Bonjour de Paris ...
Chers Amis,
Leslie and I hope that you all enjoyed the holidays and that 2018 is starting well for all of you. Over Christmas we enjoyed a few days off in Bordeaux starting with the new "fast train" two hour ride from Paris. It didn't seem much different from any other train ride, but we did get there in only two hours. Although we have been to Bordeaux to work we have never had the opportunity to really see the city. We stayed with Peter and Nicole Giron who made sure that we saw all of the best that the city has to offer. Some of you know Peter from hearing him perform with us. He is also the bassist on our latest recording "Fragile". Even though it was a little cold, we had a great time exploring the city and even had a little downtime with some conversations around the fireplace.
We finished up 2017 with four nights at Chez Papa Jazz Club with Peter and Mourad, our current band here in Europe. As always New Year's Eve was quite the party with an after-party that went until morning. We are very fortunate that the club is only a 5 minute walk from our apartment.
Peter Giron
Mourad Benhammou
We started 2018 with a sold out concert at Sunside Jazz Club and gigs in Dijon, Moulins, Montluçon and Saint Saturnin. Peter and I had a couple of enjoyable gigs working with Viktorija Gecyté, a jazz singer who moved to Paris from Lithuania. Last week our quartet did a concert just outside of Paris in Issy Les Moulineaux otherwise the rest of February we will be working in Paris. March will bring trips to Annecy, Dax and Toulouse and in April we travel back to California.
Pre-concert set up at Issy Les Moulineaux.
Concert at Issy Les Moulineaux. Leslie, Gerard, Peter, Mourad and saxophonist Eric Breton.
We are busy preparing new music for our California concerts. The "Laguna Beach Live" concert on April 25th will be at Seven Degrees in Laguna Beach. It is a concert to raise funds for children's music programs that are free of charge for the participants. There will be food and drinks available at the venue. Tickets are available at https://www.lagunabeachlive.org/special-fundraiser-for-live-music-kids
Many of you know that we are very big on doing house concerts. So much so that we booked house concerts on the following dates, April 20th in San Diego, April 21st in Orange County, and April 22nd in Santa Barbara. These concerts are reservation only and space is limited so if you are interested in attending any, or all of them, please email me soon so that I can get reservations made for you. The San Diego concert is on a boat, the O.C. concert is in a lovely home with a wonderful Steinway grand piano as is the Santa Barbara concert. All of them will feature drinks and some type of food from snacks to a full meal that is included in the price of the concert. For more info or reservations I can be reached at <gerard@surfcovejazz.com>
I was offered two more classes at the Paris College of Music where I have been teaching for the past year. Now I am there three days a week teaching jazz history, jazz repertoire and directing an improvisation ensemble. It is great fun to work with these students. The school recently signed an agreement with Berklee College of Music in Boston which made them a member of Berklee's International Network of Colleges. So it looks like there are more good things on the horizon there.
"The Gutter Balz" were reorganized last month at a local bowling alley. We had nine friends turnout for the event and have plans for more fun and games later this month!
Leslie with "The Gutter Balz" at the bowling alley.
Paris has had a cold snap which included a few snowy days and nights. It is unusual for Paris to get snow. On those rare occasions when it does snow, it melts almost immediately. But this time it stayed for about three days which caused all kinds of commuting and logistical problems. Having lived in North Dakota and Michigan before I made it to balmy California, I could only chuckle at some of the comments I heard from people less experienced in the "joys" of snow than I.
We returned home from work late one night to find snow on our terrance.
The following morning looked like this.
For those of you who are in, or visiting Paris here is the schedule:
Feb. 14 Chez Papa Jazz Club Leslie & Gerard with bassist Patrice Solar.
Feb. 15 Chez Papa Jazz Club Leslie & Gerard duo.
Feb. 16-17 Chez Papa Jazz Club Leslie & Gerard with Peter Giron
http://www.papajazzclub-paris.fr
Feb. 22 Les Deux Magots Leslie & Gerard with bassist Clément Blumen.
http://www.lesdeuxmagots.fr/en/
Feb. 23 Le Monteverdi Leslie & Gerard duo.
http://www.lemonteverdi.com
Feb. 24 Le Piano Solo Leslie & Gerard with Charles Bennaroch & Nico Sabato.
12 Av du Président F. Roosevelt, Neuilly Plaisance 93360
http://www.piano-solo.fr
Thank you to everyone who has already downloaded "Fragile", our new recording. It is available as a download on CD Baby at this link. https://store.cdbaby.com/cd/leslielewis5
Please check our website for news and updates. While you are there please sign up for our weekly email blast to learn where you can hear us. http://www.surfcovejazz.com
Thanks for staying in touch with us.
Until next time, Leslie et Gerard
Please if you have any comments feel free to contact me at <gerard@surfcovejazz.com>. I enjoy hearing your thoughts. This email also appears on our website where you may comment as well. http://www.surfcovejazz.com/blog/
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http://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/leslie-lewis/id27976719
http://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/gerard-hagen-trio/id312875736