When we arrived in Marrakesh, our first stop was the wonderful garden created by Jacques Majorelle and later restored by fashion designer Yves Saint-Laurent and Pierre Bergé. Upon entering the garden, we found a cool refuge from the hot Marrakesh air. Tall bamboo shaded extensive red terracotta walkways. The garden has winding paths that lead through different sections, for example, a water lily pond and a cactus garden. Also, inside we loved the Berber Museum which offered a compact, high quality collection of all sorts of arts and crafts from Berber life. Outside the garden, a mini fashion district has taken hold, with many nice shops and cafes. It was a great side trip just a short taxi ride from the Medina. ...
Julian Lage brought his new quartet featuring organist John Medeski, bassist Jorge Roeder and drummer Kenny Wollesen to Davies Symphony Hall on a Monday evening. I was excited to bring a group of colleagues from Digital Promise and we had a great time listening to adventuresome music in the grand space. Compared to other times I’ve heard Lage, he seemed more restrained–allowing more space for his very talented bandmates to shine. John Medeski’s work on organ and piano commanded attention and offered many different tones and textures. At one point, when he played nearly alone, the deep resonances of the organ in spacious Davies symphony hall were particularly magical. Although he allowed more space for others, Julian still had plenty of room to feature his amazing talents. ...
In 1982, I went to a memorable Miles Davis concert on Pier 84, as part of the Dr. Pepper Summer Music Festival. Forty some-odd years later, Marcus Miller led many of the same musicians in a Miles Davis 100th birthday tribute concert at SF Jazz. The music was fantastic then and equally fantastic today. When they started into the first driving funk groove and the trumpet player layered the first few muted-tone notes on top, it gave me goosebumps. ...
We didn’t know anything about Paul Cornish when we picked up tickets to see his Trio at SFJazz one Thursday evening. He was playing in the Joe Henderson Lab, which often features rising stars and has a view of the streets of San Francisco through plate glass windows. We were up fror a night of jazz and gave it a shot. And we were amply rewarded with a great set. Cornish has very interesting compositions that frequently shift gears and slip into unexpected places. The tunes often had simple elements at their core – a great rhythm or an attractive melody. These were the onramp for the journey that followed. The bassist Jermaine Paul played virtuoso solos. And drummer Jonathan Pinson could play with very quiet intensity, like Brian Blade, but also let it rip. ...
Backpacking in the Sierras is an important tradition for me and the boys. So I was glad that Micah and I landed a last minute permit for Yosemite this August. As the sign indicates, our destimations were May Lake (2.7 miles) and Glen Aulen (10.6 miles), and in total, we walked about 18 miles in 3 days. May Lake is short hike in, but steep. And yet it has panoramic high sierra views. Micah found us a great campsite about 200 feet above the lake and we settled into our hammocks to relax. As the evening unfolded, the light on the mountain ranges grew better and better, eventually peaking in an amazing sunset. ...