In Miami, the music plays on in 2021 - mostly virtual for now. Here are our top picks
▪ Calle Ocho Live, on Oct. 4. Live stream.
Still bummed that you weren’t able to let loose at Miami’s annual Calle Ocho Festival, which was canceled on March 15 because of the pandemic? Now you can celebrate virtually, as Calle Ocho Live moves from the streets of Little Havana to the inside of your own home, via live-stream, as part of Hispanic Heritage Month. Miami-raised reggaeton duo Mau y Ricky will serve as kings of the festival, which will feature live and pre-recorded performances by dozens of top Latin music artists, plus comedians, chefs, social media influencers and other surprise personalities. The diverse lineup includes Gloria Estefan, Jon Secada, Tito Puente Jr., Ivy Queen, Fonseca, the Spanish Harlem Orchestra, Camilo, Cali y El Dandee, Jesse Uribe, Bobby Pulido and many more. The three-hour online show is free, but viewers are encouraged to donate $8 or more before or during the festival to the Kiwanis of Little Havana Foundation at CalleOchoLive.com.
▪ Nu Deco at the Bandshell, kicking off Oct. 29:
The genre-bending, hybrid orchestra Nu Deco Ensemble presents a five-concert series at the North Beach Bandshell with shows on Oct. 29, Dec. 12, Jan. 30, April 10 and May 15. The ensemble is renowned for combining cutting-edge musicians with a full orchestra and backing rock band, creating unique mash-ups of everything from experimental rock to jazz to funk to classical. Full program details of the shows have yet to be finalized, but the Oct. 29 concert will feature the music of jazz pianist Duke Ellington, chamber-music violinist Jessie Montgomery, and Pharrell Williams’ R&B-funk band The Neptunes, with the special guest artist to be announced shortly (collaborators in the past have included hip-hopper Wyclef Jean, alt-rocker Ben Folds, Afro-Cuban superstar Cimafunk, jazz pianist Donald Glasper and reggae royalty Stephen Marley). Check www.nu-deco.org for ticket information.
▪ JazzAid Live from the Banyan Bowl, kicking off on Oct. 17 from Pinecrest Gardens. Streamed live (no audience).
In a year sadly bereft of live concerts, here’s an eight-concert series featuring international superstars of the jazz genre. The fun begins Oct. 17 with Grammy-winning Miami superstar Jon Secada, who started out singing backup for Gloria Estefan and got his big break by co-writing her inspirational hit “Coming Out of the Dark.” You’re sure to hear hits including “Angel,” “If You Go,” “I’m Free” and “Just Another Day,” and perhaps a tribute to the legendary Cuban bandleader Beny Moré.
Other shows in the series include Grammy-winning jazz vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater on Nov. 14; swinging jazz singer Kurt Elling on Dec. 12; iconic swing band the Glenn Miller Orchestra on Jan. 16; trombone legend Wycliffe Gordon on Feb. 13; singer and saxophonist Grace Kelly on Feb. 27; piano prodigy Joey Alexander and his trio on March 13; and innovative vocal quartet the Manhattan Transfer on April 10. Tickets are $15 per show, or $100 for the whole shebang, and a portion of ticket sales benefits World Central Kitchen, which helps feed families affected by the pandemic.
Individual concerts cost $15; buy the entire series for $100. pinecrestgardens.org.
▪ Dezerland WALLCAST Concert, Oct. 17. Live drive-in event at North Miami’s Dezerland Park.
Families and film buffs already know how much fun the Dezerland Drive-In is. Now, classical music fans have a reason to flock to the North Miami venue: The New World Symphony presents a special edition of its popular WALLCAST concert series, featuring artistic director Michael Tilson Thomas, Carlos Prieto and Stéphane Deneve conducting pianist Gabriala Montero. The program includes Gershwin’s Cuban Overture, Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 14 (Allegro ma non troppo, which means “fast, but not overly so”), Respighi’s Pines of Rome, and Mahler’s Symphony No. 5 as the finale.
This is a NWS subscriber only event; go to nws.edu for membership info.
▪ Chucho Valdés, Oct. 18. Streamed live.
The Celebrity Series of Boston presents a solo concert by Cuban pianist and bandleader Chucho Valdés, streaming live from the New World Center in Miami Beach, followed by an artist chat with writer and musician Fernando González, formerly of the Miami Herald. The multiple Grammy-winning Valdés, a key figure in the evolution of Afro-Cuban jazz over the past five decades, will revisit his “Jazz Batá” sound, a reference to his groundbreaking 1972 album by the same name that featured bass and batá drums, plus his 2018 release “Jazz Batá 2.” Valdés will be accompanied by bassist Ramon Vazquez, plus percussionists Miguel Valdes and Yaroldy Abreu.
Tickets are $20; www.celebrityseries.org.
▪ Seraphic Fire’s Season S, kicking off Nov. 8. Virtual.
The sublime South Florida vocal group Seraphic Fire presents a virtual, six-concert series, with its musicians performing in isolation from their homes in a wide range of music, from the Gregorian chants of the Medieval era through post-1950 compositions.
The first concert is appropriately themed “Still. Here. – Music of Love and Plague,” and will honor centuries of music created by people suffering from fear, loneliness and grief who were also inspired by love, friendship and awe. On Dec. 20, the ensemble celebrates a social-distancing Christmas with “Home for the Holidays,” and presents “American Music” on Jan. 24. The final three concerts – on Feb. 28, March 21 and April 18 – will feature content yet to be determined.
Season passes are $130; single tickets are released two weeks prior to performance. www.seraphicfire.org.
▪ Dianne Reeves – Christmas Time Is Here, Dec. 18 at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in Miami.
