Concerts in March

Saturday March 5 (6pm - midnight)
BALKAN NIGHT NORTHWEST 
Featuring the world premiere of Omerića!

Marchette DuBois: accordion, flute, voice
Anne Matthews: electric guitar, percussion, voice
Amy Denio: alto sax, clarinet, accordion, voice
Kevin Stevens: electric bass
Kai Strandskov: drums, voice

Proof of vaccination or negative COVID test required for entry.
We'll be playing our Eurovision style pan-Balkan hits on the Mezzanine around 8:45pm.

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Sunday March 13 (7:30pm)
Spoot Second Sunday Series @ Cafe Racer
This month features folk music from around the world!
The Lonely Coast (Anne Matthews & Valerie Holt)
Dromeno (Govetas family & friends playing fabulous music from the Greek tradition!)
All ages until 10pm
Entrance: Sliding Scale, $5 - $15
Proof of vaccination or negative COVID test required for entry.
The Lonely Coast (Valerie Holt & Anne Matthews)
Dromeno

New Ways of Seeing in 2022

It’s been snowy in Seattle this week. At dusk on New Year’s Eve, I noticed icicles hanging outside Jon’s bathroom. I grabbed my phone to take a photo and perched on the edge of the bathtub to get the shot.

I couldn’t get it. The window was covered with a sheet of film for privacy, making it almost impossible to capture the icicles, plus the neighbor’s truck was in the way.

Suddenly the rod holding up the shower curtain fell with a clang. That was the second time a curtain rod lost purchase today. I laughed. Gravity must be heavier today.

When I looked out the window again, my vision had shifted. Aha! The moment was perfect in a new way. The window blur and the truck shape were part of the big picture. I embraced what I couldn’t change.

May 2022 inspire new ways of seeing old things.

Fresh Fish

I’ve started setting tongue twisters by Dr. Seuss to music.
Please enjoy Fresh Fish, from his poem “Fresh, Fresher Freshest” from ‘O Say Can You Say?’ published by Random House. Permission sought.
Thanks to Jon Davis for helping me record the alto sax and his voice.

lyrics

Do you like fresh fish?
It’s just fine at Finney’s Diner
Finney also has some fresher fish, that’s fresher and much finer
But his best fish is his freshest fish
And Finney says with pride:

‘The finest fish at Finney’s is my freshest fish, French-fried.’

So, don’t order the fresh ~ or the fresher fish at Finney’s if you’re wise.

You’ll say ‘Fetch me the finest French-fried freshest fish that Finney fries.’

Frozen fish, formerly fresh.

Sunday Jan 9, 2022 @ CAFE RACER 7:30pm

I’ve been asked to curate 2nd Sundays each month at Cafe Racer. Their new location on Capitol hill is gorgeous and full of love!

In January, Spoot Sessions will feature a stunning set with Chet Corpt (kora) and Brady Kish (bass), then mesmerizing music with griot & balafon master Naby Camara, Carol Olivier (balafon) and myself (alto sax & clarinet).

Then we’ll open it up for small group improvisations. Happy New Year!

Here’s Naby playing solo.

Santa Claus superstar singer on stage, pop art retro vector illustration. Holidays New year and Christmas. Concerts and parties

Migratory Bird

I heard an amazing bird on my walk this morning.

I was thinking ‘Oh, must be a migratory bird! What a long beautiful trill! Wow, what lung power!’

When I rounded the corner, the tone shifted, and I realized that I was hearing the overtones of a distant jackhammer.

TALK WITH STRANGERS

First I noticed the store manager standing with a very stern expression, arms crossed.

Then I saw the two uniformed police officers talking quietly with a man with wide open eyes next to the eggs. I couldn’t hear what they were saying. The officers escorted the man to the cash register nearby, he paid and left the building. I was impressed that the officers acted with compassion ~ no drama.

I followed the man out of the building and greeted him. He responded warmly. It was raining. I keep a stash of new socks to give to people in need. ‘Want some new socks?’ He said ‘How did you know? YES I DO!’. I handed him two pairs, we chatted some more while he changed socks under the awning. He told me he’d been maced, and his eyes were on fire. Aha, thus the crazy look. Eye drops were his next errand. By the time we parted ways, his face had relaxed. I look forward to greeting him next time, should our paths cross again.

TALK WITH STRANGERS!

I decided to move to the Emerald City in 1985 when my friend Jeffrey Markham told me how people look at you in the eyes in the streets of Seattle. The tradition works wonders.

MUJER O BRUJA?

Nonsequitur & Earshot Jazz Festival @ Chapel Performance Space, Seattle: October 22 & 23, 2021

TOP Tina Richerson / Sue Orfield / Jude Dai / Madeleine Sosin — BOTTOM: Abel Rocha / Jessica Lurie / Amy Denio

This weekend the multimedia masterpiece Mujer o Bruja will premiere at the Chapel Performance Space in Seattle ~ Friday October 22 and Saturday October 23, 2021. Purchase tickets

Many months of intensive collaboration are coming to fruition at long last. The Tiptons Sax Quartet, award-winning Latin Duo Correo Aereo and digital artist Jude Dai have fostered a powerful partnership to create this new ground-breaking work. It is inspired by archaeological research on the role of women in world cultures through the ages through to the present day, with a focus on Latin America.

Mujer o Bruja is made possible with the support of Nonsequitur, Earshot Jazz Festival, On The Boards, 4Culture and from the Jazz Road Creative Residency, a national initiative of South Arts, which is funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation with additional support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.  #seattledrumschool, #earshot, #jazzroads, #nonsequitur, #4culture,

Rehearsal support: Seattle Drum School & Kenyon Hall

KNKX-FM gave us a lovely shout out.

We’ll record the soundtrack at Stone Gossard’s Studio Litho in Seattle with our favorite engineer Floyd Reitsma. We’ll keep you posted when the new recording is available!