Previews: JAZZ ON VALENTINE'S with Raquel Cepeda at the MATCH complex

If you are looking for a "passionate" event to attend this Valentine's Day, no need to go further than Raquel Cepeda's annual "Jazz on Valentine's" at the MATCH theater on February 14th at 8:00pm. You have just enough time to hit dinner with that special someone, and get to your seats in Midtown. Come as a couple, with friends, or even solo! Each year sells out, and this year looks to repeat that. Yet at the time of this writing there are indeed tickets left, but jump on them quickly! This is a tradition that resonates with the artist and her fans. Raquel Cepeda is a beautiful singer, a striking woman, and a consummate artist.

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This year will mark Raquel's seventh annual Valentines Day show. It is described as a musical aphrodisiac for mind, body, and soul. She is accompanied by a septet which consists of a group of international, world-class musicians. This includes the Americans pianist Barry Sames and contrabassist Thomas Helton, the Brazilians drummer Adriano Santos and percussionist Cassio Duarte, Mexican-born Salvador Velasco on trumpet, and clarinetist, sax and flute player Ernesto Vega from Cuba.

Below is an interview with Raquel, and a little to help you know about this extra special event for the lover's holiday.

BROADWAY WORLD: Can you tell me about how you came to do an annual Valentine's Show?

Raquel Cepeda: It started in 2016. The first one was at Ovations, a little venue in Rice Village, a venue for ninety people. On that first Valentine's concert I wasn't expecting much, but the attendance was overwhelming. I decided to start doing it at the Match Theater, which holds 330 people. I committed to doing the concert year after year, no matter what day of the week Valentine's Day falls, and it is always a full house. I wanted to give a space to celebrate love with the power of music and remind my audience what love needs to flourish: gestures, forgiveness, words, actions, commitment; and to offer couples a different alternative than the typical restaurant outing. I wanted to make it open to any person whether they were in a relationship or not. To me it's about celebrating love in all its forms, which includes friendship. The only year when I didn't have a concert was in 2021 because of the pandemic. Canceling that concert was one of the toughest things I had to do, but I had no choice.

BROADWAY WORLD: What makes you love Valentine's so much?

Raquel Cepeda: . I learned about the incredible power of a gesture on Valentine's Day after I failed to have such a demonstration once in a previous relationship which ended. At the time I justified myself saying "Oh, it's just a commercial thing, why do I have to express my love on this specific day instead of any other day?" But then I saw the missed opportunity to plant a seed of love. It was a chance to show appreciation in the heart of the other person on a day when love is the center plate. I realized such justification was only reflecting my own selfishness, and a desire to make things comfortable for me, rather than acknowledging and celebrating the other. This acknowledgment of the other person is what love boils down to. It asks you to stop thinking about yourself, and think about the other and what makes them happy and honored. Then in a following relationship, the tables turned on me. My boyfriend at the time played the same card. He averted any kind of gesture on Valentine's Day with me because it was "commercial", and then I felt the sting. Needless to say that relationship didn't last either.

All those experiences taught me the importance of gestures to keep love and friendship afresh and alive, and to do them in a timely manner. That you don't need to go overboard, but if you love someone, you have to express it with actions, words, or gestures and not miss the chance to act when the occasion calls for it. That chance may not come back.

That's why to me it is important to make this concert always on February 14. No matter what day of the week it falls, even if it is a Monday which is an unlikely day to have a music event. And in return I have received the greatest blessing: to celebrate Valentine's Day in the company of my now husband Helton Mendes whom I married in 2015, my band members whom I love and appreciate deeply, and my dear friends and followers, who regularly attend my concerts. It is truly a day of joy for me.

JAZZ ON VALENTINE'S is a one night only event at the MATCH complex in Midtown Houston. The concert will begin at 8:00pm on Tuesday February 14th. Several restaurants are within walking distance of the theater, and there are plenty of parking options. Tickets are available through the MATCH website and at their box office.

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