DJANGO REINHARDT FESTIVAL This weekend, The Freight is hosting a three-night festival to showcase modern heirs to famed gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt. The “Esprit de Django et Stephane Festival” includes a Saturday open house featuring workshops, performances, and a panel discussion inspired and influenced by the legendary jazz band, Quintette du Hot Club de France. For details of all the musicians and tickets, visit the Freight & Salvage.
QUIET THE MIND On Sunday Jan. 27, 6-7 pm, meditation instructor Hugh Joswick will describe how to quiet the mind’s incessant chatter and unveil its clarity with a talk entitled “Serenity” at Berkeley’s Nyingma Institute. The presentation is part of a lecture series called Reclaiming the Heart which has been running since Jan. 6 and which aims to explore ways “to free ourselves from the obstacles that obscure the warmth of joyful love and serenity.” Nyingma Institute, 1815 Highland Place, Berkeley.
PRE-SCHOOL FAIR The East Bay Moms‘ 15th annual Preschool & Childhood Resource Fair takes place this Saturday, Jan. 26 10-1pm in Oakland (so not Berkeley but plenty of Berkeley pre-schools and programs will be represented). Parents will have the opportunity to meet with over 80 vendors representing Preschools, Pre-Kindergarten programs and Childcare Programs located in Oakland, Berkeley, Alameda, Moraga, El Sobrante, Richmond, Piedmont, Albany, Emeryville and San Leandro, as well as many other East Bay businesses that serve families with young children. Admission is free and children are welcome. Scottish Rite Center, 1547 Lakeside Drive at Lake Merritt, Oakland. For details, visit East Bay Moms.
[Editor’s Note: As per the comments section below, this event has been canceled.] SOUL SANCTUARY DANCE Since 2003, Berkeley’s Ashkenaz has hosted a midday Sunday dance “where newcomers feel like regulars, and regulars feel like family.” Soul Sanctuary Dance is run by volunteers and there is no admission fee. “Every Sunday from 11 am to 1 pm, we dance to an irresistible eclectic blend of funk, soul, world music, positive hip hop, reggae, dance classics, jazz, blues, electronica, and other music to free mind, body and soul,” the organizers say. Wheelchair accessible. No scented products please. Shoes optional. Organic fruit for all after the dance. More information at Soul Sanctuary Dance. Update, Jan. 26: We hear that, very unusually, the dance for Sunday, Jan. 27, is canceled due to a rare scheduling conflict at Ashkenaz. Check Soul Sanctuary Dance’s Facebook page for up-to-date schedules.
THE OPUS PROJECT On Saturday at 8pm, The Opus Project presents a multi-media event with Michael Garvey, Chris Hernaki, Alan Kingsley, Jerry Kuderna, Letitia C. Page, and The Opus Project Ensemble as part of the Berkeley Arts Festival. Prepare to hear Debussy through Prokofiev, via Shostakovich. Opus 1, 8pm, Saturday, January 26, Berkeley Arts Festival, 2133 University Avenue, Berkeley. Tickets: $10-$20, available at the door.
Don’t forget these other weekend events previously covered on Berkeleyside:
The face of the bass: Denson, Zilber and friends at the Jazzschool Sunday
At Pacific Film Archive: ‘The Hills Run Red: Italian Westerns, Leone, and Beyond’
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To find out about more events in Berkeley and nearby, visit Berkeleyside’s Events Calendar. We also encourage you to submit your own events.
