It is a well-known phrase among foodies and wine lovers—food pairings.
Meant to enhance the taste buds, food paired with wine is a common finding at wineries and food festivals.
But food paired with art and music? Such an idea of designing food to complement music is being brought to locals by Credo Studio in San Juan Bautista owner Ramona Hill, and Santa Cruz-based producer Dave Svec with the Women of Song Gourmet Series, beginning at the Credo Studio on Saturday, July 13.
“It is quite the unique experience to have food and wine designed to complement a singer-songwriter’s original material,” Svec said.
And it’s one that was derived after Svec met Hill at a fundraiser her studio was hosting four months ago.
“There was an African musician there, the president of the non-profit was doing African barbecue, and we had a table where we were selling African jewelry,” Hill said. “So it was, just coincidentally, an event where we were pairing music with the art and the food.”
It was an idea Svec had once envisioned and designed for a food festival, but never brought to fruition.
“So when he came through and saw me doing that, his entire vision was sparked again,” Hill said. “So that was the birth of this series.”
The series features female singer-songwriters—each performance including original recorded material from each woman, and all enhanced by the pairing of wine and hors d’oeuvres.
Alisa Fineman will kick off the series on July 13. Voted “Best Folk Musician” four years running by Monterey Bay’s then-Coast Weekly, Fineman will be joined by co-artist, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, Kimball Hurd, featuring songs spanning over the course of her three-decade career.
Visual artist and singer-songwriter, Anne Whitehurst, will entice audiences on Saturday, Aug. 3 with her approach of fusing visual art with music. An array of multimedia and musical pieces will be presented, and examples of Whitehurst’s artwork will be displayed and possibly recreated. Selections from her new EP Castle of Hearts, produced by Joe Craven, will be featured. The band, Low Noon—featuring Whitehurst as a rhythm guitarist—will also perform a variety of covers.
Singer-songwriter, Socorra, will close out the series with her blues-driven indie rock sound on Saturday, Sept. 14. The San Jose-based artist has opened for acts such as Blues Traveler and Fantastic Negrito, and Content Magazine has deemed her a “…gutsy blues voice…familiar but unique, and undeniable in its smoky richness.’ “
The Women of Song Gourmet Series will be held at Credo Studio, 1 Polk St. in San Juan Bautista. Concerts begin at 4pm; tickets are $35 per event. Hors d’oeuvres (provided by San Juan Bautista cafe, Lolla) and wine are included in the ticket price. For information or for tickets, call Ramona Hill at 831.245.8470 or visit www.brownpapertickets.com/event/4272270.
