Showing posts with label South Pasadena Public Library. Show all posts
Showing posts with label South Pasadena Public Library. Show all posts

Thursday, November 06, 2008

SUEZENNE FORDHAM CHAMBER JAZZ LA
"NEW ORBIT"Series
Next concert this Sunday
November 9th 08 7:30 PM-10:PM
Complimentary Admission
818 371 7735

South Pasadena Library Concert Hall
1115 EL Centro
South Pasadena, Ca.

Our music is a very new and adventurous
sound. At times incorporating Tibetan Percussion,
fused with bop, Classical, Avant Garde with touches of Bill Evans'
beauty, sensitivity and soul. Our sound is at once passionate, intimate and
inspiring, taking you on a beautiful musical journey to the far reaches of the Universes.

Our muses are Bill Evans, Monk, Barber, Rach,Bach, MXM, and Bobby Bradford.

The venue is hip arty, and historic.

SUEZENNE FORDHAM, STEINWAY PIANO
Charlie Domingo, Contrabass
Cassidy Turbin, Drumset and Winds
Rochelle Coatney, Latin Percussion, Drumset


Writer-Critic Myrna Daniels critiques "uthentic Jazz sensibility that's so understated, but oh so hip."

Thursday, April 12, 2007

Al Young, California State Poet Laureate to Appear at the South Pasadena Library

The South Pasadena Public Library and the Friends of the South Pasadena Public Library are proud to present California State Poet Laureate Al Young for a free, fun Author Night Program on April 27th at 7:00 p.m. in the Community Room at 1115 El Centro Street. This will be Mr. Young's first appearance after his California State Library sponsored "Top to Bottom" tour of the of the Golden State's outlying rural areas. It will also be his only public reading during his trip to Southern California, although he will be a panelist at the Los Angeles Times Book Fair the next day. No tickets are necessary and during April, a display of many of Al Young's books can be seen at the Library.

Mr. Young's impressive literary record includes novels, poetry, essays, memoirs, and anthologies. He has been a poet, writer, teacher, and lecturer throughout his storied literary career. As a screenwriter Young has worked with Sidney Poitier, Bill Cosby, and Richard Pryor. His book Bodies and Soul: Musical Memoirs won the American Book Award in 1981. His latest is the recently published Coastal Nights and Inland Afternoons.

In March 2005, a panel of literary experts convened to review the 26 finalists for the position of California Poet Laureate. Three final names were forwarded to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger who appointed Al Young as Poet Laureate. "He is an educator and a man with a passion for the Arts. His remarkable talent and sense of mission to bring poetry into the lives of Californians is an inspiration," said Governor Schwarzenegger. The California Poet Laureate's role is to publicize the art of poetry and encourage literacy and learning in the state.

Al Young of Berkeley is well known for his distinctive style and performances with jazz artists, so it should come as no surprise that a topnotch combo, the Suezenne Fordham Chamber Jazz Piano Trio, will be opening the show with their distinctive musical stylings. The group also includes Noah Garabedian, contrabass, and Darren Ross, drums and percussion, and will be backing Mr. Young's readings as well. All three musicians play Tibetan percussion instruments. Coincidentally, April is both National Poetry Month and National Jazz Month.

The program is also sponsored by Poets & Writers, Inc . with funding from the James Irvine Foundation. Special thanks to Artists' Inn and California Arts Council.