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Opera at the Chimes - The Ugly Duckling Chimes Chapel Sunday, August 24, 2008 from 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm Oakland Lyric Opera's 2008 Sunday Afternoon Musicale & Tea Series presents "The Ugly Duckling," Prokofiev, Opus 18. Join soprano Paula Goodman Wilder and piano accompanist Alexander Katsman for their special interpretation of this early work for voice and piano which was later orchestrated in 1932. It is set mostly word for word, with only a few parts left out of the tale. In the dialogue between piano and voice, the composer uses an extreme economy of means in some places--alternating in the right hand between just two notes--like a drone, while the voice weaves in and out of dissonance with the piano. The simplicity is deeply affecting. The piano has to create sound-pictures of ducks waddling and flapping, little birds sitting on a fence and fluttering off, birds pecking and attacking; then, the bleak frozen landscape, and finally, with spring, the soaring flight of larks and swans and flowers bursting into bloom. The ending when the "duckling" discovers he is a swan is completely ecstatic. An artists reception will immediately follow the performance. Tickets $20 General, $18 Students, Kids 12 to 17 Free / Checks or cash only /Includes post-concert reception. Reservations requested. Tickets may be purchased at the door / Box office open at 12:30 p.m.; Doors open at 1:30 p.m. Free parking in lot across the street Reservations / Info: (510) 836-6772 or -6773; oaklandlyricopera@juno.com
Weblinks: Oakland Lyric Opera

Chimes Tour Chapel of the Chimes Mausoleum Saturday, September 20, 2008 from 10:00 am - 12:00 pm A remarkable vision was fashioned at the beginning of the 20th century in Oakland at the end of Piedmont Avenue—the California Memorial Columbarium, now known as Chapel of the Chimes. Designed by the gifted Julia Morgan and later expanded under the creative vision of Frank Lloyd Wright protégé Aaron Green, Chapel of the Chimes has been serving families in need for over a century. Now a City of Oakland Distinguished Landmark, Chapel of the Chimes is a community treasure preserved from the past and entrusted hereafter to present and future generations. Beautiful gardens, alcoves, stairwells, fountains and chapels rising into vaulted ceilings and illuminated by natural light await you! Space is limited for these docent-guided tours. Reservations are highly recommended. Please phone to let us know if you can join us. Contact: Allison Rodman (510) 228-3207 The Chimes Tour happens the third Saturday of every month from 10 am to noon.


Jazz at the Chimes - Vive Le Jazz Chimes Chapel Sunday, September 21, 2008 from 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm "...Think Paris...and red wine...and new love, lost in a kiss on a wet cobblestone street" and you have Vive Le Jazz! Berkeley-based gypsy jazz quintet Vive Le Jazz! (formerly known as The Very Hot Club) doesn’t imitate or reproduce the music of their inspirational icons Django Reinhardt or Stephane Grappelli of the Quintette du Hot Club de France. They instead renew the original concept, writing new songs in a style that captures the spirit of a time when popular taste and art coincided. Led by guitarist/vocalist/songwriter George Cole and singer/fiddler/producer Kathy Sierra, along with Vic Wong, Julian Smedley and Carla Kay, Vive Le Jazz! creates an irresistible blend of nostalgia and cutting edge modernity. The concert at Oakland's Chapel of the Chimes on September 21 will be followed by a reception where the public can meet the artists, enjoy refreshments and purchase CDs. Tickets $15 general/ $10 seniors & students available at the door only starting at 12:30 pm on the day of the show. Cash only. Kids under 12 are free. Plenty of free parking. Contact: (510) 228-3218; mdorazi@lifemarkgroup.com
Weblinks: Vive Le Jazz!

Jazz at the Chimes - vocalist Jamie Davis Chimes Chapel Sunday, October 19, 2008 from 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm Jamie Davis, dubbed the “chocolate baritone,” holds a position amongst the pantheon of great male vocalists with a full deep baritone voice that has been paired with some of the world’s most famous talent. Davis counts Patty Austin, Tony Bennett, George Benson, The Count Basie Orchestra, Rosemary Clooney, Jimmy Cobb, and Billy Cobham, Wycliffe Gordon, Plaz Johnson, Jimmy Heath and John Handy as some of the premier performers with whom he has shared the stage. During his career, Davis has traveled and performed extensively around the world as a headliner and as the lead vocalist for the Count Basie Orchestra. His full rich, deep baritone voice was tapped to narrate ‘A Time to Remember,’ a docudrama which won the Black American Independent Filmmakers Award. In 1999 in recognition of his steady accomplishments in the San Francisco area jazz scene, Davis was invited to be a part of the prestigious ‘Bay Area’s Giants of Jazz’ photograph, a event inspired by the acclaimed, historical ‘A Great Day in Harlem’ photo of 1952. Davis’ solo CDs include It’s All About Love, It’s A Good Thing and his newest Vibe Over Perfection (release July 2008). The concert will be followed by an artist reception where concert-goers are invited to meet the artist and his band, enjoy refreshments and purchase CDs. Tickets $15 general/ $10 seniors & students available at the door only starting at 12:30 pm on the day of the show. Cash only. Kids under 12 are free. Plenty of free parking. Contact: (510) 228-3218; mdorazi@lifemarkgroup.com
Weblinks: Jamie Davis

Jazz at the Chimes - Marcus Shelby Trio Chimes Chapel Sunday, November 16, 2008 from 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm Bay Area bassist, bandleader, composer and educator Marcus Shelby has garnered high esteem in the jazz community here in the Bay Area and beyond. In his 23 years in jazz he has built a diverse and accomplished biography. Recent honors include the City Flight Magazine 2005 award as one of the “Top Ten Most Influential African Americans in the Bay Area”. Shelby was bandleader of Columbia Records and GRP Impulse! Recording Artists Black/Note and is currently the Artistic Director and leader of The Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra, The Marcus Shelby Septet and the Marcus Shelby Trio, which he brings to the Chimes on this date. The concert will be followed by an artist reception where concert-goers are invited to meet the artist and his band, enjoy refreshments and purchase CDs. Tickets $15 general/ $10 seniors & students available at the door only starting at 12:30 pm on the day of the show. Cash only. Kids under 12 are free. Plenty of free parking. Contact: (510) 228-3218; mdorazi@lifemarkgroup.com
Weblinks: Marcus Shelby