MY ALBUM IS FINALLY COMING OUT!!!!  (Had to say it with that much enthusiasm because it's been a long time comin'.)  It took a lot of work and perseverance, but the official release date for my album In Faith is September 21 2009.  Now, instead of having a traditional CD release show on or after the date of the release, I'm throwing a PRE-RELEASE party at this awesome venue in Brooklyn called Rustik on Wednesday September 16th at 7:00pm.  Put it in your calendars, folks!  This party is for all of you who enjoy a good hang & support live music.  There will be great food, drinks, and music by my band feat. Corey Wilkes on trumpet (coming all the way in from Chicago!!), Marc Cary on keys, Ben Williams on bass and John Davis on drums.  We'll be playing some music from the album, plus some of Corey's music from his album "Drop It" (For those of you who haven't had the chance to see Corey perform in Chicago, now's the time... see what all the fuss is about, this cat plays some SERIOUS soul trumpet).  Come out and celebrate, and pick up a copy of the album PRE-RELEASE and have a copy before anyone else.  I'm so excited about this show, I hope to see a lot of faces in the crowd that night.  I'm eager to play for everyone and celebrate live music and being an independant artist.  If you're on facebook, http://www.facebook.com/search/?init=srp&sfxp=&o=4&q=Chelsea+Baratz#/event.php?rec52ef6d&eid=129161923072&refid=20#wall_posts
Hope to see you there!  And look out for In Faith on CD Baby and iTunes soon.
PEACE
~C

Hey everybody,
I wanted to let everyone know that I will be performing at Jazz Fest in New Orleans with a few different artists both at the festival and at some clubs in NO.  If you're gonna be in town, please don't hesitate to hit me up on Myspace or Facebook.  I'll be selling copies of my debut album In Faith for the first time ANYWHERE in the world... so, if you're gonna be in New Orleans for Jazz Fest, hit me up & be among the first people in the WORLD to buy the CD, before anyone else gets it.  This record features Corey Wilkes, Maurice Brown, Orrin Evans, Obed Calvaire, Luques Curtis, Renee Neufville, Chris Rob, Raymond Angry... a whole bunch of incredible talent on one disc.

Hey everybody,
I have exciting news to share, I've set the official release date for my debut album "In Faith" for May 1st, 2009.  The album will be available for purchase on iTunes, Rhapsody, and CD Baby.  For those of you here in NYC, I'll keep you posted on the CD release show in Manhattan... this show will feature some of the talented artists from the album, and I also have some suprizes in store.  Needless to say, you won't want to miss it.
PEACE
~C

If you're reading this, then you noticed the new track I put up, the studio version of Philo's Groove.  One of the many tracks from my upcoming album, produced by Maurice Brown.  This track features myself on tenor & alto,  Corey Wilkes on trumpet & flugel, Andy Hunter on trombone, Craig Handy on flute, Renee Neufville on vocals, Mike Murray on rhodes, Richie Goods on bass, Jevon Rushton on drums.  If you enjoy the track be sure to check out the album when it drops.

Peace,

~C

Meet Mr. Remy Martin

...the newest addition to my little family here in NYC. Keep a sharp eye out for him, he'll be out and about with me. He's an 11-week-old deer-head chihuahua puppy.

Remy on myspace: www.myspace.com/k9remymartin

I am posting this blog because so often, people ask me where they can see me playing regularly, aside from my few posted gigs, or where they might just run into me.  I'm not really going to too many jam sessions any more (busy with school, and trying more often to be in the audience of some killin' music)  Alright, folks!  I'll tell you where the real magic happens:

Monday nights:  The Zinc Bar, w/ Ron Afiff Trio

..::This is Ron's Monday night jam session, from 11pm-3:30 am.  You never know who will stop by... well, for those of you who are already regulars at this club, you know what I'm talking about (Hargrove, Marcus Strickland, Stacy Dillard, Rob Glasper, and many others)   It's the spot, and the music is hot.  Also, Ron is from Pittsburgh, so it's a home-town hang for me.

Friday/Saturday/Sunday:  The Blue Note

..::Ah, the Blizzle Nizzle...Yes, this is becoming one of my new favorite hangs.  The music is right, it's as simple as that.  I'm not just there for the jazz shows, though...  I always check out the Late Night Groove series (12:30 am, Friday & Saturday nights)

I'd also like to say that last week, the Dizzy Alumni All-Stars played here, and it was beautiful.  Thanks to James Moody, Slide, Roy, John Lee, Dennis Mackrell, Roberta, and especially Benny Green (without whom I'd not have been in attendance of the show EVERY NIGHT!!), thanks for all your love & support, and for giving so much in the music.

Tuesday-Friday: Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola @ Jazz at Lincoln Center

..::You never know who's playing at Dizzy's.  This week, my boy Sean Jones is playing there with the Gerald Wilson Big Band, so I'll definately be around.  That's true artistry!!  I also really love the after-hours sessions at Dizzy's, a lot of really talented cats play there (Sometimes, the after-hours is even better than the main show).

Also, while we're on the subject of Jazz at Lincoln Center, whenever the Jazz at Licoln Center Orchestra is playing, I go see them.  They give an amazing show!!!  Kudos to Wynton- the band sounds amazing, and the collective creative efforts of the group is really inspiring. 

Thursday nights: Sweet Rhythm

..::Duane Eubanks' session!!! YAY!  This session is KILLIN'!  Midnight-3am every Thursday.  Yes.  I LOVE this session.  Thank you, Duane.  (Tain's whole band stopped in to jam after their gig @ the Metropolitan Room last month)

So there it is... if you're lookin' for me, there's where you can catch me (if you can!)

Peace & Swing,

~C

 

My dog, Lucy, passed away peacefully in my mother's arms on Saturday, September 9th. She had congestive heart failure & kidney failure for a long time, but we remember her here. She was loyal & patient & loving. She could also sing... her favorite song was "On the Street Where You Live" from Hello, Dolly (she really could sing; had remarkable pitch) She was one of the most beautiful creatures I've known, she was a gift from God to our family. We are very sad to have lost her.

Hey friends,

Please check out the band Gemini, they are #1 in my top friends.  They are a hot new band out of Pittsburgh.  The amount of talent in the group is unbelievable, and the music speaks for itself.  Go visit their profile and take a listen!

Thanks,

~C

Some of you may be wondering where all my shows went on my schedule... before you ask that, let me lay out a scenario for you.  This happened to me last night, and it's happened to me like a million timed before.  I was playing with a painfully mediocre and LOUD cover band called Soul Village at this bar called Paparrazzi's.  It was hot as hell, and it was loud as hell.  I couldn't hear myself play, even though I was mic'ed and we had a monitor, because no one on the gig really knows how to work the sound board.  All night, blowing my ass off to compete with the volume of the electric guitar and bass and the drums, who are already competing with eachother.  It's like a battle!  And you can forget about them listening to what you're playing, because they are half-deaf from years of doing this, and wearing ear-plugs to prevent full-deafness.  To me, it's a miracle they start and end every song together... anyway, by the end of the gig, I'm sweating, I can barely stand, my abs and back are shaking, I'm exhausted, and I still have to tear down.  I won't get home till 3 am... as I start to take the reed off my mouthpiece, a bunch of barely-cohearent drunk people are shouting at us, "ENCORE!! COME ON!! ONE MORE!!"  (If you are reading this, and you are not a musician, and you've done that before, listen up: Thanks for your appreciation, but when you are at work, and it's time to go home, would you want people asking you to keep working for nothing?  And when you don't, booing at you?  We don't get paid enough as it is.) For the past year and a half, I did that every week, 3-4 times a week, some times 5 times a week, sometimes after playing another gig earlier in the day.  Being on the stage has it's moments, but over all, that's some of the hardest work.  It's hard to make music that way, but I always thought,  "I'm lucky, this is awesome...I get payed to play and drink every night, while everyone else has to get up everyday and do a day job."

I love to play, and I love music.  Since I was in highschool, I went to every jam session I could get to.  When I started college, I started getting called for gigs, and I took every gig I could get- good or bad: jazz, funk, RnB, rock, disco, salsa et merengue, gospel, weddings, funerals... [lol]  A lot of people think that I'm well-known for being a jazz musician in Pittsburgh, and I suppose that is true, but I feel like I've gained equal musical experience, and more exposure from playing all the other gigs- the disco bands, latin bands, cover bands, church services, wedding bands... I must be in about 100 couples wedding albums, lol!    I did get tired of playing those gigs pretty quickly, but I loved being able to use my wah pedal and other arsenal of FX in some of those groups... I couldn't use those chops playing straight-ahead. 

I recently gave up almost all of those gigs.  It was hard, I was working 4 or five nights a week, playing a lot of steady gigs as well as free-lance work, and I was always tired (which sometimes had a effect on my playing), but I was making a lot of money.  But I was just in NYC, and I was left inspired by the music that I saw and heard... it was humbling, it reminded me of my goals, and when I looked back at my playing and all the gigs in Pittsburgh, a little voice in my head said, "That ain't it."   I realized the only way to get passed being good enough to play those gigs was not to play them anymore.  That's what the tune "Letting Go" on my profile is about; letting go of something- a relationship, an addiction, a comfort zone- because you'll be better for it in the end.  That can be hard, though.  But I am so glad to have the time and energy to put into my music and playing.

 

This is about the documentary film "Before The Music Dies", which is a documentary about the music industry, what's fucked up about it and why, and what we need to do about it... this is really important, so please check it out.

On Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/beforethemusicdies

Online: www.beforethemusicdies.com