Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Second Annual RAHSAANATHON: A Celebration of the Life and Music of Rahsaan Roland Kirk @ Cafe Stritch from Aug 5-10


San Jose, CA – San Jose’s Cafe Stritch is proud to present a celebration of the life and music of Rahsaan Roland Kirk from Tuesday, August 5 through Sunday, August 10.

To begin the festivities on August 5 and 6, Rahsaan biographer and multi-instrumentalist John Kruth and Rahsaan’s collaborator Betty Neals will be featured. They will join New York baritone saxophonist Claire Daly performing material from Daly’s recent Rahsaan tribute album “Rah!Rah!” with local masters Akira Tana on drums and John Wiitala on bass.

The RAHSAANATHON’S main event is three nights with trombonist Steve Turre & The Eulipion All Stars, featuring James Carter.  This ensemble will be reprising their three-night stand from last year---this time with renowned James Carter on reeds and flute. The group will be performing Turre’s arrangements of Kirk’s music August 7 (Rahsaan’s Birthday), August 8 and August 9.

Poet Betty Neals, who co-wrote “Theme for the Eulipions”, the house anthem of Cafe Stritch, will perform the song live with the band. The band includes: Charles McNeal (alto sax), Matt Clark (piano), Marcus Shelby (upright bass), Darrell Green (drums), and Terrie Odabi (vocals).

A very special edition of the Cafe Stritch Weekly Eulipions Jazz Jam will close out the week with bandleader Peppe Merolla (drums) being joined by the great Jeremy Pelt (trumpet) along with Matt Clark (piano) and Michael Zisman (upright bass). The night will include the band performing songs from Rahsaan’s The Return of the 5,000 Lb. Man as well as originals. Because this is the Sunday of the San Jose Jazz Summer Fest, the jam might include other world-class players in town for the festival.

For a schedule and more information please visit www.cafestritch.com . Tickets for all events are available at www.brownpapertickets.com

Cafe Stritch is located at 374 South First Street, San Jose, CA   408 280 6161

Schedule of Performers
Entertainment Schedule August 5 – August 10

Tuesday August 5
RAHSAANATHON from 8:30PM to 12:30AM
Claire Daly and Rah! Rah!

Wednesday August 6
RAHSAANATHON from 8:30PM to 12:30AM
Claire Daly and Rah! Rah!

Thursday August 7
RAHSAANATHON from 8:30PM to 12:30AM
Steve Turre & The Eulipion All Stars featuring James Carter

Friday August 8
RAHSAANATHON from 8:30PM to 12:30AM
Steve Turre & The Eulipion All Stars featuring James Carter

Saturday August 9
San Jose Jazz Summer Fest Stage from 12:00PM to 7:00PM
12:00PM to 1:30PM  Noel Jewkes Quartet
2:00PM to 3:30PM  Michael O'Neal Quintet with Kenny Washington
4:00PM to 5:30PM  Ben Flocks Trio: The Music of Sonny Rollins
6:00PM to 7:00PM  Tim Lin

RAHSAANATHON from 8:30PM to 12:30AM
Steve Turre & The Eulipion All Stars featuring James Carter

Sunday August 10
San Jose Jazz Summer Fest Stage from 12:00PM to 7:00PM
12:00PM to 1:00PM  Charnett Moffett with Jana Herzen
1:30PM to 2:30PM  Marc Carey Focus Trio
3:00PM to 3:45PM  Charnett Moffett with Jana Herzen
4:15PM to 5:00PM  Marc Carey Focus Trio
5:30PM to 6:30PM  Pedrito Martinez

RAHSAANATHON from 8:30PM to 12:30AM
The Eulipion Jazz Jam Session with Peppe Merolla, featuring Jeremy Pelt

Tickets for all events are available at www.brownpapertickets.com


Monday, August 4, 2014

San Jose Jazz Summer Fest!!! Aug 8-10th, Downtown San Jose

One of the largest Jazz festivals in the US is happening in Downtown San Jose this weekend. You will have world-class traditional jazz, Latin jazz, salsa, R&B, funk, smooth jazz, fusion, world music, and I'm sure a few surprises. The featured artists this year are 2014 Grammy winners Pacific Mambo Orchestra, Bootsy Collins, Snarky Puppy, The Poncho Sanchez Band, Ledisi, David Sanborn, Joey DeFrancesco, Warren Wolf & Byron Landham, Kris Bowers, Monty Alexander and the Harlem-Kingston Express and many more.

This year's San Jose Jazz Summer Fest will have music on 12 (!!!) different stages. Between the main festival and the side-events, you will be able to listen to live Jazz 24x7 throughout the course of the 3-day event. For more information, check out the links and the video below (which includes tons of great shots from across Downtown). This is an event you won't want to miss!

Event Link:
http://summerfest.sanjosejazz.org

Full Musical Lineup:
http://summerfest.sanjosejazz.org/2014-lineup

Ticket Link:
http://summerfest.sanjosejazz.org/tickets/buy-now

Prices
General Admission:
Weekend Pass: $55 through 6/8: Thereafter and at gate: $70
Fri: $15 through 8/6; Thereafter and at gate: $20
Sat or Sun: $20 through 8/6; Thereafter and at gate: $25

GA All Stages:
Weekend Pass: $65 through 6/8: Thereafter and at gate: $90
Sat or Sun: $30 through 8/6; Thereafter and at gate: $35

Priority Access:
Weekend Pass: $150 through 6/8: Thereafter and at gate: $170
Sat or Sun: $70 through 8/6; Thereafter and at gate: $75

VIP:
Weekend Pass: $285 through 6/8: Thereafter and at gate: $320
Sat or Sun: $140 through 8/6; Thereafter and at gate: $150

Children (Ages 5-12):
$5 daily










Sunday, August 3, 2014

therethere Partnering with the San Jose Public Library Foundation

A civic pride apparel company called therethere is aiming to build "pride of place" via unique graphical t-shirts created by local artists. They are partnering with San Jose Public Library Foundation for the entire month of August. Specifically, 10% of their proceeds for the month will go towards the foundation! To check out their site and support our library system, click here.

P.S.: You have to love the Pho shirt below... we have the best Vietnamese food in the US!




Saturday, August 2, 2014

Saturday Stats: San Jose is the 2nd Best Swim City

Here is a fun stat for summer. San Jose is the 2nd best area for swimming in the US! We have the most swim members per 1,000 people and the largest multicultural make-up of any region. The SF metro was 5th on the list. The top 50 is below.

Source: USA Swimming, Hat tip to Barclay Livker for sending this in!


Rank Metropolitan AreaTotal Weighted IndexPopulation Age 6+ 
 1. Ann Arbor, Michigan 1,348 348,971
 2. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California 1,277 1,761,295
 3. Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina 1,235 1,476,825
 4. Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Connecticut 1,185 909,970
 5. San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, California 1,133 4,160,269
 6. Fort Collins-Loveland, Colorado 1,088 280,068
 7. Madison, Wisconsin 1,077 550,312
 8. Austin-Round Rock, Texas 1,016 1,521,851
 9. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, California 993 13,133,921
 10. Indianapolis-Carmel, Indiana 989 1,682,815
 11. Washington, D.C. area 956 5,377,932
 12. San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, California 925 258,624
 13. Boulder, Colorado 920 284,607
 14. Trenton-Ewing, New Jersey 905 372,123
 15. Colorado Springs, Colorado 879 607,312
 16. Anchorage, Alaska  866 363,582
 17. Minneapolis-St Paul, Minnesota/Wisconsin 844 3,211,584
 18. Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Texas 840 5,504,735
 19. Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, Georgia 816 5,186,819
 20. Santa Barbara-Santa Maria, California 811 401,253
 21. Lexington-Fayette, Kentucky 810 435,465
 22. Lincoln, Nebraska 805 286,831
 23. Richmond, Virginia 793 1,202,109
 24. Denver-Aurora, Colorado 788 2,429,088
 25. Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, North Carolina/South Carolina 751 1,598,273
 26. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Washington 731 3,270,270
 27. Tallahassee, Florida 726 338,800
 28. Santa Rosa-Petaluma, California 718 468,963
 29. Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, Iowa/Illinois 717 376,817
 30. Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, California 711 812,013
 31. Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, Wisconsin 704 1,519,871
 32. Omaha-Council Bluffs, Nebraska/Iowa 692 828,741
 33. Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, Illinois 690 9,573,949
 34. Provo-Orem, Utah 688 483,990
 35. Reno-Sparks, Nevada 685 415,540
 36. Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, Oregon/Washington 684 2,161,753
 37. New Haven-Milford, Connecticut 674 855,447
 38. Albuquerque, New Mexico 669 825,179
 39. Columbus, Ohio 657 1,742,026
 40. Baltimore-Towson, Maryland 650 2,695,688
 41. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 631 2,369,879
 42. Tucson, Arizona 630 955,724
 43. Sacramento--Arden-Arcade--Roseville, California 629 2,136,139
 44. Cincinnati-Middletown, Ohio/Kentucky/Indiana 627 2,094,746
 45. Sarasota-Bradenton-Venice, Florida 625 706,173
 46. Poughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown, New York 624 685,207
 47. Fort Wayne, Indiana 622 409,934
 48. South Bend-Mishawaka, Indiana/Michigan 621 318,850
 49. Rochester, New York 617 1,039,940
 50. Salt Lake City, Utah 615 1,059,659


Friday, August 1, 2014

South FIRST FRIDAYS Art Walk + Street Mrkt Today!


Join us for the South FIRST FRIDAYS Art Walk + Street Mrkt on First Friday August 1st, 7pm–11pm
Downtown San Jose's SoFA District (& beyond)!

In addition to the monthly Art Walk featuring 20+ participating venues, August 1st is Street Mrkt, our nighttime urban faire featuring 40 local artists and live music out on the street in the SoFA District (on South First St. from San Carlos to San Salvador) and in the People's Park at South First & William St.
Free and open to the public.

Check out the exhibition images:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10152108813130736.1073741840.46066000735&type=1

----- NEW EXHIBITS -----

Anno Domini // the second coming of Art & Design -
366 South First Street
Artist's reception: "A Human Race" a solo exhibition of new work by Tel Aviv street artist Zero Cents.

KALEID Gallery- 88 South Fourth Street
Artists' receptions for feature exhibitions:
"States of Being" by Kushlani Jayasinha
"INCLINATIONS" solo exhibition by John Kurtyka

Phantom Galleries – 95 South Market Street
"California" new works by Alexandria Kerekez

Silicon Valley Music Festival at Sliding Door, Co. -
355 South First Street
The Silicon Valley Music Festival presents harpist Anna Maria Mendieta.

Works San José - 365 South Market Street
Opening reception: "Flesh Frosting" group exhibition.

ZERO1 Garage - 439 South First Street
"The Operature" by Anatomical Theatres of Mixed Reality (ATOM-r) part of the BRING IT! Performance Art Series.

Art Ark Gallery - 1035 South Sixth Street
Opening reception: "Repetitive Stress – we have all experienced it..." group exhibition.

Discover San Jose - 150 South First St.
"Wire Roots." by mixed media artist Jason Oliver, and special guest. vocalist Christopher Michael , the "Sober Junkie."

First to Market Restaurant - 399 South First Street
First to Market presents mixed media works by Colin Jaramillo.

Pho69 - 321 South First Street
Phantom Galleries presents "Definitely Not Digital: an excursion into the abstract and surreal" by artist Tom Dytko at Pho69.

South First Billiards - 420 South First Street
"Art Lifer" by Alfredo Reyes and Debbie Doherty with music from DJ Mystik Mike.

Spartan Pop Up Gallery - 320 South First Street
A group exhibit of 30 artists by San Jose State University's Fine Art students and alumni.

TechShopSJ - 300 South Second Street
TechShop San Jose presents artist Steve Haman.


----- Continuing Exhibits -----

MACLA - 510 South First Street
COSMOS CODEXVargas-Suarez UNIVERSAL exhibit on view and a Puerto Rican Bomba performance by Aguacero in the Castellano Playhouse at 8:30pm.

Caffé Frascati - 315 South First Street
First Fridays is Caffe Frascati Opera Night presented by First Street Singers, with the Bay Area's finest opera singers performing your very favorite classical arias and duets live in the cafe!

Downtown Yoga Shala - 450 South First Street
“San Shui” - An Exhibit by Russell Altice Case

Psycho Donuts - 288 South Second Street
Ongoing group exhibit featuring the work of Nicolas Caesar, Murphy Adams, Christine Benjamin, Michael Foley, Michael Borja, Valery Milovic, Carlos Villez, Eric Joyner, Laura Callin Bennett, John Hageman and John Cloud!

Studio Climbing Gym - 396 South First Street
Petrified by mixed media artist Andy Wallace


plus STREET MRKT!
A nighttime DIY urban faire that brings together 40 local artists, creative indie vendors and a live music stage out on South First Street (between San Carlos and San Salvador streets and in the People's Park at South First & William streets.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

South FIRST FRIDAYS Art Walk
First Friday August 1st, 7–11pm
SoFA district in downtown San Jose
(on South First Street between San Carlos & Reed streets)
Free & open to the public

For full listing of events and information: please visitwww.SouthFirstFridays.com or call 408-271-5155

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ArtWalkSJ

Media Sponsor: Metro Newspapers

The South FIRST FRIDAYS Art Walk event is produced by Two Fish Design in partnership with the participating art organizations and independent businesses.

Thursday, July 31, 2014

Civic Hacking: Code For San Jose

A group of local volunteers have decided to put their tech skills to good use outside of their day job. Code for San Jose enables civic-minded hackers to develop apps and tools that are useful to the San Jose community. It has just been around for a few months and they already have a couple projects underway. If you're a techie and you want to give back to the local community (while meeting like-minded folks), this looks like a pretty cool option. For more info, just head over to the Code for San Jose Website.



Back Home

Who We Are

Launched in March 2014, we are a Code for America brigade: a group of volunteers who are passionate about using our skills to advance civic innovation in San Jose. Our members represent a range of skill sets and interests, spanning the high tech, local government and non-profit sectors. Our co-leaders are Kalen Gallagher and Michelle Thong.

What We Do

We promote civic innovation in two main ways:
  1. Civic hacking: Our members develops civic apps, data visualizations and other tools that are useful and inspiring to the San Jose community. We hold twice-monthly civic hack nights and organize quarterly special events such as hackathons.
  2. Policy and advocacy: Our policy team educates community leaders on open data and open government best practices, and advocates for local open data policies.

Join Us

We welcome coders, designers, data geeks, policy wonks and community members of all types with an interest in using technology, creativity and the human spirit to solve real problems.
Code for San Jose is a platform for you to work on projects that you’re passionate about and that make a difference in your community.
Come check out our Civic Hack Nights on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of each month at Nextspace San Jose from 6:30pm to 9:30pm. RSVP on our Meetup page!

first_hack_night

Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Three New Apartment Buildings Coming to Japantown

8 acres of land in Japantown at 357 E. Taylor St. is expected to go into contract with a major apartment builder soon. There were big plans for this site five years ago, but the economy killed any potential for development back then. Now, it looks like things are moving forward and the land is already entitled for around 400 residential units.

The project should include three new five-story buildings with a chance for even greater density. The old Continental Can Co. brick warehouse at the site will be preserved and even perhaps integrated into the project. A 1-acre park would be in the mix here as well.

Source: SVBJ


Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Winchester Movie is Back on Track

A couple years ago news broke that Hammer Films would make a movie based around the Winchester Mystery House. The original target launch was Halloween of 2013, which would have been perfect given Sarah Winchester's obsession with the number 13. Now, it looks like they are bringing on brother filmmakers Michael and Peter Spierig to both rewrite the original script and direct the movie.

This will be the very first film to be shot inside of the Winchester Mystery House and filming is being penned for early 2015. I'm really looking forward to this one!

Sources: ComingSoon.net, hat tip to Mark and Dark Horizons, hat tip to Dan De La O