This weekend, the Sacramento Master Singers will perform excerpts from Duke Ellington's "Sacred Concerts." It marks several important homecomings. It will be a homecoming for the Grammy-winning piece, which was played by Ellington and his legendary orchestra in 1965 at Sacramento's Westminster Presbyterian Church. Friday through Sunday, it will be played at the Crest Theater, less than half a mile from the church. It will also be a homecoming for Ardie Bryant, the "Ambassador of Tap," who spent his early years in Sacramento and graduated from Sacramento High School. Saturday, the legendary bebop jazz tap dancer, who has danced with everyone from Ellington to Count Basie, Charlie Parker a

Master Barber Shop was established in 1958 and was acquired by Earlie D. and Mary Brown in December of 1974. During that time, the shop was located on Stockton Blvd. and 7th Ave. Since those early days, Master Barber & Beauty Shop, has had several locations. Each location being better than the last. In 1989, sons Rodney and Marichal, joined the family business. The late owner and master barber, Earlie D. Brown, established business in the hair industry in the mid 1940's with Brown's Barber Shop (two locations, San Francisco and Marin City). What started out as nothing more than a dream and a dime and a nail in his pocket has turned into a family business. He died in February 1998. Mary Br

Jazz enthusiasts should be aware of a new talent in town. If you haven't had the opportunity to catch the very beautiful and very talented Casey Lipka perform, opportunities abound this spring. When did you get into music? Music has always been a focal part of my life. As a kid, I would belt out pop songs, often along with my younger sister, in the car as we drove to school. My dad is a huge Beatles fan and plays guitar, so I was fortunate to grow up with live music in the house. My elementary school in Santa Monica, Calif., had a strong music and performing arts program, and it put on school-wide musicals each year. I was also exposed to Haitian music as one of the parents was from Ha

Beatnik Studios was graced Thursday with performances by local jam band CFR and Oklahoma-based postmodern jazz band Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey (JFJO). Beatnik Studios hosted the benefit show for the Music Never Stops Foundation, as part of an ongoing Winter Jazz Concert Series running through April. The collaborative photography studio, off Broadway on 17th Street, has become a space for community engagement and a venue for the jazz series, band launches, a music school and local craft fair, to name a few. There was a real sense of community to the evening as supporters danced to the music of CFR, which has performed at Second Saturday and other local venues and has many loyal Sacramento

        Valentine's Day can be challenging for everyone out there, whether you've got a special someone to impress or not. The choices are limitless, and it can be hard to set something up that everyone will enjoy. This year, why not please the whole crowd with a just-before-Valentine's Day show starring local indie pop songstress Autumn Sky and up-and-comer Tre Burt?     Miss Sky, who recently won the Sac Show award for best Acoustic Show, holds a Valentine's Day show each year. 2009's show at Luna's Cafe drew a huge crowd, where patrons and audience members alike sat on floors and laps to fit in the tiny room. This year will prove to be no less of a good time, especially considering

What can you do with a cowboy boot, a hand saw, some metal pipes and string? A whole lot says Mike Silverman, performing as That 1 Guy on Thursday at Beatnik Studios. Don't miss your chance to see this one man band and his invention, The Magic Pipe. Silverman, who grew up in the Bay Area, was introduced to music by his father's vintage stand-up bass. He says he remembers banging on it until he could reproduce sounds he liked. The instrument and being "in the right place at the right time" to his present career. That 1 Guy has performed internationally and has large fan bases in places such as Europe and Australia, as well as the United States. He plays annually at the Woodford Folk Festi

Sacramento jazz band, Counter Intelligence, just announced two new shows in Sacramento. The first show will be on Thursday, January 7, 2010 at Oshima Sushi, Natomas, Ca. The band will play from 6-9:30 p.m. The second show is at Revolution Wines in mid-town Sacramento. The band will play from 6:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. Counter Intelligence is a Sacramento based instrumental jazz band. The band has four members: Mark Buchholtz, keyboardist; James Radkins on electric bass; Joe Poteet, drummer and; E.J. Koford playing the flute and saxophone. Counter Intelligence has a history of playing songs ranging from classical jazz titles to blues and funk. The flute and saxophone add an interesting twis

A 3-day designer grand slam is coming up, Pecha Kucha Night, brought to you by Ottolini & Associates, Architects. Come see and hear, dozens of the regions best designers, artists, architects and photographers talking about their work. Co-sponsored by Capital Creative Collective and Urban Hive. Music by Alex Trujillo. Thursday, Nov. 5th, The Level Up Lounge - Outdoor Plaza, 8:20-10pm Friday, Nov. 6th, The Urban Hive - 8:20-10pm Saturday, Nov. 7th, MARRS Building - 8:20-10pm What is Pecha Kucha Night? "Each presenter is allowed 20 images, each shown for 20 seconds each – giving 6 minutes 40 seconds of fame before the next presenter is up. This keeps presentations concise, the interest l

Autumn Sky's "Creature Feature" The only Halloween theme to land on a day sure not to interfere with your elaborate Trick-Or-Treats festivities falls on Friday, October the 30th. Join one of Sacramento's top chaunteuses, Autumn Sky, for a night of ghoulish tricks, treats, and musical fun at Luna's Cafe on O and 16th at 8:00pm. Cover at the door is only $6, and it's an all ages event sure to entertain with special guests Adrian Bourgeois, Carly Duhain, and Jared Emme. See you there (muahaha.) Costumes are highly encouraged, as all the talent will be in full Halloween-themed attire!   AUTUMN SKY'S "CREATURE FEATURE" 8:00pm on October 30th. $6, all ages, located at Luna's Cafe and Juice

If you're free this evening, grab a couple of cans and make it on down to Orangevale for this for-a-good-cause event. Autumn Sky will be opening the lineup of indie and rock bands, dedicated to getting food to needy families in the area this season. This will be an 8:00PM, all ages show. The cover will be somewhere around $6, and you are encouraged to bring at least two cans of food with you. Come early for a good place to stand, this is expected to be one of the biggest shows of the year at this venue. As usual, I'll be there early to chat and hang out with you guys. Don't be afraid to say hello!    

The use of the word legend to describe an artist often draws cries of hyperbole. In a musical climate where acts become blockbusters seemingly overnight and evaporate into obscurity just as quickly, it's all too easy to forget about a truly enigmatic icon like Dave Brubeck. Aside from a stint in the army during World War 2, the 88-year-old jazz pianist has been composing and performing since he graduated from the University of the Pacific in 1942. This year marks the 50th anniversary of "Time Out," an album for which descriptors like "landmark," "innovative" and "groundbreaking" were coined. Critically panned upon its release, the seven-song exercise in odd time signatures single-hande

Though the teenage members of the Brubeck Institute Jazz Quintet have played together for less than a month, they have already achieved what many accomplished jazz musicians never will: At the Detroit International Jazz Festival over Labor Day weekend, they performed and shared the stage with legends such as Wayne Shorter, Chick Corea and Christian McBride. They even spent time with Dave Brubeck when he visited their rehearsal. When Brubeck listened to the group's arrangement of his 1956 jazz standard "In Your Own Sweet Way," he loved it, said Steve Anderson, director of the Brubeck Institute. "They're good. That's a given," Anderson said of the group, which will be a quartet Friday nigh

Oliver Lake is a renaissance man in the truest sense of the word. His singular alto saxophone playing has been heard in a myriad of settings, from the groundbreaking World Saxophone Quartet to performing with rapper Mos Def. He’s arranged music for Lou Reed and Björk, composing for the Brooklyn Philharmonic and regularly collaborates with various musicians, poets and dancers around the world. In 1967, Lake helped establish the Black Artists Group in his native St. Louis, Mo., an organization formed to create a sense of community and to set an artistic and business example for young musicians, writers and other artists that still resonates to this day, especially in Lake’s own Passin’ Thr

Jazz keyboard master Roger Smith will perform during the Crocker Art Museum’s Third Thursday Jazz Summer Concert Series on September 17 from 5:30-8 p.m. Smith and his band will bring their lively spirit and exceptional talent to perform an array of melodies ranging from R&B to smooth jazz. This is the final concert of the Summer Concert Series before it takes a hiatus during the winter months. During his 30 year career, Smith has released five CD recordings and collaborated on countless others. His Off the Hook was a smash, No. 1 hit on Billboard’s contemporary jazz singles chart in 1999 and stayed in the top 10 for nearly 20 weeks. Smith returned to the charts in 2004 with the 14-track s

Milton Bowens would like to believe that when you look at his art work you're not merely viewing paintings, his personal opinion or guarded pieces of his soul. You the viewer are being asked to confront history, truth, cultural stereo types and engage the possibilities of the future. Because when he paints he is not just engaging the viewer or confronting the critic over artistic merit, style and validity, he is confronting the use of art as a tool to communicate. He is asking questions, He is seeking solutions. Born and raised in Oakland, Calif., Milton Bowens is the fifth boy of ten children. Milton’s artistic promise began at the age of five with nothing more than a few pencils and cut

Contemporary jazz guitarist Peter Morgan and his ensemble will perform a light and breezy instrumental jazz with a coastal island flavor at the Crocker's popular Third Thursday Jazz Summer Concert Series on August 20. Running from May through September, concerts are held in the Museum Courtyard on the third Thursday of the month from 5:30-8 p.m. Light refreshments and beverages are available for purchase. Concerts are free to Crocker members and $10 for nonmembers. Morgan is regarded as a stand-out vocalist and guitarist who brings an eclectic musical energy to all of his performances. He has performed alongside some of the biggest names in smooth jazz including Fattburger, Michael McDona

Native Sacramento guitarist, DJ and producer Early Times will return home for a performance at Harlow's on Friday. While his MySpace page lists his genre categorization as "Crunk/Dutch pop/Black Metal," Early Times' music is even more eclectic in reality. The sampling of songs on his profile ranges from the slap bass funk of "Doin' the Nasty," to the Hammond organ-inflected blues of "Black Panties," to the spacey, improviasational jam piece "DUI." His capability to play multiple styles has earned him collaborations with a diverse group of musicians both local (Tesla, Cake) and national (trumpeter Wynton Marsallis). Though he currently resides in New York City, Early spent his years in Sa

Sacramento record label Dig Music is best known for releasing records by hometown favorites Jackie Greene, Bucho and Kate Gaffney, as well as classic rock artists Sal Valentino and Cold Blood.     But right now, the label's best-selling artist, with an album at No.3 on the Jazzweek chart, is a release by another label, Unity, in a genre Dig Music has had very little experience with: Jazz.     Jazz trumpeter Scotty Barnhart is signed with Unity Records, but his solo debut, Say It Plain, was released and distributed in May by Dig Music.     Barnhart is doing business in Northern California, although he spends his time either at home in Los Angeles or Tallahassee where he teaches pa

What is Afrobeat? You might not have even heard of it five years ago, but now it's an emerging genre in the United States. It began in the late '50s when Nigerian musician Fela Kuti created the unique style. His music inspired Nigerians to move in more ways than one. The groove made people dance, but the lyrics got them to think about politics and react to government corruption. Truly a "world music," it has even inspired San Francisco band Albino. "It's West African polyrhythms, James Brown horn lines and a great vehicle for social commentary," said Albino saxophone player and co-founder Nathan Endsley. He came across the genre while at UCLA studying music education with an emphasis on

The Sacramento Unity and Diversity Music Festival originaly Scheduled for May 2nd was rained, so we were forced to reschedule. Festivites were ready to get started bands were lined up, vendors and food booths were ready to go. People started lining up at the gate and down it came.. The City of Sacramento allowed us to cancel this event and come back with more strength and blessings. We know this is going to be a one of a kind festival, one that Sacramento has never seen. There will be Reggae, R&B, Salsa, Soca, Gospel Rap, Praise Dancers, Rock, and Dance Toops. We are working to bring All of Sacramento together with one rythem, one beat, one LOVE. You can purchase your tickets online at www