Artist: Brian Lynch
New main entry for BL
New York City – People, Places And Playing
New York City is still the world center for musical activity and community, especially for the kinds of music that I gravitate towards. 2026 started on the right footing for me with a round-robin of gigs, sessions, and hangs that sharpened my reflexes and nourished my soul. Here’s some highlights:
Sunday, Jan. 3- John Hicks Salute @ The Cutting Room
Arnie Perez’s “Sunday Serenades” have been a NYC area institution over the last (getting on 20?) years, fulfilling a niche for veteran musicians and audiences alike with its emphasis on OG players and themes. Hats off to Arnie for continuing to present this much-needed series – even while battling health issues he keeps on keeping on, and our music community is so much the better for it.
¡Que Viva Venezuela!
For musicians, many things in the world that may be abstractions or that seem remote to others’ personal experience feel much closer. Venezuela and its people, especially the musicians, are very close to me. Many of my most valued colleagues come from that country’s rich musical soil, and the contributions of Venezuelan musicians to la música Latina, jazz, “classical” music, and other idioms are irreplaceable. The sounds coming from that land itself, whether folkloric, popular, or art, are a shining jewel in the crown of music of the Americas and of the Afro-Atlantic diaspora. Venezuelan musicians are erudite, supremely skilled, eloquently expressive, and possess both refinement and fire. Audiences there are discerning, cultivated, and “down home” in equal measure. I have had uniformly rewarding musical experiences there over the years, dating back to the early 1980s.
My 1st Substack Post: John Hicks, January Events
This is my first Substack post! I’ve been thinking about joining the throng and seeing for myself what this is all about (I’m doing more and more of my topical reading on Substack these days) for a while now, and the relative lull in my schedule for the holidays is a good time as any to attempt to try a post for myself. I’d like to get in the habit of writing, with the hope of becoming more facile as I go along.
I’ve recently been seeing posts commemorating the great pianist John Hicks’s birthday (Dec. 21) with anecdotes and personal remembrances. I have a few of my own, centering on musical experiences ranging from formative record listening sessions, to indelible memories of live shows, along with a few cherished bandstand encounters. Briefly, here’s a couple of tidbits: