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Gypsy-Jazz in Bidwell Park

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Contributed by: Rick Ahrens on 7/16/2008

While City Hall is regularly producing new ideas for ways to bring people from the suburbs and outlying areas into Buffalo, Elmwood Village has always attracted people with its shops, restaurants, and pervading sense of community.

Events like the Bidwell Park Concert Series have been providing free access to some of the best musical acts in the city, as well as giving both Elmwood residents and people from outside the city to give back to the Buffalo hot spot. The concert series enters its twelfth year of operation due thanks to the Elmwood Village Association and donations from the community.

On Tuesday night, Bidwell Park hosted Babik, a four-piece band touting a unique style of "gypsy-infused" jazz. Babik is a familiar name to those whose ears are tuned to the local music scene, and it shows: the small, triangular patch of turf enclosed by Bidwell Parkway and Elmwood Avenue is packed with people.

Patches of grass unoccupied by a picnic blanket or lawn chair quickly became valuable real estate. Vendors with tents were set up along Elmwood Ave, selling food and wine. The amphitheater almost seemed small behind the crowd.

Although attendance has been growing steadily since the concert series' beginnings over a decade ago, Justin Azzarella, executive director of the Elmwood Village Association, is glad that it has maintained its community-centric feel.

"We're glad the concert series has grown like it has over the years, but we wouldn't want it to get too big," Azzarella said. "The smaller size helps it feel more like a community event."

"We want to have a diverse group of artists perform, but we also want music that has a wide appeal," he said.

The artists featured during the concert series are mostly old favorites from past summers, and presents an eclectic line-up of local musicians. This year features the Buffalo Philharmonic, Latin jazz, Afro-Caribbean reggae tunes.

In such a varied group of musicians, Babik's swing-style jazz melded with flashes of Eastern Europe fit right in.

Formed in the summer of 2005, Babik has been carving out a strong niche for itself in the local music scene since then with whining violins and rustic instrumentation. Their set was a mix of original tunes and signature adaptations of classic jazz charts like "It Don't Mean a Thing" and "Daphne".

The band is currently working along a series of local gigs leading up to their CD release party at The Tralf Music Hall on October 18. They are repeat performers at the summer concert series, and judging by crowd's reaction, they will be back again next year.

At intermission, volunteers for the Elmwood Village Association go through the crowd with green buckets asking for donations. Spare change and crumpled bills are collected, and every bit counts.

The crowd's contributions will go toward the Association's ongoing efforts to keep the Elmwood community vibrant, and to continue producing events like the Bidwell Park concerts.

Azzarella and the Elmwood Village Association are acutely aware of their relationship with those people giving donations today.

"This concert series is our way of giving back to the neighborhood. We want to make this something everyone can enjoy."

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