The first three concerts in the July SFJAZZ Fridays at Five sessions feature a truly international mix – Portuguese fado singer Mariza, world music Ukranian group DakhaBrakha, and the Bay Area’s soul/funk/R&B band Con Brio.
Regarded as one of fado’s greatest stars of today, Mariza is the first Portuguese musician to have been nominated for a GRAMMY Award. Born in Mozambique, Mariza grew up in Lisbon, her voice known only to a small circle of local admirers. Following the release of her first CD, Fado em Mim in 2001, she appeared at venues such as the Québec Summer Festival, Central Park in New York, LA’s Hollywood Bowl, London’s Royal Festival Hall, and won BBC Radio 3’s award for Best European Artist in the World Music category. Mariza has subsequently appeared at the Frankfurt Alte Oper, the Paris Théâtre de le Ville, with the LA Philharmonic at Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Madrid Teatro Albéniz and Barcelona’s Teatre Grec.
This performance by Mariza – which can be viewed on Friday July 10th at 5.00 pm (PT) / 8.00 pm (ET) and Saturday July 11th at 10.00 am (PT) / 13h00 (ET) – was recorded at SFJAZZ on October 28th, 2016, when Mariza was accompanied by a superb band which included Portuguese guitar master José Manuel Neto. For further details, visit the SFJAZZ website.
DakhaBrakha is a world-music quartet from Kiev with a program of music which blends an international mix of indie rock, pop, hip hop, avant-garde and traditional instrumentation. The name DakhaBrakha means ‘give/take’ in old Ukranian, and – having initially experimented with Ukrainian folk music – the group added Indian, Arabic, African, Russian and Australian traditional instrumentation to their repertoire. They have appeared in concerts and performances across Eastern and Western Europe, as well as in Scandinavia, Great Britain and Ireland, celebrating their national pride through their music. This performance was recorded at SFJAZZ in June 2019.
It will be streamed on Fridays at Five on July 16th at 5.00 pm (PT) / 8.00 pm (ET), and repeated the following day at 10.00 am (PT) / 13h00 (ET). More information is available on the SFJAZZ website.
The third session of Fridays at Five in July features Bay Area group Con Brio – billed as “the most electrifying soul/funk/R&B band on the scene”, and named by PopMatters as “the best new live band in America”. Named after the Italian musical direction which means “with spirit” or “with fire”, Con Brio has appeared internationally, as well as at US festivals like Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, Outside Lands and Austin City Limits. They have also given performances at festivals in Montreal, Japan, Rotterdam, London and Paris. This performance by the seven-member ensemble, fronted by Ziek McCarter, was filmed in June 2017, during the 35th San Francisco Jazz Festival.
It can be viewed on Friday July 23rd at 5.00 pm (PT) / 8.00 pm (ET), and again on Saturday July 24th at 10.00 am (PT) / 13h00 (ET). Details on becoming a member of SFJAZZ and more details of the Fridays at Five sessions are on the SFJAZZ website.
You can also find details there of SFJAZZ On-Demand – a series of concerts selected from the SFJAZZ archive – and Alone Together – intimate concerts streamed live from the Miner Auditorium at the SFJAZZ Center. These videos are available to rent by SFJAZZ Members for $5 or Public for $10 (split 50/50 with the artists & SFJAZZ), which will provide unlimited access to that specific concert until its expiration date.
Information sourced from SFJAZZ program notes
Artists’ websites