This was an interesting week in New York City as the CMJ Music Marathon for 2010 had arrived in force and brought with it a number of amazing musical acts and events for all to enjoy.  The annual event that the College Music Journal holds hosts panels and showcases around the city and really lets music lovers and industry personnel alike sink their teeth into a number of different things.  Sadly, my Metal Reporting activity during this particular week didn’t allow me the luxury of too much free time to participate in as many things as I would have liked to check out for I had the Black Veil Brides show just this past Monday and the Nevermore show the night immediately following.  The funny thing was how I was expecting to be at the Black Label Society show this evening but my plans didn’t go as I had expected so the night was free to explore the other things that were taking place in the city that never sleeps.

That morning a call came in from WeRoqq PR’s Shukmei Wong who had been invited to a gathering being held at the popular Mexican restaurant Gonzalez & Gonzalez and she added how there would be good music, good networking and perhaps even something to eat.  Count me in since I am a big fan of this kind of cuisine.   The showcase was care of Eric Fontenay of Music Dish and he has been a media colleague of Shukmei’s for awhile. I’ve not been to this place in a number of years so I was happy to see that the economic downturn that many restaurants face had not fixed its eye on them and they were still doing a booming business.  Walking in the smells from the evening’s fare was getting a little hard to concentrate amidst.  It was not a smart idea to arrive at this event hungry that’s for sure.  The back room of the restaurant offers a small stage and that was where a couple of bands would be performing tonight.  One performer was named Maya Solovey and she’s a Folk singer who was showcasing a very different idea to the public.  A photograph of her flyer is below to help me explain.

Maya’s premise is rather unique and she does what she calls “Culinary Concerts” in which she prepares some fine cuisine for you and your guests and then entertains with her music.  I admit that this would be the first time I was hearing about something like this being done.  Before she began to play she would speak a little about it with the President of the Women In Music organization, Ms. Evangelina Livanos.

Maya told the crowd how this whole idea works and it was very interesting to find someone who could successfully blend their culinary skills in with their musical ones and give people a very memorable evening.  When I glanced at the flyer to see what she offered I ended up making myself a little hungrier than I was when I arrived.

The fare listed in this “menu” of sorts lined out guacamole, black bean salads and corn pancakes and more.  Needless to say I was craving a menu of any kind at this point.  Sadly none of these treats were a part of the showcase that Maya was doing which might have been a good thing since I would have devoured them 🙂  Just before Maya began to perform her brief set I was able to say hellos and introduce myself.  It also gave me the chance to snap an image of the set list that she was going to perform.

Her set would find her accompanied by a bassist and drummer and they added to the smooth coolness of her melodies.  I liked her opening song “Escultura” which I believe is translated from Spanish into “sculpture”.  Maya sings in English, Spanish and Portuguese and manages to blend all the cultures into one charming sound.  I also liked her version of the Johnny Cash classic “Ring Of Fire”.

Here’s another quick shot of Maya entertaining the attendees of this particular CMJ 2010 hang.

This was quite a different vibe for me in the musical sense but that is what keeps ones writing frame of mind fresh and energized.  There is so much good stuff out there and its important to talk about it even if you happened upon it by accident.  I took a number of additional photos of Maya and her band performing and if you click her name below this paragraph you can enjoy them all. If Folk singer/songwriter stuff is your cup of tea, I suggest you check out what Maya is all about and help support her efforts by purchasing her very affordable eleven track CD.  If you would like to give it a shot, just click way down at the bottom because her album’s on Amazon.com – It is available in both CD and MP3 format.

Oh and before I forget about it.  A little earlier in this post we showed you the cover of the flyer that Maya had at the performance.  Well, I scanned the other pages of it since that would be the only way I could show it to you.   I mean I guess you could look at it in person, but we have a strict “must bring food or drink” policy here at PiercingMetal HQ.

In addition to the lovely shot of Maya playing her guitar we find a couple of the menus that she prepares for this kind of special event.   The recipes themselves are not shown and well we do need to leave the girl a little mystery so that was okay by me.  The back cover features a number of other photos and some of Maya’s contact information and given the chance that you would like to arrange for one of these kind of gatherings we left the email and website links for it.  To remain a proper gentleman we have marked out where the cell phone number was as we felt it was not polite to broadcast such information across this medium.

I mentioned how the powers that be over at Women In Music were participating in this performance and if you would like to learn more on what they are all about just click their logo to go to their website.

Maya Solovey Official Website: HERE

Oh yes, since I mentioned how famished I was by the time this event took place and eventually ended I know you readers are wondering how I resolved that issue. After Maya’s set myself and the WeRoqq PR folks headed over to Acme Restaurant on Great Jones Street off Lafayette. I love that place and highly recommend it. Awesome burgers, wings, and house ale. Trust me.

Official Website: http://www.mayasolovey.com