Calendar Highlights: Artistic Surprises and Sounds of February

As we flow through February, a time of reflection and celebration during Black History Month, the weeks ahead are rife with impactful, lyrical, and soulful experiences. One such event is the must-attend lecture by Mark Montgomery French, titled "All Your Favorite Music Is (Probably) Black." This event promises not only an educational dive into musical history but also a blend of humor and engagement that will evoke a deeper appreciation for the music we love. French, with his vast expertise as a composer and music historian, is set to host an immersive talk that will accentuate numerous artists, including Lil Nas X, Talking Heads, BTS, and Tina Bell. French's insights aim to enrich the audience's musical palate, ensuring an unforgettable Black History Month experience.

Thursday Events

Meanwhile, jazz aficionados can anticipate the release of Jonathan Seiberlich's new album Isolation Suite, an intimate expression inspired and composed amidst Covid lockdowns. Orchestrated for a New Orleans-style jazz band, the album oscillates between emotional extremes, charting a soundscape of sound, silence, and sentiment. The evening release event, hosted at the Sound Room in Oakland, is poised to captivate attendees with its raw and celebratory jazz energy.

Friday Night Jazz and Blues

Kay Kostopolous and Johnny Lonely are teaming up to deliver an unconventional Valentine's Day tribute with a roast of romance through jazz comedy. Original tunes and jazz standards will resonate through The Back Room in Berkeley, promising an evening of laughter, heartache, and velvet harmonies. Concurrently, fans of the blues harmonica are in for a treat with Mark Hummel's Blues Harmonica Blowout at Freight & Salvage, bringing together an assembly of blues greats to celebrate the instrument's legacy and versatility in emotive storytelling.

Weekend Melodies

The Bad Plus, a band celebrated for its innovative approach to jazz-fusion, will exhibit their evolving musical expressions at The UC Theatre with their latest album Electric Face. The addition of Chris Speed on tenor sax and clarinet marks their continued reinvention, ensuring a performance brimming with the vitality of a debut. For the electronic dance music enthusiasts, EDM prodigy Wreckno will command the stage at New Parish with a blend of bass and hip-hop, further highlighting queer visibility within the genre.

Sunday Recital Excellence

Cal Performances at UC Berkeley's Hertz Hall will resonate with the operatic prowess of coloratura soprano Erin Morley and pianist Malcolm Martineau. Their selected repertoire spans a range of composers, offering a vocal and pianistic narrative that promises to leave the audience spellbound by the diversity and skill on display.

Midweek Flamenco Guitar and Folk Fusion

Fans of flamenco can revel in the guitar melodies of Ottmar Liebert & Luna Negra at Yoshi's. Liebert's fusion of flamenco, jazz, and Latin sounds have captivated audiences globally, and his unique Zen influences are sure to imbue the performance with profound emotional depth. For a heartening midweek uplift, the folk duo Emma's Revolution will be performing at Freight & Salvage, delivering messages of peace and social justice with a side of electrifying folk fervor, while being filmed for a documentary.

lecture, jazz, blues, folk, flamenco, recital, EDM