Results for "California"

Adam Shulman: A Charlie Brown Christmas & Beyond

by Steven Roby
December 22, 2025

In this festive episode, Steve Roby chats with acclaimed pianist, composer, and educator Adam Shulman, a key figure in the San Francisco jazz scene since 2002. Known for his work as a sideman with artists like Paula West, Stefon Harris, and Miguel Zenón, as well as for his own original albums, Adam shares insights into his ...

Vince Guaraldi’s Christmas Sauce: Adding Spice to Charlie Brown Vanilla

by Arthur R George
December 21, 2025

It's not simply that pianist Vince Guaraldi slipped jazz past the unsuspecting in composing A Charlie Brown Christmas, the evergreen “Peanuts" animation and soundtrack that has become inescapably part of the holiday. First broadcast in 1965, going on to six decades ago, A Charlie Brown Christmas is a tradition unto itself. It returns to television through ...

Michael Mayo: A Voice Taking Flight

by Steven Roby
December 21, 2025

In this episode of Backstage Bay Area, host Steve Roby sits down with vocalist and composer Michael Mayo to discuss his whirlwind year. Fresh off two Grammy nominations--Best Jazz Vocal Album for Fly and Best Jazz Performance for “Four"--Michael opens up about the surreal moment he got the news in Paris. We dive into his viral ...

Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot skillet Lickers At Keys Jazz Bistro

by Walter Atkins
December 20, 2025

Ben Folds at Miner Auditorium

by Steven Roby
December 20, 2025

Ben Folds Miner Auditorium San Francisco, CA December 8, 2025  The holiday season often feels like a cultural rhyme--an annual cycle where the visuals, smells, and sounds are intentionally, comfortingly, and sometimes maddeningly similar to those of previous years. This was the perspective that pianist and singer-songwriter Ben Folds explored last Monday ...

The Klezmatics at Miner Auditorium

by Steven Roby
December 19, 2025

The Klezmatics Happier Joyous Hanukkah Miner AuditoriumSan Francisco, CA December 15, 2025  As they near their 40th anniversary in 2026, The Klezmatics delivered a jazz-infused Hanukkah program to SFJAZZ that balanced groove, grief, and collective resilience while keeping the dance floor in mind. Drawing on material from Happier Joyous Hanukkah, recently ...

Anat Cohen at Miner Auditorium

by Steven Roby
December 16, 2025

Anat Cohen Miner Auditorium San Francisco, CA  December 11, 2025  The lobby of the SFJAZZ Center on Thursday night buzzed with the warm, affectionate energy of a family reunion. People of all ages embraced and caught up in the aisles, creating a communal atmosphere for a sold-out night that celebrated a ...

Ms. Lisa Fischer And The Orrin Evans Trio at Miner Auditorium

by Steven Roby
December 15, 2025

Lisa Fischer and The Orrin Evans Trio Miner Auditorium San Francisco, CA December 7, 2025  This partnership combines Lisa Fischer's soaring, acrobatic vocal power with Orrin Evans' refined, inventive jazz arrangements. It is a meeting of two worlds: the grounded, “barefoot" vulnerability of a singer who has spent forty years backing ...

Sachal Vasandani: Best Life Now, Stripped Back

by Steven Roby
December 13, 2025

In this episode of Backstage Bay Area, host Steven Roby sits down with vocalist and songwriter Sachal Vasandani. Known for a voice that critics call “transfixing," Sachal has collaborated with everyone from Wynton Marsalis to Bobby McFerrin. Sachal discusses his latest project, Best Life Now, and the surprising journey of taking that album--originally produced ...

The Klezmatics: 40 Years of Revolutionary Joy

by Steven Roby
December 12, 2025

In this episode of Backstage Bay Area, host Steven Roby sits down with Frank London, trumpeter and founding member of the Grammy Award-winning band The Klezmatics. For four decades, The Klezmatics have been the world's leading voice in blending traditional Yiddish roots with the energy of punk, jazz, and gospel. Frank shares stories from ...