Company Affair

Okay, so you’re going to visit New York and you have to decide what you’re going to do while your there. Poor you, I’m sure you have everyone’s sympathy. Meanwhile, are you crazy? When you’re visiting New York you don’t decide what you’re going to do, you decide how you can possibly fit everything in while you’re there. This is definitely one of the greatest cities in the country and even the world and there is something great taking place in it at all times. In addition to the standard landmarks, cultural attractions and ongoing activities, great plays are opening. Brilliant new exhibits are being hung in the finest galleries and great new music is being played all over town. So, while you simply must visit some of the standard attractions, such as the Empire State Building, The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, you might be interested in experiencing some of the great art, music and theatre that is constantly being created in this city.

Radio City Music Hall is one of the standard cultural establishments that is part of the main city attractions. Among some of the great performances and world premieres that are presented here, it will be the home of the 2010 Tony Awards, which will take place on Sunday June 13. This is one of the great places to visit and you can even take a tour of the building. Meanwhile, some of the other great performance spaces the Canal Room, le Poisson Rouge and The National Underground offer great original as well as known music. The Canal Room features great live concerts and DJ performances and is one of the hip places to visit while you’re in town. Le Poisson Rouge is known for the diversity of performances it hosts and you can find great classical music concerts as well as new music performances here. The National Underground is a great place to eat and enjoy a live music show.

So, you have to visit New York. Well, check out a travel directory,
make your NY hotel reservations and stop whining, there is more to do there than you could possibly fit into an entire lifetime. See and do all you can and have a great time. It’s New York!

Many might think New Orleans is the place to go for jazz; considering that jazz was originated there with Buddy Bolden and a type of music first known as jass, they might be right. But another great place for jazz and music in general is Austin, Texas.

This state capital has always seemed a lot hipper than other state capitals in the West (Sacramento, for instance). Austin, once known as a village named Waterloo, was settled on the banks of the Colorado River in the 1830s. Today, at 600 North Lamar Boulevard, you’ll find Waterloo Records and Video , with a name that ties itself in not only to the city’s past, but, by using the symbol of the London Underground, connects it to the music scene in London and Waterloo Station, which is also connected to a major victory over Napoleon in 1815. With one word and logo, a record store manages to combine the history of Austin with the history of the London Underground and the Battle of Waterloo. It’s that kind of synthesis that’s rare in any business, but in Austin it’s possible to find the unexpected. For instance, for Jazz, music lovers may head over to the Elephant Room at 315 Congress Avenue.

In the Elephant Room , patrons will find live jazz every day of the year in its basement, featuring two shows nightly. There’s a happy hour show from 6 to 8 in the evening, and then the main show begins at 9:30. The Elephant Room has been operating for about nineteen years now, since 1991, from four in the afternoon to two the next morning, Mondays through Fridays. On Saturdays and Sundays, the festivities start a little later, beginning at eight at night, but still closes at two in the morning, so there’s plenty of time to stop in. On weekdays, there’s no charge, while Fridays and Saturdays, there’s a cover fee for admission.

Each month the jazz is different; however, here’s a sampling of what’s occuring in June 2010. There will be musical performances by the Austin Jazz Band, Alex Coke/Richard Harney and the Brannen Temple Group. On Monday nights, you’ll find a Jazz Jam, hosted largely by Freddie Mendoza. On Sunday nights, you may see Ulrich Ellison & Carter Arrington as well as the Kelly Howe Quartet, About Blank, and Leah & the Moonlighters. The month ends with John Mills Times Ten, with the Jazz Pharoahs playing the Happy Hour.

If you want a place to stay that’s as interesting as the music in Austin, boutique hotels may be a way to go, where their individuality frees you from an ordinary, run-of-the-mill room. Check in, then wander out to Congress Street for some of the city’s finest music, then stop by Waterloo Records the next day to pick up some CD’s and bring a bit Austin home.

There have been a number of great ways to raise awareness about various illnesses, but by far some of the best always end up being Youtube videos. I don’t want to say too much about this one, mostly because there just isn’t much to say. It looks like they had a great time and had a lot of time. I’m sure everyone there wishes there were more effective ways to help these women.

It was a surprise to almost everyone when Siobhan Magnus was eliminated from American Idol on Wednesday night. This was supposed to be a “girl’s season” and the deck was heavily stacked in favor of the females, with a number of talented women who were each picked off early in the show. For most Idol experts Siobhan wasn’t even on the list of possible contestants to be asked to leave next, so this came as a major surprise for America.

Fort Wayne is a place that breathes Americana, with the mythical ideas of that perfect land of opportunity. The quality of life is pretty high here, and there’s a wonderful sense of place that the locals seem to take great pride in. There are multiple cultural influences that come through here and reside here, and one of the influences, of course, is that of the Irish. There is a strong Irish-American population here, as evidenced by the enormous success when Guggenheim Grotto played in town at the end of February. It’s events like that that make visiting here a wonderful experience.

Not that it isn’t already pretty wonderful. There are excellent hotels where you can find spectacular hospitality, with all the charms of the Midwest, and all the sophistication of a truly contemporary lodging experience. There are also plenty of local attractions, and lovely ways to spend your days here. But it does seem to really come alive when live concerts bring out the locals and the visitors, coming to hear music and give their energy to the bands. This event was held at the Come 2 Go Music Hall , a rather surprisingly lively place to hear great concerts. It also functions as a place with a religious mission, so it’s somehow unlikely to host such an eclectic variety of bands.

But the acoustics are fantastic, and the atmosphere is always alive. Guggenheim Grotto was a perfect fit, because this duo from Dublin is best heard in intimate spaces, where it sometimes sounds like they’re singing right to the audience. Their own particularly broody and melancholic sounds came alive in the Fort Wayne night, giving everyone a taste of what’s happening right now in the contemporary Irish music scene. They’ve been on a splendid run of tours in the U.S., and with each visit, we’re left waiting for the next one.

Melbourne has many splendid things to offer travelers of all ages.  There is a gorgeous blend of the old and the new here.  The Aboriginal cultures have been here for thousands of years, and their influence is everywhere, whether visible or not.  The European traditions still speak of a high regard for graciousness and chivalry, and there is also a tremendously contemporary attitude that runs through the cultural life of the city.  There is a splendid metropolitan feel here, and easy access to natural areas of great beauty.  There are so many things to recommend Melbourne, and it’s certainly a lovely place for a hotel.  Melbourne, Australia can offer a splendid time for the business traveler as well as the tourist.

Our hotels offer a spectacular level of hospitality, and it’s almost an art form here.  You’ll feel entirely welcome, and soon find yourself relaxing in the heart of splendor, enjoying the spacious and sumptuously furnished lodgings.  After a few winks, you might enjoy a work out in state of the art facilities, or a delicious meal served by top chefs who are trained in classical and contemporary cooking.  Then it’s off to see the city, and there are marvelous adventures in store for you.  Melbourne has been at the cutting edges of culture in the world for a few decades now, and has some interesting histories that are still unfolding.

In the music scene, everything has happened here, and sometimes first, and sometimes twice.  It’s been a very lively place in the international music scene, and its contributions are consistently underrated.  But not when you’re here, and you’ll realize how lively it actually is.  When hiphop first started making its way toward a second wave in the 1980s, and made its major contributions to the canons of world music, it was also big in Melbourne.  It faded away in the 1990s as far as the record companies were concerned, but has actually been extremely lively, and in the past ten years, has undergone some major evolutions.  Melbourne hiphop is now a form all its own, with roots in African-American culture that are very profound, but also touching ground in the U.K. reggae scene, and has been adding some local twists to make it something worth looking for while you’re here.