The band, the organizers, garden members.
Jazz musicians bring lively
energy to East Village garden
BY BOB KRASNER
In the East Village, there are a whole
lot of community gardens – 39, at last
count. In a city that has a total of 550,
that represents a big chunk.
Luckily, the caretakers of these lovely
oases take the “community ” part seriously,
sharing their well-tended spaces
with their neighbors and frequently hosting
events that range from art workshops
to poetry readings to composting events
to concerts.
Last week was a perfect example, with
two of the more active spaces lending
their plots to some wonderful performers.
On Aug. 25, El Sol Brillante, an extremely
lush garden at 522 East 12th St.,
partnered with Ariana’s List and the Jazz
Foundation of America to present Willie
Martinez and His Latin Jazz Collective in
a free show as part of the Charlie Parker
Jazz Festival. Parker lived a few blocks
away on Avenue B and there is traditionally
a day-long concert in his honor in
Tompkins Square Park, but COVID
concerns canned that event.
Introduced by Ariana Hellerman (of
the eponymous List) and Maddy Feldman
Flotilla DeBarge mentioned that the while the hairdo may have been a
tribute to Minnie Riperton, the voice probably wasn’t going to be.
of the City Parks Foundation, Martinez’
band – consisting of veteran players
Steve Gluzband (trumpet), Ben Lapidus
(guitar), Bernardo Minoso (bass), Renato
Thomas (percussion) and Martinez on
drums and vocals – put their own spin on
world-class renditions of tunes associated
with Parker such as ‘Night In Tunisia’,
PHOTOS BY BOB KRASNER
‘Caravan’ and ‘Body and Soul’.
The night was hot, space was limited
and the mosquitos were in attack mode,
but the garden thoughtfully provided bug
spray and the music was so good that
those left standing stayed until the end.
All in all, a perfect East Village summer
evening.
The following night La Plaza Cultural,
at the corner of East 9th St. and Avenue
C, hosted the fi nal evening of a series
titled ‘Garden Variety’, presented by
TWEED TheaterWorks and HOWL Arts
in various gardens in August, including
the 9th St. Community Garden and
Park,De Colores Community Yard and
Garden and the 6&B Garden.
Curated by Tweed’s Artistic Director
Kevin Malony, the evening was hosted by
esteemed drag performer Flotilla DeBarge,
who also sang a few numbers and left no
doubt that “When You’re Good to Mama,
Mama’s Good to You.
”Other performers included the Off The
Bar Brass doing instrumental versions of
tunes by Dua Lipa, Katy Perry and Amy
Winehouse, who probably rolled over once
or twice as the combo stomped through
their version of her hit ‘Valerie’ with a
drum, a sax and a tuba.
Joseph Keckler, a performance artist
who employed his operatic voice to tell
the tale of having sex with a ghost, was
defi nitely the outlier. The Tenement Tenors
came from Lawrence, MA armed with
their own tunes, but also demonstrated
what it would sound like if Peter and
Paul dropped Mary in order to cover Patti
Smith’s ‘Free Money’. Cleo Berlin used the
opportunity to debut her new band, Cleo
and the Heartbreak and it was absolutely
an auspicious start.
Closing the show was a solo gig from
local fave Claudi of the Pinc Clouds,
fresh off a west coast tour. The rest of
the band may have needed some rest,
but the group’s indefatigable leader – in
their trademark dress and wig – turned
the remainder of the evening into a dance
concert with joyous renditions of older
tunes such as ‘Soul In My Body’ to originals
from the brand new Spanish only LP
‘La Atomica’.
While the free space in front of Claudi
fi lled up with hopping and gyrating Pinc
Louds fans, Miss DeBarge surveyed the
scene and pronounced the event a success.
“The evening went fabulously,” she declared.
“A great garden, an eclectic crowd
and beautiful people enjoying their lives in
the age of the Rona and the Delta.”
If you’d like to help any of these non-profi t
entities continue their work, you can:Donate
to HOWL Arts: https://www.howlarts.org/
give/Buy a t-shirt athttps://elsolbrillante.org/
and then attend their fundraiser on 9/18.
Also, check them out on Instagram at @
elsolbrillantegardenIf one t-shirt isn’t enough
(and it never is), check out the website www.
laplazacultural.com for their merchandise.
10 September 2, 2021 Schneps Media
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