Today’s “Fab 5”/ Selected NYCity Events – TUESDAY, FEB. 04, 2014
For other useful and curated NYCity event info for Manhattan’s WestSide check out:
♦ “Notable NYC Events-Feb”, and also “on Broadway”, and “Top10 Free” in the header above.
♦ For NYCity trip planning see links in “Resources” and “Smart Stuff” in the header above.
New Tech City: Tech, Music and the Brain
“This event, featuring a panel discussion and performances, will explore the connections between music and the brain. Participants include Mary Farbood, an assistant professor of music technology at New York University, who has researched how the brain processes music and how computers can enhance musical creativity; the composer and musician Laurie Anderson; Manoush Zomorodi, host of WNYC’s “New Tech City”; and Helga Davis, a vocalist and performance artist who will perform.” (NYT)
the Greene Space, 44 Charlton Street, at Varick Street, SoHo,
At 7 p.m. / $20, which includes a beer or a glass of wine.
866-811-4111, thegreenespace.org
Mike LeDonne’s Groover Quartet
Hammond B3 master Mike LeDonne, who was nominated for Best Keyboard Artist 2012 by the prestigious Jazz Journalists Association, leads a jazz dream team of artists in this long-running house party. “…saxophonist Eric Alexander, guitarist Peter Bernstein and drummer Joe Farnsworth are joining LeDonne to present their version of what in the trade is called “grits and gravy” jazz. This is groove music that’s fun and good for the soul.” – (Greg Thomas, NY Daily News)
Smoke, 2751 Broadway (btw105/106 St.)
7pm & 9pm two-course dinner prix-fixe available for $29.95 / no music charge
10:30pm $20 minimum (dinner optional) / no music charge
212-864-6662/smokejazz.com
DANCE ON CAMERA 2014
“Among the diverse offerings during the festival’s forty-second iteration are films about the teacher Martha Hill, the music-video choreographer Vincent Paterson, the tap dancer Derick Grant, and the Bharata Natyam veteran Malavika Sarukkai. There’s rare footage of Rudolph Nureyev and of mid-twentieth-century ice-skating spectaculars. Especially notable is “Creative Domain,” a rare glimpse into the rehearsal process of Paul Taylor.” (NewYorker listings)
Film Society of Lincoln Center
Visit filmlinc.com for full schedule.
Amina Figarova Sextet
“The pianist Amina Figarova, born in Azerbaijan and now a New Yorker after spending years in the Netherlands, draws partly here from her most recent album, “Twelve.” Her band features her husband, Bart Platteau, on flute, along with the tenor saxophonist Marc Mommaas, the trumpeter Alex Pope Norris, the bassist Luques Curtis and the drummer Jason Brown.” (Chinen-NYT)
Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Jazz at Lincoln Center, 60th Street and Broadway,
At 7:30 and 9:30 p.m./ $30 cover, with a $10 minimum
212-258-9595, jalc.org
‘What’s It All About? Bacharach Re-Imagined’ (through Feb. 16)
“The only thing disingenuous about this hybrid production—equal parts cabaret show, rock concert and off-Broadway musical—is the spurious claim that Burt Bacharach’s classic songs have been “updated” or, worse, some made “relevant” to the contemporary generation. Nothing of the sort.
The arrangements by singer-guitarist Kyle Riabko, who conceived and orchestrated “What’s It All About? Bacharach Re-Imagined” are exciting and novel yet still gloriously tethered to the 1960s: Now the songs sound more like part of the score to “Hair” than “Promises, Promises.” Remarkably, the seven-member cast of singer-dancer-musicians (who are usually performing all three of those actions simultaneously), doesn’t indulge in any star turns, and there are no show-stopping 11 o’clock numbers. As we file out of the theater, the only name on our lips is that of Mr. Bacharach, having just been re-reminded that his songs are every bit as wonderful as we always knew that they were.” (WSJ)
New York Theater Workshop,79 E. fourth St.
At 7PM / $85
(212) 560-5475
Before making final plans, we suggest you call the venue to confirm ticket availability, dates and times, as schedules are subject to change.
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A PremierPub / Midtown West.
Russian Vodka Room / 265 W 52nd St (btw 7th/8th ave)
Sure, you could travel to Minsk or even Brighton Beach, for an authentic Russian experience, but why bother. On those days when you feel you must wash down your dish of kasha with a few glasses of icy, cold vodka, the Russian Vodka Room will definitely satisfy your urge.
From the outside this place looks a bit drab, and with no windows, a bit mysterious. Midtown tourists walk right by on their way to see “Jersey Boys”, just down the block.
Those in the know enter a secret hideaway, a dimly lit front room with soft jazz playing – a perfect spot for an illicit late-night rendezvous, or maybe a meet-up with your Russian spy handler, but that’s later in the evening. Early in the evening the large U-shaped bar fills with the after work happy hour crowd, a group made very happy by the much reduced prices.
Their website says: “Welcome Comrades”. Of course, this welcome focuses on dozens of different vodkas, including their own special infusions, which marinate in giant, clear glass jugs visible around the room. The large vodka martinis ensure that you won’t confuse this place with your mother’s Russian Tea Room.
But man does not live by vodka alone. Eat some food, especially the tapa like appetizers. Be decadent and try the cheese blintzes with chocolate, or try a main dish like beef stroganoff with kasha.
Your best bet is to go on a night when the piano man is playing. This guy, who looks like he has eaten a lot of those cheese blintzes, plays five nights a week from 7 to 12 (no Mondays and Thursdays). When the piano man is playing American pop tunes, and you are at the crowded, dimly lit bar testing the horseradish infused vodka, that’s when the RVR shines.
It’s the kind of place where the noise gets louder and the crowd gets happier as the happy hour goes on. I’m generally a beer guy, but I like to come here with a group of friends. We find a table in the back room; we eat, and we drink vodka ‘till it hurts (and it will hurt).
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Website: http://www.russianvodkaroom.com/
Phone #: 212-307-5835
Hours: 4pm-2am; Fri-Sun closes 4am (that could be trouble)
Happy Hour: 4-7pm every day
$4 shots infused vodka (2oz), $5 cosmos; $4 czech draft beer
Music: FR-SU; TU-WE / 7pm-12am
Subway: #1 to 50th St.
Walk 2 blk N. on B’way to 52nd St.; 1 blk W. to RVR
Confusingly, the Russian Samovar is right across the street, on the S. side of 52nd St.
The RVR, your destination, is on the N. side of 52nd St.
Update: music some nights includes a sax player with a younger, trimmer piano man.
NYCity 1-2-3 : What's Happening / Manhattan's WestSide 