Hot Summer Nights 2013 Schedule

Please Note: You are encouraged to bring your own chairs as the Garden has a limited supply available each evening.


Thu 6 Jun	Morry Sochat & The Special 20's Blues and Swing Dancing	Thursday, June 6 6 – 8 p.m. Morry Sochat and The Special 20's bring a fresh sound to the Chicago blues scene. They mix classic Chicago blues with swing and rock-and-roll. They’re influenced by the best in blues history: Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Louis Jordan, Junior Wells, and all of the Chicago greats. Nicolle Wood was at the forefront of the Swing dance and music revival in the mid 1990's and has been teaching and dancing ever since. Teaching and performing internationally and coordinating events steeped in vintage American culture has become a way of life.
Thu 13 Jun	Le Travaillant Cajun	Thursday, June 13 6 – 8 p.m. Le Travaillant plays Cajun music of French-speaking Louisiana with accordion and fiddle. The hard-working men behind Le Travaillant's sound are Sean Colledge (accordions, vocals), Ethan Sellers (guitar, vocals), Randy Mollner (fiddles), Jake Samson (bass), and Tim Bennett (drums). Several of the members have family ties to Louisiana and the New Orleans area in particular, which is evident in their soulful and energetic renditions of classic Cajun two-steps and waltzes.
Thu 20 Jun	The Boils Celtic Music and Irish Step Dance	Thursday, June 20 6 – 8 p.m. Three of Chicago's most seasoned Irish traditional musicians came together in 2005 to form The Boils, a high-energy trio delivering a potent blend of jigs and reels, as well as songs. Featuring Jim Conway on harmonica and tin whistle, Jack Callahan on guitar and vocals, and Mike Austin on bodhran and percussion, The Boils possess a deep respect for traditional style but also infuse that tradition with their own interpretation of the music, reflecting their Irish-American heritage. Before coming together, the muscians performed and recorded with some of the world’s top Irish musicians in venues spanning the United States and Europe.
Thu 27 Jun	El Payo Rumba Flamenco	Thursday, June 27 6 – 8 p.m. El Payo is a rumba/nuevo flamenco group based in Chicago. Their distinct sound of both original and traditional music carries the unmistakable overtones of the passionate, raw energy that is flamenco music. They also perform with flamenco dancers for a stunning visual element.
Thu 4 Jul	Lamajamal with Erika Ochoa World Music and Belly Dancing	Thursday, July 4 6 – 8 p.m. Lamajamal's sound is a unique blend of Balkan, Gypsy, Arabic, and North African dance music. Their exciting live performances feature Middle Eastern vocals, serpentine clarinet melodies, exotic instruments, and infectious dance beats. Erika Ochoa is a contemporary artist of Middle Eastern dance, specializing in Egyptian-style dance. She has been dancing professionally in the Chicago area for the past 15 years. She teaches weekly at the Old Town School of Folk Music and at her own studio called Pineapple Dance Studio in Forest Park, Illinois.
Thu 11 Jul	Sones de México Mexican Folk and Traditional Dance	Thursday, July 11 6 – 8 p.m. Be sure to catch the performance by Chicago's premier Mexican folk music band. The group came together in 1994 and boasts both a Grammy and a Latin Grammy nomination.
Thu 18 Jul	Aloha Lives! Hawaiian Music	Thursday, July 18 6 – 8 p.m. Aloha Lives! Is our newest production by Pacific Soundz. Lanialoha combines the influences of her musical paths and passions to revive the old and new cultural traditions of the Pacific. She performs a seamless and memorable concert of melodies, harmonies and rhythmic sounds, that will inspire you.
Thu 25 Jul	Grupo Cha Cha Latin Jazz	Thursday, July 25 6 – 8 p.m. Grupo Cha Cha is a fun Latin band that will fill the air with tropical sounds of Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Brazil to get you on your feet! They are a favorite of the Chicago Latin Jazz Festival, corporate events, and Chicago’s hottest Latin clubs. Noted for their multigender and multicultural make up, their music is on regular rotation on FM Jazz radio stations nationwide including WDCB 90.9 in the Chicago area.
Thu 1 Aug	Volo Bogtrotters Old-Time String Band	Thursday, August 1 6 – 8 p.m. The Volo Bogtrotters have been the Midwest's foremost old-time string band since 1985. They play country music from the last century and traditional square-dance tunes learned directly from elder fiddlers in Illinois, Indiana, and Missouri. After a hiatus of few years, the Volos have reunited to bring a new generation with the joys of old-time music.
Thu 8 Aug	Bopology Swing	Tuesday, August 8 6 – 8 p.m. This band brings the uniquely American genres of swing and jazz to life. With a level of professional musicianship that offers both the appreciative listener and the avid dancer a solid swingin’ groove, Bopology prides itself on maintaining the authenticity of this music. Rather than cover a song note-for-note, the improvisation within a song enables individual musicians to showcase their unique talents to capitalize on Bopology’s 100-plus years of combined musical experience.
Thu 15 Aug	Rio Bamba Brazilian Jazz	Tuesday, August 15 6 – 8 p.m. Rio Bamba, a Chicago-based Brazilian jazz-fusion band founded in 2005, possesses a unique style. While all Brazilian music is highly accessible to most people with its catchy dance rhythms, Rio Bamba turns up the electricity, figuratively and literally, by ramping up tempos and bravado without disrespecting the source material. Classic Brazilian jazz, samba, and bossa nova performed in the original Portuguese as well as in English may be this band’s forte, but they fearlessly “color outside the lines” and perform American jazz standards as well.
Thu 22 Aug	The Mike Knauf Quartet with Dance by Louie Stallone Jazz/Swing and Ballroom/Waltz	Thursday, August 22 6 – 8 p.m. The Mike Knauf Quartet has been delighting audiences for over 15 years. The quartet has performed for many dances, parties, events, and festivals. Knauf and his quartet members have performed nationally and internationally with some of the biggest names in music. The performers draw from a diverse repertoire of swing, Latin, and standards from some of America's finest composers for your dancing and listening pleasure. Louie Stallone has been dancing since 1985 with contra, Cajun, swing, and contact improv — a post-modern dance form. He started teaching swing dancing in 1992 and added Cajun dancing in 1997. During the day you can find him teaching line dancing and tai chi for the Chicago Department on Aging. You can also find Stallone teaching Cajun and zydeco with the City of Chicago’s Summerdance Festival. He hopes to see you on the dance floor!
Thu 29 Aug	Proyecto Sur Tango	Thursday, August 29 6 – 8 p.m. PROYECTO SUR (South Project) is led by Chilean guitarist/singer/educator Nelson Sosa, who will be joined by Richard Scoffano on bandoneon, Paola Sosa on vocals, and two wonderfully talented tango dancers and instructors Daniel and Ramona Noce. Come enjoy an authentic tango experience while learning a bit about the importance of bandoneon in tango music and how this German instrument was incorporated into the music of Rio De La Plata.