Putting in the time, to have a good time
Happy fall friends!
I was just telling someone the other day how I believe music is a constant process of iteration. You get a group together, play a few times just to get to know each other, play a few more times to figure out what you're doing, compare that to what you all abstractly hoped you would be making in the first place, adjust to accommodate the difference, and repeat endlessly across many projects over many years.
This is all to say, making great music requires time and strong relationships. You can definitely make great music without a lot of preparation, but that usually hinges on strong relationships being in place, which takes time.
This weekend I'm playing two shows with two different groups that have grown very powerful because of time spent on the music and the time spent together over the years.
Duo with Lyn Rye at Cafe Mustache Friday 10/4
My collaboration with bassist / singer / songwriter Lyn Rye is one of my longest running musical partnerships. We first played in 2018 at a free improvisation event. I joined Lyn's group shortly after and we've played dozens of shows all around the country, including an epic East Coast tour in February 2020. On top of that, Lyn frequently appears in my ensembles, and we've also played as backing musicians for quite a few artists across a few genres.
All of this diverse music-making has given us a certain level of sonic telepathy in my opinion. We can play jazz, funk or country and we'll be able to follow each other, even if things are trying to go sideways.
This Friday 10/4 we'll be playing a duo set of Lyn's songs as part of a night of duos curated by the incredible Chandler Browne. In edition to us, there will be a guitar + vocal duo, and a tap dance + vocal duo. It's going to be very cool and very satisfying.
Hope to catch you at Cafe Mustache Friday. Show starts at 7, and lyn and I close it out.
Piraguas y Piropos at Clara Saturday 10/5
Over the past three years, I've definitely put in the most musical hours with Puerto Rican folk group Piraguas y Piropos. Marcos Rios (guitar), Jose Carasquillo (cuatro) and I have built up a massive catalog of traditional and original music in the Jibaro style (music of the Puerto Rican mountains).
Lately we've been more of a band-for-hire playing private events and parties, so I'm excited to return to a more public-facing stage with this group.
We'll be playing at Clara (2027 W North Ave), which is an almost brand-new cocktail bar that is fiercely dedicated to booking live music, which is much needed and very refreshing.
We'll be there from 8:30pm till late. Hope to catch you there for some great grooves and top-notch beverages.