SPOTLIGHT ON A KJAZZ CLUB CARD PROVIDER
How would you describe Upstairs at Vitellos? The atmosphere of the Club is an intimate 100 seat room with no telephones or bar sounds and that is similar to the jazz clubs of the 1960s & 1970s. When and how did the concept of Vitellos come about? Vitellos restaurant has been in Studio City since 1964 owned by two Italian brothers up until 6 years ago. The new owner turned the Upstairs storeroom into a performance room several years ago presenting Cabaret acts. As a singer, myself, I found the room during a fundraiser event presenting Shelly Manne's "My Fair Lady". The room was acoustically sound and everyone fell in love with the room. There was something magical about the room that allowed the artists to feel most creative in the space. The audience listened..it was quiet..it was an intimate room where the audience and artists could meld together as one and enjoy the magic of the musicians at play. I approached the owners about starting a weekly jazz night on Thursdays and they said YES! I produced the weekly jazz nights out of my own pocket. There was no budget from Vitellos available. But, I believed that with the abundance of talent in Los Angeles combined with this ROOM a synergy would be created and bring in the L.A. jazz loving community. That was February 19, 2009. The world's economy was tumbling down. I believed that we needed a positive force in our community. The power of the musicians of L.A. is a force to be reckoned with. I believed if the musicians were happy with the room and respected for their art, the audiences would come. If you build it they will come sort of thing. After nine months of weekly jazz nights, and many hours and dollars dedicated to spreading the good word about the club, the owners embraced the jazz community and officially began presenting jazz nightly. Here we are over two years later! What is your background in jazz? My father, Maurie Harris, was a trumpet player in Big Bands from back east, then in early TV & Film of the 1950s. It was 1992 when he retired from 25 years of the Johnny Carson show in the Doc Severinsen Band. I had always been a performer/singer beginning in musicals with the LA Civic Light opera shows in the 1970s and Broadway. I have learned so much from the musicians about jazz these last two years. My husband is a session player, percussionist Don Williams. Don and my father actually worked together for twenty years in the music business before Don and I met. Dons brothers John and Jerry Williams are professional studio musicians as well as their father, who was a drummer percussionist. How long have you been a listener of KJazz? I grew up listening to KLON, so 30 years? KJazz thanks April for sitting down with us and Vitellos for offering such a great discount for KJazz Members. Bring your KJazz Club Card to Vitellos for a 20% discount. Find more details and a schedule of upcoming performances at vitellosrestaurant.com |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
KKJZ Fundraising, Inc., a registered commercial fundraiser, conducts fundraising activities on behalf of the California State University, Long Beach Research Foundation for the benefit of KJazz. Registration does not imply endorsement. KKJZ Fundraising, Inc., P.O. Box 251469, Los Angeles, CA 90025 |
