No shortage of live music
Durango Massive Productions really outdid itself this week with a spring music festival called Celefunktion. Since Wednesday, downtown Durango has been hosting a variety of familiar and new-to-Durango bands. Euforquestra, an entertaining funk group from Fort Collins, got groovy Thursday night at Animas City Theatre and will play a second show Friday night at the ACT. The Jaden Carlson Band from Boulder also will be back. The band, which melds funk, soul, jazz, fusion and rock, is led by Carlson, who just turned 14 years old and is somewhat of a guitar virtuoso. Do a quick search on YouTube and watch her beautiful rendition of Jeff Buckley’s “Hallelujah.” The band is touring on behalf on their latest album called “Polychromatic.” Don’t miss that one Saturday night at the Balcony Backstage.Another don’t-miss is Fort Knox Five, a funk-music foursome that includes Rob Myers of Thievery Corporation. For tickets and more information, visit www.animascitytheatre.com.
Ragtime preservation
Step back in time this weekend with the third annual Durango Ragtime & Early Jazz Festival, featuring a solid group of world-renowned musicians who specialize in the old-time genres. One of them is Fort Lewis College graduate Adam Swanson. At age 23, he’s an accomplished musician, having performed at Carnegie Hall and on the at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Now, he’s directing the festival that includes other artists like Danny Coots, a drummer who has played in 90 countries and has more than 70 recordings, including the 2005 Grammy Award-winning “Beautiful Dreamer – The Music of Stephen Foster.”The festival starts at 10 a.m. Friday and runs through Sunday. All performances are at the Strater Hotel. Visit www.durangoragtimefestival.com for tickets and a full schedule.
Open a book
It’s that time of year. Durango Public Library will hold its Friends of the Library Spring Book Sale from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Thousands of books will be for sale, and they’ll be selling them by the pound. Get there early, because this will be a popular event, as always.The books are $1.50 per pound, and the library will accept cash or checks but no debit or credit cards. Friends members get to shop early, from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, after their annual meeting, which starts at 5:45 p.m. Anyone is welcome to join the group for $5. “There’s always a big selection, from fiction to history, biographies, Southwestern, social science, political science, animals, all kinds of stuff,” said Nancy Peake, president of Friends.
Let’s tango
Until a couple of years ago, Mancos resident Harold Welty found himself traveling to Albuquerque and Santa Fe to do the tango. Now, since he founded Durango Tango, he has lots of people to dance with right here. He and his core group of members will meet from 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday at Durango Dance (their usual time and place during the winter), and they invite everyone to come and learn.
“Tango has a connection that you won’t find in swing or two-step dancing. It’s an extremely romantic, exciting dance,” Welty said. “Bring comfortable shoes and drop by. You might be intrigued.”
In the summer, they’ll switch to Tuesdays at Rotary Park. Donations are accepted. Visit www.tangodurango.com for more information.
mhayden@durangoherald.com
Celefunktion 2015
Celefunktion 2015 will run through Saturday at multiple venues around downtown Durango. Get tickets at Southwest Sound or www.animascitytheatre.com.
Friday
Euforquestra, Animas City Theatre, 9 p.m., doors open at 8 p.m.
The Main Squeeze, Backstage Balcony, 10 p.m., doors open at 9 p.m., $10
DJ CK & Baby Bel, Moe’s, 10 p.m.
Diabolical Sound Platoon, El Rancho, 10 p.m.
Andreas Kapsalis, BREW Pub & Kitchen, 6 p.m.
Saturday
Fort Knox Five, Benjamin K, 9 p.m., doors open at 8 p.m., $15-25
Jaden Carlson Band, Balcony Backstage, 10 p.m., doors open at 9 p.m., $8
Juicy Money, Moe’s, 10 p.m.
Lawn Chair Kings, El Rancho, 10 p.m.
Magi Nation, Moe’s, 6 p.m.
Andreas Kapsalis, El Rancho, 12:30 p.m.
