If you are craving live music during this extended stay-at-home order, join the Aurora Public Library (APL) at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 14 for a virtual evening of jazz with vocalist Petra van Nuis!
Imagine yourself seated in a cozy booth at an intimate, dimly-lit, jazz club with your favorite person. The server delivers your Manhattan exactly as you like it, and as you take your first sip you wait for the show to begin. A hum of anticipation and an easy conversational buzz fills the room, which is packed to capacity with couples on date-night, groups of friends out for an early weekend, and music-lovers of all ages. Just as you glance at your partner with an excited wink, the music starts, and you are whisked away into the sweet sounds of Petra Van Nuis.
Based in Chicago and its thriving jazz scene, van Nuis has performed at clubs and festivals throughout the Midwest, the U.S., and internationally. Growing up in Cincinnati, Ohio with her Dutch classical pianist father, van Nuis witnessed musical performance at a young age and explored various avenues of artistic expression, including dance and theater. As a young vocalist, van Nuis travelled from Cincinnati to New York to develop her craft through various mentorships. In 2003, with husband and guitarist Andy Brown, she arrived in Chicago to plant her roots as an experienced performer who moves with agility and ease among long established Chicago jazz masters. Performing alongside a piano or guitar, or as part of a larger ensemble, such as Petra’s Recession Seven, van Nuis has worked with well-known jazz veterans, including trumpeter Bob Ojeda and Russ Philips on trombone. One of her most recent collaborations, Because We’re Night People, features van Nuis and her smooth vocals in the company of piano master, Dennis Luxion.
One of her most favorite collaborations, however, is with husband, Andy Brown, on guitar, which will be the dynamic duo featured live on the Aurora Public Library’s Facebook page at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 14. The interplay between Brown’s cool guitar and Van Nuis’ lush vocals is as intuitive as it is natural, and can be inserted into any at-home scenario you may find yourself in that evening, from folding laundry to putting the kids to bed and maybe ending with that sweet Manhattan after a long day of responding to unexpected expectations wrested upon us by our current pandemic-tinged lives.
Although this live event is exclusively available through the Aurora Public Library, one need not have a library card or Facebook account to enjoy You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To. Just tune into www.facebook.com/APLibraryIL at 7 p.m. to relax and enjoy the show. Facebook Live events offer an opportunity for interaction amongst viewers in the comments field, which stands in adequately, though not exactly, for the quiet whisperings between table mates and neighbors at an in-person jazz show. All friends and family are invited to enjoy the music together!
“While library Facebook is not exactly the Green Mill, said Krista Danis, events and program coordinator for the Aurora Public Library, “we do our best to create an intimate experience easily accessible from the comfort of your living room. Petra and Andy have responded to the stay-at-home order with courage, professionalism, and agility on unfamiliar platforms in order to share their beautiful music with our community, and I know it will be the premier event highlight of my personal quarantine experience.”
So, sit back, take a sip, and enjoy the show!