Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Blues guitar legend Johnny Winter and his band play the Napa Valley Opera House at 8 p.m. and good tickets are stil available. You might even wind up in a documentary film!
For an evening of good, rocking Texas blues, the Napa Valley Opera House is the place to be tonight when Johnny Winter and his band take the stage at 8 p.m. Winter and his famed Gibson Firebird guitar have been electrifying the blues since the 1960s, and he continues to tour as a headliner. He's also well known for his work with blues greats Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker, with whom he played as a sideman and producer of Grammy-winning albums. His work with Muddy Waters was "one of the best times I ever had playing music," recalled Winter during a telephone interview with Napa Patch. After being a Muddy Waters fan "since I was 12 or 13," Winter said, he found the older guitarist "easy to work with" and "really a great guy." More recently…
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Cinco de Mayo honors the victory over the French in the Battle of Puebla in 1862.
The 12-piece Mariachi Femenil Orgullo Mexicano is the first all-female mariachi collaborative in the northern Bay Area. Founded in 2007, they have rapidly been grabbing attention and turning heads by performing at local community events and private parties. The collaborative's representative, Lilia Chavez, says their mission is to lead by example and honor Mexican culture, mariachi tradition and women in the arts. Chavez said they must respect and carry on the gifts that the ancestors left them. Many of the members have family that play mariachi. They come from all over the Bay Area and practice in Albany and South San Francisco, "to give the neighbors a break," said Chavez. Cinco De Mayo marks the 1862 battle of Puebla, during which …
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Napa, dull? No more. A glance at the Napa Patch events calendar reveals almost too many choices of things to do, including free and all-ages options. We pulled a few picks; find more by clicking the Events tab, and feel free to add your own!
Friday May 4 Hear some great up-and-coming players from local high school bands and the Napa Valley College Jazz Ensemble at the Napa Valley Educational Jazz Festival, Friday, 6 p.m., Napa Valley Opera House, $10. (The NVC jazz band, directed by Vintage High School bandleading legend Bill Gant, already showed a glimpse of its collective chops at the Opera House Wednesday night opening for the touring Ronchin Jazz Band from France in a mini-festival sponsored by the Napa Valley Jazz Society, to enthusiastic applause from local fans.) On a very different note Friday, a free evening of art at Wildcat Vintage Clothing on First Street presents Cleveland rock innovator Paul Marotta performing his newest work, Picture of Dorian Gray, a dramatic …
38.313525
-122.298259
Napa Valley College Community Education Center
1360 Menlo Ave, Napa, CA
/articles/oscar-wilde-in-rock-and-more-this-weekend
546827
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38.29948
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Napa Valley Opera House
1030 Main St, Napa, CA
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547038
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38.297862
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38.28063
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/articles/oscar-wilde-in-rock-and-more-this-weekend
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38.29839
-122.28715
Wildcat Vintage Clothing
1210 1st St, Napa, CA
/articles/oscar-wilde-in-rock-and-more-this-weekend
1811994
/locations/6945060
38.301426
-122.281098
Oxbow Public Market
610 1st St, Napa, CA
/articles/oscar-wilde-in-rock-and-more-this-weekend
1843555
/locations/6945061
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Today is the last day to apply for a performance slot during Napa's acclaimed free festival of live music on neighborhood porches and stoops.
The second annual Napa Porchfest is coming Sunday afternoon July 29. May 1 is the deadline for local performers to sign up for the free festival of live music on neighborhood porches. Here's where to apply to play with your band or solo act: http://napaporchfest.org. The inaugural Napa Porchfest, held July 31, 2011, drew throngs of music-lovers, many traveling from block to block on foot or by bicycle to hear more than 120 musicians in more than 30 groups performing on porches, front stoops and dooryards in Napa's historic neighborhoods. For a gallery of more than 200 photos and videos from the 2011 festival, please see Napa Porchfest Photo Contest. Musicians and presenters: Are your events listed in our calendar? Don't miss the chance to…
Monday, April 30, 2012
A fun new festival for all ages made its debut Saturday at Copia.
I can't wait till Thursday: Here's a five-star, flag-waving shout-out to the folks who brought us the first-ever Napa Bike Fest Saturday at what remains of Copia. On a glorious Saturday, cyclists and strollers of all ages enjoyed live music, a swap meet, group rides — including one for kids — wonderfully weird bike-inspired sculptures by Kurt Wold and a series of cycling-themed films. Along with all the activity, you could buy food, beer, wine and coffee and refill your reusable water bottle at a free water station. Thank you to all the volunteers of the Napa County Bicycle Coalition, a.k.a. Napa Bike, for putting together such a terrific day for Napans! County supervisors Brad Wagenknecht and Bill Dodd were both spotted at the festival, …
Friday, April 27, 2012
May 1 is the deadline for local performers to sign up for the second annual Napa Porchfest, coming Sunday afternoon July 29. Here's how to apply to play with your band or solo act.
The return of California's first porch festival, Napa Porchfest, will take place this year in the City of Napa on Sunday, July 29, from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Volunteer organizers are taking performers' applications for this year's free festival at the Napa Porchfest web site: http://napaporchfest.org. The deadline for musicians and band registration is Tuesday, May 1, according to Porchfest committee member John L. Poole. "So far we have over 150 musicians and 45 bands," Poole said. The inaugural Napa Porchfest, held July 31, 2011, drew throngs of music-lovers, many traveling from block to block on foot or by bicycle to hear more than 120 musicians in more than 30 groups performing on porches, front stoops and lawns in Napa's historic …
Retired Napa police chief Dan Monez looks back on his years as the city's top cop, including his stabbing on Cruise Night in 1996. Part two of a two-part profile by the crime reporter who knew him best.
Dan Monez, 62, began his law enforcement career in 1971 with the Berkeley Police Department. From there, he worked his way up the ranks from officer to captain while at the Solano County Sheriff’s Department and Vacaville Police Department. In 1987 he tested for Napa police chief and was hired for the job he would hold until retirement in 2004. “It was like coming home because the majority of the earlier time (with law enforcement) my family and I lived in Napa,” Monez said. During his 17 years at the helm, Monez said he doesn’t believe he saw many changes in Napa. “Napa was smaller, but law enforcement problems have been pretty much the same. We had drug problems, domestic violence, homicide. “Gang issues didn’t surface until the 1990s…
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Could this weekend possibly be more action-packed? If you don't already have plans, here are the editor's best bets from our Events Calendar. What are yours?
Napans and visitors alike have their choice of things to do this weekend, including the popular Race for Education, which raises money for Napa schools; the arrival of the Arts in April festival, which has been working its way south from Calistoga; the first-ever Napa Bike Fest, with a full day of lively events and film screenings and the annual Kitchens in the Vineyards Home & Garden Tour to benefit the Music in the Vineyards summer chamber music festival. Here are some picks from our Events calendar: Find more activities there, and add your own at napa.patch.com/events/new. Artists of the Valley Gallery Open House in celebration of Arts in April: Friday, 6 p.m., 1307 1st St. "Oysters and Art" with Oscar Aguilar Olea: Friday, 6 p.m., …
From top cop to top billing: Retired Napa police chief Dan Monez, 62, now focuses his energy on his acting and singing career. First in a two-part interview with the former chief; in part two, he talks about his law enforcement years.
Former Napa police chief Dan Monez, 62, has a whole new career. Longtime city resident Monez, who retired in 2004 after more than 30 years in law enforcement and lost a bid for county supervisor in 2010, is now focusing his energy on mastering his acting and singing career. “I don’t know if I consider myself as charismatic, maybe more like a ham,” Monez said, adding, “But I am very serious about my acting and singing.” As Napa's top police official, Monez was used to being in the public eye. But an acting career wasn’t something he was looking for — it found him. “It was kind of a fluke. I was asked if I would be interested in a small role in Mr. Roberts, which was set to open at the (former) Dreamweavers community playhouse in Napa,” he …
38.1549
-122.473
Dreamweavers Troupe, Inc.
P.O. Box 5478, Napa, CA
/articles/retired-napa-police-chief-dan-monez-has-show-biz-career
1846645
/locations/6894898
38.303433
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Napa Valley Wine Train
1275 McKinstry St, Napa, CA
/articles/retired-napa-police-chief-dan-monez-has-show-biz-career
1850683
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Wednesday, April 25, 2012
After rolling out in Calistoga at the beginning of April, the month-long, county-wide arts celebration is winding up with a series of events in Napa. Meet one of the featured local artists, Oscar Aguilar Olea, in this video by Jazmin Garcia.
Napa painter and sculptor Oscar Aguilar Olea is known for his dynamic and graceful depictions of the human form. During this month's "Arts in April" celebration, Aguilar Olea is the featured artist at Twenty Rows Winery on Vallejo Street in Napa, where he held a figure drawing demonstration Wednesday. Aguilar Olea is the guest of honor at an "Oysters and Art" event at the winery Friday from 6 to 8 p.m. ($20), and holds an admission-free studio exhibition Saturday from 2 to 5 p.m. at 2095A Penny Lane, off Imola Avenue in Napa. In this video by his stepdaughter, Jazmin Garcia of Napa, Aguilar Olea extends an invitation to join him in the studio. For more about Arts in April, visit http://www.artscouncilnapavalley.org/artsinapril/introduction…
38.3044
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Twenty Rows
880 Vallejo St, Napa, CA
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1850552
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38.282616
-122.255002
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Scott Yeager
3:41 pm on Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Nice write up for Johnny Winter. I didn't realize his show was happening today and I am surprised it isn't sold out already. more ›