LWayne Posted May 21, 2011 Report Posted May 21, 2011 (edited) Last Sunday, May 15th, my wife and I headed south to Baltimore to catch a rare concert by Stanley Cowell at An Die Musik. This club is a hidden treasure; a comfortable performance space with overstuffed chairs seating about 80 people, located above a retail CD store in the Mt. Vernon section of town. The proprietor, Henry Wong, has been lauded in Baltimore magazine for his labor of love-hosting intimate jazz and classical concerts. Before the concert, we were fortunate to meet Sylvia Cowell, who does double duty as wife and business manager for Stanley. She is a very charming and engaging woman who serves on the board of directors for the Schwartz Center for the Arts in Dover, Delaware. On this occasion, she was setting up for a celebration between sets for her husband, to honor his 70th birthday. The concert began with a lovely trio version of an older tune Photon in a Paper World with a rhythm section of Taurus Mateen on electric bass and Nasheet Waits on Drums providing support. Stanleys talented daughter (she is attending the University of Maryland School of Law in Baltimore in tandem with her music career) joined the group for the balance of the set, providing vocals and violin on Today, What a Beautiful Day, Time Can Only Tell (her composition), Prayer for Peace, a swinging version of the Benny Carter tune When Lights Are Low, and Blues for Rama. All of these selections appear on his recent CD Prayer for Peace on Steeplechase released last November. The overall feel of the concert was special. It was quite evident that Stanley has not lost his formidable touch or love of performing. He told the audience that he will be playing more frequently in the future, following his career as an educator at Rutgers as well as various commissions. He also proved to be a very gracious host as he circulated among the audience who all stayed for wine and cake in wishing him a happy birthday. It was a very special and memorable afternoon with one of the greats. Concert of the year! LWayne Edited May 21, 2011 by LWayne Quote
Rooster_Ties Posted May 21, 2011 Report Posted May 21, 2011 I imagine that was a great night. One hell of a rhythm section too, Taurus and Nasheet are both pretty fantastic. Quote
LWayne Posted May 21, 2011 Author Report Posted May 21, 2011 Agreed. We got to see Stanley Cowell and the "Bandwagon" rhythm section as well. Taurus Mateen's wife sat next to us and she is a real jewel. LWayne Quote
papsrus Posted May 21, 2011 Report Posted May 21, 2011 Sounds like a wonderful evening. Thanks for sharing. Quote
mr jazz Posted June 2, 2011 Report Posted June 2, 2011 Thanks. I hope to see him in the DC area soon. Quote
Rooster_Ties Posted June 2, 2011 Report Posted June 2, 2011 On 6/2/2011 at 2:03 PM, mr jazz said: Thanks. I hope to see him in the DC area soon. Hell yeah, me too! Quote
bertrand Posted June 2, 2011 Report Posted June 2, 2011 Rooster, You are arriving at a good time. There are some great gigs lined up in D.C. for the Fall. I'll post details when all has been firmed up. Bertrand. Quote
LWayne Posted June 2, 2011 Author Report Posted June 2, 2011 Keep your eye out for the An Die Musik listings in the future. I know that Henry Wong would love to get Stanley Cowell for a return engagement and the crowd was very good the first time. No telling whether it will happen, but definitely a possibility. LWayne Quote
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