Please note the next Neighborhood World Music Session will be held at The Annex, 10387 San Pablo Avenue on Wednesday, August 24, 2022 from 5:00-7:30pm.
Neighborhood World Music Sessions at The Annex – Wednesday, August 3, 2022
Join us for an evening of Latin Jazz with Marco Diaz, Anthony Blea & Javier Navarrette at The Annex in El Cerrito next Wednesday, August 3rd from 5:00 – 7:30 p.m. Come and enjoy some great organic food, drinks, atmosphere and music!
Latin Jazz Trio w:
Marco Diaz – piano
Anthony Blea -violin
Javier Navarrette – percussion
-Marco is an accomplished recording musician who has shared the stage with Grammy Award winning artist, Israel “Cachao” Lopez, Nelson Gonzales, Jimmy Bosch, Pete “El Conde” Rodriguez, Ska Cubano (Europe), Tito Rojas, Nino Segarra, Anthony Cruz, Anthony Blea, Jovino Santos Neto, Joe Santiago, and is an integral member of the John Santos sextet and the musical director for Bobi Cespedes. Marco has participated with the San Francisco Symphony AIM program since 2000 and currently produces records and performs music throughout the country while also co-leading Vission Latina, an Afro-Caribbean dance band, VL Trio, and his own group.
Marco Diaz has been part of the faculty at the Community Music Center (CMC) in San Francisco and Jazz Camp West. He toured the San Juan Islands off the coast of Washington State with Bobi Cespedes, teaching children and adults the roots of Afro- Cuban music. Marco also performed at the San Francisco, Tanglewood, and Monterey Jazz Festivals, and the Smithsonian Museum with world renowned ethno-musicologist, John Santos and his Sextet. Marco had the honor of playing at the opening of the National Museum of African American History and Culture with Bobi Céspedes.
Marco is currently a teaching artist with SFJazz and has released his second self produced album, Insight.
-Anthony Blea began studying the violin at age 8 and was awarded a full scholarship to attend the San Francisco Conservatory of Music at age 11. While a student in Joan Murray’s Aptos Jr. High Orchestra, Anthony discovered the joy of playing chamber music, as well as having solo experience with an orchestra.
Upon completion of his preparatory music studies, Anthony traveled to New York City to continue his musical and academic enrichment at the Manhattan School of Music where he received his Bachelor’s degree. His formidable skill on the violin landed him work with many international legends such as Israel “Cachao” Lopez, Ray Charles, Boz Scaggs and Leonard Bernstein to name a few. Most notably Anthony has played with the San Francisco Opera Orchestra. Anthony’s 8-piece salsa band has been in existence for ten years and their debut CD has enjoyed critical acclaim. Anthony received his Master’s degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, concentrating on String Quartet.
Javier Navarrette is a professional percussionist, musician, composer, arranger and educator living in Oakland, California, specializing in Afro-Caribbean music. Javier’s performance and recording career spans over three decades.
Amongst the many greats he has played with are: Poncho Sanchez; Los Van Van; the Conga Kings: Francisco Aguabella, Carlos “Patáto” Valdez, and Milton Cardona; as well as with jazz legends such as Jon Faddis; Tootie Heath; Jerry Gonzalez; Trini Lopez; and Nestor Torres.
He had the honor to perform with the late Aretha Franklin at the Oakland Coliseum in her last concert tour. He toured with Linda Tillery and the Cultural Heritage Choir, and Bobi Céspedes, as well as performed with popular groups such as Ozomatli, and Los Mocosos. Javier has recorded on three Grammy-nominated albums with John Santos and the Machete Ensemble/Folklorico Kindembo.
Javier studied with masters in Cuba such as Miguel Angá Díaz; Jose Luis “Changuito” Quintana; Folklorico Nacional de Cuba; and with Bay Area masters John Santos; Michael Spiro; and Jesús Díaz. In 2022, Javier received the artist scholarship award with Plaza Cuba Travels to study music at La Escuela Nacional de Arte in Habana, Cuba.
He teaches music in public/private schools and in adult workshops. For the past 10 years, Javier has been teaching with Living Jazz Children’s Music Project in the Oakland public schools and at the summer Jam Camp for Children.
Javier produces Modúpue Sundays with Arts at the Basin, Rocky’s Market, Brooklyn Basin, Oakland, and the Neighborhood Sessions at The Annex in El Cerrito, both musical events presenting the Bay Area’s legendary musicians in the Afro-Latin music Scene.
We are proud to present this series in partnership with Modupue and SunJams.
Javier Navarrette’s Modúpue Productions continues to bring live music to several venues around the Bay Area. Javier has been a professional musician and music educator in the Oakland Unified School District for the past 20 years. Over the past 2 years Navarrette has produced outdoors events that have proven instumental in enabling musicians to deal with some of the fallout of the pandemic and shutdown that followed. Most recently he has been curating “Modúpue Sundays at the Brooklyn Basin.” These musical productions ran from June–November 2021 at the new Oakland hot spot, the Brooklyn Basin, with internationally known, Bay Area musical legends.
SunJams is committed to funding children’s music education in underserved public elementary schools. Your donation will help support this ongoing program.
In addition, we need to raise funds to continue bringing you this exciting new live music program. All of the proceeds will go directly to our network of local musicians, each of whom have been severely impacted by the lack of events during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Whether you donate $10, $100, or $1000 – any amount helps and will allow us to keep bringing music to our community! As always, your donation to our 501(c)3 may qualify as tax exempt.
COVID RELATED SAFETY MEASURES
Please be safe. Feel free to wear a mask if you prefer.
TICKETS
Tickets are encouraged, we are happy to offer you a reserved seat (limited seating available) if you RSVP with a donation that will go towards paying for the music. Tickets are NOT required for this venue, you can simply come in, order food and beverages at the Annex counter.
Organic Celery
Season: Grown in California and available year-round.
Flavor: Celery has a mild and strong taste at the same time, giving it a bold flavor. It can remind you of raw or green onions in a way, with an earthy taste. It can also taste unpleasant to some people and has a plant-like taste much like lettuce and kale does.
Choosing & Storage: It’s a not good idea to keep celery at room temperature for more than a few hours at a time. If you want to avoid celery from going bad, you will need to use a storage bag and make sure it stays in the refrigerator less than five days. Don’t keep celery for too long since it will start to rot. The vegetable crisper is your safest bet, but it would be a good idea to use an airtight container as well. Celery (especially if cut) has a strong smell and may contaminate other foods, so be mindful.
How to use: Fresh – with peanut butter for snacking or finely chopped and added to potato salad, egg salad or tuna salad. Cooked in soups and stews. Juice and drink it fresh by itself or combine with other fruits or vegetables.
Nutrition: Celery is mainly made up of water, but it also provides dietary fiber. Beyond apigenin and luteolin, celery contains other plant compounds that have powerful antioxidant properties, selinene, limonene, kaempferol, p-coumaric acid. Celery also provides small amounts of vitamin K, folate, vitamin A, potassium, and vitamin C.
Organic Bananas
Season: They’re native to Southeast Asia but grown in several countries near the equator and are available year-round.
Flavor: Bananas have an interesting flavor transition during their ripening process. Unripe bananas which still contain the green peel have a bland flavor with apparent notes of grassiness. Furthermore, less ripe bananas contain higher levels of starch and therefore have a “starchier” taste. As they ripen a more distinctive fruity flavor develops accompanied melon, pineapple, candy and clove flavor notes. Yellow bananas have higher sugar concentrations and therefore taste sweeter. Finally, when the peel has become brown, the banana contains notes which are reminiscent of vanilla, honey and rum.
Choosing & Storage: Look for plump, firm, and brightly colored bananas. Occasional brown spots on the skin are normal. Avoid sunken, moist-looking dark areas, split skins or stems.
Bananas that require ripening should be left at room temperature, but away from heat or direct sun. To speed ripening, place them in a closed paper bag. Once ripe bananas can be held at room temperature for a day or two. Refrigerate to slow down ripening. Although the skins will turn dark, the fruits will remain edible. Keep refrigerated bananas for up to two weeks. Do not refrigerate unripe bananas because the exposure to cold interrupts their ripening cycle.
How to use: Eat them fresh! Bake them into “banana bread”. Use to thicken and sweeten smoothies. Dip in melted chocolate, roll in nuts and freeze for a sweet frozen treat.
Nutrition: Bananas are a healthy source of fiber, potassium, vitamin B6, vitamin C, and various antioxidants and phytonutrients. Vitamin C, Riboflavin, Folate, Niacin, Copper, Potassium, Magnesium.
Neighborhood World Music Sessions at The Annex – Wednesday, July 20, 2022
Join us for an evening of Son, Chachachá, Cumbia and much more, with Danilo y Grupo Universal at The Annex in El Cerrito next Wednesday, July 20th from 5:00 – 7:30 p.m. Come and enjoy some great organic food, drinks, atmosphere and music!
Wednesday July 20, 5-7:30pm will continue our music series held at El Cerrito Natural Grocery Company Prepared Food Annex (The Annex) on first and third Wednesdays – “Neighborhood World Music Sessions at The Annex.” We are proud to present this series in partnership with Modupue and SunJams.
Javier Navarrette’s Modúpue Productions continues to bring live music to several venues around the Bay Area. Javier has been a professional musician and music educator in the Oakland Unified School District for the past 20 years. Over the past 2 years Navarrette has produced outdoors events that have proven instumental in enabling musicians to deal with some of the fallout of the pandemic and shutdown that followed. Most recently he has been curating “Modúpue Sundays at the Brooklyn Basin.” These musical productions ran from June–November 2021 at the new Oakland hot spot, the Brooklyn Basin, with internationally known, Bay Area musical legends.
SunJams is committed to funding children’s music education in underserved public elementary schools. Your donation will help support this ongoing program.
In addition, we need to raise funds to continue bringing you this exciting new live music program. All of the proceeds will go directly to our network of local musicians, each of whom have been severely impacted by the lack of events during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Whether you donate $10, $100, or $1000 – any amount helps and will allow us to keep bringing music to our community! As always, your donation to our 501(c)3 may qualify as tax exempt.
COVID RELATED SAFETY MEASURES
Please be safe. Feel free to wear a mask if you prefer.
TICKETS
Tickets are encouraged, we are happy to offer you a reserved seat (limited seating available) if you RSVP with a donation that will go towards paying for the music. Tickets are NOT required for this venue, you can simply come in, order food and beverages at the Annex counter.
Organic Red Watermelon
Season: July & August are the height of watermelon season in California. Watermelons are native to Africa.
Flavor: A watermelon is a large fruit that is green and striped on the outside and red and juicy on the inside. It is a very sweet, fresh, green and fruity taste with cucumber notes. It has a soft, crisp flesh.
Choosing & Storage: When choosing a watermelon, obviously you want to avoid any that show signs of decay, but that yellow spot – as long as it’s not mushy – merely shows where that watermelon ripened in the field and it’s perfectly fine. Ripe watermelons make a dull thud when you tap them with your fingers.
Place melons in a cool, shady spot or put them on ice. Watermelons can be stored uncut and unrefrigerated for about 10 days to 2 weeks. Place them in a very cool place to increase their storage time. If cut, watermelon will keep in the refrigerator for about 4 days wrapped tightly in plastic. Once refrigerated, they should remain refrigerated.
How to use: Fresh, eaten as is! Try grilling it and adding to salads or salsa. It’s easy to juice for a sweet summer drink. I like to add a bit of lime juice to balance the sweet!
Nutrition: This fruit is a good source of vitamin C, potassium, copper, vitamin B5, and vitamin A.
Thank You East Bay Express Readers!
Thank you to East Bay Express Readers for voting our El Cerrito Location as the Best Natural Foods Store of 2022! We promise to do our best to meet and hopefully exceed your expectations. We appreciate all of you!
Organic Peaches from Frog Hollow Farms
Season: Now! A sweet and fragrant peach that’s ripe enough to drip juice down your chin is one of the ultimate joys of summer! Frog Hollow Farms grows over nineteen varieties of organic yellow peaches. How many will you try this year?
Flavor: White peaches tend to be sweeter than yellow ones. Yellow peaches have a bit more acid. Depending on the variety the flesh may be firm or soft, the flesh may cling to the pit (cling-stone) or separate easily (cling-free and free-stone). Frog Hollow hand picks and hand packs their peaches and we are so lucky to be situated close to their operations.
Storage: When buying peaches, choose fruits that smell sweet. They should have a creamy, yellow, or yellow-orange color and unwrinkled skin. Avoid green skin or bruising.
Once picked, mature peaches do continue to ripen and soften. If you must store them then let them breath, don’t stack them and keep them dry. Too many ripe peaches on hand? Consider washing, slicing and freezing them.
How to use: Fresh – whole, juice dripping down your chin! In a mixed fruit salad or combine with berries and blue cheese and serve in little gem lettuce cups as an appetizer. I like using firm peaches to bake in pies or galettes and for grilling.
Nutrition: Peaches are a rich source of carbohydrates, fiber, and natural sugars with little fat or protein. Peaches provide vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, and B vitamins.
Neighborhood World Music Sessions at The Annex – July 6, 2022
Neighborhood World Music Sessions at
The Annex in El Cerrito on July 6, 2022, 5-7:30pm
‘Sandunga, Madera y Cuero!’ Trio:
Javier Navarrette – percussion, vocal
Pedro Rosales – percussion , vocal
Hector Lugo -percussion, vocal
Rhythms from Cuba, Peru, Puerto Rico! Weaving between Festejo, Lando, Plena, Bomba, Son, Rumba y Orisha!
Pedro Rosales- Proyecto Lando director Pedro Rosales is a renowned cajon player celebrated for his fierce, energetic playing, his expressive vocal interpretations, his sensitivity as an accompanist, and his creative and prolific compositions.
Born in Lima, Peru, Pedro discovered his passion for the cajon at the age of fourteen, taking classes with maestro Ernesto Sandoval at the Museo de Arte de Lima. By 1989, he had joined folklorist Julio Casanovas’ Tradiciones Peruanas ensemble as a percussionist. In 1992, Pedro moved to San Francisco, where he co-founded the experimental ensemble Malambo Kombo with pianist Jorge Molina. In 1995, he co-founded De Rompe y Raja Cultural Association, who released four albums under his musical direction through 2013: “El Retorno” (2001), “Diaspora Negra” (2009), children’s album “Huaranguito” (2011) and Marina Lavalle’s “Sutil” (2010). In 2009, Pedro founded Proyecto Lando, releasing a number of original compositions in collaboration with arranger Felipe Pumarada, and performing extensively throughout Northern California.
Hector Lugo- Héctor Lugo is a percussionist, singer, song-writer, and educator. Born and raised in Puerto Rico, he moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1989 to pursue graduate studies in sociology and Latin American history at UC Berkeley. Shortly thereafter, he began to work with some of the top artists in the Bay Area’s Latin, Jazz, and Afro-Caribbean music scenes, dedicating himself to what has become a lifelong of study, performance and teaching of Latin-Caribbean music, history, and culture. Héctor has recorded with a wide range of artists and performed in venues across the United States and internationally with the likes of Louie Romero and Grupo Mazacote, Bobby Céspedes and Conjunto Céspedes, Modesto Cepeda and Cimiento de Puerto Rico, the late great Luis “Chichito” Cepeda, Jackeline Rago and the Venezuelan Music Project, Larry Vuckovich’s Jazz-Latin Quartet, the John Santos Sextet and The Machete Ensemble, Salsa legend Pete “El Conde” Rodriguez, Chuchito Valdés, Los Pleneros de la 21, Pellejo Seco, Rico Pabón, Román “Ito” Carrillo and “Herencia de los Carrillo,” and Haitian folkloric ensemble Afoutayi, among others. He is the founder and director of the Latin-Roots band La Mixta Criolla, founder and co-director of the Bay Area Bomba y Plena Workshop and Las Quenepas youth ensemble, and a founding member of the Afro-Puerto Rican bomba group Aguacero. His compositions and arrangements have been featured in the documentary film “Dolores,” about the life and work of the great labor organizer and feminist leader Dolores Huertas, and in the acclaimed compilation “Salsa de la Bahía,” vol. 2 (Patois Records, 2015). Héctor has been a teaching-artist with SFJAZZ Education since 2012, developing and implementing curricula that explores the connections between music, American history, and language arts. He is also an artist in residence at La Peña Cultural Center and faculty member at the Community Music Center and the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts.
Javier Navarrette- is a percussionist/educator living in the Bay Area who has dedicated himself to the study and performance of music, specializing in Afro Caribbean rhythms. Javier has studied in Cuba with musicians from Folkloric Nacional de Cuba and has had the opportunity to perform with such greats as Aretha Franklin, Poncho Sanchez, Los Van Van, The “Conga Kings”: Francisco Aguabella, Carlos “Patáto” Valdez, Armando Peraza, Jon Faddis, Tootie Heath, Jerry Gonzalez, Trini Lopez, Nestor Torres, and Bobi Cespedes. Javier has recorded on 3 Grammy nominated albums with John Santos and the Machete Ensemble/ Folkloric Kindembo and continues to create and teach music in the San Francisco Bay Area. Javier leads his own group “ Javier Navarrette Socially Distant Friend” that include some of Bay Area most prolific musicians on the scene today. Javier is also the producer of ‘Modupue Sundays’ Music Events at the Brooklyn Basin, and also co producer of “ Neighborhood World Music Sessions at the Annex in El Cerrito
Presented by
Modupue Productions ( Javier Navarrette)
Music at Sunjams ( Amer Budayr )
The Annex (An Employee Owned Company)
#Nieghborhoodworldmusicsessions #bayarea #festejo #lando #originalmusic #livemusic #ELCERRITO #theannex #modupuesunday #javiernavarrette #sunjams #Cuba #puertorico #peru #BOMBA #plena #son #orisha #rumba
Live Music at The Annex – June 15, 2022: Monica Maria Fimbrez Trio
Wednesday June 15, 5-7:30pm we will continue our music series held at El Cerrito Natural Grocery Company Prepared Food Annex (The Annex) on first and third Wednesdays – “Neighborhood World Music Sessions at The Annex.”
Mónica María Fimbrez Trio:
Mónica María’s music reflects her Californian roots mixed with traditional, earthly and contemporary sounds of Latin America. A vocalist, multi instrumentalist and composer, her songs are innovative and expressive of a world where cultures coexist, where fear is transformed by compassion, where we learn to truly love ourselves, and where we view the world from an empathetic and holistic state of mind.
You can listen to her most recent album “Nuevos Caminos” and find out more at MonicaMariaMusic.
The Natural Grocery Company is proud to present this series in partnership with Modupue (Javier Navarrette) and Sunjams (Amer Budayr).
Javier Navarrette’s Modúpue Productions continues to bring live music to several venues around the Bay Area. Javier has been a professional musician and music educator in the Oakland Unified School District for the past 20 years. Over the past 2 years Navarrette has produced outdoors events that have proven instumental in enabling musicians to deal with some of the fallout of the pandemic and shutdown that followed. Most recently he has been curating “Modúpue Sundays at the Brooklyn Basin.” These musical productions ran from June–November 2021 at the new Oakland hot spot, the Brooklyn Basin, with internationally known, Bay Area musical legends.
SunJams is committed to funding children’s music education in underserved public elementary schools. Your donation will help support this ongoing program.
In addition, we need to raise funds to continue bringing you this exciting new live music program. All of the proceeds will go directly to our network of local musicians, each of whom have been severely impacted by the lack of events during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Whether you donate $10, $100, or $1000 – any amount helps and will allow us to keep bringing music to our community! As always, your donation to our 501(c)3 may qualify as tax exempt.
COVID RELATED SAFETY MEASURES
Please be safe. Feel free to wear a mask if you prefer.
TICKETS
Tickets are NOT required for this venue, you can simply come in, order food and beverages at the Annex counter.