THE GAZETTE
Wednesday, September 18, 2013 o
Page A-17
At Strathmore, jazz from the heart Vasandani brings personal take to songs old and new n
BY
VIRGINIA TERHUNE STAFF WRITER
Jazz singer Sachal Vasandani imitated other singers when he first began learning his art as a boy, but now in his mid-30s, he does it his way. The New York City vocalist, composer and arranger presents unique interpretations of jazz and pop classics made famous by Sinatra, Fitzgerald and others, but he also sings his own compositions. “I love what I do,” said Vasandani, who will perform with his trio on Friday at the Mansion at Strathmore in North Bethesda. No stranger to Washington, D.C., venues, Vasandani has previously appeared at the Kennedy Center, Blues Alley and Bohemian Caverns, as well as the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center in College Park and the Birchmere in Alexandria. Vasandani said he expects to sing songs from his three
SACHAL VASANDANI QUARTET n When: 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Friday n Where: Mansion at Strathmore, 10701 Rockville Pike, North Bethesda n Tickets: $30 n For information: 301-5815100, strathmore.org, svjazz.com
CDs, which include “Eyes Wide Open” (2007); “We Move” (2009); and “Hi-Fly” (2011), the latest being a mix of standards, originals and pop covers. Performing with him will be bassist David Wong, pianist Jeb Patton and drummer Kendrick Scott. Known for his on-stage calm and nuance, Vasandani does not rely on volume to get his music across. Vasandani said he learned a lot about phrasing from Sinatra and appreciated Sinatra’s attention to detail and playfulness. Sinatra, Fitzgerald and Vasandani are three of the many singers who have recorded the 1934 song, “The Very Thought of
You,” a tune by Sid Ascher that has stood the test of time. “[If] it happens to be a good song ... that still makes sense, that resonates with you as an artist and helps you tell your own story that much more richly, then it’s cool,” said Vasandani in “Hi-Fly” promotional materials on his website. Also in his repertoire are contemporary songs, such as the 2006 song, “Love is a Losing Game,” sung and written by the late Amy Winehouse, as well as music he has written himself. “I’m always presenting new songs that have a personal [quality]. ... Lyrically, a lot of them are some form of love song,” he said. Although his lyrics are often about love and loss, Vasandani said he will sometimes offset that with a brightness in the music. “I like to throw it against a fun tempo, something with charm and lightness,” he said. A Chicago native, Vasandani was drawn to jazz early, thanks in part to his parents, who encouraged him to listen all kinds of music, including Indian classical music as well as Western
RAJ NAIK
Jazz singer Sachal Vasandani and his trio will interpret a mix of jazz and pop standards during two shows on Friday at the Mansion at Strathmore. genres. “I absorbed all the music on the radio and figured out how to listen to music,” he said. He also learned to play the piano, bass guitar and French horn, catching a glimpse of his future as a singer while still in middle school. At the time, Vasandani was struggling to master the French horn in the school band and also singing in the jazz choir across
the hall, he said during an interview with Jon Weber on NPR’s “Piano Jazz: Rising Stars” in 2012. “I would raise my hand to do a scat solo on one of the jazz choir songs and found out that the ideas that were in my head were coming out a lot easier in my voice than on the French horn,” Vasandani said during the interview. Later at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, he stud-
ied Western classical music and opera “to build my best voice.” “The door has always been open for other music to seep in,” he said. But it was his early exposure to jazz that ultimately prevailed. “What I liked about jazz is the sense of individuality and the freedom,” Vasandani said.
Theatre presents “Hamlet” and “Saint Joan,” to Oct. 20, call for prices, times, 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road, Olney, 301-924-3400, www.olneytheatre.org. The Puppet Co., “Totally Tiny Tots,” Sept. 18 to Oct. 13; Tiny Tots @ 10, select Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, call for shows and show times, Puppet Co. Playhouse, Glen Echo Park’s North Arcade Building, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., $5, 301-634-5380, www. thepuppetco.org. Round House Theatre, Bethesda, “This,” Oct. 9 to Nov. 3, 4545 East-West Highway, Bethesda. 240-644-1100, www. roundhousetheatre.org. Round House Theatre, Silver
Spring, “Agnes Under the Big Top,” presented by Forum Theatre, to Sept. 28, call for show times, 8641 Colesville Road, Silver Spring, $15 for general admission, $10 for subscribers, patrons 30 and younger and seniors, 244-6441100, www.roundhousetheatre. org. Silver Spring Stage, Paula Vogel’s “The Baltimore Waltz,” Sept. 20 to Oct. 12, 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, Woodmoor Shopping Center, 10145 Colesville Road, Silver Spring. www.ssstage.org. The Writer’s Center, Fall for the Book: Clifford Garstang and Hailey Leithauser, 2 p.m. Sept. 22, 4508 Walsh Street, Bethesda, 301-6548664, www.writer.org.
vterhune@gazette.net
IN THE ARTS Hollywood Ballroom, Sept. 18, free International Waltz Routine lesson at 7:30 p.m., Ballroom Dance at 8:15 p.m. ($16), Sept. 20, drop-in lessons from 7:30-9 p.m., West Coast Swing Dancing with Dance Jam Productions at 9 p.m. ($15); Sept. 21, free Tango lesson at 8 p.m., Social Ballroom Dance at 9 p.m.; Sept. 22, free Hustle lesson at 7 p.m., Social Ballroom at 8 p.m. ($16); Sept. 25, free International Waltz Routine lesson at 7:30 p.m., Social Ballroom at 8:15 p.m. ($16); Sept. 26, Tea Dance from 12:30–3:30 p.m. ($6), 2126 Industrial Highway, Silver Spring, 301-326-1181, www.hollywoodballroomdc.com
Glen Echo Park is at 7300 MacArthur Blvd. Blues, Capital Blues: Thurs-
days, 8:15 beginner lesson, 9-11:30 p.m. dancing to DJs, Glen Echo Park’s Spanish Ballroom Annex, $8, www.capitalblues.org. Contra, Sept. 20, Beth Molaro calls to Tidal Wave; Sept. 27, George Marshall with Wild Asparagus, 7:30 p.m. lesson, 8:30 p.m. dance, Glen Echo Park Spanish Ballroom, $10, www.fridaynightdance.org. Contra & Square, Sept. 29, Wild Asparagus, 7:30 p.m., Glen Echo Park Spanish Ballroom, $12 for general, $9 for members, $5 for students, www.fsgw.org. English Country, Sept. 18, Caller: Tom Spilsbury; Sept. 25, Caller: Joseph Pimentel, 8 p.m., Glen Echo Town Hall (upstairs), www.fsgw.org. Scottish Country Dancing, 8-10 p.m. Mondays, steps and formations taught. No experience, partner necessary, T-39 Building on NIH campus, Wisconsin Avenue and South Drive, Bethesda, 240505-0339. Swing, Sept. 21, The Craig Gildner Big Band; Nov. 9, WWII Canteen Dance with the Eric Felten Jazz Orchestra; Dec. 14, Daryl Davis, lesson at 8 p.m., dancing at 9 p.m., Glen Echo Park, $15, www. flyingfeet.org. Waltz, Oct. 6, Larry, Elke and Friends; Oct. 20, Gigmeisters, 2:45-3:30 p.m. lesson, 3:30-6 p.m., dance, $10, www.waltztimedances.org.
MUSIC & DANCE Bethesda Blues & Jazz Supper Club, Michael Gallant, 8 p.m. Sept.
18; Beverly McClellan, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 19 ($25); Cassandra Wilson, 8 p.m. Sept. 20 ($50) The Music of Abba with Arrival from Sweden, 8 p.m. Sept. 22 ($45); Gotta Swing Dance Night with Bitter Dose Combo, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 25 ($10); Eric Felten & His Jazz Orchestra, 8 p.m. Sept. 27 ($25), 7719 Wisconsin Ave., Bethesda, 301-634-2222, www.bethesdabluesjazz.com The Fillmore Silver Spring, Yellowcard Ocean Avenue Acoustic — The Tour, 8 p.m. Sept. 18; Savant, 8 p.m. Sept. 19; Michael Franti & Spearhead, 8 p.m. Sept. 20; Jamey Johnson with special guest Chris Hennessee, 8 p.m. Sept. 22; Billy Currington, 8 p.m. Sept. 27; Get the Led Out, 8 p.m. Sept. 28; 8656 Colesville Road, Silver Spring, 301960-9999, FillmoreSilverSpring. com, www.livenation.com.
1 p.m. Sept. 17-18, 21, 24-25; Pet Shop Boys: Electric, 8 p.m. Sept. 19; Sachal Vasandani Quartet, 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Sept. 20; BSO: Scheherazade and 1812 Overture, 8 p.m. Sept. 21; BSO: Thibaudet Plays Bernstein, 8 p.m. Sept. 26; Warren Wolf and the Wolfpack, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 27; Sandy Hackett’s Rat Pack Show, 8 p.m. Sept. 27; National Philharmonic: Beethoven’s Eternal Masterworks, 8 p.m. Sept. 28, call for venue, Locations: Mansion, 10701 Rockville Pike, North Bethesda; Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, 301-5815100, www.strathmore.org.
Institute of Musical Traditions — Takoma Park, Tony DeMarco &
Siobhán Butler, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 25, Takoma Park Community Center, call for prices, times, Takoma Park Community Center, 7500 Maple Ave., Takoma Park, 301-960-3655, www.imtfolk.org.
Institute of Musical Traditions — Rockville, The John Jorgenson
Bluegrass Band, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 30, Saint Mark Presbyterian Church, 10701 Old Georgetown Road, Rockville, call for prices, www. imtfolk.org. Strathmore, Afternoon Tea,
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F. Scott Fitzgerald Theater
1890529
DANCES
603 Edmonston Dr. Rockville, MD 20851
240-314-8690
www.rockvillemd.gov/theatre
Rockville Little Theater “The Nerd” By Larry Shue
Sept. 27 - Oct. 6 Tickets $16-$18
Saints Peter and Paul Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church 30th Annual
Featuring Authentic Middle Eastern Food (Grilled Lamb, Kibbe, Tabouleh, Hommus, Sharwarma, Falafel, Gyros, Homemade Pastries and more!)
Also Featuring
Pastry Booth • Grocery Store • Jewelry Middle East Giftware Religious Items Raffles
Free Parking Free Admission
FOR INFORMATION CONTACT Jerry Audi (703) 599-2317
STS. PETER & PAUL ANTIOCHIAN ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN CHURCH 10620 River Road, Potomac, MD 20854 http://www.peterpaul.net (301) 765-9188 1894812
FRIDAY Sept. 20 11 am – 9 pm SATURDAY Sept. 21 11 am – 9 pm SUNDAY Sept. 22 Noon – 4 pm
Metro Area Vendors Live Arabic Music & Entertainment Saturday until 10:30 pm
Fun for Kids Moon Bounce Face Painting Spin Art
Carry Out
1906800
ON STAGE Adventure Theatre, “Goodnight Moon,” Sept. 20 to Oct. 27, call for prices, times, Adventure Theatre MTC, 7300 MacArthur Blvd., Glen Echo, 301-634-2270, www.adventuretheatre-mtc.org. Do or Die Mysteries, TBA, 6:30 p.m. buffet, 7:30 p.m. show, $47.50 buffet and show, Flanagan’s Harp and Fiddle, 4844 Cordell Ave., Bethesda, 443-422-3810, www. doordiemystery.com Imagination Stage, “Lulu and the Brontosaurus,” Sept. 25 to Oct. 27, call for prices, times, Imagination Stage, 4908 Auburn Ave., Bethesda, www.imaginationstage.org Olney Theatre Center, Bedlam