This performance is sponsored by the Don Chisholm Friends of Jazz at Kerrytown Concert House.

Since its formation as a nonprofit organization in 1998, The Phoenix Ensemble has been a resource for artists and the educational community. The Phoenix Ensemble is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization registered in the State of Michigan. All donations are tax-deductible.

PhoenixPhest! is a 3-day chamber music festival held on the campus of Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, MI. PhoenixPhest! provides a unique opportunity for musicians of all ages to play with and be coached by experienced professional musicians in pre-formed, or "Phoenix-phormed" groups. In addition to fun and challenging small-ensemble work, students attend large-group workshops and perform their pieces in Pease Auditorium at the end of the weekend.

Artist information and program details for this performance TBA. Check back soon for updates! For more information on PhoenixPhest and the Phoenix Ensemble, visit www.phoenixensemble.com

This performance is sponsored by the Don Chisholm Friends of Jazz at Kerrytown Concert House.

This performance is sponsored by the Don Chisholm Friends of Jazz at Kerrytown Concert House.

"The evidence is piling up that young Ms. Parlato is the most original jazz singer in a generation."  - Steve Greenlee, Boston Globe

The evidence is piling up indeed:

Album of the Year
— Last Call, KIOS-FM

Album of 2011
— Tom Schnabel, KCRW

50 Favorite Albums of 2011
— NPR

"Her approach is so unique she stands to create a jazz vocal genre unto herself."
- Michael Bailey, All About Jazz

"75 years ago, nobody sang like Billie Holiday -
today, nobody sings like Gretchen Parlato."
- Wilbert Sostre, All About Jazz

"...her voice is a conflux
where hope,
sensuality
and tragedy
all merge."
- Steve Greenlee, Boston Globe

"The evidence is piling up that young Ms. Parlato is the most original jazz singer in a generation."  - Steve Greenlee, Boston Globe

The evidence is piling up indeed:

Album of the Year
— Last Call, KIOS-FM

Album of 2011
— Tom Schnabel, KCRW

50 Favorite Albums of 2011
— NPR

"Her approach is so unique she stands to create a jazz vocal genre unto herself."
- Michael Bailey, All About Jazz

"75 years ago, nobody sang like Billie Holiday -
today, nobody sings like Gretchen Parlato."
- Wilbert Sostre, All About Jazz

"...her voice is a conflux
where hope,
sensuality
and tragedy
all merge."
- Steve Greenlee, Boston Globe

Make a reservation for the 9pm show.

KCH proudly welcomes back Susan Chastain--celebrated jazz vocalist and owner/impressaria of the Firefly Club for many years--for what will be her third annual birthday appearance at Kerrytown Concert House. She is joined by her superb jazz colleagues Paul Keller and Phil DeGreg. To celebrate her birthday, Susan will perform selections from the Great American Songbook. This concert is part of KCH's Kerrytown Club series, a chance to enjoy great musical moments in a nightclub setting. Call early to reserve café tables in the front of the hall. A cash bar will be available.

This event is co-sponsored by the Southeastern Michigan Jazz Association.

Make a reservation for the 9pm show.

KCH proudly welcomes back Susan Chastain--celebrated jazz vocalist and owner/impressaria of the Firefly Club for many years--for what will be her third annual birthday appearance at Kerrytown Concert House. She is joined by her superb jazz colleagues Paul Keller and Phil DeGreg. To celebrate her birthday, Susan will perform selections from the Great American Songbook. This concert is part of KCH's Kerrytown Club series, a chance to enjoy great musical moments in a nightclub setting. Call early to reserve café tables in the front of the hall. A cash bar will be available.

This event is co-sponsored by the Southeastern Michigan Jazz Association.

Janis Siegel and Laurel Massé, founding members of  vocal group The Manhattan Transfer, have long shared a love of the great girl groups of American pop music like the Boswell Sisters and the Ronettes.  In 2000, they banded together briefly with fellow Transfer singer, Cheryl Bentyne, to form Moxie, selling out a weekend engagement at New York's famous Birdland and quickly developing a devoted following. But the Transfer's touring dates and Massé's solo career made scheduling difficult. When Bentyne and her family moved to Los Angeles, the three decided to part company. However, the dream of a close-harmony female trio stayed very much alive, and in 2006 Laurel and Janis welcomed New York Voices' Lauren Kinhan into the group. The three singers began to meet often to sing through arrangements of classic American standards and original material. In 2008, Dare Records asked Siegel to produce a CD of Johnny Mercer tunes. She took the assignment, and That Old Mercer Magic became a showcase and tour-de-force for the new vocal supergroup, JaLaLa. 

JaLaLa (for Janis, Laurel, and Lauren) is three extraordinary singers who each have formidable group and solo singing talents and credits. The trio has performed for sold-out audiences throughout the northeast. In 2012, JaLaLa will be performing select dates in the U.S. and abroad, putting their own spin on music of  Queen and Dolly Parton, Brubeck and Bach, along with classics by Lambert, Hendricks and Ross, and their own original compositions, sharing that new JaLaLa magic!

Co-sponsored by the Modern Greek Program at the University of Michigan. This performance is also supported by the Michigan Council for the Arts and Cultural Affairs and the National Endowment for the Arts.

The John Shea Trio Reunion concert will be a truly special jazz event that's been a long time in the making. These shows will be a sentimental trip down Memory Lane for pianist John Shea, string bassist Paul Keller and drummer Pete Siers, who performed as a working unit for many years in West Michigan. Kerrytown Concert House audiences will feel the love and admiration that these great musicians have for each other and will get a sense of their long history together. John Shea will "swing his brains out" on the Kerrytown Concert House's exquisite Steinway grand piano! John Shea plays a smooth and swinging, straight-ahead jazz style that incorporates bits of Oscar Peterson, Erroll Garner, Duke Ellington and Bill Evans. For fun, John also sings on occasion, the "good old" standards and sometime during the evening the entire trio will sing in 3-part harmony a light-hearted tune from Nat King Cole, Bobby Troupe or Irving Berlin.

The John Shea Trio Reunion concert will be a truly special jazz event that's been a long time in the making. These shows will be a sentimental trip down Memory Lane for pianist John Shea, string bassist Paul Keller and drummer Pete Siers, who performed as a working unit for many years in West Michigan. Kerrytown Concert House audiences will feel the love and admiration that these great musicians have for each other and will get a sense of their long history together. John Shea will "swing his brains out" on the Kerrytown Concert House's exquisite Steinway grand piano! John Shea plays a smooth and swinging, straight-ahead jazz style that incorporates bits of Oscar Peterson, Erroll Garner, Duke Ellington and Bill Evans. For fun, John also sings on occasion, the "good old" standards and sometime during the evening the entire trio will sing in 3-part harmony a light-hearted tune from Nat King Cole, Bobby Troupe or Irving Berlin.

This performance is sponsored by the Don Chisholm Friends of Jazz at Kerrytown Concert House.

This event is supported by the Michigan Council for the Arts and Cultural Affairs.

"Shin Hwang, who is currently pursuing a dual master’s degree in piano performance and fortepiano at the University of Michigan, performed Schubert’sSonata in A minor, D. 845 and the Piano Trio No. 2 of Beethoven. Hwang’s command of the historical instrument was clear from the first measure of the Schubert. The quiet melodies in the opening had the audience leaning in to hear the mystical tunes."

For more information please visit www.akropolisreedquintet.com

On March 11, Akropolis will juxtapose the music of the French Baroque great Rameau with the up-and-coming contemporary sounds of new classical music. The two halves of the concert will present the past and present of classical music while illustrating the possibilities of chamber music to come. 

Akropolis' mission: "To provide prominent new composers a place to write complex, accessible music, where they can trust it will be performed with care and passion."

Since 2009 Akropolis has been a cauldron of new music, committed to mixing together the excitement and opportunity only possible through contemporary composers and their daring compositions.

Akropolis has commissioned 12 works for their unique combination of instruments and is currently in the process of preparing their next set of vibrant new compositions, including the work of Jason Turbin (Los Angeles), Robbie McCarthy (Arizona), Paul Dooley and Garrett Schumann (University of Michigan), and others.

Akropolis brings to each work their award winning presentation, having won the grand prize of two of the United States’ prolific national chamber music competitions – the Plowman competition and the MTNA competition, for prize money worth over $10,000.

Recently they have premiered works by composers Babur Tongur, Asaf Peres and David Heetderks. In total Akropolis has collaborated with composers from Turkey, Isreal, France, Japan, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, and the United States. Their programs are created to combine new music in the most accesible way possible. In national classical music competitions, their repertoire has proven to surpass performances by promising string quartets and other traditional classical music ensembles from around the country. Akropolis is committed to bringing the most colorful and accessible parts of contemporary music to the stage, and they embody this commitment in their passionate performances.

The evening's program will be chosen from works premiered by Akropolis in the past year, and other works Akropolis has performed during their two-time national grand prize winning season last year.           

Visit Akropolis' website for more information.  This performance is made possible with support from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs.

Michigan Music Monthly Episode 4 from Lansing Public Media on Vimeo.

Two of Michigan’s premier world music groups come together for a musical journey around the world. With them they bring the traditional sounds, rhythms and instruments of Indian, Klezmer, and Arabic music, blending them seamlessly with western harmony and jazz improvisation. These two groups represent the incredible diversity and cultural fusion found in Michigan’s premier college towns.  The plan is to feature each band doing a set of their music and then at the end both groups join on stage for a big rollicking improvisation!  Do not miss this one night only event!

Classical Arabic instrumental pieces from the twentieth century become frameworks within which traditional Arabic forms and rhythmic patterns blend with Western harmonic backgrounds and rhythmically charged pop and world-music grooves. Arabic instruments - oud, percussion, and bass - are joined byKlezmer-influenced clarinet, American folk mandolin, and Indian tabla. Contemporary fusion pieces and original compositions combine these various influences and allow for extended improvisations that showcase the different improvisatory traditions represented in Wisaal.

Wisaal has been active in creating projects and finding performing opportunities. In December 2011, Wisaal received the Excellence in Diversity Awards for “Excellence in Advancing Global Competency,” from Michigan State University. A feature about Wisaal was produced during summer 2011 and is available for viewing on Lansing Public Media. Wisaal has performed at various venues around Michigan, from Charlevoix to South Haven, Michigan State University's Wharton Center Cobb Great Hall, to intimate settings in local coffee shops. Wisaal has performed in festivals and social functions in the Detroit area for the Arab-American community. The group has recently diversified its performance offerings by collaborating with a Lansing based dancer, Leilah. Wisaal released a short debut recording, "Mosaic" in 2011 and is working on its first feature cd to be released in 2012. To learn more, please visit www.wisaalmusic.com

Sumkali is Michigan’s premier Indian music group. There 2010 debut C.D. ‘Mandali’ has earned them international recognition. They are currently working on there second album, due out early 2012.  Sumklai has been doing performances, masterclasses, festivals and workshops since 2003 when they were formed by tabla player John Churchville and sitarist Meeta Banerjee.  They continue to work with the University Musical Society, (UMS) and Center for South Asian Studies (CSAS), at the University of Michigan to help bring awareness to the rich traditions of Indian music. To learn more, please visit www.sumkali.com

Imagining the Arts seminar • Ann Arbor Boychoir quartet • Magdalen Fossum, ukulele • flute choir • classical guitar • piano and violin duo • Steiner High School jazz quartet

Muffins and juice will be served.

The mission of Allen Creek Preschool is to support the healthy development of children from birth to age six. We do this by integrating early childhood education with modern psychoanalytic knowledge to benefit children, their parents, and the greater community.

For more information please visit allencreek.org

Sandra and Tony, separately, have been performing for many years. Sandra has performed around Detroit and around the world, bringing her sultry style to the finest clubs and stages.  Tony has been entertaining Detroit audiences with his velvety baritone for many years, included as a featured soloist for local choirs and church concerts.  Together, they have become Detroit’s Premier Jazz Duo – bringing back a beautiful style of vocal jazz that has audiences swooning and swaying to the familiar sounds of the classics everyone loves.

John Pappas: "After volunteering to do some design work for Mark Braun's (a.k.a. Mr. B) Joybox Express, I've had the good fortune to become friends with him. After discussing a possible collaboration and in an effort to combine Mark's musical prowess with my drawings, we decided to "illustrate" Mr. B's Birthday Bash. Mark chose work from several blues and boogie woogie greats and asked me to create a portrait for each player.

Inspired in part by religious icons, the portraits have been drawn in ink on hinged, three-pieced wood panels. Incidentally, Mark supplied the woodworking that was needed to prepare the panels. When open they are roughly 24" wide and 21" tall."

What is Mr. B's Annual Birthday Bounce? The Michigan Daily also wanted to know more during their last interview with Mr. B:

“(Boogie woogie) came from the Deep South. As it relates to pianists and piano-playing, there was a huge movement of pianists in the late 1920s and 1930s that took the blues, and took elements that they liked of it,” Braun explained. “They were influenced by the way they traveled from job to job in the deep South, (which) was on freight trains.

“It became a very effervescent, outgoing, extroverted and happy way of playing the blues, and it became what we call boogie woogie,” Braun added.

As the performance approaches, Braun is excited to bring his extraordinary energy and talent to the Kerrytown Concert House stage.

“My birthday falls in mid-February. It’s just a way for me to celebrate. It’s a chance for me to play at one of my favorite venues locally. I don’t have to be halfway around the world.”

As he prepares for his "Birthday Bounce" performance, Braun hopes more people will want to experience the musical styles he holds so close to his heart.

“It’s just a reality that there are not many people left who play this style of music anymore. Even around the whole world, there aren’t a lot of people,” Braun said. “I would say if you’ve never heard it before, it’s a chance to hear something that is a little rare and unusual from someone who’s been doing it their whole life, loves doing it and loves showing that I love it when I play (Arumugam, 2010).”

Read the full article here

"A vigorous, carefully shaped... [and] polished performance, with elegance and energy finely balanced."

        -The New York Times

The Chroma Piano Trio was formed by Nurit Pacht (violin), Robert deMaine (cello), and Priya Mayadas (piano). All three artists have prominent recital, orchestral, and chamber music careers and are recognized for their unique creative perspectives. Leonard Rose called deMaine “one of the most profound talents [he had] ever encountered.” Pierre Boulez praised “the validity of [Pacht’s] stylistic point of view” and “her excellent technical qualities.”  And John Corigliano stated that Mayadas has “extraordinary…enormous talent [and] musical personality.” Collaborations at the Morgan Library & Museum, Bargemusic, and Maison Française/New York University in New York received critical acclaim and standing ovations, and inspired the group to pursue new concerts and recordings together.  The New York Times has praised the members’ “vigorous…carefully shaped [and] polished performances, with elegance and energy finely balanced, and an admirably thoughtful approach...” As soloists and as an ensemble, the three share a musical vision: to play with expressive resonance and every gradation of color and intensity, or chroma.

The trio members have been frequent guest artists in chamber music festivals worldwide, including Marlboro, Aspen, Seattle, Chautauqua, Norfolk, Mainly Mozart (San Diego), Santa Fe, Heidelberg, Festival Asturias, San Miguel de Allende, Buenos Aires, Mecklenberg Vorpommern, Divonne, Stresa, Kfar Blum, George Crumb, Tartini, Tel Aviv, Monadnock, and have also performed with Music from Marlboro in New York and Washington, D.C. The Chroma Trio is currently the Trio-in-Residence at Chamber Music Grosse Pointe in Michigan. 

This performance is made possible with support from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs.

“A Taste of the Oscars” will be held on Thursday, February 16, from 7:30pm-9pm. Presented in conjunction with Kerrytown Concert House and Everyday Wines, the event will feature Metro Times film critic and 826michigan board member Jeff Meyers and Detroit News film critic Tom Long discussing 2012 Oscar nominees. 

Attendees will enjoy the storied atmosphere of Kerrytown Concert House as they sip five delicious wines and learn an insider’s perspective on the year’s nominees, what the awards mean, and the sometimes strange history of the Oscars. Wines will be chosen by event partner Everyday Wines. Proceeds from “A Taste of the Oscars” will benefit the next generation of film critics and screenwriters by supporting 826michigan’s free creative writing and tutoring programs for students 6-18 in Washtenaw County.

“I personally have always loved watching the Oscars,” says Amanda Uhle, 826michigan Executive Director. “But I don’t always have time to see even one Best Picture nominee, much less all of them. And I know I’m not the only one out there! I’m looking forward to spending an evening enjoying wonderful wines and interesting discussion in the beautiful Kerrytown Concert House.”

Tickets to “A Taste of the Oscars” are $30 and are available for purchase at https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/221233. Learn more about legendary local venue Kerrytown Concert House at www.kerrytownconcerthouse.com. For more information about “A Taste of the Oscars”, 826michigan, or its programs, please call (734) 761-3463 or visit www.826michigan.org.

ABOUT 826michigan

826michigan is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting students aged six to eighteen with their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write. Our services are structured around our belief that great leaps in learning can happen with one-on-one attention and that strong writing skills are fundamental to future success.  For more information, visit www.826michigan.org.

This event is sponsored by:

Read Hot Club of Detroit's NPR feature here.

More than seven decades after the innovations of the Quintette du Hot Club de France, featuring guitar virtuoso Django Reinhardt, combos called Hot Clubs carry on the gypsy jazz sound around the globe - in Tokyo, San Francisco, Seattle, Sweden, Norway, Austria, and many other locales. None, however, offers a fresher take on the tradition than the Hot Club of Detroit, led by fast-fingered Reinhardt disciple Evan Perri. Hot Club of Detroit has headlined nearly every jazz festival, club and concert hall in Southeast Michigan as well as various venues throughout the country. Read their NPR feature here. This performance is made possible with support from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs.

See the University of Michigan Musical Theatre seniors in one of their final Ann Arbor performances!

Daniel Belnavis • Daniel Berryman • Gabi Deluca • Alex Finke • Colin Hartman • Olivia Hernandez •       Bre Jackson • Samantha Massell • Danny Romeo

Students from the renowned University of Michigan Musical Theatre Department have collaborated with celebrated New York cabaret duo Eric Comstock and Barbara Fasano to present a unique evening of American song. Barbara and Eric are in residence at the University for one week, working with 10 student performers on new arrangements of classic songs, shaping the interpretations and sharing their insights from years of highly regarded performances around the country and well-reviewed recordings.  

Eric himself will be the accompanist/pianist for this special performance, giving audiences a rare opportunity to experience the exciting original arrangements of Comstock and Fasano as performed by the future stars of Broadway, film and television.

Eric Comstock and Barbara Fasano, whose electrifying combination of warmth, wit, swing and sensuality have made them the nightclub world's most celebrated team, began 2011 with an acclaimed ("Exhilarating" –New York Times), sold-out engagement at the Oak Room Supper Club at the Algonquin Hotel. Winners of the 2010 New York Nightlife Award, they are as entertaining as they are musically savvy.

Whether the song is by Cole Porter or Paul Simon, Duke Ellington or Joni Mitchell, Comstock and Fasano make it fresh and new, and their audiences feel they've been to a terrific party where the music and the stories have been equally great. 

Stephen Holden of The New York Times has declared that "Mr. Comstock and Ms. Fasano are turning the neighborhood into a hotbed of pleasure." Rex Reed of The New York Observer wrote, "He is hip, daring, confident and dynamic. She gives off palpable electricity. They lure sophisticated New Yorkers to discover magic after midnight. If love is a wave, they’re riding the crest of it."  The New York Post’s Frank Scheck raved, "Their joint venture is a capital idea. When they sing together the evening is transformed from collaboration to alchemy."

Although they’ve been compared to Nick and Nora, Fred and Ginger, and Lunt and Fontanne, Comstock and Fasano's unique style is all their own. The multi-award winners (MAC, Nightlife, Back Stage Bistro, Mabel Mercer Foundation) have been honored as vocalists, recording artists, and writers of their numerous performance pieces.  They received an unprecedented three MAC Awards in one year including Best Vocal Duo, Outstanding Female Vocalist and Record of the Year. Barbara’s award-winning Record of the Year, “Written In The Stars”, a Harold Arlen collection, is played on radio stations throughout the world, and has been praised in such diverse publications as JazzTimes and Playbill.  Eric, the co-creator and star of the hit revue OUR SINATRA, just released his fourth CD, “bitter/sweet”, an intimate guitar-vocal collaboration with guitar star Randy Napoleon. 

Barbara and Eric also love to share what they’ve learned with students of all ages.  They have an ongoing relationship with University of Michigan’s Theatre Department, and will be in residence this winter.  Their work as teachers includes private coaching, workshops and master classes in the art of performance and song interpretation.

Their many New York engagements include Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Merkin Hall, Symphony Space, New York Festival of Song, Feinstein's, The Carlyle and Birdland, and the 92nd Street Y's ‘Lyrics and Lyricists’ series. They headline at Caramoor, Cooperstown Music Festival, Arizona Jazz Festival, The Rrazz Room in San Francisco, Guild Hall in East Hampton, Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis, Prince Music Theatre in Philadelphia, The Colony Hotel in Palm Beach, and in music festivals and concert halls from coast to coast.