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Rain Can’t Stop The Music

by Uma Ramiah | Jun 13, 2011 7:49 am

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Posted to: Arts, Downtown

In New Haven, it seems, art stops for no one: Two outdoor festivals of culture and music got going this weekend despite the deluge of rain.

Pitkin Plaza, site of the alternative Ideat Village festival, stood empty under grey skies; Saturday’s planned jazz festival opening event moved just a few steps indoors to nearby Bru Cafe.

In the couch and table-lined area of the coffee shop, The Erasmus Quintet performed a set of minimalist, and at times dissonant, jazz for a small audience which included families and other musicians.

Last in the day’s lineup of performances, Chris Cretella and his trio, Guttersnipe, performed a 45-minute piece. A small audience of about ten stayed to sip coffee and watch the ensemble.

Click on the video for a sample of music from each of the groups.

Cretella, who organized Saturday’s jazz festival as part of the week-long Ideat Village celebration, composed the piece. He said it was inspired in part by 1920s pulp fiction. In that literature, he said, a Guttersnipe was an “ill-bred person or street urchin.”

Musicians were happy to play despite the small turnout, which lent an intimate, close-knit feel to the series of performances.

As Ideat’s jazz festival came to a close, a contrasting scene was brewing just a few blocks away.

Around the corner on the New Haven Green, a sea of colorful umbrellas sheltered thousands from the rain.

Why brave the weather?

Yo Yo Ma At 7 p.m, famed cellist Yo Yo Ma and his Silk Road Ensemble took the stage to the roaring approval of a drenched audience.

Yo Yo Ma (right) with his Silk Road Ensemble Melodious, and free, sounds drifted through downtown New Haven—at no charge for concertgoers.

Click on the video for a listen, and a look at the rain.

The audience stayed put amid the steady drizzle and occasional downpour.

In fact, the crowd grew as the 90-minute concert progressed. Festival organizers estimated a turnout of nearly 8,000 despite the rain.

 

 

 

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