[Dixielandjazz] A Place For Jazz?

[Stephen G Barbone]

Sounds a little bit like the barn studio at "Fred's Farm" in Lafayette  
NJ where trad jazz is played to appreciative audiences.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone

March 5, 2010 - NY Times - By Nate Chinen
Swinging on the Hudson: An Unlikely Haven for Jazz


MARLBORO, N.Y.  The pianist Fred Hersch seemed right at home here one  
recent Saturday night, onstage at the Falcon, a perfectly unlikely  
jazz haven in this Hudson Valley hamlet. Leading a trio, he mingled  
standards and originals, including a graceful waltz with the  
appropriate title “Snow Is Falling.” The standing-room crowd, a few  
hundred strong, was lavish with its applause, never more so than when  
Mr. Hersch made a brief acknowledgment: “I just want to congratulate  
Tony for putting this place together.”

Tony is Tony Falco, an environmental scientist who has spent the last  
decade presenting jazz concerts in a barnlike structure he built  
behind his house. Over the years the intimacy of the setting and the  
hospitality of Mr. Falco and his family have brought a revolving roll  
call of top jazz talent to this town 70 miles north of Manhattan.

“It’s a really special place,” Kevin Hays, another acclaimed pianist,  
said of the Falcon, where he will appear with a trio on April 2. “The  
audiences are always great: quiet and respectful, even though it’s a  
very relaxed vibe, with kids often running around.”

I began hearing about the Falcon four or five years ago, from  
musicians who had played there. It sounded like a model of small but  
sturdy local activity, in a community far (but not too far) from the  
feverish metabolism of the city. Yet Mr. Falco’s operation isn’t on  
the radar of the average New York jazz fan; why would it be, with so  
many options closer to home? (Mr. Hersch, who played a week at the  
Village Vanguard in January, is scheduled to perform at the Weill  
Recital Hall on March 31.)

One recent development should add some incentive for out-of-towners:  
last fall Mr. Falco moved the Falcon from his backyard to larger  
accommodations on Route 9W, the town’s main drag. The handsomely  
renovated room, in what was once a 19th-century button factory, more  
than doubled his seating capacity, while easing tensions with his  
neighbors.

Since opening the day after Thanksgiving, the Falcon has settled into  
a steadier rhythm than ever before, with shows every Friday and  
Saturday. A liquor license came through in late January, and the  
kitchen began turning out light dinner fare. In theory, a visit to the  
club could form the cultural centerpiece of a restorative Hudson  
Valley weekend.

I set out to test that theory along with my wife, Ashley Lederer, who  
has grown warily accustomed to my idea of a weekend getaway. (I review  
pop and jazz for The New York Times; she harbors the humane conviction  
that a weekend should feel different than the rest of the week, and  
that a getaway involves getting away.) The good news is that we  
enjoyed Mr. Hersch’s two sets, with the bassist Larry Grenadier and  
the drummer Richie Barshay, at least as much as we would have in the  
city. Even better news: The weekend really did feel like a mini- 
vacation.

It began with a roadside stop at the workshop of Bruce Bayard, also  
known by the name of his trademark creation, Chainsaw Bear. Since 1993  
Mr. Bayard has been using chainsaws to carve three-foot-high wood  
sculptures, specializing in grizzlies but also producing made-to-order  
sea captains and cigar-store Indians. He warmly welcomed a pair of  
unexpected visitors, sharing some tips about the area, starting with  
the Falcon.

The Hudson Valley is known for its agriculture, and the town of  
Marlborough, which includes the farming hamlets of Marlboro and  
Milton, fits the bill. Most of the area’s orchards and farms have yet  
to reopen for the season; Meet Me in Marlborough, a cooperative of  
farmers and businesses, oversees orchard and farm tours. Our visit, in  
February, was poorly timed for agritourism, but we did stop at two  
wineries, encountering a study in contrasts as well as a sampling of  
local flavor.

Benmarl Winery at Slate Hill Vineyards in Marlboro, which holds the  
claim to America’s oldest vineyard, wears its heritage with pride.  
Though no longer owned by the storied winemaker Mark Miller, who died  
in 2008, its cellar still holds some of his vintages, their labels  
dust caked and faded. A $6 six-flight tasting yielded some pleasant  
surprises, including a baco noir and a de Chaunac, hybrid varieties  
common to the Hudson Valley, as well as a crisply balanced Riesling.  
(As a bonus we were offered a dram of Clinton Vineyards cassis, which  
had a bouquet strikingly redolent of a bloody mary but the musky taste  
of black currant.)

After a satisfying burger lunch at the Raccoon Saloon, which sits on a  
bluff overlooking a waterfall (right next to the Falcon), we moved on  
to Stoutridge Vineyard, a newer and more dogmatic enterprise committed  
not only to local and sustainable ideals but also a no-sulfite, no- 
filtering policy. The wines produced there can be purchased only on  
site. In a tasting I found them a bit juicy, lacking depth and  
character. But Stoutridge, which will open a distillery this year,  
deserves credit for its convictions.

We headed for Milton, where we checked into the country-chic  
Buttermilk Falls Inn & Spa in time for tea (in my case, coffee) and  
relaxed for a spell before heading to dinner in town. I had been  
hoping for a meal at theCulinary Institute of America, in nearby Hyde  
Park, but the Bocuse d’Or, a chef’s Olympics, was holding its national  
finals there. So we steered away from haute cuisine and toward the  
Hidden Cellar, a roadside red-sauce Italian joint that caters more to  
locals than tourists. As someone with a special place in my heart for  
chicken parmigiana, I was favorably impressed, and not just by the  
price.

Good thing we ate. The Falcon, overwhelmed by the turnout, ran out of  
food during Mr. Hersch’s first set. (The kitchen is run by Matt  
Baccari, a Culinary Institute alumnus from Baton Rouge, La.) But no  
one seemed to mind. The sound and lights, manned by Mr. Falco’s 15- 
year-old son, Lee, were top grade, and the music was exquisite. “I  
feel as though I’ve nurtured an audience,” Mr. Falco, an earnest  
fellow with a head of curly hair, said between sets. “It’s not your  
typical jazz crowd. I’m really proud of that.”

This particular crowd heard Mr. Hersch’s first public appearance with  
Mr. Grenadier, who moved six years ago from Manhattan to Kingston, in  
the Hudson Valley. “For us musicians who live up here,” Mr. Grenadier  
said after the show, “it’s great to have a local venue with a real  
stage, a real sound system, people listening. It’s not like we’re  
playing at a bar somewhere.”

Mr. Grenadier’s regular gig is with the pianist Brad Mehldau, who has  
a house nearby in Newburgh, and played the Falcon in its old  
iteration. Musicians like these don’t usually work for door receipts,  
but the proximity of the Falcon, and their fondness for its  
proprietor, makes for a rare exception. (For a couple of years Mr.  
Hays, the pianist, has lived two doors down from Mr. Falco. The  
bassist in his trio, Doug Weiss, also resides in town.)

“In a way I think it’s very nice that it’s donation-only,” Mr. Hersch  
said. “If you charged a cover charge, it would get to be something  
else. I like the idea that it’s more like a house concert.” The casual  
nature of the gig, he added, made it a good place to stretch out.

Making some calls later, I found others who echoed that thought. “I  
use it as a kind of rehearsal or warm-up, just to get our feet wet,”  
said the saxophonist David Liebman, who headlined the first show in  
Mr. Falco’s new space.

Mr. Liebman — who lives in the Poconos, home to its own jazz haunt,  
the Deer Head Inn — was quick to add that the Falcon serves a vital  
purpose not only for musicians but also for local listeners, some of  
whom might otherwise never go to a jazz club. But even as someone who  
does, I’ve already taken note of his next Falcon engagement, on June  
18. The haul at the farmers’ markets should be serious by then.

IF YOU GO

The Falcon (liveatthefalcon.com) sits on Route 9W, the main road  
through the town of Marlborough, N.Y., about 70 miles north of  
Manhattan. You’ll need a car, but the drive up — along the Hudson  
River — is scenic and calm. Shows are on Friday and Saturday nights,  
free with a suggested donation. The menu is reasonably priced; parking  
is free.

WHERE TO STAY

Buttermilk Falls Inn & Spa (220 North Road; buttermilkfallsinn.com;  
845-795-1310), on 70 acres in the hamlet of Milton, combines rusticity  
with luxury, with rooms starting at $225 a night (a two-night minimum  
on weekends). Breakfast and afternoon tea are included and feature  
ingredients from an organic garden and an on site chicken coop.

WHERE TO EAT

Dinner is served on Saturday nights at the Buttermilk Falls Inn, and  
food is available at the Falcon. But there are other solid options in  
Marlborough, including the Raccoon Saloon (845-236-7872), touted by  
some as having the best burger in the Hudson Valley, available in a 12- 
ounce or “petite” half-pound version. The Hidden Cellar (hidden- 
cellar.com; 845-236-4177) has an unpromising exterior but a sturdy  
menu of Italian-American fare, fresh and flavorful, and for a decent  
price. If your timing and strategy are right, there are the  
restaurants at the Culinary Institute of America (ciachef.edu,  
845-471-6608), in nearby Hyde Park. And while it may not jibe with  
contemporary tastes, the Ship Lantern Inn (shiplanterninn.com,  
845-795-5400) has its place in American food history: It’s where Chef  
Boyardee came into being, in nascent form — and a charmingly starchy  
atmosphere. (The tuxedoed headwaiter, George Pironi, has been with the  
establishment for over 50 years.)

TOURS

Meet Me in Marlborough, a cooperative of farmers and businesses,  
arranges orchard and farm tours. Details are at meetmeinmarlborough.com.