Music
The Oracle Arena was filled with powerful music Saturday evening, as Bay Area church choirs competed before an enthusiastic crowd of 10,000 in the annual “How Sweet the Sound” gospel choir competition.
There was talk of chickens and pigs at North Oakland’s Niebyl-Proctor Marxist Library on Friday night, but it wasn’t a discussion of Animal Farm. Jordan Ruyle named the barnyard critters while calling out square dance steps as part of a monthly event he puts on with his wife’s quartet, the Squirrelly Stringband.
In some cities, the annual United Nations’ International Day of Peace on September 21, is marked by large vigils and even ceasefires. For Oakland, which officially celebrated Peace Day for the first time this week, the occasion was a smaller and more musical affair.
Oaklanders got down to live music this weekend at the first installment of this fall’s “Sundays in the Redwoods” concert series at Woodminster Amphitheater in Joaquin Miller Park.
Bay Area Girls Rock Camp kicked off last week in downtown Oakland. Eighty girls, from ages 8 to 18, learned to play guitar, drums, synthesizer and sing. This is the third summer of Bay Area Girls Rock Camp, where attendees get to do more than just learn about music—they also go to screen printing classes where they design band logos and print them on t-shirts, take self-defense classes, participate in image and identity workshops, and learn about song writing and music her-story.
On Thursday, historic musician Bert Jansch headlined an intimate concert at the New Parish nightclub in downtown Oakland. Jansch’s music blends acoustic folk, traditional Irish and Scottish music with some blues and jazz. He is thought of as one of the world’s most influential folk guitarists and music greats such as Neil Young, Nick Drake and Jimmy Page have covered his songs.
Silvio Rodríguez — who took his first US tour in thirty years to Oakland’s Paramount Theatre — is to Latin America as Bob Dylan is to the United States. He is a folk singer and guitarist who sometimes veers into jazz or other styles of music, but first and foremost his music is about the lyrics — and politics.
Off of 19th and San Pablo in downtown Oakland lies an unassuming two-story building; if it’s a quiet night, the only giveaway that something is going on inside is a big bouncer with an ear-piece standing out front and a small black and white sign that says “The New Parish.” But inside, the New Parish is Oakland’s newest music venue.
It’s been a little over a year since the Fox Theatre in downtown Oakland reopened, and since then it has gained a reputation for front-lining all the top rock bands touring today: Wolfmother, Monsters of Folk, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and The Decemberists, just to name a few. On Wednesday night, the crowd lined up early to come see the National, a melodic indie band that has been steadily building a loyal audience over the past few years and now is capturing mainstream attention.