A slight change in plans brings us balafon maestro Mohammed Kouyate in a duo set with his student, Dan, on balafon.  For the second set, a trio with Dan on vibes with drummer Michael Mitchell and bassist Tyler Harlow. Rebecca Holtz can’t join us tonight, but sends her love and best wishes.

Tonight will mark the third and last concert of Dan’s residency at Bird and Beckett, before he leaves the bay to continue his recording projects in Cali, Colombia and beyond.

Dan Neville is an award winning multi-instrumentalist, composer, performer, and jazz big band arranger. In 2017, he won 1st place in the 2017 Jazz Search West competition, and he’s been featured playing vibes on the Today Show. He has also spearheaded two successful crowdfunding campaigns: One in 2017 for the release of his debut album Tenerife featuring an all-star ensemble and all original compositions; and the second in 2019 dubbed Cali to Cali, to raise funds to build a recording studio in Cali, Colombia where he was headed to study with the late marimba maestro Diego Obregón. Dan intended to stay for three months, but ultimately he was there for nearly a year when the pandemic made travel back to California unworkable. He made good use of his time, traveling to the rural Pacific coast and finding opportunities to play and learn from numerous wonderful musicians.

Dan has made several trips to Cuba and Colombia over the years, studying music and connecting with musicians worldwide. Neville received a BA in Jazz Music at California Jazz Conservatory in Berkeley.

He continues to study the West African balafon with Guinean master and Griot Mohammed Kouyaté.

Catch this show on our facebook page or youtube channel

Support the musicians with your donation by Paypal (to [email protected]), Venmo (@birdandbeckett) or the Cash app ($BirdBeckett). $20 is nice, but pay what you can!

$2 – $20 – $200 sliding scale

During our year of pandemic live streams — twice a week and more — we’ve been sticking to the “guaranteed fair wage” figure that Jazz in the Neighborhood has worked hard to make a new standard, and we’ve been doing it without subsidy. That fair wage standard is $150 per musician. We rely on the audience to get us there with your donations during the shows, backed up by neighborhood donors to our general fund (the Bird & Beckett Cultural Legacy Project, a 501(c)3). Remember, the musicians are not playing for “tips” but rather for a fair wage! And they’re fabulous musicians indeed. San Francisco’s finest!

Thanks for your generous support, and for contributing on behalf of those who are in perilous financial condition and can’t afford to donate, but need the music all the same. They’re welcome here, and those of you who can donate make it possible for us to present the music to them.