The Alchemy of Diversity at Sound and Savor

Freshly baked bialys right out of the oven opened the brunch.

This is another in the continuing account of my encounters with Philip Gelb’s underground vegan salon now called Sound and Savor. For some twelve years now he has hosted a series of dinners, brunches, and cooking classes. Many of the multi-course meals also feature some of the finest musicians, many from San Francisco and the east bay.

Today’s brunch started with fresh brewed coffee with a dollop of ginger (vegan) ice cream along with fresh baked bialys with cashew cream, pickled red onions, and “carrot lox”. So we began with a vegan Jewish theme. Needless to say these were delicious and the coffee helped waken anyone not ready for this 11AM start.

The next course was a similarly delicious borscht (beet soup) with beet pakoras. And clearly Phil has introduced this traditionally Indian dish which worked remarkably well with that soup. Again all were hot out of the pot/fryer clearly in our view.

As Phil performed his culinary alchemy in the kitchen we were most attentively served by his assistant for this meal, Letitia, a smiling joy of a woman who seems to have the knowledge and genuine caring of customer service in her blood. She was equally attentive to all in the crowd of about twenty diners with the usual mix of familiar faces and few new ones. Indeed the beautifully presented courses came at just the right pace.

The main course in this brunch was a Potato-Onion Tortilla, blood orange salad. And once again the diversity of cultures mixed to truly savory results as the friendly conversations flowed. At this point even the hungriest would hope for a pause and that’s exactly what happened.

With a judicious touch of rearranging Phil prepared a performance space for the three musicians who graced us on this beautiful sunny Oakland day. Jay Ghandi, bansuri (Indian Flute), Sameer Gupta, tablas (a staple of Hindustani music), and David Boyce, saxophone and bass clarinet (need I say a staple of jazz?). The alchemy of the food would now find an analogy in this jam session. Boyce and Gupta had played here about a year ago and Ghandi is a frequent collaborator with both musicians. All three had played yesterday in San Jose and were scheduled to play in San Francisco at the Red Poppy Art House. They are touring to promote their recent release A Circle Has No Beginning. These are just three of the musicians who participated in this crowd sourced disc which is itself worth your attention.

The energy was immediately palpable as seen in this excerpt from one of three pieces they played.

This last excerpt demonstrates the ease of communication between these musicians who blend diverse backgrounds of jazz and Hindustani musics seamlessly into something new and wonderful. The audience was energized to a level beyond what coffee could do and broke into appreciative applause after each piece.

The brunch ended with a dessert of (again fresh baked) Citrus Semolina Cake and more of that delicious coffee and ice cream. And, of course, more conversation.

These events have become a regular part of this writer’s recreational time and a real reason to celebrate living in the diverse and creative east bay. Phil’s judicious blend of cultures in his culinary experiments provide a parallel to his curation of some of the finest musicians with the only purpose in both case to entertain and enlighten. He achieved both is a big way this day. Thanks to all who participated.

Oakland Raga Mini With Tempeh

Mar10

David Boyce, saxophones and Sameer Gupta, tablas at Sound and Savor

Vegan chef and shakuhachi player Philip Gelb’s dinner/concerts have been one of the great joys of the east bay for over ten years now. Regular readers of this blog will be familiar with my enthusiasm for this series. Once again Gelb has woven magic in his impeccably creative vegan cuisine and his ability to attract astoundingly talented musicians.

I had to steal this photo from Phil’s Facebook page because I got so caught up in the fine conversation and food that I forgot to take pictures of any of the five courses except for the dessert.

Four wonderful food courses preceded the musical segment of this evening beginning with a hearty soup followed by some deliciously roasted brussel sprouts and the main course of vegan mac and cheese with deep fried tempeh.

Here is the menu:

“Cheesy” broccoli chowder (practically a meal in itself).

Roasted brussel sprouts with scallion ginger oil.

Southern Fried Tempeh, Macaroni and “cheese” with stewed greens, black eyed peas, Cajun roasted cauliflower, pickled daikon with Meyer lemon and mango chutney (pictured above but must be tasted to be believed, excellent!)

Chocolate waffle bowls withsoursop coconut ice cream, mango ice cream, blood orange marmalade, pineapple sauce and maple walnuts (all vegan and sinfully delicious)
As is customary in these events the musicians played just before dessert was served. A word about these musicians. Sameer Gupta , now heading up the wonderfully creative fusion ensemble Brooklyn Raga Massive hails from San Francisco. David Boyce is originally from New York but is now based in the Bay Area, has appeared on numerous recordings and his band, The Supplicants, can be heard in the Bay Area. Both are seasoned and extremely creative musicians.

Gupta began first by tuning his four drums (instead of the customary two found in most Hindustani music) and created bell like sounds as well as a rhythmic pulse before Boyce entered with his mellifluous sax. The music, clearly informed by melodic jazz and by traditional Hindustani elements took off in a high energy duet and became a unique and wonderful music which clearly energized the audience. The two had played together before though not in this particular configuration.

Here is a short video sample:

Three improvs were performed, one each with Boyce on soprano sax, tenor sax and bass clarinet. This unusual duo pairing sounded remarkably comfortable. They have performed together before and one could sense it in how well they meshed their individual styles.

The audience was understandably enthusiastic and appreciative after each performance. The combination of these fine musicians, clearly enthused about their music, and the intimate setting of this West Oakland loft made for a powerful experience, among the best this writer has heard in this venue.

Also worthy of mention was the amicable atmosphere with friendly interesting fellow diners, a common experience in this series.

Gupta and Boyce enjoying the vegan ice cream dessert after their performance.

Missed this one? There is another dinner concert featuring Mitch Butler on trombone and Howard Wiley on saxophone on Wednesday March 15th. Menu not yet announced. I hope you can make it.

Tickets are at: https://eventium.io/events/393278541021381/mitch-butler-howard-wiley-dinner-concert-march-15-2017

Of Mourning and Unity, 2016

Dec19

oliverosolstice20160075 Every year on June 21st, the Summer Solstice, there is a rather unique concert event in which musicians from the Bay Area and beyond gather in celebratory splendor in the sacred space of the Chapel of the Chimes in Oakland. The chapel is a columbarium (a resting place for cremated remains) and a mausoleum. The space is in part the work of famed California architect Julia Morgan.

On December 19th Sarah Cahill with New Music Bay Area secured permission to use this space for four hours from 11AM to 3PM. She invited many musicians who had been involved in one way or another with Pauline Oliveros whose death preceded by a week or two the tragic “Ghost Ship Fire” as it’s become known. The idea was to pay homage to both this wonderful theorist, composer, performer and teacher and also to pay homage and to mourn the losses of some 36 young artists who will now never realize their ambitions.

What follows here is a simple photo essay of my personal impressions of this event. The slant of the winter light added a dimension to those beautiful spaces as a large roster of musicians played pieces by and about Pauline Oliveros. It was a lovely and reverent experience.

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