
What we’re about
This group is for people who appreciate music and other forms of art beyond the mainstream, with a particular focus on the avant-garde or otherwise odd. Free Jazz, Musique Concrete, Atonality, Noise Music, Outsider Art, Surrealism, Dada, Junk Art, ...you name it! Not all events will necessarily be "weird", but simply off the beaten mainstream path.
This is intended to be an oasis from crass commercial banalities.
I'll post events that interest me, but I am also interested in hearing from artists, musicians, and other creative types about their events that I can share with members. Post your events and ideas in the "Discussions" section. I want this group to also be a vehicle that helps support artists and organizations that are doing interesting creative work.
The only requests are that we keep things friendly and civilized. MAGA not welcome.
Upcoming events
14

MOVIE - REBEL WITH A CLAUSE + Q&A w/Brandt Johnson & Ellen Jovin
The Frida Cinema, 305 E 4th St, Santa Ana, CA, USCross-posted with So Cal Explorers
Date: Tuesday, Oct 28 · 7:30 PM
Author book signing at 6:30Dinner at 5:00 at 4th Street Market
201 E 4th St, Santa Ana, CA 92701Venue: Address: 305 E 4th St #100, Santa Ana, CA 92701
Tickets: $16.00
https://thefridacinema.org/movies/rebel-with-a-clause/Director: Brandt Johnson Run Time: 86 min. Release Year: 2025
Come for the grammar. Stay for the humanity. The Frida Cinema is excited to present a special screening of the new documentary Rebel With A Clause! And as an awesome bonus, grammar guru Ellen Jovin will set up her grammar advice stand at the theater starting at 6:30 to take your grammar questions, resolve long-standing grammar disputes, and listen to any tales of grammar woe. Please also stick around after the screening for a Q&A with director Brandt Johnson and Ellen, who will sign copies of her national bestseller!
One fall day, Ellen Jovin set up a folding table on a Manhattan sidewalk with a homemade sign that said “Grammar Table.” Right away, passersby began excitedly asking questions, telling stories, and filing complaints. What happened next is the stuff of grammar legend.
Ellen and her filmmaker husband, Brandt Johnson, took the table on the road, visiting all 50 states as Brandt shot the grammar action. Media outlets across the country celebrated the adventures of the Grammar Table in over 100 print, radio, and television stories. People from every imaginable background visited the table to share a laugh, settle disputes, and talk about their grammar insecurities. These conversations took place in small towns and big cities, by bookstores and coffee shops, on beaches and mountainsides.
But this story transcends grammar. It’s the story of an epic quest to bring us all closer together. In a time of social and political division, the Grammar Table is a place of unity and connection. The conversations at the table help answer the question “How can we all get along?”
2 attendees
"NOSFERATU" (1922) WITH LIVE STRINGS IN LAGUNA BEACH
Rivian South Coast Theater, 162 S Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach, CA, USDate: Thursday, October 30, 7:00 pm (doors 6:30)
Venue: Rivian South Coast Theater
162 South Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, CA 92651Possible dinner before, TBD
Tickets; $20
https://events.rivian.com/rivianpresentsshadowsandstring1Join Rivian and Laguna Beach Live! for Shadows and Strings: A haunting improvised score meets the 1922 horror classic Nosferatu, performed live by the Melissa Hasin String Quartet.
An electrifying performance to prepare for Halloween, where chilling visuals meet a fearless improvised string soundtrack — composed on the spot, played live, and never the same twice. Experience the original horror movie with a killer new musical reimagining.
Doors 6:30pm
Film 7:00pm7 attendees
FREE! 2025 AZZ-IS Rebel Jazz Fest
Venice Pavillion, 1 Windward Avenue, Los Angeles, CA, USFree concert in Venice Beach
Date: Saturday, November 1, 2025, from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Location: Venice Pavilion (1 Windward Ave, Venice, CA 90291)
Free and open to the public. No tickets required.
What to expect: Live music, DJs, art, food, and community celebration
The festival honors the spirit of the original "AZZ IZZ," a 1970s jazz club in Venice, and the 1960 Newport Rebel Jazz Festival.
Website: https://www.thenonsemble.com/
Performers:
- Dwight Trible - We have seen this terrific and unique singer many times
- Billy Mohler - Great bassist, who we saw at the Angel City Jazz Fest in 2024, and with Dan Rosenboom at Vine in Long Beach
- Melanin Horns - led by trumpeter Tatiana Tate, we saw them at the Leimert Park Jazz Festival.
- Sumbacalasque - band of young musicians discovered by KJAZZ DJ Leroy Downs
The AZZ-IS Rebel Jazz Fest is a free, family-friendly event, and there is no ticket price for general admission. Donations are appreciated and help the organizers keep the festival going.
The festival is presented by the creative collective, The Nonsemble, in partnership with the Venice Heritage Foundation/Museum. You can find information on how to donate to support the festival on The Nonsemble's social media and website.
The term "Rebel" in the festival's name is a tribute to both a historic jazz event and the festival's own grassroots origin as a protest party. It signifies a commitment to the independent, revolutionary spirit of jazz music.
1960 Newport Rebel Jazz Festival
The name and spirit of the festival were inspired by the original "Rebel Jazz Fest" that occurred in 1960 in Newport, Rhode Island.- A musician's protest: Jazz giants Charles Mingus and Max Roach organized this DIY festival in protest against the commercialization and mainstream approach of the established Newport Jazz Festival.
- "Thumb in the eye": The rebel festival was created as a "thumb in the eye" to the more commercial event, honoring authentic artists and their militant musical movement.
Article on the 1960 Rebel Jazz Festival: https://www.allaboutjazz.com/the-rebel-festival
7 attendees
Piano Spheres: Nic Gerpe: Islands
Colburn School of Performing Arts, 200 S. Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA , CA, USDate: November 4, 8:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Venue: Thayer Hall at the Colburn School
200 S Grand Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90012 + Google MapTickets $25
https://pianospheres.org/event/nic-gerpe-islands/When you grow up on an island, what matters is how you stand to the sea.
– Roddy DoyleBut where, after all, would be the poetry of the sea were there no wild waves?
– Joshua SlocumIslands evoke myriad vivid impressions and captivate our imaginations. As places of stunning beauty, mystery, and isolation, “where the contours of the land itself form a kind of sinewy poetry,” countless associations come with the very mention of the word. Islands conjure a range of emotions and flights of fancy, from images of wild, exotic natural wonders, to metaphorical and spiritual connections. In this program, Nic Gerpe will present a range of colorful and evocative pieces which explore the many aspects and connotations of islands, from the imaginary landscapes of Almeida Prado’s Ilhas to Thomas Osborne’s poetic and virtuosic And The Waves Sing Because They Are Moving. The program will include captivating works by Donnacha Dennehy, Salina Fisher and Christopher Cerrone, and will feature world premieres of “30 for 30” Piano Spheres commissions by Robert Pollock, José-Luis Hurtado and Paul Moravec.
PROGRAM:
Almeida Prado – Ilhas (1973)
Robert Pollock – Maui Lifts Islands (2024)
World Premiere – Piano Spheres 30 for 30 Commission
Salina Fisher – Uchi Soto (内外) (2019)
Donnacha Dennehy – North Circular (2007), North Strand (2007), North Wall (2014)
Paul Moravec – Los Angeles Variations (2024)
World Premiere – Piano Spheres 30 for 30 Commission
Jose Luis Hurtado – Memories of 490 West End (2024)
World Premiere – Piano Spheres 30 for 30 Commission
Christopher Cerrone – Hoyt-Schermerhorn (2010)
Thomas Osborne – And The Waves Sing Because They Are Moving (2004)3 attendees
Past events
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