Red Poppy Art House

Ramana Vieira: Portuguese Fado Music With a Contemporary Sensibility
2015-10-09 19:30 - 22:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Red Poppy Art House, 2698 Folsom St., San Francisco, CA, 94110, United States
Ramana Vieira and her group performs traditional, ballad-style fados that pay homage to the “Queen of Fado,” Amália Rodrigues, along with up-tempo compositions from their new album, Fado Da Vida. Her new work captures both the language and cultural heritage of Portuguese-speaking countries in a musical tapestry that ranges from whispering, haunting ballads to collaborations featuring the works of famous Portuguese-Canadian poet, Euclides Cavaco. Two of the tracks on the album were internationally nominated with the International Portuguese Music Awards in 2015.
Fado, the most widely recognized music of Portugal, is a passionate, soul-stirring genre with soaring vocals and dramatic tales of love, loss and redemption. Legendary fadista, Amália Rodrigues, popularized fado in the 20th century, and today, platinum-selling Portuguese singers Ana Moura and Mariza are selling out concert halls in the U.S. The New York Times has recognized Ramana Vieira as an American at the forefront of the fado resurgence.
Featuring:
Ramana Vieira – vocals
Patrick Fahey – mandolin
Steve Nelson – percussion
Alberto Ramirez – acoustic bass
Ela Polak – violin
More About Ramana Vieira:
Ramana’s personal relationship to fado music lies deep in her family history. She was born in San Leandro, California to Portuguese immigrants and was exposed to the voices of Portugal’s past at a young age. Furthermore, her grandfather was a well-known musician and composer from Madeira Island, Portugal. Ramana has headlined the world’s largest Portuguese festival, the New Bedford Portuguese Feast in Massachusetts, and performed at the 2010 Encontro Festival in Macau. One of her original songs, Unido Para Amar, was played for the 2006 Winter Olympics opening ceremony, and she was chosen to sing for the 50th Grammy Awards special MusiCares benefit honoring Aretha Franklin. Ramana was recently honored to be exclusively invited by United States Congressman Jim Costa to perform for the president of the Azores alongside the internationally acclaimed guitarist and artist, Chico Avila.
“Conservatory-trained singer Ramana Vieira adds a New Age sensibility and instrumentation to the [Fado] music with cello and drums.” – New York Times

Follow Ramana on Facebook and SoundCloud.

Admission: $15-20. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Oded Tzur Quartet (NY): West Coast Album Release Tour
2015-10-10 19:30 - 22:00
Oded Tzur Quartet is a New York-based ensemble that prizes improvisation while exploring the territories of contemporary jazz and Indian music. The Quartet defines its sound by making use of the microtonality and melodic architecture of Indian classical, known as raga, within a jazz setting. Their debut album, Like a Great River, has been released by Enja Records and has received worldwide critical acclaim. This October, the ensemble will be touring the west coast to celebrate the US release of the album.

Featuring:
Oded Tzur – saxophone
Vardan Ovsepian – piano
Sam Bevan – bass
Britt Ciampa – drums

Follow Oded Tzur on Facebook and get a sneak peak at the Quartet’s music on YouTube.

Admission: $20-25. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.

Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.

Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Jazz in the Neighborhood Presents: John Schott Actual Trio - Third Show of "Three in a Row"
2015-10-11 19:30 - 21:30
As part of the new monthly series at the Red Poppy Art House, Jazz in the Neighborhood presents Three in a Row – three concerts highlighting the music of local jazz guitarists. The series will feature Jeffrey Burr Trio on August 9, Steve Erquiaga and Frank Martin on September 13, and John Schott’s Actual Trio on October 11.

John Schott Actual Trio, playing guitarist Schott’s memorable and intricate compositions, swings hard, plays from the heart, and seeks to uplift its audiences. The Trio’s debut album on John Zorn’s Tzadik label comes out September 18.
Featuring:
John Schott – guitar
Dan Seamans – double bass
John Hanes – drums
More on the Musicians:
John Schott graduated from Seattle’s Cornish College of the Arts, where he studied with Gary Peacock and Julian Priester. John was a member of the jazz and funk band, T.J. Kirk, whose album, If Four Was One, received a 1997 Grammy nomination. Schott’s album, Elegies for the Recording Angel, featuring his 16-piece Ensemble Diglossia in 70-minute composition, was named one of the best records of 2002 by The Wire magazine. John can also be heard on records by John Zorn, Tom Waits, The Baguette Quartette, and Steven Bernstein.
Dan Seamans was a co-founder of the New Klezmer Trio, a group credited with pioneering the Radical Jewish Culture movement. They released three albums, all of which have been re-released on Tzadik. A top Bay Area bassist since the 1980’s, Dan enjoyed long associations with Donald Bailey, Bill Bell and Mark Levine. His group, Lost Trio, has released six acclaimed albums, including Knowmonk.
John Hanes has been an in-demand drummer in the Bay Area since 1977, backing up classic R&B singers Etta James, Lowell Fulsome, Otis Clay, Freddie Roulette, and Fillmore Slim. He can be heard on over a hundred albums, including those of Henry Kaiser, Victor Krummenacher, Mark Karan, and more.
More on Jazz in the Neighborhood:
The mission of Jazz in the Neighborhood is to celebrate and invigorate the Bay Area’s rich, musical jazz heritage by creating more opportunities for established local musicians to perform, mentor aspiring players, and share this great American art form with the community. Through collaboration with school music programs and adult big bands, the project enables top-caliber artists to push creative boundaries while helping developing musicians “learn on the bandstand” according to the great jazz tradition. Performances in neighborhood venues not only showcase the wealth of local talent, but also create regular destinations for people to enjoy rich cultural and social experiences where they live.

Admission: $20 advance, $25 at the door, $5 student, sliding scale. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
Advance tickets: http://goo.gl/K5hTKl
Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Love is Alive: A Canto in Four Parts ft. Arisa White, Tammy L. Hall, & Amber McZeal - Curated by Derek Lassiter
2015-10-16 19:30 - 22:00
In these times of increasing and consistent violence against black and brown bodies, against women, against those who do not abide by the norms set out by our dominant culture, Love is Alive calls our attention to the healing we are capable of enacting through love. Curated by Derek Lassiter, the evening features a word score with improvisational music by Arisa White, Tammy L. Hall and Amber McZeal.

Arisa White is a Cave Canem fellow, an MFA graduate from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and is the author of the chapbooks Disposition for Shininess and Post Pardon, as well as the full-length collections Hurrah’s Nest and A Penny Saved. She is a 2013-2014 recipient of an Investing in Artist Grant from the Center for Cultural Innovation and a BFA faculty member at Goddard College.
Tammy L. Hall, a supremely gifted pianist versed in jazz, gospel, and classical music, began keyboard studies at age four in her native Dallas and relocated to the Bay Area to attend Mills College. Following a two-year stay in Belgium, she returned to San Francisco in 1989 and established herself as a keyboardist and accompanist, performing with artists including Houston Person, David “Fathead” Newman, Marcus Shelby, Regina Carter, Kim Nalley, Melba Moore, and Etta Jones, to name a few. Hall is a respected educator and bandleader, releasing a pair of superb albums under her name as well as a duo recording of spirituals with vocalist Valerie Joi.
Amber McZeal is inspired by the literary works of Toni Morrison, Ursula Le Guin, Octavia Butler, and artistic scholar Omi Osun Joni L. Jones (the theatrical jazz aesthetic). Her soul is continually ignited by the aural musings of Betty Carter, John and Alice Coltrane, Oumou Sangare, Joni Mitchell, Bobby McFerrin and Nina Simone. Her affinity for the transcendent has been nurtured by the works of Sobonfu Somé, Caroline Shola Arewa, Edward Bynum and Robert Farris Thompson, among many other scholars and healers. Amber has recently completed her Master’s degree in Depth Psychology with Somatic Specialization and will begin dissertation development in the Community Psychology, Liberation Psychology, and Ecopsychology Specialization at Pacifica Graduate Institute in October of 2015. She resides in Oakland, CA.
About Derek Lassiter:
Derek Lassiter, a mainstay on the San Francisco arts scene, has received accolades for both his recordings and live performances featuring Bay Area notables such as pianist/composer Tammy Hall, producer/percussionist PC Muñoz, and composer/pianist Art Khu. Lassiter is profiled in Julian C. R. Okwu’s book, Face Forward: Young African American Men in a Critical Age.

Admission: $15-20. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

LOVE Stories: Call & Response, Curated by Mi'Jan Celie - 11th Annual Lit Crawl SF
2015-10-17 20:30 - 21:30
Five writers with fresh work and crazy talent will read on the topic of evolving love. The stories will range from the funny, surreal, soul-crushing and redeeming aspects of loving people, language, culture, community and self.
About Lit Crawl:
The 11th annual Lit Crawl will span over three hours in the Mission District’s Valencia Street corridor, featuring an astonishing 101 literary readings and events, including poetry, fiction, nonfiction, comedy and more, in bookstores, bars, galleries, restaurants, stores, cafés, community spaces, a bookmobile, a vibrator store, and a police station.
One of the most anticipated literary nights of the year, San Francisco’s Lit Crawl attracts close to 10,000 people, and is the world’s largest such event. In 2008, Lit Crawl NYC launched in Manhattan, also an immediate hit. Austin was next, swarming for the first time in 2011. In 2012, two more Lit Crawls were born, one in Brooklyn, another in Seattle. In 2013, the event expanded to Los Angeles, Iowa City, and London, and in 2014, Lit Crawls were launched in Miami and Helsinki.

View the complete Lit Crawl SF map here!

About the Writers:

Mi’Jan Celie is a documentarian based in New Mexico, with written work
that has appeared in Tribal College Journal and the Santa Fe Reporter.

Lilliam Rivera’s work has appeared in Tin House, Los Angeles Times,
Bellevue Literary Review, Latina, among others. Lilliam lives in Los Angeles.

Luke Dani Blue’s fiction has most recently appeared in The Colorado
Review, Midnight Breakfast and Fourteen Hills. She lives in San Diego.

Idrissa Simmonds is a Brooklyn-born, Vancouver-raised
writer, essayist, and poet. She is at work on her first novel.

Nancy Au’s work has appeared in Word Riot, Identity Theory, Fiction
Southeast, and elsewhere. She teaches Creative Writing at SFSU
and co-founded The Escapery.

Admission: Free. 8:30pm – 9:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Joseph in the Well: "Migrants," Eclectic String Pop Show Inspired by Tales of Immigration
2015-10-18 19:30 - 22:00
Joseph in the Well is the original music project of award-winning Sacramento violinist-looper Joe Kye. Featuring violin, lush string loops, upright bass, and percussion, the band’s sound has been influenced by artists like Andrew Bird, Sufjan Stevens, and Miles Davis. Indicative of Joe Kye’s migrant upbringing, Joseph in the Well draws from multiple genres, including rock, jazz, classical, and more. The final stop on his national tour, this intimate, lively evening seeks to unite, empower, and cultivate the inner child. Joseph in the Well’s performance will feature music, projection art, and dance from some of the Bay Area’s finest artists. This collaborative production is inspired by tales of immigration, identity, and humanity, as told through vignettes and cultural observations
from Kye’s personal journey.
Featuring:
Joe Kye – violin, guitar, mandolin, vocals
Bryan Kilfoil – drums
Casey Lipka – bass
Kirsten Rulifson – dance
Kelli Yon – projection art
Kristen Rulifson – dancer
Hien Huynh – dancer
Follow Joe on Facebook.
Dive into his music on YouTube and Bandcamp.

Admission: $15-20. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Fleshing it (in) OUT: Work in Progress Dance, Music & Performance Art - Curated by Amara Tabor-Smith
2015-10-22 19:00 - 21:30
Amara Tabor-Smith returns to the Red Poppy with Fleshing it (in) OUT, an informal evening of early stage work in progress dance, music, and performance art, rough and ready to be witnessed. Following the performances, the audience is invited to eat delicious food and engage in a discussion about the work. This event is an opportunity for artists and audience to break bread together, ask questions, and share dialogue about art making in an intimate and supportive environment.
Featuring:
Chris Evans
David Boyce
Dohee Lee (photo by Pak Han)
Laura “Larry” Arrington (photo by Robbie Sweeny)
Amara Tabor-Smith (photo by Robbie Sweeny)
Luciane Ramos Silva (photo by Davy Alexandrisky)
Amara Tabor-Smith is a dancer, choreographer, San Francisco native, and Oakland resident. Amara is the artistic director of Deep Waters Dance Theater, which draws upon influences of traditional rituals to depict modern realities of environmental justice. Amara also choreographed and appeared as a dancer in Shakti Butler’s documentary film, Making Whiteness Visible. She is currently an artist in residence at ODC Theater and teaches dance on faculty at UC Berkeley.

Admission: Free, donations accepted. Doors at 6:30pm. Event at 7:00pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Mostly Kosher: Klezmer and Yiddish Jazz
2015-10-23 19:30 - 22:00
Mostly Kosher is a band based in Southern California with a mission to preserve Jewish musical traditions as well as progressing these genres through the sounds of other cultures and contemporary music. The group takes klezmer and Yiddish theater tunes and incorporates genres ranging from Latin jazz and tango, to Afro-Cuban and even hip-hop. Soon after the release of their debut album, Mostly Kosher’s title track, Ikh Hob Dikh Tsufil Lib (I Love You Much Too Much), earned them a recent award from World Music Network.

Featuring:
Leeav Sofer (bandleader) – vocals, piano, clarinet, percussion
Janice Mautner Markham – violin
Michael Bolger – trumpet, accordion
Eric Hagstrom – drums, aux percussion
Mike King – trombone
Adam Levy – upright bass
Skip Heller – guitar
Casey Solow – vocals
Watch the music video for Ikh Hob Dikh Tsufil Lib here!

Admission: $10-15. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Vernon Bush: I am somebody... is everybody - Inspirational Soul
2015-10-24 19:30 - 22:00
Drawing from multicultural influences, Vernon Bush brings together the sounds of soul, gospel, and inspirational for a passionate evening of music. Vernon is a singer, composer, and recording artist who worked closely with the late Whitney Houston and even starred in her first music video, You Give Good Love. He has also worked and sung with Stevie Wonder, Taj Mahal, Joan Baez, jazz vocal legend Bobby McFerrin, as well as many other gifted performers. With his musical groups, he has toured all over the world with his inspirational sound. He is a member of the highly imaginative a cappella group, SoVoSo, and is also a featured vocalist with the Glide Ensemble at the celebrated Glide Memorial Church in San Francisco.

Featuring:
Vernon Bush – lead vocals, keyboards, hand drums
(More musicians TBA)
Follow Vernon on Facebook and SoundCloud.
Get a feel for his music here.
*We encourage guests to embrace and enjoy the evening by disabling cell phone use during the performance.

Admission: $20-25. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Flying Under the Radar Presents LOAN at the Red Poppy Art House
2015-10-30 19:30 - 22:00
Flying Under the Radar and the Red Poppy Art House join together to present an evening of poetry and live music featuring LOAN.

LOAN, founded by poet Tongo Eisen-Martin and guitarist Peck the Town Crier, is a collective of artists that integrates new generation black avant-garde poetry with virtuosic musical exploration. LOAN gives musical shape to the longing for revolution in a landscape of word and chord. It sees today as a time of convergence where music, poetry and all of their respective histories meet to bloom in a time for liberation.

Featuring:
Tongo Eisen-Martin – poet
Peck the Town Crier – guitar
Jon Rogers – drums
Miles Wick – upright & electric bass

More about Tongo Eisen-Martin:
Originally from San Francisco, Tongo Eisen-Martin is a movement worker and educator who has organized against mass incarceration and extrajudicial killing of black people throughout the United States. He has taught in detention centers from New York’s Rikers Island to California county jails, and his work in Rikers Island was featured in the New York Times. He was also adjunct faculty at the Institute for Research in African-American Studies at Columbia University in New York. His latest curriculum on extrajudicial killing of black people, We Charge Genocide Again, has been used as an educational and organizing tool throughout the country. Eisen-Martin is also a revolutionary poet who uses his craft to create liberated territory wherever he performs and teaches. His latest book of poems, someone’s dead already, is being published by Bootstrap Press.

Dive into the poetry of LOAN here and here.
Get a feel for the albums on Bandcamp and SoundCloud.
Read about Tongo Eisen-Martin’s book, someone’s dead already, here.

About Flying Under the Radar:
Leading up to FUTR’s 2017 Biennial Festival of the Arts, FUTR is partnering with local SF/Bay Area organizations to present a vibrant and eclectic range of artists producing work across disciplines and aesthetics, to broaden and deepen relationships across artistic communities.

The first Flying Under the Radar Biennial will debut in San Francisco, California over five days in April 2017. A second edition, in 2019, will occur in Rio de Janeiro. The event will feature thirty emerging or career artists with limited or no exposure outside their home countries. Participating artists will be from the metropolitan areas of Rio de Janeiro and San Francisco/Bay Area, and will be known for working in the areas of Film and Video, Music, Dance and Performance, Poetry, and Visual Arts.

Admission: $10-20. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.

Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

The Bug Tones: Spooky Toons, Blues, and Boogies
2015-10-31 19:30 - 22:00
The golden age of the silver screen and Halloween featuring Betty Boop and Mickey Mouse! For an evening of scary fun and beautiful music, watch the magic of early 20th century cartoons as The Bug Tones play music to make your feet tap and your head bounce.
A composer, bassist, and bandleader, Safa Shokrai is inspired by visual art, architecture, and movement. They inform the color and tone of his work. He strives to create a performance experience in which the audience steps into a film, a world that has been fabricated and imagined, realized with sound and sight.

Featuring:
Safa Shokrai – upright bass
Britt Ciampa – drums
John Finkbeiner – guitar
Larry Leight – trombone
Henry Hung – trumpet
Ralph Carney – saxophones
Ric Carasquillo – animation editor
Catch Safa Shokrai in a performance here.

Admission: $10-15. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.

Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Altar para mi barrio: Art, Poetry, Food & Live Music for Day of the Dead
2015-11-01 18:00 - 2015-11-02 22:00
Día de los Muertos is an extraordinarily auspicious time for the Mission community, and the Red Poppy Art House is humbled to participate in the annual celebration that honors the ancestral memory of the departed. We invite all of our community to join us on Sunday, November 1 and Monday, November 2 for a weekend of art, food, and remembrance.
On Sunday evening, curator Alejandro Meza unveils the exhibition, El Mito Contemporáneo del Más Allá, featuring commissioned altars that pay homage to the dead. The exhibition will be complemented by food (tamales de carne, tamales vegetarianos, champurrado) and live music curated by Sofia Elias.
Monday evening’s program opens with a rumba session featuring Los Rumberos de Cali. Concurrently, Sofia Elias, Adriana Camarena, and Florencia Rojo lead a procession honoring those who have died as a result of police violence. The procession will begin at Alex Nieto’s memorial site on Bernal Hill, stop at Amilcar Perez-Lopez’s memorial site on Folsom Street, and end at the Red Poppy Art House. A guided discussion will follow, led by community members who have lost loved ones to police violence, including Elvira and Refugio Nieto. The night will conclude with a series of live performances honoring victims of police violence, including the work of poet Ben Bac Sierra, a close friend of the deceased Alex Nieto.
November 1st Program
6:00pm: Exhibition, El Mito Contemporáneo del Más Allá
7:30pm: Lara Manzanares
8:00pm: Manos Lindas
8:30pm: Trio Cambio
9:00pm: Camille Mai

Visual Artists: Alberto Toscano, Alejandro Meza, Chelis Lopez, Carlos Pillado, Dennis Maxwell
Curators: Caleb Duarte (Lead Artistic Director), Schuyler Karr (Performance Programming Director), Alejandro Meza (Exhibition Curator), Sofia Elias (Performance/Food Curator)

November 2nd Program

5:30pm: Procession
From Bernal Heights Park at Alex Nieto’s memorial site, down Folsom Street to Amilcar Perez Lopez’s memorial site, to Red Poppy Art House at 23rd & Folsom.

6:00pm: Los Rumberos de Cali live demonstration
Los Rumberos de Cali is dedicated to the preservation of Afro-Caribbean culture throughout the United States. The group includes a community of singers, drummers and dancers who span across all generations, backgrounds and ethnicities. The mission of Los Rumberos de Cali is to organize and promote Afro-Caribbean culture by inviting elements of rhythm, song, and dance into everyday life.
6:30pm: Community Altar @ RPAH
Bring a photo of a loved one, leave a treat for them!
7:00pm: Restorative Circle
Family and friends of loved ones killed by police will participate in a circle guided by four restorative questions. (*Will be filmed)
8:30pm: Performances
Let’s celebrate our beloved deceased!

Co-hosts: Adriana Camarena (Justice4AlexNieto), Florencia Rojo (Justice4Amilcar), Sofia Elias (Red Poppy Art House)

Admission: Free. Event at 6:00pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Steven Lugerner's JACKNIFE: Revisiting Jackie McLean’s Blue Note Recordings
2015-11-06 19:30 - 22:00
Saxophonist Steven Lugerner maintains an active, bi-costal performance schedule between San Francisco and New York City. As a band leader, he has released multiple albums to critical acclaim and has toured the U.S. as a sideman and leader of his own ensembles. He has collaborated with Grammy-nominated pianist Fred Hersch,drum legends Albert “Tootie” Heath and Matt Wilson, pianist Jason Moran, saxophonist Jane Ira Bloom, pianist Myra Melford, trumpeter Darren Johnston, and bassist Todd Sickafoose. Through a contemporary sensibility, Steven Lugerner’s JACKNIFE pays homage to the great alto saxophonist Jackie McLean, Lugerner’s main influence in the jazz idiom.
Featuring:
Steven Lugerner – alto saxophone
JJ Kirkpatrick – trumpet
Adam Shulman – piano
Josh Thurston-Milgrom – bass
Michael Mitchell – drums
Follow Steven on Facebook and SoundCloud.

Admission: $10-20. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Tiffany Austin Quintet: Bessie's Blues: A Tribute to Bessie Smith
2015-11-07 19:30 - 22:00
A dynamic night of blues, soul, and swing, the Tiffany Austin Quintet celebrates the great blues singer, Bessie Smith.

Described by NPR’s Kevin Whitehead as “a musician to keep an ear on,” Tiffany Austin is one of the fastest rising jazz singers in Northern California, with a tradition-rooted yet thoroughly contemporary style. After earning her J.D. from Berkeley Law, Tiffany released her debut CD, Nothing But Soul. Her refreshing singing style has attracted the attention of artists such as vibraphonist Roy Ayers, saxophonist John Handy, and drummer Tommy Campbell. Tiffany has performed at venues across the U.S., including SFJAZZ, Yoshi’s (Oakland and San Francisco), and the Blue Note (New York).

Featuring:
Tiffany Austin – vocals
(more musicians TBA)

Follow Tiffany on Facebook.

Admission: $20. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Advance tickets: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2420678
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Fero Kiraly - Soundring: Hands-On Music Workshop for Children
2015-11-08 11:00
SOUNDRING is an interactive educational workshop for children age five+. SOUNDRING was created by the Slovak contemporary musician and composer, Fero Kiraly. He uses a custom-made electronic instrument called Zvukodrom. During the workshop, children listen, compose and conduct. Fero explains how to listen for varied environmental sounds as a snoring dog, meowing cat or a motorcycle. Children use the Zvukodrom to improvise with those sounds and play together in duet, trio, quartet or even an entire orchestra. Children become aware of mathematically based concepts, such as keeping time, learn collaborative listening skills and even practice the art of conducting.
What is a Zvukodrom?
A Zvukodrom (zvu-ko-DROM) is a special instrument that consists of handmade molded objects of geometrical shapes designed by Martin Piacek. These touch-responsive objects are connected to a computer, which gives users the ability to create sounds and music through software specially designed for the workshop.
Learn more about SOUNDRING and the Zvukodrom here.

Admission: $10 suggested donation. Workshop at 11:00am. For children ages 5+.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Jazz in the Neighborhood Presents: Kristen Strom
2015-11-08 19:30 - 21:30
Presented by Jazz in the Neighborhood’s monthly series at the Poppy, saxophonist/vocalist Kristen Strom brings a program of original and standard tunes in a trio setting with husband Scott Sorkin on guitar and John Wiitala on bass. “With a tone that’s lithe and lustrous, Kristen Strom embodies her musical philosophy in every note she plays.” – Andrew Gilbert
Featuring:
Kristen Strom – saxophone, vocals
Scott Sorkin – guitar
John Wiitala – bass
More on Jazz in the Neighborhood:
Jazz in the Neighborhood‘s mission is to celebrate and invigorate the Bay Area’s rich, musical jazz heritage by creating more opportunities for established local musicians to perform, mentor aspiring players, and share this great American art form with the community. Through collaboration with school music programs and adult big bands, the project enables top-caliber artists to push creative boundaries while helping developing musicians “learn on the bandstand” according to the great jazz tradition. Performances in neighborhood venues not only showcase the wealth of local talent, but also create regular destinations for people to enjoy rich cultural and social experiences where they live.

Admission: $20 advance, $25 at the door, $5 student, sliding scale. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
Advance tickets: https://goo.gl/8f4Zct
Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

BON JOUR MONOGRAMISTA T.D: Slovakia/SF Intermedia Project
2015-11-11 19:30 - 21:00
Monogramista T.D (born as Dezider Tóth in 1947) is considered “the father of Slovak conceptual art” with artwork ranging from performance, installation and bookmaking, to painting, object and minimalist intervention. His work, Partituras (1976-1978), attracted the attention of contemporary Slovak composers and intermedia artists, Fero Kiraly and Ivan Siller. Partituras is a series of ink drawings strongly resembling music scores. Until now, it has never been musically portrayed. Kiraly and Siller, together with a group of interdisciplinary artists, reinterpret various parts of Partituras through music, dance, sound art and spoken word in their multimedia performance, BON JOUR MONOGRAMISTA T.D.
Featuring:
Ivan Siller – piano, sound objects
Fero Kiraly – analog, monophonic synthesizer
David Molina – electronics
Shikha Malaviya – poetry

*Program brought to you by Platform 1-12 and supported by Ministry of Culture of Slovak Republic.

Catch a sneak peak here.
Learn more about the project here.

Admission: $10. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Marcus Shelby Presents: Beyond the Blues: Ending the Prison Industrial Complex, Series 3, Discussion 3
2015-11-12 19:00 - 21:00
The Red Poppy Art House is pleased to present the third series of Beyond the Blues: Ending the Prison Industrial Complex on September 10, October 8, November 12, and December 10, 2015. Marcus Shelby and Jacqueline Ramos return to the Red Poppy for the continuation of these interactive discussions concerning our justice system.

Led by composer, bassist, and bandleader, Marcus Shelby, the series explores the prison industrial complex, restorative justice, prison abolition, the death penalty, the school-to-prison pipeline, mass incarceration, and more. The evenings include special guests, readings, live and recorded music, poetry, and video. These discussions are open to anyone interested in ending the prison industrial complex and how music and art can be used as a powerful vehicle in that process.

Discussion Schedule:
Thurs, 9/10 – Discussion 1
Music and Its Power in Social Justice; Restorative Justice
Thurs, 10/8 – Discussion 2
Prison Abolition and the Death Penalty
Thurs, 11/12 – Discussion 3
School-to-Prison Pipeline Part 3
Thurs, 12/10 – Discussion 4
Action Plan and Solutions to Fight Mass Incarceration

Admission: $10 suggested donation per discussion. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
Doors at 6:30pm. Discussion at 7:00pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Fandangueros: Latin/Filipino Folk and Contemporary Music
2015-11-14 19:30 - 22:00
Traversing the musical footprints between Spain, Latin America and the Philippines, Fandangueros‘ compositions value tradition as well as their new iterations. Fandangueros started out as an outfit to support Florante Aguilar’s commissioned compositions and projects. The group’s identity later evolved through Florante and Chus Alonso’s shared passion for their country’s folk music – the Philippines and Spain, respectively. While Florante’s nationalistic approach is a nod to its Spanish influence, Chus posits that the exchange goes both ways – that Spain’s music is also the beneficiary of many folk traditions from Latin America and beyond.
Featuring:
Florante Aguilar – guitar, arrangements, compositions
Chus Alonso – flute & laud, arrangements, compositions
Sage Baggott – drums
Greg Kehret – double bass

Learn more and listen to Florante Aguilar here.

Admission: $15-25. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Industrial Revelation: Liberation & the Kingdom of Nri - PNW Album Release Tour
2015-11-15 19:30 - 22:00
On tour for the release of their latest two-disc album, Liberation & the Kingdom of Nri, Industrial Revelation takes on everything from jazz, blues, funk, hip-hop, rock, chamber music, and beyond.

Industrial Revelation is about human emotion– the unbridled energy, excitement, passion, beauty and the enjoyment that coincides. Based in Seattle, the band was founded by D’Vonne Lewis through the ambition to continue the musical legacy of his family and to create melodies characterized by a vibrant spirit. Industrial Revelation is influenced by all styles of music and strives to generate something special that transcends the moment, especially at a live show.

Featuring:
D’Vonne Lewis – drums
Evan Flory-Barnes – bass
Ahamefule J. Oluo – trumpet
Josh Rawlings – rhodes/keyboard

“Industrial Revelation embodies jazz; jazz is meta-musical, embodying everything else. And so IR rocks. But really they’re just virtuoso musicians playing risky and loose. They are a joy to hear. They slide around the music scene, doing the thing they do, mercurial and misplaced and unsung. As outsiders, they fit right in.” – Jonathan Zwickel, City Arts

Stream Liberation & the Kingdom of Nri on SoundCloud and Bandcamp.
Follow the band on Facebook and Twitter.

Admission: $10-15. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Maria Volonte: Blue Tango Project: Born in Buenos Aires. Raised on the Road.
2015-11-20 19:30 - 22:00
Hailing from the colorful and gritty La Boca neighborhood of Buenos Aires, Blue Tango Project is an exploration of the emotional and musical crossroads where tango and the blues embrace. The project is a collaboration between Argentine Latin Grammy nominee María Volonté and California harmonica player and poet Kevin Carrel Footer. This globe-trotting duo celebrates the deep spiritual bond that joins tango and the blues as two musical genres born in desire and marginality, many times censored yet always resurgent and speaking directly to our hungry souls.
Featuring:
Maria Volonte – vocals, guitar
Kevin Carrel Footer – harmonica
“The best-kept secret of Argentinian tango… Well established and widely respected in her native Argentina, Maria Volonte is a singer who can switch between jazz and blues-influenced vocals, intimate Argentinian-style folk singing and classic big tango diva numbers.” — Songlines Magazine

Like Blue Tango Project on Facebook and check out their YouTube channel

Admission: $15-20. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Laura Klein and Destiny Muhammad - A Piano/Harp Encounter: From Celtic to Coltrane and Beyond
2015-11-21 19:30 - 22:00
The sound sculptress Destiny Muhammad and lyrically creative pianist/composer Laura Klein combine their formidable talents in concert for the first time. Together they’ll explore an enchanting musical terrain ranging from modal jazz to Celtic music.

Destiny Muhammad is a recording/performing artist in the singer-songwriter tradition with jazz and storytelling to round out the sonic experience. She has performed in Yoshi’s ‘Women in Jazz’ Series, Oakland East Bay Symphony, and with great artists like Calvin Keyes, Marcus Shelby, Omar Sosa, Ambrose Akisemuire, and Denise Perrier. Destiny is the principal harpist for the Eddie Gale Inner Peace Orchestra, the Oakland Community Orchestra, and founder of The Destiny Muhammad Project.
Laura Klein is a pianist/composer with numerous recordings of her original music that have received international airplay. She is the co-leader of FivePlay Jazz Quintet, performs with the Morchestra, and plays with many of the leading Bay Area jazz luminaries. She has appeared at Yoshi’s, the SF Jazz Festival, KCSM’s Jazz on the Hill, Vallejo Jazz, the Cotati Jazz Festival, San Francisco Performances, and has performed with the SF Symphony.
Featuring:
Laura Klein – piano
Destiny Muhammad – harp, vocals
Follow Destiny on Facebook and Laura on YouTube.

Admission: $15-20. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Arouna Diarra and Biko Casini: Balafon Dance Music from Burkina Faso
2015-11-22 19:00 - 21:00
The Red Poppy Art House warmly welcomes Arouna Diarra and Biko Casini for an evening of traditional music from Burkina Faso. Inspired by the pulsing melodies and infectious dance grooves of the balafon, Biko traveled to Bobo-Dioulasso (Bobo), the artistic city of Burkina Faso, to study the djembe in 2007. Arouna, who comes from a family of musicians in Bobo, moved to Asheville, NC in 2012 where he established himself as the bandleader of Mande Foly. Upon meeting in Asheville, the two began playing music together and are now touring the West Coast with the band, Rising Appalachia.

Featuring:
Biko Casini – djembe, calabash, kamele ngoni
Arouna Diarra – doula balafon, kamele ngoni, talking drum

Click here to watch a Mande Foly performance ft. Biko.

Admission: $10. Doors at 6:30pm. Show at 7:00pm. All ages welcome.

Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

CHELLE! and Friends: Celebrating the Holidays with New Orleans Musical Gumbo
2015-11-27 19:30 - 22:00
In a lively celebration of the holidays, CHELLE! and Friends commemorates the vibrant music of New Orleans with influences of jazz, funk, soul, gospel, blues, zydeco, and the rhythms of Mardi Gras Indians.
Artistic Director and Founder, Michelle Jacques, is a new New Orleans native and Oakland’s own “Queen of New Orleans Music”. Together with some of the most distinguished musicians in the San Francisco Bay Area, CHELLE! and Friends stirs all of its influences into a diverse stewpot of musical gumbo.

Featuring:
Michelle Jacques – vocals
Rhonda Crane – vocals
Bryan Dyer – vocals
Donna Viscuso – woodwinds, harmonica
Eric Swinderman – guitar
Kevin Scott – bass
TBA – drums

Like CHELLE! and Friends on Facebook.

Admission: $15-20. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

DOUBLE SHOW: Istanbul Connection: Balkan & Latin Music
2015-11-28 19:00 - 22:00
Istanbul Connection features members of the Bay’s hottest Balkan & Latin bands who came together in preparation for a journey to Istanbul, Turkey. Since inception, the band has played at The Mekan, Arsen Lupen, and Leyla Teras in Istanbul; at Great American Music Hall and Elbo Room in San Francisco; and were featured performers at Burning Man.

Featuring:
Paul Bertin – alto sax
Sean Tergis – percussion
Melissa Cruz – flamenco baile & palmas
Bob Sanders – guitar
Kata Miletich – vocals
Izzy Weiser– bass
Morgan Nilsen – clarinet
Marco Peris – drums & percussion
Raul Vargas – cajon & vocals
Alex Hand – guitars
Gregory Jenkins – Clarinet
Danny Cao – Trumpet
Haluk Kecelioglu – oud, violin & vocals

Watch clips of Istanbul Connection’s past performances here and here.

Admission: $15-20. Doors at 6:30pm. First show at 7:00pm, second show at 8:30pm. All ages welcome.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

The String Quartet Experience: Nahuel Bronzini and the Amaranth String Quartet
2015-12-03 19:30 - 22:00
The String Quartet Experience is Nahuel Bronzini’s arranging journey which joins together the sounds of singer-songwriting and a string quartet. Playing off of the expectations of what a classical string quartet should sound like, Bronzini creates a heightened listening experience of textures and gestures that range between old and new. “I wrote a full string quartet arrangement for each piece in hopes of representing the emotions and images depicted through their music and lyrics, while also printing my own voice as a composer. This is a true collaborative project that brings to life the musical beliefs, fantasies and needs of both myself and the songwriters.” – Nahuel Bronzini

An Argentinean guitarist and composer, Nahuel Bronzini moved to San Francisco in 2010 after completing a degree in jazz at the Escuela de Música Contemporánea in Buenos Aires. Despite Bronzini’s love for popular music, his urge to keep widening his music experiences led him to continue his studies in classical guitar at the San Francisco Conservatory. Bronzini’s original music explores themes of nostalgia and longing, navigating sonorities from both the contemporary classical world as well as jazz and other pop culture-related music. He is also currently involved in several Bay Area music projects as a performer, arranger and/or producer.

With a love of tackling the string quartet canon and as fierce a passion for discovering newly composed works, Amaranth was founded in 2013 and proudly calls the Bay Area home. Members Katie von Braun, Abigail Shiman, Erica Zappia, and Helen Newby bring classical music beyond the concert hall, striving to reach divergent audiences that range from high school classrooms to neighborhood bars alike. Projects this season include a performance at the San Francisco Friends of Chamber Music’s SFMusic Day 2015, participation in Oakland’s Art in Nature Festival, and a residency with the Cypress String Quartet.

Featuring:
Nahuel Bronzini – arranging/artistic direction
Katie von Braun (Amaranth) – violin
Abigail Shiman (Amaranth) – violin
Erica Zappia (Amaranth) – viola
Helen Newby (Amaranth) – cello

Diana Gameros – vocals, guitar, songwriting
Kendra McKinley – vocals, guitar, songwriting
Camille Mai – vocals, piano, songwriting
John Haesemeyer – vocals, guitar, songwriting
Mike Suarez – vocals, guitar, songwriting
Claudio Santomé – tenor vocals
Juan David Mejia – cello
Schuyler Karr – upright bass
(TBA) – percussion

Watch a short documentary about the String Quartet Experience at the Poppy here.
Find out more about the album through the Kickstarter campaign here.

Admission: $15-20. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

Tito y su son de Cuba: A Night in Old Havana Cuba
2015-12-04 19:30 - 22:00
Taking the audience through the streets of Old Havana, Tito Gonzalez returns to the Red Poppy for a night of vibrant tunes with Cuban son and the tres guitar.

Singer/composer Tito Gonzalez is a master showman with a voice that has been compared to that of classic son singer, Daniel Santos. Gonzalez delivers songs that are deceptively simple – between their fluid melodies and retrograde rhythms, they evoke a focus and introspection that Tito attributes, in part, to his life in America. Along with son, his music demonstrates a broad range of Cuban genres such as rumba, guaracha and the most romantic boleros.

Featuring:
Tito Gonzalez – lead vocals, guitar, tres guitar
(more musicians TBA)

Admission: $15-20. Doors at 7:00pm. Show at 7:30pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.

December 5th MAPP: Mission Arts & Performance Project
2015-12-05 17:00 - 22:00
December 5th MAPP Schedule:
5:00pm – 7:00pm: Classical Revolution
Chamber Music for the People
7:00pm – 7:10pm: Byb Bibene & Chris Babingui
Afri-Contemporary Dance – Presented by Flying Under the Radar
7:15pm – 7:35pm: Ben Baker
Experimental Butoh
7:45pm – 8:00pm: Anna Seva & Jessica Brown
Postmodern Dance
8:00pm – 8:20pm: Camille Mai
Alternative Jazz
8:30pm – 9:00pm: Dina Zarif
Persian/Classical
9:00pm – 10:00pm: Makrú
Rumba Flamenca, Cumbia, Ska & Reggae

About Flying Under the Radar:
Leading up to Flying Under the Radar’s 2017 Biennial Festival of the Arts, FUTR is partnering with local SF/Bay Area organizations to present a vibrant and eclectic range of artists producing work across disciplines and aesthetics, as well as to broaden and deepen relationships across artistic communities.
The first Flying Under the Radar Biennial will debut in San Francisco, California over five days in April 2017. A second edition, in 2019, will occur in Rio de Janeiro. The event will feature thirty emerging or career artists with limited or no exposure outside their home countries. Participating artists will be from the metropolitan areas of Rio de Janeiro and San Francisco/Bay Area, and will be known for working in the areas of Film and Video, Music, Dance and Performance, Poetry, and Visual Arts.
Learn more about Flying Under the Radar here and artist/choreographer Byb Bibene here.

About the MAPP Program:
Launched in 2003, the Mission Arts & Performance Project (MAPP) is a homegrown bi-monthly, multidisciplinary, intercultural happening that takes place in the Mission District of San Francisco. On the first Saturday of every even month of the year, the MAPP transforms ordinary spaces such as private garages, gardens, living rooms, studios, street corners, and small businesses, into pop-up performance and exhibition sites for a day/night of intimate-scale artistic and cultural exchange among a kaleidoscope of individuals and communities.
To learn more, visit the Poppy webpage and MAPP website.

Marcus Shelby Presents: Beyond the Blues: Ending the Prison Industrial Complex, Series 3, Discussion 4
2015-12-10 19:00 - 21:00

Byb & Kiandanda Dance Theater Present: Ange Aoussou and Chris Babingui - Dance Africa Dance for Peace and Independence
2015-12-11 20:00 - 22:00
In collaboration with the Red Poppy Art House, Byb & Kiandanda Dance Theater present Dance Africa Dance for Peace and Independence. The evening features performances by two African dancers/choreographers, Ange Aoussou from Ivory Coast and Chris Babingui from the Republic of Congo. Performing their respective solo works, J’aime le rouge and Nibo Nano, these pieces touch on the social-political issues of the African continent that is still struggling to gain true independence and development.
Born in Divo (Ivory Coast), Ange Aoussou had trained in traditional African dance, contemporary, modern and jazz. Throughout her career, she has collaborated with various choreographers from around the world and has worked with Koteba D’abidjan, Institute Djolem of Abidjan, Mr Salif Coulibaly, and Souleymane Koly.
Chris Babingui was born in Enyelle in Congo. At the age of five, he learned the ndombolo and other traditional dances of Congo through the imitation of his elders. After completing his secondary education in 2006, Babingui started his artistic career dancing hip-hop as he joined the group, Boom Danger of Massamba Brunel (aka “Flash”). He has since worked and toured internationally in Africa and Europe after joining the Studio Maho, directed by choreographer Florent Mahoukou.

About Kiandanda Dance Theater and Artistic Director Byb Chanel Bibene:
Kiandanda is an international dance company that does work between Africa, Europe and the USA. Every year, the company holds workshops, the Nzela Program and the Rue Dance Festival, which is held every two years in the Republic of Congo. As formerly named Studio Rue Dance, Kiandanda Dance Theater is a laboratory, a studio where everyone is invited to come and contribute to create the art through conferences, performances and workshops.
Byb Chanel Bibene is a choreographer and performer working in theater and contemporary dance. His own technical and aesthetic sensibility is rooted in the culture and dances of his country of origin. He has toured and performed internationally with companies originating from Africa, England, France and the USA.

J’aime le Rouge by Ange Aoussou:
“We just celebrated 54 years of independence of the black continent. Two generations have passed. Why so many failures? African wars you took me, my body, my land, you have plunged my life in distress. All these tears and cries that fire, these falling bodies, and these extended corpses. The blood that spreads gradually, these martyrs. And the smell of death and widespread fear. Sorry. Turn the other cheek. It is able to forgive. Who hurt you. It also means knowing smile. Who made ​​you cry? Africa, you are my joy memorable although sometimes misfortune strikes, you will remain the land of freedom.”
Watch a clip here.
Nibo Nabo by Chris Babingui:
Nibo Nabo is all about a cry of revolt against the leaders of the country who rule one after the other when the conditions of living are gradually deteriorating to the level of extreme poverty. It is all about the expression of the pains and the feeling of exhaustion of a well educated but traumatized generation of Congolese youth which finds itself threatened by several ills and which feels being sacrificed by the carelessness of the government: lack of water and electricity, increase of unemployment, youth delinquency, lack of social aid.
Watch a clip here.

Admission: $15-20. Doors at 7:30pm. Show at 8:00pm. All ages welcome.
Tickets will not be sold in advance for this event. Please arrive at the Red Poppy when doors open to purchase tickets.
Join the conversation at the Poppy – volunteer with us! Click here.
