We're making plans for our sixth annual celebration of National Arts and Humanities Month!

We are pleased to announce that we will be presenting our sixth annual celebration of National Arts and Humanities Month on Sunday, October 19, 2014. Our special event (titled "Musical Enchantment: Fairy Tales, Fantasy and More") will take place at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, at 7:00 pm in SecondStage.

from left to right: Walter Halvorsen (cello); Patricia Cheng (piano);

Claudia Bloom (violin); Be'eri Moalem (viola)

Experience the transformational power of music in this enchanted evening, which will feature masterpieces by Beethoven, Schumann and others!

(Photo credit: Hadas Moalem)

We're so excited to be presenting an evening of Schubert piano and vocal music, and more, on Sunday, October 13 at 7:00 pm!  Don't miss our upcoming annual program celebrating National Arts and Humanities Month 2013!

Join us for "A Silicon Valley Schubertiade" on Sunday, October 13 at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts!

In celebration of National Arts and Humanities Month, come and join five superb musicians as they take you on a peaceful journey into autumn with the music of Franz Schubert. This re-creation of the intimate musical salon experience of Schubert and his many wondrous melodies will sweep you back into the 19th century creative spirit in the contemporary context of the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts' SecondStage, here in the heart of Silicon Valley and the technological revolution of the 21st century. Please join us for "A Silicon Valley Schubertiade"!

Featuring Patricia Cheng, David Saslav, Melissa Smith, Kevin Jim and Monica Chew, this evening full of solo piano, vocal and chamber music will entrance you with selections of Schubert and others that will resonate within your heart and soul throughout the evening.

Doors open at 6:30 with curtain time of 7:00 pm on Sunday, October 13, 2013 at the lovely Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts' SecondStage (located at 500 Castro St., Mountain View, CA). The event is free, and there is parking all around and under the building. A light reception will follow with a chance to meet the artists. Come early as there are only 140 seats!

This special event will be co-presented by Arts Action 21 and the Fortnightly Music Club.

Experience live jazz piano at Montalvo Arts Center this Sunday, December 2!

We are pleased to partner with arts organizations throughout Silicon Valley to promote arts appreciation and participation throughout the year. The Montalvo Arts Center is an amazing treasure of arts experiences, showcasing insightful and dynamic artists representing a variety of artistic disciplines. Please check out the following details about Montalvo's upcoming concert featuring the jazz master Alfredo Rodriguez this Sunday, December 2, at 7:30 pm!

ALFREDO RODRIGUEZ, SOLO PIANO
General: $45/$40 || Members: $40/$36

“The audience briefly sat in stunned silence... before erupting into a roaring ovation” 

- The Boston Herald 

“A pianist so intense, so beautiful, and so emotive you never, ever want the music to stop”

- Savvant Music

One of the hottest young jazz pianists performing today,  Cuban-born Alfredo Rodríguez “sounds the way Monk might have sounded if he had been born in Chick Corea’s body and raised on a diet of Bach, Chopin, and Stravinsky in a Havana conservatory” [San Jose Mercury News]. At the age of only 27 years old, he has brought his dazzling, virtuoso style to impressive venues all over the world, including (two years ago) the Montalvo Arts Center, where he received standing ovations and cheers from audiences.

Born in Havana, Rodríguez is the son of a popular singer, television presenter and entertainer of the same name. Evidencing talent at a very early age, young Alfredo began his formal music education at seven. He studied classical music at some of the finest musical conservatories in Cuba, including the Conservatorio Amadeo Roldán and the Instituto Superior de Arte.  He also supplemented his education with extensive experience playing popular music in his father’s TV band since the age of 14.

All of these auspicious elements coalesced in 2006, when Rodríguez was selected to play at the Montreux Jazz Festival. While there, his virtuoso playing came to the attention of the legendary record producer Quincy Jones, who now represents him. Jones says of Rodríguez, “he is very special and I do not say that easily…I have been surrounded by the best musicians in the world my entire life and he is one of the best.” 

Buy tickets to Alfredo’s performance at Montalvo by visiting Ticketmaster.com or calling the Montalvo Box Office at 408-961-5858, M-F, 11 am – 4 pm. 

For further information, visit montalvoarts.org, call 408-961-5858, or email info@montalvoarts.org.

We're giving away gift certificates for art instruction!

We are pleased to be offering a special October giveaway in collaboration with the School of Arts & Culture @MHP, as part of our 4th annual celebration of National Arts and Humanities Month in Silicon Valley! To enter a random drawing for one of four $50 gift certificates for classes at the School of Arts & Culture @MHP, click "Like" on Arts Action 21's Facebook page (www.facebook.com/artsaction21) by October 31. Winners will be announced on November 1.

The School of Arts & Culture @MHP is located at 1700 Alum Rock Avenue, in San Jose, CA. The School offers classes in visual arts, music, dance and theater, including instruction in Mexican mural painting, mariachi and classical guitar. To learn more about the School, please visit: http://schoolofartsandculture.org/.

National Arts and Humanities Month celebration comes to East San Jose

We are excited to be collaborating with the School of Arts & Culture @MHP, to present an educational program for elementary school students next Wednesday, October 24. We are looking forward to bringing National Arts and Humanities Month to the next generation of arts lovers and practitioners!

Join us for our 2012 celebration of National Arts and Humanities Month!

In celebration of National Arts and Humanities Month, Arts Action 21 is pleased to co-present a special program with the Fortnightly Music Club. The concert will feature piano solo music from the Romantic period, two selections by Bay Area composer Nancy Bloomer Deussen, and a medley of pieces for saxophone quartet. Pianist Patricia Cheng will begin the program with Johannes Brahms' last set of piano pieces (opus 119) and Frederic Chopin's second Scherzo in B-Flat Minor (opus 31).  The concert will also feature performances by pianist Melissa Smith, flutist Tomiko Tsai, tenor saxophonist Ted Brown and other excellent musicians!  The event will be held on Sunday, October 14, 2012 at 7:00 pm in the Lucie Stern Community Center Ballroom, located at 1305 Middlefield Road, in Palo Alto, CA. Free parking is available in adjacent lots and streets. Admission is free, and refreshments will be served following the program. For complete program details, please visit our Event Page.