Trio's Restaurant and Jazz Club

In South Bend we are lucky to have a jazz restaurant and club. Trio's Restaurant and Jazz Club has great food and great music. Many of the musicians that play here come from the Chicago area. The club/bar area is comfortable with a small stage at the front and a bar with flat screen TVs at the side. Usually the music is really good. If it has one down side it is that at times it can be a little hard to hear the music over the talking, especially towards the back. There is a nice mix of people who are just hanging out to socialize and those who are there specifically to listen to the music. Last Friday I had the privilege of seeing and listening to the Scott Burns Quartet. They played a mix of standards and originals. Scott has a great sound on tenor, and it was one of the best mixed bands I have heard at Trios. If you ever have a chance to hear this group I highly recommend them. For those of you who are in smaller towns do you have any music clubs in your towns that you would recommend?

Jars Of Clay - Elkhart County Fair

Jars of Clay

Ahhhh the smell of fried foods and.... well.... animals. Local fairs are a great way to see live music. On Sunday we went to the Elkhart County Fair to see Jars Of Clay. They are a Christian rock band. It was raining pretty good when we arrived. However the fair has free admission on Sunday!!! The grandstand has free admission too!!! So we took our seats early and waited for the show to begin, under the grandstand canopy and out of the rain. The band played for about an hour and a half. They played their newer songs at the beginning. The last three quarters of the concert finished with some of their more popular songs. Overall it was a good experience. Great cost! Too many calories! And great music!

How To Find Local Music Performances

One of the ways that I find local artist in my area is by an organization called Arts Everywhere. This is a community foundation that lets artists post their events on their website. Many of these events are free or low costs. This is a great an inexpensive way to go and hear live music. There are some events that can get pricey, but the majority of them are local bands playing at clubs and restaurants. Do you have other ways of finding local music events in your communities? If so let me know!

Jazz Showcase - Ian Torres Big Band

Chicago is approximatly a two hour drive from my house. My wife and I decided to make the trip to Chicago to see some old high school classmates of mine play at the Jazz Showcase. We arrived at our hotel and then ate supper at State Street Bread Company. Fairly good meal a little expensive, but hey it is to be expected in Chicago. After eating we headed to the Red Line Subway station, which happened to be in front of our hotel. It took about ten minutes to get from our hotel to the Polk street station. I was pretty impressed, it certainly beat driving in traffic. So then a one block walk over to the Jazz Showcase. We arrived about a half hour early and paid our $10 cover charge. After a short wait we proceeded into the main hall and found a seat. Ian, who went to high school with me, greated us right away. The Jazz Showcase is the second oldest jazz club in Chicago. It has been at this location for a little over a year. Tons of jazz memorbilia adorn all of the walls. A huge mural of Charlie Parker is behind the stage. Another classmate of mine, Mark, came over and greated us. He plays trumpet in the band. The Ian Torres Big Band began playing approximatly at 8PM. This is a big band that features the music that Ian has written or arranged. The band has some very good musicians. One thing that struck me right off was that the audiance in the Jazz Showcase was there specifically to listen to the music. That is refreshing as most of the clubs around here are primarily for socializing and the music is secondary. After the first set the band went into the audiance and mingled with the crowd. At approximatly 10PM the second set began. The crowd thined out a bit but most stayed for the whole set. After the set we said goodbye to Marc and Ian and headed back out to the Red Line. Fifteen minutes later we were at the hotel and ready for some sleep. After sleeping in and having breakfast we did some window shopping, saw some street musicians, and then headed home. If you ever get a chance to see the Ian Torres Big Band, or chance to visit the Jazz Showcase, make sure you do it. We had a great time and I am sure I will visit this place for future concerts. As for the Ian Torres Big Band I am obviously a big fan!!!

Off To Chicago

Image by windelbo via Flickr

Tonight I am off to Chicago. One of the nice things about living in the Midwest is that we are close to a lot of big cities. Tonight my wife and I will be dropping by the Jazz Showcase. This is the second oldest jazz club in Chicago. We will be seeing the Ian Torres Big Band. Ian is a high school classmate of mine. He was a great trumpet player in high school and now has his own big band in Chicago. I am really looking forward to seeing this. When I am back I will post how the night went!!!