Brooklyn Jazz Underground

The Brooklyn Jazz Underground, a newly formed collective, is an association of independent bandleaders with a shared commitment to improvised music. Through cooperative effort, members of the BJU strive to create greater awareness of their work.

Thursday, February 22, 2007

Billyburg Gentrification

Here's an interesting story in the Washington Post about the rapid gentrification that has occurred in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. It's the classic story of artists moving into the area, making it hip, and Wall Streeters following closely behind, driving rents up and squeezing out those artists.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/20/AR2007022001912.html?referrer=emailarticle

Thursday, February 08, 2007

Living in Red Hook

I moved to Red Hook this past summer and I love it.
Having lived in some of the busiest parts of Manhattan and Brooklyn for 8 years, I had considered moving outside of New York, as I was longing to live in a calmer and more spacious place. But instead I moved to Red Hook, and now I almost feel like I live in a small village in the middle of New York, - and it's great.
Like a friend said: If you want to move to Europe but don't want to leave New York; move to Red Hook. There's some truth to that. Down here there's a sense of community, stronger than your usual neighborhood-feeling. Down here the tempo is slower, if and when you want it to be slower, and down here we are close to the water, the air is fresher and there is a lot of sky to look at. Often times I go to the park, a couple of blocks away, to see the sunset.
There are also more practical advantages.
Parking is as easy as you can get it without owning a garage or a paid parking-spot. You can bike around easily for your daily needs, and of course we have Fairway which is just down the street. At the moment I even enjoy taking the bus to get to the subway. It is a short ride on the buses and it somehow helps putting a distance between the stressful and too busy vibe that people in New York can have and express.
So....that's all. Come down and visit. In the summer season especially there are great things happening. And we do have a couple of great restaurants, cafe's and a fantastic wine store. And then there are the ball fields.....that's for another time/another blog!
Anne Mette

Sunday, February 04, 2007

American Icons: Kind of Blue

My wife Ave Carrillo, who is a great radio producer, just finished this radio piece on Miles' Kind Of Blue for the show Studio 360. It's worth a listen:
http://studio360.org/americanicons/episodes/2007/02/02

Alexis Cuadrado