Todd Ghanizadeh, CEO of the newly formed Marin Jazz, has big plans. The company, which launches its inaugural season on October 4 with a concert by jazz legend Tito Puente Jr., offers a wide array of performers over the next few months.
Besides Puente, those who will be gracing the Marin Jazz stage include San Francisco's very own Paula West, who will be performing with Kim Nalley in a Duke Ellington tribute. All shows will take place at the Marin Center Showcase Theater in San Rafael.
Ghanizadeh, a gay man, brings years of experience in the arts to the table. He's a former dancer with American Ballet Theater and the Boston Ballet, from which he retired at age 38. After returning to San Francisco, he started Management Consulting Group, the eighth largest LGBTQ vendor in California. He also owned George's Nightclub in San Rafael, where future superstars Huey Lewis and Bonnie Raitt got their start. He also ran, with Sonia Perozzi, a non-profit for the past ten years which provided after school musical theater programs.
"I was doing event fundraisers like two to four a year, so I decided to brand the whole thing better as Marin Jazz," Ghanizadeh said in an interview with the Bay Area Reporter. "I was offered the Showcase Theater at 10 Avenue of the Flags on the San Rafael fairgrounds that seats 300-plus, so I took it and ran with it. It's an intimate venue and the proceeds go to the kids programs. So jazz and kids seemed like a good fit."
Booked up
He has big plans for the company, pointing out that the venue is booked up until 2025.
"My larger dream is to keep growing and build a larger fan base, so we can offer even more famous singers and perhaps present dance as well in the larger theater that seats 3,000 plus," he said. "On the education side, I would like to hire more teachers in the after-school programs and expand from three to five schools in Marin County."
Tito Puente Jr. was chosen to launch Marin Jazz because he is at the forefront of Latin jazz, according to Ghanizadeh. The son of legendary Latin jazz and salsa musician Tito Puente, Junior has big shoes to fill, Ghanizadeh pointed out.
"Always honoring his father's legacy, Puente Jr. has also made a name for himself as one of the most exciting Latin musicians touring today," he said. "Crowds lured to a venue by the father are returning to see the son, and to once again participate in the high-voltage celebration that takes place on stage. And man, can he play the drums."
There will be a special show on Halloween that Ghanizadeh is excited about, an appearance by the band Pride & Joy SF, who are holdovers from the George's nightclub days.
"I used to throw the biggest Halloween party every year and it was known throughout the Bay Area," Ghanizadeh said. "I thought the Marin Jazz audience would also love it. During its many years of phenomenal success, Pride & Joy SF has remained the most popular dance party band on the Bay Area music scene. They have achieved this by presenting the most timeless pop/soul music of our time in an electrifying high style show that pulls the audience directly into the heart of their performance."
Ghanizadeh spoke of what he looks for when he books an act.
"The act has to speak for itself from the moment I check them out online or on YouTube," he said. "I tend to look for classy authentic jazz artists that spark emotions from me whether it's classical jazz like the Duke Ellington show with Kim Nalley and Paula West to more updated rhythms like the Jazz Mafia remaking Stevie Wonder's songbook. That sounds cool, right?"
Some of the season's other highlights are The Former Ladies of the Supremes, Carlos Reyes, whom Ghanizadeh says plays an amazing harp, Harold Jones from the Count Basie Orchestra with his twenty-piece orchestra, and the Pacific Mambo Orchestra, who were voted the best Latin jazz orchestra in North America.
"We have so many surprises that I hope Marin really jumps on board as we can take this to the moon," said Ghanizadeh.
Marin Jazz at the Marin Center Showcase Theater, 20 Avenue of the Flags, San Rafael, prices vary by show. www.marinjazz.com
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