The Arts Garage has been a favored jazz joint for locals since its inception, but this summer, the venue turned a corner. If expectations are met, its latest hire should fully elevate Arts Garage from a great South Florida music venue to one of the preeminent music venues in the Southeastern United States.
That new hire would be Todd Barkan, a legendary jazz promoter and erstwhile artistic administrator at Jazz at Lincoln Center—an elder statesman of the genre dating back to its original heyday. Perhaps more familiar inside industry circles than outside of them, Barkan’s “fame is largely based on making other people famous,” according to the Wall Street Journal.
The Ohio native, himself an accomplished pianist, rose to prominence playing alongside the sort of names that are chiseled in musical marble, luminaries like Miles Davis and Dizzy Gillespie. As an entrepreneur, producer and manager from 1972 to 1983, he worked with the likes of Art Blakey, Jimmy Witherspoon and Stan Getz. The list really does go on and on, including a stint in the ‘90s as a jazz programmer in Japan, running his own jazz label, producing more than 800 recordings and landing the plum Lincoln Center job in the 2000s. And now he’s with us, programming for both Arts Garage and its sister venue, The Bailey Contemporary and Ali Building in Pompano Beach.
The time couldn’t be better for this major programming shift. As great as Arts Garage has always been, its music schedule had come to feel repetitive—a familiar cycle of names returning every few seasons. That’s certainly not the case looking toward the fall, with Barkan’s extensive experience and exhaustive Rolodex already manifesting in some impressive bookings. Here’s a glimpse at three highlights this month, all of whom will make their Arts Garage debuts.
Tonight (Sept. 12): The sensational British singer-songwriter Polly Gibbons, an artist whose influences range from Leonard Cohen and Charlie Parker to Nina Simone and Buddy Guy, was nominated for a BBC Jazz Award back in 2006, before she had an album to her name. She makes her North American debut at Arts Garage.
Sept. 19-20: Inspired by rock, jazz and eastern music, the fusion guitarist Larry Coryell has been a musician’s musician for more than 45 years, during which time he has released a staggering 43 albums and performed with Jimi Hendrix, Miles Davis and Charles Mingus.
Sept. 27: The list of jazz pianist Cyrus Chestnut’s creative collaborations—from Chick Corea and Dizzy Gillespie to Bette Midler, Brian McKnight and opera diva Kathleen Battle—speaks to his versatility. Chestnut’s 16 albums feature his unique and unabashed love for gospel melodies in a jazz setting.
To purchase tickets and view the entire Arts Garage schedule, visitartsgarage.org. The venue is at 180 N.E. First St., Delray Beach. Call 561/450-6357.
