Music Makes a City

Music Makes a City.

This title was shamelessly borrowed from a wonderful documentary film about the history of the Louisville Symphony Orchestra, produced and directed by my dear friend, Owsley Brown. As is often the case, you sometimes find other’s words perfectly describe what you are trying to convey, so I am giving credit where it is due.

Art and culture do make a city great, and we are fortunate to live in just such a place. My earliest memories of Jazz involve falling asleep in a red leather booth at a club in the west village that my dad had dragged me to. It was Dave Brubeck, and I was eight, at most.  That gift may have been lost on me, but something clearly filtered through. Next was traveling to see Pat Metheny in New Haven with a few like-minded high school friends. That relationship has lasted for forty years (as have some of those friendships) and it is still going strong. Pat regularly plays Memorial Hall on his way to Tokyo or Warsaw. Yes, we are that lucky.

So, we have some fun coming up this spring that I look forward to sharing with you. Truly amazing shows, in wonderful settings, that simply can’t be missed. Brad Meldhau, a virtuoso jazz pianist, who has often played with Pat Metheny (and everyone else). John Medeski, of Medeski, Martin and Wood fame, will be at Xavier University. And finally, bassist Christian McBride, at our own, Caffè Vivace. Maybe, it seats forty people.

Take advantage of what this amazing place has to offer and go see these shows!  A chance to win a pair of tickets to each of these concerts is available as part of an ongoing program initiated to support mental health programs at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. Tickets for the raffles start at only five bucks (available through CCHMC, here), with all proceeds directly supporting the hospital's programs.  So, give it a shot.  

I hope to see you there.  

Thanks, Ian.