While I was visiting, Colorado bluesman Otis Taylor was also surveying Dazzle’s new digs.
Add in scheduled performances from locals like Ken Walker and Purnell Steen, and you have a well-rounded, exciting kickoff for the second incarnation of Dazzle. In June alone, the Dazzle team has booked engagements with drummer Brian Blade and his first-class band, saxophonist Chris Potter, and up-and-coming trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire, whose intense new live album will likely be one of the most acclaimed releases of 2017. The near future is promising for the new location. We’re taking steps to move into the future,” he said. We were limited by the constraints of what we were. In addition to the performance spaces and expanded food services (yes, Dazzle’s beloved macaroni and cheese entree will return on the revamped menu,) Thompson showed me the area reserved for a boutique vinyl record store counter and a bakery-coffee shop, which will be open every morning, hours before music fans arrive to take in the sonic energy.īut for Thompson, the mission of the move was about more than expanding floor space and attracting a greater volume of foot traffic. He also envisioned a third stage closer to the club’s entrance, and was in the process of working out the details of its construction in time for the opening this week. Thompson showed me two stages: the main area, where national headliners will play, and “The Gallery,” a separate room with a smaller stage that he believes will be ideal for smaller, more acoustic-based performances. So, can the minds behind Dazzle replicate the warmth of the old room (which held around 100 patrons) in an expanded setting, which can house three times that?Īnd growth is a big part of the plan at the new Dazzle. There’s really been no place like it in the region, and it has surely deserved its designation as one of the 100 best jazz clubs in the world, according to Downbeat magazine. Thompson, who is Dazzle’s marketing director, was eager to make the transition from one address to the other as smooth as possible.įor the lion’s share of the last two decades, jazz aficionados had come to depend on Dazzle as a reliable, intimate place to absorb the vibrations of the world’s finest musicians.
Dazzle Jazz, Denver’s dominant nightclub when it comes to presenting mainstream improvised music, was in the process of relocating from its old location at 930 Lincoln, where it had been since opening in 1998. There was a sense of urgency to all the activity. People were running in and out of a kitchen down the hall. Off in a darkened, adjacent room, Dwight Thompson was conferring with a pair of young adults, chatting away while all three were typing away on laptops. When I visited last week, there was someone who appeared to know a thing or two about acoustics shifting equipment around, playing generic rock music through loudspeakers. The old Baur’s Restaurant building at 1512 Curtis Street in downtown Denver has been transformed. But the main menu is also worthy of note, with its famous four-cheese macaroni and other favorites.Monday, July 17th 2023 Home Page Close Menu The late-afternoon and late-night happy hours feature a roster of dishes - including a terrific bar burger, pizzas and salads - that are enough to make a meal.
And Dazzle is more than just a jazz club it's also a great local watering hole, renowned for the martinis offered at the comfortable bar. To top it all off, the lounge's walls are acoustically treated, so the sound is top-notch, and sight-wise, there's not a bad seat in the house. Dazzle has hosted Joe Lovano, Esperanza Spalding, the Bad Plus, Vijay Iyer, Kurt Elling and the stellar trio of Ron Miles, Bill Frisell and Brian Blade. The level of talent that's brought in week after week is unmatched in these parts. But it's not just here that the club's been praised: DownBeat magazine listed it as one of the top 100 jazz clubs in the world, and with good reason. In business for more than fifteen years, Dazzle has secured its spot as the premier place for jazz in Denver.
0 kommentar(er)
