Tag Archives: jazz

Re-charge your Sunday nights at The Piano Works Farringdon

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Everyone knows Sundays are the new Saturdays and we have just the solution for a much needed Sunday night elixir. London’s popular late-night, live music venue The Piano Works have come up with the perfect excuse to reclaim your Sunday evenings by launching live music performances by the legendary Patrick Alan and his Righteous Ten.

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If you would like to spend the evening with the man who helped launch the careers of Amy Winehouse and Christina Aguilera then Sunday nights at The Piano Works are just for you. We were lucky enough to attend the launch and were instantly transported to what can only resemble a funky Manhattan Jazz Club. The Cocktails were a perfect accompaniment to bobbing along at the bar to some of the most perfectly executed soulful hits finished off with a mesmerising tribute to Prince. The energy and soul that oozes from the band was infectious throughout the venue with many punters up on their feet by the end. We simply couldn’t resist. Feel free to really indulge in a little Sunday night therapy and order a dish or two from the menu. From tapas-style dishes to a variety of filled rolls and salads you will not go hungry here. Everything is well-made, fresh and satisfying, we recommend the Soft-Shell Crab Roll. All in all, we couldn’t think of anything else we’d rather be doing on a Sunday night, the ambience is uplifting and we will definitely be back for more. Patrick Alan will continue his residency on the first Sunday of every month.

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For listings or more info visit

http://pianoworks.bar

Ones to watch: Hannah Rothschild. {Film}

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Hannah Rothschild is exceptionally talented. With a skill at getting to subjects that other people wouldn’t, No doubt helped by her famous last name. Though it’s relevant – her documentary on Peter Mandelson, Mandelson:The Real PM? , was no doubt helped by the fact that her brother, Nat, is good friends with Mandelson – like other directors with famous last names, Sofia Coppola etc, Rothschild makes the most of the proverbial foot in the door. She let’s her talent shine through. Her documentary, The Jazz Baroness, is a triumph. It’s a documentary of contrast in race, class, wealth, and of music and love. Pannonica Rothschild was her great aunt.

Pannonica de Koenigswarter fell in love with the geniuses of jazz. She was born in 1913 into the British branch of the immensely wealthy Rothschild family, brought up in a mansion called Waddesdon, and died in 1988 in a small house in Weehawken, New Jersey, surrounded by 306 cats. Her life changed when she heard Thelonious Monk’s “‘Round Midnight.” She became friend and champion to some of the greatest jazz musicians of the twentieth century. Twenty songs were named after her, Her love of jazz took over her entire life, it seems she gave up everything to be near it.

Another documentary was on renowned socialite, bon viveur and ridiculously well connected Nicky Haslam. Titled ‘Hi Society: The wonderful world of Nicky Haslam. In Mandelson: The Real PM? she follows Peter Mandelson around in the run up to the election, at one point Mandelson is heard soothing Gordon Brown, at that time still Prime Minister. Rothschild comes across as fearless, she doesn’t seem to be scared of Mandelson, to ask the hard questions, despite his connection and friendship with her family.

In The Jazz Baroness Rothschild gets interviews with Clint Eastwood, who let’s her use footage from ‘Straight No Chaser.’ which her great aunt featured in, As well as the dowager Duchess of Devonshire, Thelonious Monk’s son, her father Jacob Rothschild and her great-aunt Miriam. The documentary is not just about Rothschild’s great-aunt Pannonica , it’s also about her trying to find a place in her famous family. She confesses about pressures ‘real or imagined’ and she chooses to become an artist. Luckily for her, it seems, she has found her place after all. As she says;

“Real glamour isn’t about Bentleys or fur coats or silver dishes; it’s about being able to walk down Fifty-second Street and hear in one night so many great musicians play tunes dedicated to you.”

I look forward to Hannah Rothschild’s next project.

Hannah Rothschild’s website.