Harlem Stage’s new music series Uptown Nights at Harlem Stage, which debuts Sept. 26, reaches back to the time when uptown was the place to seek out the next big thing in music, and to hear top artists of the time play in settings where socializing, and community building, was paramount.
The Uptown Nights series opens with “2012: The Hip Hop Experiment” featuring a line-up of rising young musicians, dancers, and visual and technological artists who are leading the next wave in music and art. Events continue monthly throughout the fall, mixing a vibrant, intimate club vibe featuring DJs and open bars with intriguing experimental music that embraces everything from hip-hop to Latin, jazz to electronic-rock, and live beats.
Uptown Nights events are curated and produced by Harlem Stage and a variety of collaborators including prominent young artists like Marc Cary, Tamar-Kali, and Dana Leong, nightlife impresarios like producer Shon “Chance” Miller, and music collectives like Jazzmobile. Co-presenters include The Center for Jazz Studies at Columbia University, and the Columbia/Harlem Jazz Project.
“Harlem has a rich history of music, culture, and community-building,” says Patricia Cruz, Executive Director of Harlem Stage. “During the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920s and 1930s, African-American cultural and intellectual life flourished. People came here from all over to watch plays, hear music, and meet friends. Artists like Fats Waller played in small clubs and private salons while people socialized, sang, and leaned in on his piano to listen. Uptown Nights builds on this legacy for a new, younger generation of people.”
“2012: The Hip Hop Experiment.” takes a modern spin on this early 20th century tradition. Host Jessica Care Moore will introduce each performer and read poetry throughout the evening. Musical sets feature up-and-coming talent including emcees Holistic and Holy Smokes, vocalist
Crystal Monee Hall, the Smash Mechanics Band, and Len ‘Tuac’ Xiang. Established performers are on the bill, too including Marc Cary and the Black Instruments Band with special guests Chicago-based funk/soul musician Peven Everett, and Phonte (of Little Brother). Cary has played with
Dizzy Gillespie,
Betty Carter, Abbey Lincoln, Erykah Badu, Meshell N’degeocello, and Lauryn Hill. Cary’s music, and sets by DJ Jazzy Jay, underscore performances by vocalists, emcees, and dancers throughout the evening. Audience reactions, captured by “sensory response” technology, enhance the room’s ambiance.
“This is sure to be a night of genre-defying performances,” Cruz says. All Uptown Nights at Harlem Stage events take place at the Harlem Stage Gatehouse (150 Convent Avenue at 135th Street). Tickets are $15 at
www.HarlemStage.org or by phone, 212-281-9240, ext. 19 or 20. A full listing of the series is below.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
2012, The HipHop Experiment
6 pm – Pre-performance dialogue with Marc Cary and Shon “Chance” Miller;
7:30 pm – Doors open
Hosted by poet Jessica Care Moore, this series premiere features Marc Cary and his Black Instruments Band (with special guests Peven Everett, and Phonte of Little Brother), emcees Holistic and Holy Smokes, vocalist
Crystal Monee Hall, the Smash Mechanics Band, Len ‘Tuac’ Xiang, sets by DJ Jazzy Jay, performances by dancers, emcees, vocalists, and more. Pre-performance dialogue is followed by an hour-long open bar mixer. Audience reactions, captured by “sensory response” technology, add to the room’s ambiance.
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Yosvany Terry: A Jazzmobile Community Dance Party
7:30 pm
Yosvany Terry and his band join with DJ ASHO, special guest emcees, Cuban dancers, and visual artists for a night of grooving to a Latin beat. Featuring an hour-long open bar mixer, followed by the performance and a closing DJ set, this is one rumba not to miss. Part of the new Uptown Nights at Harlem Stage music series.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Tamar-kali’s Cabaret Chocolat: An Autumn Night’s Soiree
6 pm – pre-performance dialogue with artists;
7:30 pm – performance
Tamar-kali, a force of nature with a most original voice, and her all-female Psychochamber Ensemble are joined by special guests The Maine Attraction, Monstah Black, Keibpoli, Master of Ceremony “Marco the Magician,” and special surprise guests. Evening includes an open bar mixer, followed by a night of haunting deconstructed songs, fierce dance, burlesque, spectacle, and illusion. Co-presented with The Center for Jazz Studies at Columbia and the Columbia/Harlem Jazz Project. Part of the new Uptown Nights at Harlem Stage music series.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Milk & Jade by Dana Leong
6 pm – pre-performance dialogue with artists;
7:30 pm – performance
Milk & Jade features Dana Leong on cello, trombone and laptop. His band combines live grooves, electronically charged tracks, and poetic rhyming to create instrumental hip-hop beats with rock propulsions. The party starts with a full-hour of open bar and ends with DJ Scientific and special guests as they rock the house for this finale to the new Uptown Nights at Harlem Stage music series.
Uptown Nights at Harlem Stage is part of the Harlem Stage Inside/Out Initiative, which receives leadership support from the
Ford Foundation. Harlem Stage Partners Program receives leadership support from Deutsche Bank and public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts. Visit the new Harlem Stage website and blog:
www.HarlemStage.org.
