Blue Note to Welcome Jesse Dee, Tessa Souter and More, Now thru 6/4

Blue Note has announced the following upcoming events:

 

LATE NIGHT GROOVE SERIES

Friday, June 1, 2012 • 12:30AM • $10

 

"Jesse Dee writes timeless soul songs that resonate as both humble tributes and clever updates of the classics.  He brings them to life with a compelling voice that will lift you up as sure as it will lay you down.  Dee has been hard at work since releasing his critically acclaimed debut album Bittersweet Batch (2008).  He and his band, a gathering of Boston's best talent, have toured the U.S. and Canada and are in high demand on the European festival circuits.  Dee has performed with the likes of Al Green, Solomon Burke, James Hunter, and his personal favorite, Etta James.  Having shared the stage with legends like these, he has gained recognition as an important player in modern soul music.  With his second album due for release this year, soul music is in good hands with Jesse Dee."

 

 

LATE NIGHT GROOVE SERIES

Saturday, June 2, 2012 • 12:30AM • $10

 

"Chilean-born pianist Coto Pincheira is an internationally experienced pianist playing a variety of styles, from classical, jazz, afro-cuban, salsa, to pop.  Coto started his studies at age nine, studying organ at the Yamaha Academy in Viña Del Mar with Leonardo Barrientos and at the Conservatorium of the Catholic University of Valparaiso with Anibal Correa, Chile’s most renowned classical pianist.  At 24 he headed to Havana Cuba for ten years, meeting, studying and working with Cuba’s most renowned artists such as Hilario Duran, Ernan Lopez Nussa, Ruben Gonzales, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Chucho Valdes, and Frank Emilio.  He performed for two years in the world famous Tropicana Cabaret - the first and only foreign pianist to accomplish the honor for two years, playing for artists such as Omara Portuondo, Oscar Valdes, Amaury Perez Los Papines, Bamboleo, and Diakara."

 

 

SUNDAY BRUNCH SERIES

Sunday, June 3, 2012 • 12:30PM & 2:30PM • $29.50 includes show, meal & 1 drink

 

"Vocalist Juancho Herrera started his musical journey with the influence of his native Venezuelan music tradition.  After a successful period performing professionally in his home country, he traveled to the U.S. in 1993 to study at Berklee College of Music and has remained in the country ever since.  Herrera has collaborated with numerous notable artists, including Claudia Acuña, Marta Gomez, Lila Downs, Sofia Koutsovitis, Mercedes Sosa, and Johnny Pacheco.  He has performed at The Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall, and other prestigious venues, as well as in Argentina, China, Germany, India, Mexico, Spain, Sweden, Venezuela, the U.S., and many other locations across the globe.  Herrera has recorded several albums as a leader and sideman, including Buscando (2005) and his latest release Banda (2011), which includes collaborations with Anat Cohen, Jason Lindner, Claudia Acuña, Aquiles Baez, and more."

 

 

MONDAY NIGHT SERIES

Monday, June 4, 2012 • 8:00PM & 10:30PM • $20 at table / $10 at bar

 

Tonight at the Blue Note, Souter celebrates the release of Beyond the Blue, her fourth album and second for Motéma Music.  On this new offering, the London-born Anglo-Trinidadian New Yorker has raised the bar once again.  Souter assembled a dozen classical melodies by composers for this recording, including Beethoven, Brahms, Schubert, and Chopin.  Three of the songs are familiar standards, "The Lamp Is Low" (Ravel), "My Reverie" (Debussy), and "Baubles, Bangles, and Beads" (Borodin).  The others are new standards, with lyrics by Souter. All express the album's leitmotif – exploring The Shadows and light of love and intimacy.  "Although this is a semi-classical project, it turned out to be the most impromptu recording I've ever done," says Souter.  "I was finalizing lyrics up to the very last minute.  This meant everyone had to be super sensitive and creative, really listening and responding to each other in the moment, in the true spirit of jazz."