Fame or Famine

There’s a bit of a theme going in the B5Media entertainment community, where each blogger is supposed to write a valentine post. For people like the LOST and Soap bloggers, it’s a fun exercise of the imagination; you can just aske the question “Who would you like to be your valentine from the show?” The answers are entertaining, to say the least.

However, when your beat is “performing arts”, it’s not quite that easy. Sure, you could just say “Wouldn’t you like a valentine from Ethan Steifel?” but the realm is so large, the pool of people so vast and yet so specialized (for example, unless you are a balletomane you probably don’t know who Ethan is) that it makes it a little too vast.

So instead I’m going to make a recommendation, and then ask you a question, and hope that the combination makes this Valentine’s Day just a little more special for you and the ones you love.

The recommendation? Slow live jazz. Sure, you could go to a symphony, you could go see the Lion King (as I did last night in Milwaukee), you could watch Le Corsaire on DVD while sitting in front of a fireplace, but for my money, there is nothing in the world of performing arts as aesthetically intimate and powerful as sitting in a dimly lit club, watching the curly hair of a pianist bob up and down hidden behind the loose sheets of music as he wends his way through a jazz standard. Add in a smoky-voiced beautiful woman in a long black dress, holding a microphone and closing her eyes as the words pour out of her soul like the dark petals of a perfect rose…maybe a bassist so lost in the chord progressions that his grizzled face is contorted and almost comical save for the fact that he is so into the music that when his solo is done he looks surprised at the applause, as if he forgot the audience was even there.

There is something about that atmosphere that just sets the romantic mood like nothing else. When you’re sitting there at the tiny round table, a candle lit between you, and you are both feeling the music wash over you, there is just no way not to reach out, to take the hand and smile into the liquid eyes of your date, reflecting not just the candlelight but also feeling the words of the songs and taking them in.

Because the jazz standards are all about love. Joyful love, sorrowful love, lost love, hopeful love, but oh, they are about love. Here’s some examples, in case you’re lucky enough to suggest a tune or two to the band:

• • Autumn Leaves
• Unforgettable
• Don’t Get Around Much
• Dream a Little Dream
• As Time Goes By

and my own personal favorite:

All of me, why not take all of me
Can’t you see I’m no good without you…

You may wonder how I know this is the ultimate romantic event. Simple: a couple of nights ago, my girlfriend was invited to sing with a jazz combo at the Hilton here in town. So I sat there with a glass of Johnny Walker Black, neat, and listened to her sing it out…and it was the most amazingly romantic environment I could have imagined.

So take it from me, kid. Put away the chocolates, don’t spend the money on the tickets to see Wicked. You can do that any time. Find yourself a little club, a little up-and-coming jazz combo put together by some community members who just have to get some of that good stuff out of their souls, and take your sweetie there. I guarantee you a night you’ll both remember and treasure for years to come.

And for those who already know about this little romantic secret: what songs did I miss? What do you think is the most romantic thing to hear as you toast to the cupidity of love?

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