow, www.artsandculturescene.com

Photo Credits/Copyrights: E. Joyce Glasgow

The Affordable Art Fair, www.affordableartfair.com, April 2014, N.Y.C., offered lots of impressive choices for art collectors, in the $100.00- $10,000 price range. The wonderful thing about this particular art fair is that it is very casual, friendly and down to earth and features works by many artists which are appealing, individual, express experience and very collectible, while still being accessible to visitors who have affordable options, even with small wallets for art buying. Nothing at this fair can be priced over $10,000 and I saw some small pieces that were as low as $20.00.
The fair included panels and interviews. I caught a lively interview with interior designer, Nate Berkus, long- time collaborator of Oprah Winfrey and currently the host and a judge on NBC TV's home redesign competition show,"American Dream Builders". During Q. and A., Berkus shared some good advice for those of us who want to spruce up our surroundings. Before anything else, he said it is important to clean our spaces and get rid of our collected clutter. He feels that the most important design element in recreating one's space is lighting. He mentioned that one could add a few touches of a favorite color with some well chosen accessories. He talked about decorating his own place only in black and white. Berkus is known for successfully partnering high end design elements with inexpensive accessories in creating a beautifully designed environment.

 There were some artists whose work I particularly enjoyed at the fair. Englishman, James Sparshatt, has visited Cuba eighteen times since 1999, witnessing the changes it has gone through over the years since then. He has developed a body of black and white photographs which captures and documents the personality, sensuality and passion for life embodied in the Cuban people. His photographs are compelling and informative of this unique island culture.

James Sparshatt

James Sparshatt

Atsuko Kawai, exhibiting with the Arts Student League, has created subtle, Zen-like, dreamy, color mezzotints, a technique which requires a lot of skill and patience. Her lovely pieces were surprisingly affordable, in the $150.00 range, framed.

Atsuko Kawai

James Kenny's stunning, black and white photo portraits of African tribes people, featured at Capital Culture Gallery, U.K., capture an incredible depth of his subjects.

James Kenny

Julia Rivera's whimsical and eccentric ceramic figures, at the Juan-Marc Gallery, reasonably priced in the $350.00-$650.00 range, embody a sense of humor and a life of their own.

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The Juan-Marc Gallery had a wonderful and intriguing variety of two dimensional and three dimensional art in their booth. Their booth was lively and colorful, had sweeping energy and had a great visual composition. The large figure sculptures had a lot of movement and life to them.

Juan-Marc Gallery

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

An interesting justaposition of photos.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

April is Jazz Appreciation Month!

Joyce Glasgow and ArtsandCultureScene.com shared Jazz Journalists Association's photo.

l you have to do is put a JazzApril logo on your site and we'll link back to you. Show how many jazz lovers there are! Support Jazz Appreciation Month and International Jazz Day ! More info/register:
http://www.jazzapril.com/p/about-jazzapril-media-network.html

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Preview - N.Y.C. Vegetarian Food Festival, March 1st and 2nd, 2014, Metropolitan Pavilion, New York City

Preview-

N. Y. C. Vegetarian Food Festival, March 1^st-2^nd, 2014, 11AM-6PM, Metropolitan Pavilion, 125 West 18^th Street, New York City.

By E. Joyce Glasgow, www.artsandculturescene.com

The 4^th annual New York City Vegetarian Food Festival will take place on March 1^st and 2^nd, 2014, at the Metropolitan Pavilion.

This hugely popular event features the latest in vegetarian, vegan, raw vegan, organic, non-GMO foods, cruelty free eating, environmental protection and animal welfare.

There will be over 100 vendors and non-profit organizations, dozens of food samples, including raw vegan chocolate, a kid’s area and a number of lectures and food demonstrations over the two days.

Some lectures will include:

“How to Live a Super-Healthy Life All on a Plant Based Diet”; “Mind If I Order the Cheeseburger? And Other Questions People Ask Vegans”;  “Eating Vegan in a Non-Vegan World”; “Managing a Vegan Diet on a Shoestring”; “Relieving Stress and Anxiety with Traditional Chinese Medicine” and “Get Your Glow On: Fertility, Pregnancy & Beyond”.

Delicious and creative sounding recipe demonstrations will include:

“Korean Eggplant Tacos with Kimchee Mayo and Rutabaga Rarebit”; “Edamame and Beluga Lentil Sliders with Sprouts and Spring Onion Jam”;  “ Black Pepper Tofu Macaroni Salad”; “Compassionate Crab Cakes”; “Vegan Chocolate: Ganache the Great!” and “Okra and Chick Peas with a Coconut Tomato Curry Served on Spiced Poha”.

On March 2^nd, there will be a raffle benefiting the NY Coalition for Healthy School Food.

Below is a video overview of the first New York City Vegetarian Food Festival (2011) and several others that take place around the United States.

The second video below is by raw vegan chef, Kristina Bucaram, one of this year's featured speakers at the festival.

For complete details on exhibitors, speakers, chef demos, other festival events, ticket purchase and directions visit www.nycvegfoodfest.com.

Review- Winter Jazzfest 2014, New York City, January 7th-11th, 2014

Review- 

Winter Jazzfest 2014,  New York City,  January 7th-11th, 2014, Various Venues

By E. Joyce Glasgow, www.artsandculturescene.com

Kudos to the organizers of Winter Jazzfest, N.Y.C., 2014 for their success in producing such an impressive and ambitious program for their tenth anniversary year. 

The annual, weekend, two-night marathon, grew to over ninety jazz bands being presented at an expanded number of venues in Greenwich Village, plus three additional nights of celebratory concerts, two in honor of Blue Note Record’s seventy-fifth anniversary.

There were so many wonderful and eclectic groups playing, I wished I could have cloned myself, so that I wouldn’t miss a thing. I’m including a small handful of videos, below, that I have chosen to give the readers of this page a good cross section of the kind of variety and talent available to be heard at this year’s festival. Check back here to see my photos from this year, which I will upload soon.

Venues are important to me, because the physical atmosphere and sound can make or break my enjoyment of a concert. Two of this year’s new venues were great choices for showcasing the weekend marathon performances, because they provided atmospheres more conducive for quiet, serious listening, more formal and relaxing than some of the noisy bar venues. The NYU Law School Lounge is a beautiful, grand room, on Washington Square, with beamed ceiling, decorative plaster molding, dramatic Persian rugs, hardwood floor, good acoustics and comfortable wing backed and arm chairs scattered around the perimeter, for those of us who needed to rest our weary bones after a lot of standing at the other, almost chair-less venues. The sound and lighting were very well done at the NYU Lounge. I decided to spend most of the first night of the marathon here, enjoying some amazing groups, with interesting and adventurous musical projects. The noted musicians performing here are all well-loved, versatile, New York jazz regulars, known for composing and stepping into new musical territory. The line-up for this stage was very complimentary. All with distinctively different projects, they flowed through the evening with a more cerebral yet accessible focus. The music was intelligent and thoughtful. The groups included the Ben Wendel Quartet; the Ches Smith trio, featuring one of my favorite jazz pianists, Craig Taborn; Nate Wooley’s Seven Story Mountain, an intriguing thirteen piece ensemble, featuring two vibraphones, electronics, two drummers, violin, trumpets and trombones; and Chris Lightcap and Bigmouth.

Another great new music venue for the festival is Subculture, on Bleecker Street.  This is a new performance space, set up for serious listening, with excellent sound and lighting, theatre seating and an unobtrusive, quiet bar window off to the side. The owner said his motivation for opening was what he felt was a lack of good music listening rooms in downtown Manhattan. This venue is a good place to enjoy music in an intimate, comfortable setting and is a great addition to the New York music scene. I heard Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society, an eighteen-piece orchestra, here (see video below). Composer/conductor, Argue’s compositions are evocative, atmospheric and distinctive and he’s bringing a fresh, exciting approach to composing for big band. Argue received a Grammy nomination for Best Large Jazz Ensemble for his first CD, Infernal Machines (2009) and now again for his second, Brooklyn Babylon, released in 2013.  A performance highlight was an original waltz he penned in memory of musician, Leon Helm. I really like his composition, Transit, which you can hear in the video below.

I loved hearing the No BS Brass Band, an eleven-member brass group from Richmond, Virginia. (See video below). Their set in the Bowery Electric basement room was raucous and fun and their intensity, physicality and inclusive party spirit energized the over-packed house into a mass, amoeba-like swaying dance frenzy.

Alto Saxophonist, Big Chief Donald Harrison brought a taste of Mardi Gras Indian energy to Le Poisson Rouge with his funky New Orleans septet, Congo Nation (see video below).

A delightful new discovery for me, and one of my personal favorites at the festival, was the sixteen-piece ensemble, Mother Falcon, from Austin, Texas, who played at Le Poisson Rouge (See video below).  This talented and passionate group of young musicians plays with skill, appealing earnestness and wild, sweet, youthful bravado. Their original compositions and arrangements of cover tunes are pleasing, clever and new. I especially like their tunes, Marigold, Marfa and Dirty Summer, which you can hear in the video below. Their instrumentation includes a wide variety of instruments straddling the classical, rock, folk and jazz worlds, including cellos, violins, mandolin, guitars, piano, saxophones, trumpets, bassoon, clarinet, flute, double bass, pedal steel guitar, glockenspiel, percussion and drums.
I only have a few complaints about the festival, but don't think much can be done about it. Some of the venues are smaller bars and it is so crowded that sometimes it is impossible to get in to hear some of the performers. Loud talking by patrons during the music in these bar atmospheres can diminish the listening experience too. Most of the bar venues won't allow you to sit in the few chairs they do have unless you are going to be there long enough to fulfill a two drink minimum, which means you are committed for awhile to stay at that venue. With ninety bands to hear, I want the freedom to spontaneously go from one place to another at a moment's notice. In some places, the only seating is on the floor. If you are not a floor sitter, for any reason, then two nights of mostly standing can be exhausting.
Musically, the festival is such an exciting and stimulating event though, that it is worth all the wrangling, pressed flesh, long walking between venues in downpours and testing of one's patience, to get somewhere to experience those magical, musical moments that are very satisfying and worth the effort.
www.winterjazzfest.com

Preview- Twelfth Annual Nightlife Awards, January 27th, 2014, The Town Hall, New York City

Preview-  

The 2014 Nightlife Awards,  January 27^th, 2014

The Town Hall, New York City

By E. Joyce Glasgow, www.artsandculturescene.com

 The twelfth annual New York Nightlife Awards will take place on January 27^th, 2014 at The Town Hall, N.Y.C. This is a unique awards ceremony where the award winners perform and the audience gets a chance to experience their talents. Awards are given to N.Y.C. comedy, jazz and cabaret artists who have been nominated and voted upon by a group of distinguished, local New York City entertainment critics.

Dee Dee Bridgewater

 Jazz Vocalist, Dee Dee Bridgewater, will be presented with the Nightlife Legend Award. She has won three Grammy Awards, a Tony Award and is the host of National Public Radio's Jazz Set. She recently appeared in Lady Day, The Billie Holiday Musical, on Broadway.

The other 2014 winners are:

 Ben Allison and Darcy James Argue, in a tie, for Outstanding Jazz Band; Gretchen Parlato, for Outstanding Female Jazz Vocalist and William Blake, for Outstanding Male Jazz Vocalist; Laura Benanti, for Outstanding Major Cabaret Vocalist; Stacy Sullivan, for Outstanding Female Cabaret Vocalist and Liam Forde, for Outstanding Male Cabaret Vocalist; Gina Brillon, Outstanding Female Standup Comedian and Jimmy Failla, Outstanding Male Standup Comedian.

The evening will be hosted by three- time Emmy Award Winner, funny man, Bruce Vilanch. Guest star performers and/or presenters will include Jason Robert Brown, Bill Irwin, Nellie McKay, Carole J. Bufford, Maxine Linehan and more.

Visit www.siegelpresents.com for more detailed information.

Preview- GlobalFEST 2014, January 12th, 2014, Webster Hall, N.Y.C.

Preview-

GlobalFEST 2014, N.Y.C., January 12^th, 2014, Webster Hall

www.globalfest-ny.com

by E. Joyce Glasgow, www.artsandculturescene.com

Each year, since 2003, in mid-January, GlobalFEST introduces twelve international world music acts to New York City audiences in one intense evening, on three stages at Webster Hall.

The eclectic variety of musical styles is perfect for open-minded music lovers, who have a curiosity about traditional music from other cultures, much of which, in this case, hybridized with influences from contemporary popular music forms.

This year’s line up includes:

Congolese Afro rumba rapper, Baloji

 The Bombay Royale (US debut), eleven piece Bollywood/Surfer pop music big band from Melbourne, Australia

 Jamaican singer/one-string guitarist, Brushy One String (NY debut)

Acappella gospel trio, Como Mamas

Ukrainian punk folk group, DahkaBrakah, which looks to be one of the most intriguing groups of the evening
(please see their video, which I have included below)

Fanfare Ciocarlia, Balkan Gypsy brass band, with over twelve members  

Ghanawan tribal trance master, vocalist/bassist, Hassan Hakmoun, from Morocco  

KiT (Kuenta i Tambu), Dutch/Antillean global bass dance beats quartet

Noura Mint Seymali, Mauritanian desert soul vocalist

Sergio Mendoza Y La Orkesta, twelve-piece band from Tucson, Arizona, which blends Mexican mambo with indie-cumbia

The Wu-Force, featuring Abigail Washburn, Kai Welch and Wu Fei (N.Y. debut),  Appalachian-Chinese avant –folk

Yasmine Hamdan, Lebanese vocalist, performing post-modern Parisian pop via Beirut underground

DakhaBrakha (Ukraine)

Subversive Ukrainian punk-folk