Thursday, February 20, 2014

TOP NOTCH HOUSE CONCERT SERIES IN THE SEATTLE AREA



I have had the immense pleasure of attending a plethora of fabulous Seattle area house concerts over a 6-year span, and 2014 promises to be truly incredible!  As we bade farewell to the hugely popular concert series of well respected musicians Lance and Laurie Haslund, who hosted their final December house concert in Burien after a 7-year run, I soon discovered a fantastic new “Loft Concert” series located in the quaint West Seattle home of famed jazz saxophonist Anton Schwartz.  He brings top-of-the-line jazz musicians together in an inviting setting with a party vibe, and also hosts the “Loft Concert” series in Oakland, CA.  You can visit Anton at loftconcert.com to find more information and reserve coveted seats for both locations!

A particularly wonderful vocal jazz house concert series is JazzScapes, held in the beautiful Arroyos neighborhood of West Seattle and hosted by renowned vocalist Julie Olson and esteemed pianist Ivy Nugent.  They will be presenting terrific concerts this year with an absolutely stunning array of gifted vocalists and instrumentalists, which includes the 2012 Downbeat Critic’s Poll male vocalist winner Ed Reed on Saturday, January 18th.  Please visit their website at Jazzscapes.com for the latest artist and concert updates and to make reservations!

I have enjoyed many awe-inspiring house concert experiences, and those near and dear to my heart are Nich Anderson’s stellar JazzVox concerts.  Nich is a revered local vocalist/educator, and this month begins his 7th year of hosting this unique vocal jazz house concert series.  Also in January, he “launches” a brand new venue on Bainbridge Island in addition to his locations in NE Seattle, Downtown Seattle, the Madrona neighborhood, and Camano Island.  Folks flock to JazzVox performances and rave about the high caliber of acclaimed national and international artists gracing his stage.  Nich will present nine monthly shows in 2014 featuring superb vocalist Peter Eldridge of New York Voices fame in January, and culminating with dazzling songstress/bassist extraordinaire Kristin Korb in November.  You can visit Jazzvox.com for the complete schedule of artists and concerts and to reserve your seats early!

These three outstanding house concert series offer something very special and memorable for everyone and are simply not to be missed!  As an added enticement, each series features a succulent buffet either before or after every show – we’ll see you there with bells on!!