Mean to Me is a jazz quintet that resurrects classic jazz of the 1920s through 1940s–sometimes interlaced with the more modern stylings of Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus, and Ahmad Jamal–and an eclectic variety of soul-jazz and Latin jazz.
FEATURING:
Judy Butterfield - vocals
Ben Slater - saxophone, piano
Cairo McCochran - drums
Dave Shaff - trumpet
Scott Foster - guitar
Adam Gay - bass
ABOUT THE ARTISTS:
Mean to Me is comprised of four core members: Judy, who trained...
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The Musical Art Quintet, formed in 2008 during weekly jam sessions in the Mission, features the music of bandleader/composer/bassist Sascha Jacobsen. The MAQ’s modern compositions blend jazz harmony, world rhythms, and a chamber-music sensibility upon which the players of the quintet improvise.
FEATURING:
Sascha Jacobsen - bass
Lewis Patzner - cello
Charith Premawardhana - viola
Anthony Blea - violin
Michelle Walther - violin
ABOUT THE ARTIST:
Sascha Jacobsen has performe...
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World travelers Trio Garufa–comprised of Argentinian guitarist Guillermo García, Swiss bandoneon player Adrian Jost, and American bassist Sascha Jacobsen–return to the Poppy for an evening of tango: classic Argentine tangos, as well as Argentine folklore music, modern tangos from Piazzolla, electro-tangos, and original compositions.
FEATURING:
Guillermo García - guitar
Adrian Jost - bandoneon
Sascha Jacobsen - string bass
Learn more: Website
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Pianist/composer Dahveed Behroozi, whose focus is jazz, classical, and new music, makes his Red Poppy debut as a leader with an evening of Great American Songbook explorations and improvisations.
FEATURING:
Dahveed Behroozi - piano
(Additional performers TBA)
ABOUT THE ARTIST:
Pianist and composer Dahveed Behroozi is a New York City-based musician who currently resides in the San Francisco Bay Area. Dahveed’s playing has been described as "highly expressive, lyrical, and col...
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Bringing together original compositions and creative covers of music from the Great American Songbook and the Beatles, Berklee College of Music faculty members Jason Anick and Jason Yeager’s "jazz without borders" approach to music-making features adventurous improvisations and a commitment to melody and group interplay. At their first Red Poppy show together, expect to hear songs from their recently released album, United, on Greg Osby's Inner Circle Music.
FEATURING:
Jason Anick - vi...
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Wandering troubadour Wonder and dapper BART six-stringer William Smith usher in Daylight Savings Time with two distinct flavors of guitar. Wonder makes her Poppy debut with a set of original songs and stories brought to life by vocals, acoustic guitar, ukulele, and effects pedals, while Smith’s "100 Years of Guitar" project explores the last century of acoustic and electric guitar tradition.
FEATURING:
Wonder - guitar, ukulele, vocals, effects
William Smith - acoustic guitar, electri...
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Red Poppy favorites Guarandinga, led by singer Rowan Jiménez and bassist/producer Jeremy Allen, return with a signature style of Latin Afro-Pop that integrates hip-hop, rock, and Venezuelan folklore with gritty East Bay funk.
FEATURING:
Rowan Jiménez - vocals, percussion
Jeremy Allen - bass, vocals, cuatro, percussion
Kenya Moses - percussion, vocals
Chris Carter - guitar
Brian Andres - drums
Learn more: Website | Facebook | YouTube
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Join us Saturday night at the Red Poppy for an art-making jam in celebration of exploring your creativity! No previous art experience is necessary, and everyone from experienced artists to blooming creatives are welcome. Bring your current works-in-progress, or start a new piece with art supplies we’ll have available. If you’re new to visual art, we’ll have a project set up to get you started. Music and beverages will also be available for your enjoyment.
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Opera on the Spot presents a double bill of Lee Hoiby’s “The Italian Lesson,” followed by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi’s “La Serva Padrona” (“The Servant Turned Mistress”). Based on the famed character sketch by Ruth Draper, “The Italian Lesson” lyrically recounts the hectic day of a New York society matron, and the fun continues in “La Serva Padrona,” where an elderly bachelor learns to see a new side of his servant. Come enjoy this rare production of two hilarious one-act Italian operas that re...
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Brazilian percussionist Tulio Araujo returns to the Poppy with a project that’s two years in the making: A contemporary jazz ensemble (bass, piano, 7-string guitar) built around the pandeiro, a tambourine-style frame drum ubiquitous in Brazilian music. Expect tunes from his new album, Monduland, along with a rainbow of surprising grooves and harmonic colors.
FEATURING:
Tulio Araujo - pandeiro
Lucas Telles - 7-string guitar
Igor Neves - piano
Felipe Vilas Boas - guitar
ABOUT...
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The Poppy is proud to welcome back New Orleans native Michelle Jacques, who has solidified her rep as Oakland's "Queen of New Orleans Music" by stirring jazz, funk, soul, Creole, Cajun, gospel, Caribbean, African, Zydeco, rock, and Mardi Gras Indian chants into a musical gumbo that leaves audiences wanting more.
FEATURING:
Michelle Jacques - vocals
Rhonda Crane - vocals
Bryan Dyer - vocals, horn
Donna Viscuso - woodwinds
Eric Swinderman - guitar
Kevin Scott - bass
Michaelle Goerl...
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Bay Area-based quartet WaterSaw and brass band Sisu Brassland make their Red Poppy debut with a body of music exploring the raw beauty and viscerally moving aspects in the transition from life to death. Through the layering of musical textures, WaterSaw's sound is sparse, ethereal, rhythmic, and sometimes haunting. Sisu is a Finnish word that translates to spirit, resolve, mettle, tenacity, and courage. Together, "Beautiful Death" exhibits this confluence of dark and light.
FEATURING:
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Flamenco dancer Bianca Rodriguez and New York-based Balkan/Turkish singer Jenny Luna team up with clarinetist Calvin Lai and guitarist Gopal Slavonic for a night of music from Turkey, Spain, and the Balkans.
FEATURING:
Jenny Luna - vocals, cajon
Gopal Slavonic - guitar
Calvin Lai - clarinet
Bianca Rodriguez - flamenco dance
Learn more: Jenny Luna
EVENT DETAILS
Time: Doors 7:00PM / Show 7:30PM
Admission: $15-20 sliding scale
Tickets will not be sold i...
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Violin-guitar duo Doralice unveil a new 10" vinyl record of original cinematic acoustic music, featuring everything from moody waltzes to serpentine gypsy rhythms and creaky Americana. Records will be available and include custom papercut art by Bianca Levan, who will share some of her work during the show. Opening the evening will be an intimate set by cinematic folk duo Wolf & Crow.
FEATURING:
Rima Ash - violin
Yates Brown - guitar
Zachary Vieira - guitar, vocals
Mathieu Stemmelen -...
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Music, poetry, and future converge powerfully when Bonafide Rojas, Tongo Eisen-Martin, Bonnie Kwong, and Josiah Luis Alderete explore themes of imperialism, cultural identity, cultural resistance, love, and revolution through collaborations with guitarists Peck the Town Crier, Oliver Mok, and Eli Carlton-Pearson.
FEATURING:
Bonafide Rojas - poetry, guitar
Tongo Eisen-Martin - poetry
Peck the Town Crier - guitar
Bonnie Kwong - poetry
Oliver Mok - guitar
Josiah Luis Alderete - poetr...
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Bay Area rhythm all-star Javier Navarrette and his mighty vocal/percussion ensemble celebrate Día de los muertos at the Poppy with an evening of personal songs, as well as music originating from the Afro-Cuban and Afro-Mexicano song traditions, including rumba, palo, makuta, and son jarocho.
Featuring:
Javier Navarrette - vocals, percussion
Sergio Duran - vocals, percussion
Jesse Weber - vocals, percussion
Alison Hammond - vocals, percussion, dance
Monica Fimbrez - vocals, percussion, st...
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Highest Ani plays traditional Armenian songs blended with diverse musical influences. Committed to paying homage to Armenian music, while incorporating musical identities taken from rock, jazz, indie, blues, and others, Highest Ani is a band that strives to carve out its own sound.
Featuring:
Mark Sarkis Ohanesian - qanon
Avo Chalaganyan - drums, vocals
Marina Hovhannisyan - vocals, guitar
Aaron Kruziki - saxophone, duduk, clarinet
Learn more: Facebook
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Due to unforeseen circumstances, this event has been cancelled. We apologize for any inconvenience.
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Fred Frith, revolutionary of the electric guitar and pioneer of a form of improvisation which refuses all constraints, stylistic or otherwise, will present his first Bay Area solo performance in many years.
Featuring:
Fred Frith - prepared electric guitar
Fred Frith learned his craft playing in rock bands, notably Henry Cow, and creating music in the recording studio. His compositions have been performed by Ensemble Modern, Arditti Quartet, Robert Wyatt, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, ROVA Sa...
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Degenerate Art Ensemble’s Skeleton Flower is an immersive performance that combines rich imagery, live music and song, visceral solo dance, and storytelling ritual. The work will be performed in a rare duo performance by the company's two co-artistic directors, dancer Haruko Crow Nishimura and musician/composer Joshua Kohl, over two nights at the Poppy.
Featuring:
Haruko Crow Nishimura - dance, voice
Joshua Kohl - guitar, electronics
Degenerate Art Ensemble has shown their work throughou...
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The Kilbanes kick off Halloween weekend with songs from the forthcoming record of their rock opera, Weightless, which has played to sold-out crowds in several Bay Area theaters. Voci Angelica Trio debuts at the Poppy with a set that straddles Western classical and folk music from around the world, aiming to reinvigorate traditional songs for contemporary audiences.
Featuring:
The Kilbanes
Kate Kilbane - vocals, electric bass
Dan Moses - vocals, piano
Voci Angelica Trio
Jodi Hitzhusen -...
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Oakland-born Iranian-American artist Adrienne Shamszad blends folk, soul, and singer-songwriter elements with traditional Persian music and lyrics that are as inspired by the mystic poets of Iran as they are by the folk poet-songwriters of the 1960s and ’70s. At her Red Poppy debut, expect to hear songs from her recent EP, which features her Persian songs.
Featuring:
Adrienne Shamszad - vocals, guitar
Schuyler Karr - bass
TBA - percussion
Adrienne Shamszad has traveled extensively, stu...
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Rumba music originated in the Afro-Cuban neighborhoods of Havana and Matanzas as the soundtrack to community, partnered dancing and get-togethers as a means of cultural expression. Its global diaspora means rumba rhythms have found their way into other genres of music such as country, rock, and blues, and continue to impact the genres of today. Rumberos de Radio Habana are bringing their own contribution to the Red Poppy on the fourth Sunday of each month for a free afternoon of beat-making, hip...
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Join French Oak Gypsy Band as they take you on a caravan ride through many lands, with songs in French, Spanish, Roma, Catalan, Portuguese, Russian, and English. Highlighting both French music and the French relationship to American jazz, French Oak aims to reach into the depths of an emotion-fueled Piaf song and the light coquettishness of a Cole Porter tune.
Featuring:
Stella Heath - vocals
Gabriel Pirard - guitar, harmony vocals
Jimmy Inciardi - saxophone
TBA - bass
Learn more: Web...
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Readings, live music accompaniment, and vivid projected images will recreate an episode of "The Republic of Sin" podcast, the story of a lost English-speaking colony of pirates, spies, and mercenaries on the legendary Coast of Sin, a tropical paradise full of dark secrets. After the intermission, writers will explore the ebullient linguistic space of animals, stories, and translation.
SCHEDULE:
6:30 - 7:30pm (Phase 2): The Republic of Sin
8:00 - 9:00pm (Phase 3): The Escapery
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Blending elements from their own musical upbringings with influences from Spain, Brazil, Venezuela, and other Latin American countries, Los Angeles-based Primary Colors focuses on original compositions and arrangements. At their first Red Poppy show, expect to hear selections from their upcoming debut album.
Featuring:
Liza Wallace - harp, vocals
Josh Johnson - saxophone
Ryan Knudsen - percussion
Josh Johnson is an alto/soprano saxophonist and composer recognized for his unique sound an...
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Pianist Myra Melford, bassist Lisa Mezzacappa, and saxophonists Angela Morris and Steve Adams perform original compositions and spontaneous improvisations. Ranging from melodic free jazz to energetic sonic explorations, they bring their unique chemistry to the West Coast for the first time this fall.
Featuring:
Myra Melford - piano
Angela Morris - tenor saxophone
Lisa Mezzacappa - bass
Steve Adams - saxophones
Pianist, composer, and Guggenheim fellow Myra Melford is a singular voice in...
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Using string quartets by Antonin Dvorak, Sahba Aminikia, and Philip Glass, Bay Area-based Circadian String Quartet makes its Red Poppy debut with a program that delves into three different ways of experiencing home: Coming home, paying tribute to home, or watching with alarm as a homeland erupts in strife and division.
Featuring:
Sarah Wood - violin
David Ryther - violin
Omid Assadi - viola
David Wishnia - cello
Circadian String Quartet was founded in 2013 to perform classical and con...
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Acclaimed jazz vocalist Kellye Gray–renowned for her powerful voice, four-octave range, and 1990 Top 20 hit, Standards in Gray–comes to the Poppy to celebrate the release of a new album, Rendering.
Featuring:
TBA
Texas native Kellye Gray has recorded seven albums as a leader, performed nationally and internationally at world-class venues and festivals, and shared the stage with many top names in jazz and blues. A songwriter since the age of 17 and a self-taught guitarist, Gray has produc...
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