Fri 9/10 @ 6PM
It’s Slovenian Week in Cleveland (when isn’t it!) and, as part of the celebration, local musicians jazz keyboardist Leo Coach and drummer Alan Nemeth, both of whom have Slovenian roots, have set Slovenian poems to music for a program called “American Jazz, Slovenian Style,” which will take place at the Slovenian Cultural Garden in Rockefeller Park.
Coach and Nemeth have translated works by poets such as Romantic poet France Preseren (1800-1849), internationally noted avant-garde poet Tomaz Salamun (1941-2014) and contemporary poet Meta Kusar. They’ll also play to poems by Cleveland poet Ray McNeice, current poet laureate of Cleveland Heights, who also have Slovenian roots.
The evening will be moderated by Joe Valencic of the National Cleveland-Style Polka Hall of Fame. The program is free, and is co-hosted by the Consulate General of the Republic of Slovenia and the National Cleveland-Style Polka Hall of Fame and Museum.