Jazz in the Neighborhood and New Performance Traditions are proud to present the West Oakland Sessions: Creative Music Series. This groundbreaking series honors the internationally recognized Bay Area Creative Music community in 10 concerts performing music infused with influences from multiple musical genres.

Below are the date and ticket links for the concerts in this series. If you’re interested in four or more of these concerts, multi-tickets are available at a 15% discount! Click here to find out more.

1/30: Rent Romus’ Life’s Blood Ensemble

2/20: Ben Goldberg – Porch Concert Material

2/27: Richard Howell

3/13: Karl Evangelista

3/20: Hafez Modirzadeh’s Facets

3/27: Kevin Robinson

4/10: Oluyemi Thomas

4/24: Beth Schenck’s House of Faern

5/1: Erika Oba Trio

5/22: Lisa Mezzacappa

Join us for another West Oakland Sessions show on Sunday, September 5th from 4-5:30pm with the Arnie Sainz Co Quintet! Co weaves the unique voices of his quintet with his own compositions for this final concert before he moves to New York. Proof of vaccination and masks are required for this concert. Full directions and safety protocols will be sent to you upon ticket purchase.

This concert is part of a series of West Oakland Sessions featuring young jazz musicians based in the Bay Area. All shows in this series will be recorded live with an in-person audience. High quality video and audio is provided to the musicians free of charge, courtesy of Jazz in the Neighborhood and Musical Traditions. By purchasing a ticket to this show and participating in the recording, you are helping to launch these young musicians’ careers. 

Arnie Sainz Co is a pianist, composer, and educator based in the San Francisco Bay Area. His voice spans ensembles and genres, finding his footing in both large-scale new music compositions and intimate improvised music settings. While completing his B. M. in Music Education at San Jose State University, Arnie studied jazz piano under Dahveed Behroozi, and currently studies composition with Alan Ferber.

Click here for tickets and more information!

Join us for another West Oakland Session on August 8th at 4pm with Nora Stanley! This concert will feature original compositions by Stanley and her bandmates, many of which were written during the pandemic and reflect their experiences of the past year. Stanley is joined by Raffi Garabedian, Omree Gal-Oz, Owen Clapp, and Matt Buckner at the Dresher Ensemble Studio in West Oakland for this live concert and recording session.

This concert is part of a series of West Oakland Sessions featuring young jazz musicians based in the Bay Area. All shows in this series will be recorded live with an in-person audience. High quality video and audio is provided to the musicians free of charge, courtesy of Jazz in the Neighborhood and Musical Traditions. By purchasing a ticket to this show and participating in the recording, you are helping to launch these young musicians’ careers. 

Nora Stanley is a Bay Area-based saxophonist and composer whose interests and work live at the intersection of composed and improvised music with an emphasis on interaction and collaboration in a contemporary context. In addition to playing as a sideperson, she leads a quartet and a trio as well as BANKSHOT, an improvised wind quartet, and an electric/acoustic duo project. She has shared the stage with Dayna Stephens, Ambrose Akinmusire, and Gary Bartz, and has performed at Monterey Jazz Festival and SFJAZZ. Find more info and media on her website.

Click here to buy tickets and for more information!

Join us on July 18th for another West Oakland Session featuring Illy Bogart! Drawing from a wide diversity of musical influences, this groove-oriented quintet create their unique sound in the cracks between funk, hip hop, and the jazz tradition.

This concert is part of a series of West Oakland Sessions featuring young jazz musicians based in the Bay Area. All shows in this series will be recorded live with an in-person audience. High quality video and audio is provided to the musicians free of charge, courtesy of Jazz in the Neighborhood and Musical Traditions. By purchasing a ticket to this show and participating in the recording, you are helping to launch these young musicians’ careers. 

Celebrating the release of their debut album, Illy Bogart brings new compositions and their unique musical voice. Featuring Tony Peebles (Tommy Igoe, Pacific Mambo Orchestra, KATCHAFIRE) and Lyle Link (Warren Wolf, Ralph Peterson) on saxophones, Ian McArdle (Erik Jekabson, Jacam Manricks) on keyboards, Kai Lyons (Wil Blades, Joe Cohen) on guitar, and Isaac Schwartz (Negative Press Project, High Standards) on drums, Illy Bogart draws from a wide-reaching plethora of influences from classic jazz, modern funk, and hip hop to bring something new, impactful, and exciting. 

Click here to buy tickets and get more info!

San Francisco Supervisors will be voting soon on a proposal put together by the Musician and Venue Development Alliance (MAVDA) to catalyze neighborhood recovery through the Arts. A ‘Yes’ vote would mean $900,000 would go to paying musicians for 6000 individual gigs over 50 weeks. The public comment period closes this Friday, June 25th.

Read the Complete Proposal

Download the PowerPoint Presentation

Contact the Board of Supervisors to Give Feedback and Show Your Support!

When to watch: Friday June 25th, 10:00 am

Where to watch: Virtual

How to watch: On SF Cable Channel 26, 78 or 99 (depending on provider) or streaming at www.sfgovtv.org (choose “Watch SFGovTV – The Government Channel)

How to email public comment: board.of.supervisors@sfgov.org

• When emailing, use the subject line “Please Support Budget Money for MAVDA Proposal for Musicians and Venues”.

How to make public comment via phone: (Friday, June 25 at 10am): Dial 1 (415) 655-0001 / Enter Meeting ID: 146 586 5393 # #

How to make public comment via video submission: Please see instructions here.

Go to SF Board of Supervisors Site

 

Jazz in the Neighborhood is proud to be featured on Ezvid Wiki’s list, “6 Nonprofits Nurturing the Love of Music”. From their post:

Music is an art form that goes beyond borders. It has the power to heal, bring people together, and inspire. Whether you are seeking ways to connect with or learn about the medium, or simply looking to discover new artists and traditions, the following are some organizations that work to nurture musical expression.

Beginning the list at #1 is Jazz in the Neighborhood. This organization works to improve the musical gig economy in the Bay Area by presenting affordable concerts, paying musicians a guaranteed wage, and supporting the work of established and aspiring jazz artists. The group launched the Guaranteed Fair Wage Fund to encourage venues and presenters to pay musicians a minimum fee up front, regardless of ticket sales. When event revenue does not cover the cost of the agreed upon compensation, JITN can help make up the difference.

You can read more at this link. Thanks, Wiki.ezvid.com!

Jazz in the Neighborhood and the Independent Musicians Alliance announce…

The Safe Place to Play!

The Safe Place to Play is a FREE play/rehearsal space for up to 8 musicians with backline and COVID-19 protocols in place.

[Read more…]

Sunday, March 4, 4pm at the Jewish Community Center San Francisco

Clairdee — Nicolas Bearde — Noa Levy — Sian

Sparkling jazz melodies will wrap around stunning poetry in this  celebration of modern American poets.

Norm Rosenblatt  — composer, producer 
Ken French — piano, arranger, music Director
Mario Guarneri — trumpet
Ron Belcher — bass
Jim Zimmerman — drums

Produced by Norm Rosenblatt, Jazz Voices of Poetry was founded to increase the awareness of both jazz and poetry by combining them in song and presenting the result to new audiences. The event is being co-sponsored by Jazz in the Neighborhood.

Purchase tickets at https://www.jazzvoice.net/home

General admission $22

Jewish Community Center of San Francisco, 3200 California Street, San Francisco