Ben Rounds – Wells Park, Brewster – September 3, 2016
In addition to relocating the farmers market to Wells Park this year, Brewster has also (thankfully) added occasional live entertainment. This week was Ben Rounds; when I arrived he seemed to be in a mini-set of dog-related tunes, so I was happy that he could accommodate my request, Hank Williams’s “Move it on Over”.
Ben Rounds
Tabou Combo – Rubenstein Atrium – September 1, 2016
The Haitian roots of this group go way back; it has now been headquartered in NYC for decades, but beneath my radar. For the event, space that is customarily given over to seating had been cleared of chairs to make way for dancing, which was definitely the order of the day. The music was compas, a high-energy rhythmic pan-Caribbean style. This in turn worked to my benefit, as it allowed me to change settings several times for the full complement of sketches.
Herman Nau
Jean-Claude Jean
Yves Joseph
Ron Felix
Jonas Imbert
Yvon Andre
Reynald Vlame
Andre Atkins & Saxophonist
Jocel Alcemus
TC Trumpet
Roger Eugene
Ralph Conde
John Luther Adams “Inuksuit” performance – Governors Island – August 27, 2016
This was a large piece that involved a whole slew (too many for me to count) of percussionists spread out across the Hills section (iconic brand new habitat) of Governors Island. Unfortunate dealings with the ferry – 5 minutes late translates into missing 40 minutes of music! Oh well! Situation was too complicated to get everything signed and documented; for now I’m just posting the composite of the sketches I got, with the composer’s autograph.
Inuksuit
John Luther Adams & me
Steve Kroon – Louis Armstrong House Museum – August 25, 2016
One more new venue for me; choosing the subway is choosing an all day thing. Upside: curry goat to be had on the very block! Kroon’s driving congas keep this hot combo on track; he got to solo a bit on a small talking drum, wild stuff! Work on Mateo was baptised by the intermittent sprinkles, from one more sky that threatened, threatened, then held off.
Steve Kroon
Bryan Carrott
Adan Perez
Joel Mateo
Donald Nicks
Craig Rivers
Busking New York City (Subway): Jorge Espinosa – August 25, 2016
Espinosa was in a nook next to stairs on a landing between subway platforms of the Grand Central Station. I told him that he improved the subway!
Jorge Espinosa
Duwamish River Festival – Duwamish Waterway Park, Seattle – August 20, 2016
A community festival that includes performances of various cultural groups? No brainer for me, I’m there. Especially if there’s an environmental injustice angle, as there is here; Seattle’s South Park neighborhood adjoins the Duwamish Waterway, a Superfund site. I sure hope I got the spelling right for the Kalpulli group – I copied from the program, but have seen a few other variants on the web. Banda Vagos, somewhat of a family thingy, was the heavy hitter in the entertainment department. The banda genre is a Mexican cultural melange mashup (the brass band aspect is a German/Austrian influence) with propulsive high energy, which these guys had in spades! With nine separate portraits, of a dozen players (got ’em all!) I’m just posting the composite here.
Carlos Barajas
Rafaela Luna-Pizano
Banda Vagos
Coyle’s Bake Shop – August 20, 2016
If you peruse certain real estate listings in certain Seattle neighborhoods, proximity to a purveyor such as Coyle’s can be a selling point. The coffee, only a stumble (that is, no crossing of street) from our situation, certainly had me sold. The baked goods also looked awesome, but we partook little of these. But are not the creators of these goods artists themselves, worthy of portrayal? Here’s the answer.
Rebecca Dethlefsen
Zak Perna
Los Buhos – Phinney Farmers Market – August 19, 2016
This trio (translation = “the owls”) seemed to be a scheduled entertainment at the farmers market, so I put them a notch above the buskers. Smason was the group leader, alternating between cajon and trombone. The music had a charming, bilingual, ramshackle nostalgia, inviting without imposing, and was set up off to the side from the main market area, with convenient and spacious seating.
Los Buhos
Busking Seattle – Pike Place Market – August 18, 2016
My buddy Joshua, when told that I would be sketching, had given me a minimalist keep-kids-busy-at-the-restaurant-size crayon box (4 colors), which I vowed to put to use. VanDam, a real howler, got the call for this exploration of a new medium, unleashing a startling irony. Of all my recent sketchings, his portrait seemed to have a most direct gaze, despite its gauzy haze. Only later did I come to realize, and confirm, that he is blind, and had been totally oblivious to my activities. Well, except for when I sang along a bit (on “Honky Cat”). Getting the autograph was an adventure.
Chad VanDam
Mike E. Bell
Fly Moon Royalty – Seattle City Hall Plaza – August 18, 2016
This group – half of the day’s configuration was vocalists – had an extremely full sound and quite the soulful groove. And it was blazing hot out there! Jackson and Boo are the nucleus, modeled a bit like Sharon Jones et al., and indeed there is a linkage. They were accompanied and enhanced by a lockin’/poppin’ dancer. Paint was applied frantically to the rhythm, with even a touch of raw watercolor cake impasto on the Jackson.
Adra Boo
Action Jackson
Earnie Ashwood
Lola Campbell
