RSVP Now for a Free Networking Event with Negocios Now at Cafe Iberico
June 21: Make Music Chicago, Thai Fest, Ian Maskin and Las Guitarras de España
Summer Solstice, the official start of summer in the Northern hemisphere, is June 21st and marks the start of my favorite season in Chicago as well as the beginning of a very busy cultural agenda. There are so many activities going that it could get overwhelming! I will try to feed you bits of it at each post so you can keep up with them. These are my picks for June 21st.
Thai Fest (June 19-21). Discover a glimpse of Thailand right in the heart of Chicago. Once a year, you can indulge yourself with mouth-watering hot and spicy authentic Thai food, Thai traditional dance and classical music, exciting Muay Thai, pampering Thai traditional massage, soothing oriental fragrance of Thai orchid, refreshing Thai coconut juice and a blow-away-your mind Thai fashion show.
11am-6pm Free admission.
Federal Plaza Square, 219 S. Dearborn, (Adams St. and Dearborn St.) Chicago. Click here for the festival’s schedule.
Make Music Chicago (June 21st): This is a live, free musical celebration across the city that takes place each June 21st, like its international French counterpart Fête de la Musique (also known as World Music Day) that happens around the world. Throughout the day, people of all ages and from all backgrounds – beginners, amateurs, professionals, and marquee artists – gather in Chicago’s public spaces to make music of all genres. Click here for this year’s schedule.
Cello and flamenco with Ian Maskin, las Guitarras de España and Wendy Clinard(June 21st): Flamenco dancer Wendy Clinard and Russian-born/Chicago-based cellist Ian Maksin will join Las Guitarras de Espana for an evening of flamenco, world music, Spanish folk and classical music at City Winery. Click here for more information.
Iris devoilée (June 21st): Eastern and Western musical traditions entwine in the Chicago premiere of the sensuous Iris devoilée by Chinese composer Qiqang Chen. This show is part of the Grant Park Music Fest. Click here for more information.
June 19: Free Pink Martini Concert at Grant Park Music Festival
Will you be in the Loop this Wednesday? If you will, then I highly recommend going to Millennium Park for a treat. The internationally acclaimed Pink Martini will perform with Carlos Kalmar and the Grant Park Orchestra, bringing their unique blend of classical, jazz, and pop sounds to the stage. I saw Pink Martini perform a few years ago and the easy-going, happy feeling of their multilingual world music still lingers in me when I remember that show. “All of us in Pink Martini have studied different languages as well as different styles of music from different parts of the world,” says Thomas Lauderdale, the band’s founder and artistic director. “So inevitably, our repertoire is wildly diverse. At one moment, you feel like you’re in the middle of a samba parade in Rio de Janeiro, and in the next moment, you’re in a French music hall of the 1930s or a palazzo in Napoli. It’s a bit like an urban musical travelogue. We’re very much an American band, but we spend a lot of time abroad … and therefore have the incredible diplomatic opportunity to represent a broader, more inclusive America … the America which remains the most heterogeneously populated country in the world … composed of people of every country, everything language, every religion.”
This concert is part of the ongoing Grant Park Music Festival, a free summer classical concert series featuring the Grant Park Orchestra and Chorus. The festival is the only free, outdoor classical music series of its kind in the country. Click here for more information about the festival and future concerts. Here is the scoop for Pink Martini’s concert:
WHEN
Wednesday, June 19, 2013, 6:30pm
Open Rehearsal: Wednesday, June 19, 2013, 11:00am – 1:30pm
WHERE
Jay Pritzker Pavilion
WHO
Grant Park Orchestra
Carlos Kalmar, Conductor
Pink Martini
WHAT
Music by Pink Martini
Chicago Drinks You Can’t Live Without
I recently read an article titled 25 Drinks Every Chicagoan Should Try. It contained a list created by the staff of RedEye Chicago with recommendations for drinks in the Windy City. I am curious to know what you, a Chicago Urbanite follower with an international perspective of the city, would include in a list like that. I would recommend the blackberry Cuban mojitos served at Argentinian Barra Ñ during Brazilian nights on Tuesdays or the Blood Orange Martini served at Dunlay’s in Logan Square. What about you? What are your favorite drinks in Chicago? Please leave your recommendation on the comments section below. Maybe we could all meet in the future and explore our choices together? Cheers! 
Come to the Puerto Rican Day Parade and Learn How to Dance Bomba!
Title: 31st Fiestas Puertorriqueñas Location: Humboldt Park Dates: June 13-16, 2013
Puerto Ricans are the second biggest Latino community in Chicago (more than 113 000 according to the 2000 census). This community, whose presence in the Windy City dates back to the 1940s, is celebrating the annual Puerto Rican Day Parade and Festival this weekend. This event takes place along Paseo Boricua on Division Street (between California and Western Ave) in Humboldt Park, a neighborhood considered as the heart of all things Puerto Rican in Chicago. The festival honors the nearly 4 million inhabitants of Puerto Rico and all people of Puerto Rican birth or heritage residing in the mainland U.S. This celebration has become the largest attended Latino festival in the city of Chicago and in the Midwest. It features four days of fun, food, and festivities.
Also, tomorrow Saturday June 15, the fest will be the epicenter of the Puerto Rican People’s Parade, which starts at noon at Division and Western Avenue. if you go to he People’s parade tomorrow, stop by Africaribe Open House between 11am and 3pm on Paseo Boricua. Get a quick tour, stay for their free workshop and join them for a Bombazo! Bring your drums, chairs, and Bomba skirts. You don’t know about Bomba? Then click here. It is music that will make your body dance. You will have a great time trying it! Here is the link with more information about this event: https://www.facebook.com/events/530258697032470/. And here is the schedule for the festival entertainment:
Festival Entertainment
Thursday
2:00PM – Open Cut Ribbon Ceremony
3:00PM – Welcome & Pastors Presentation
3:30PM – House Music by DJ Rafy
4:30PM – Tito Vega (Christian)
5:30PM – Orquesta Nissi (Christian)
6:30PM – Freddy Kenton
8:00PM – Willie Garcia y su Orq. Sabor
Friday
5:00PM – Omi Kennedy “El mas Completo”
6:00PM – Plena Libre
7:30PM – Luisito Carrion
Saturday
1:00PM – House Music by DJ Rafy
2:00PM – Anthem & Speeches
3:15PM – Carlitos Rey celebrando 40 años
4:30PM – Asi Somos
6:00PM – Duelo de Soneros
(Kayvan Vega, Sammy Gonzalez & Cano de Sabana Seca)
7:30PM – Orquesta Mulenze
Sunday
11:00AM – Misa (Mass)
12:30PM – Show Jibaro
1:30PM – BomPleneras
2:45PM – Mambo Seven
4:00PM – The Juke Box (Beatles tribute)
5:45PM – Grupo KARIS
7:30PM – NG2
Join the World Naked Bike Ride Chicago Tonight
Tonight the World Naked Bike Ride rolls across the globe promoting freedom from oil and the beauty of people in hundreds of cities. This year is the 10th annual Wold Naked Bike Ride in Chicago. Chicago’s ride runs for 14 miles and draws over a thousand participants. If you want to join them, just jump on a bike, lace up those skates or grab a long board! As long as you travel by the power of your body and conscience you can roll with this group. Bare-as-you-dare outfits range from fanciful costumes, body paint and undies, to nothing at all. Yes, that’s right, you can get naked tonight and tour this great city to be cheered on by thousands like a rock star.
Here are the organizers’ instructions on how to join this ride:
PARTICIPANTS must show Person-Powered Wheels.
FANS see ChicagoNakedRide.org MassUp.us @ChiNakedRide #WNBRC
CHECK-IN (Today, Sat Jun 8, 6pm):
900 West Adams – Mary Bartelme park – Participants on people powered wheels will be forwarded to start location. Do NOT show up naked.
LEAVING EARLY (8pm):Ride leaves before sunset for slightly better light and warmth. DON’T BE LATE! Or we will leave you behind. Make sure your bike’s ready and that you’re capable of 14 miles in under three hours (slow to medium pace, stops often).
CROWDING:Weather and publicity and history may bring record turnout. Pro Tip is to come pre-decorated, hang streetside, and disrobe upon launch. However, if you arrive early, we have body painting supplies on hand.
GAWKERS:We invite the public to join us in protesting British Petroleum’s abuse of our planet when we give the station at Fullerton & Ashland a big swirlie. Please keep in mind to not ride too close to bystanders, a lot of people just want to high five you, but some might slap more than your hand, so be careful and stay to the center of the road to avoid being grabbed.
Visit http://MassUp.us/ or http://ChicagoNakedRide.org/or text WHERE to wnbrc@massup.us to follow the action live.
READ THE RULES & BASICS: http://ChicagoNakedRide.org/about
Looking for a job? Then read this post
I know this is kind off topic, but some of you may be looking for a job in Chicago, so I want to pass along this information about an interesting job opening. Send me an email to chiurbanite@gmail.com with your resume if you want to apply for a Business Communications Consultant position. Click here for all the details about the position. Good luck!
June 10: Flamenco-Balkan-Persian concert with Karpah and Bad Mashadi
Bad Mashadi, Karpah and DJ Armin are playing together from Persian and Balkan music to French/Latin Flamenco and Iranian house music this Monday June 10. This is what the musicians are saying about this show:
The world is not ending just yet, but it is getting harder to travel and avoid the x-ray machines and border dogs. Join the Coup D’etat Al-Bohème on June 10 and dance your fears away. Musicians from Poland, Iran, Mexico, France, America and Argentina will play and play and play…
Karpah, a Chicago-based Flamenco fusion band, effortlessly blends together the heritage and musical influences of each band member’s culture. Hailing from Argentina, France, and Mexico, this instrumental power trio showcases compositions that incorporate Rumba Flamenca, Tango Flamenco, Eastern European rhythms, Funk and Rock.
Bad Mashadi is a contemporary fusion of Persian and Balkan music that also incorporates electronic elements. The band’s project and vision is to constantly change and blend the music of the Middle East and beyond to create an original sound signature. Bad Mashadi is the story teller in a globalized world of cultural conflicts and contrasts.
DJ Armin is a recent immigrant from Iran where he had been involved in the house music scene in Tehran’s underground venues. Often accompanied by a live percussionist, his unique collection includes remixes of Middle Eastern folk and pop music.
Cover: $10
Venue: The Burlington (3425 W Fullerton Ave Chicago)
Watch me on TV tonight for Perspectivas Latinas on CAN TV
Some of you know that I collaborate with CAN TV on the production and hosting of a bilingual forum called Perspectivas Latinas. The forum focuses on issues and concerns of Chicago nonprofit organizations in areas of health care, economic development, arts, education, immigration, labor, domestic violence, and other community concerns.
For those of you who live in Chicago and are not familiar with CAN TV, you should fix that ASAP. CAN TV is an independent, nonprofit community media resource on cable devoted to giving every Chicagoan a voice on cable television. It is an excellent source of information about issues affecting Chicago residents and it gives you the opportunity to connect with local resources, interact with local politicians, and experience a diversity of viewpoints.
Tonight at 7:30pm, cable channel CAN TV 21 will be airing a funny interview I taped for Perspectivas Latinas with the cool guys from Sal Sation’s “Los Improviachis!”, a Latino sketch comedy group that sings improvised mariachi songs based on audience suggestions. We did one for Mayor Rahm Emmanuel and they even created a song for me. Hope you can tune in and if you have any suggestions or ideas for the show, please feel free to share them with me. CAN TV is available to all Chicago subscribers of Comcast, WOW and RCN.
Happy Saturday!
This weekend: Flamenco “Quejios” with Chiara Mangiameli
Directed and created by Chiara Mangiameli, whom the Chicago Tribune hailed as a “formidable flamenco dancer” for her work alongside Rick Bayless in the 2012 Lookingglass Theater production of Cascabel, “Quejios – Cries In The Air” is inspired by the emotional range and power of the flamenco voice.
Showcasing the traditional songs and dances of Andalusia thread together by original poetry from Madrid-based writer Luis Lorente and soundscapes designed by Static Studios, the show will take audiences on a journey from the joy and sensuality of a “cantinas” to the sorrowful, unrelenting rhythm of a “seguiriya” all the while showcasing the talents of student dancers, from the novice to the most advanced, alongside Chiara Mangiameli performing her new solo work. Featuring some of Chicago’s best flamenco and world music musicians, this year will also add guest singer and Seville native Alfonso Cid to the line-up. Other performers will include Carlo Basile and Diego Alonso on guitars and Bob Garrett on percussion.
Performances will take place at the Vittum Theater, 1012 N Noble Street in Chicago, on May 31st and June 1st at 8pm. A June 2nd performance at 5pm will be followed by a show discussion and meet and greet with the artists. Tickets are $25 and $15 for children ages12 and under.
Chicago Urbanite 