In the past year, live music in Denver as we once knew it has come to a crashing halt due to the pandemic. But despite new challenges, live music is finding its way back into society.
Various jazz clubs in Denver including Nocturne, Dazzle and Appaloosa started hosting live music after the second shutdown in November. Nicole Mattson, co-owner of Nocturne, explained the importance of live performances to the music community.
“It has been a rollercoaster ride for everybody. It’s hard when you are trying the best you can,” Mattson said. She went on to add, “You can only do so much…[by] giving them a space to play safely. I’m happy we are at least able to get back to that,” Mattson said.
Although the clubs are back, COVID-19 protocols have greatly altered operations.
“What has changed is the sheer number and volume because, at six-feet distancing, we basically reduced our capacity by 70%,” Mattson explained.
She went on to describe that the ambiance is much calmer, which can be a nice change of pace but has a different feel than the boisterous crowds that once filled the club.
Other clubs have taken even more drastic changes. Dazzle in Denver built a plexiglass shield around the stage to ensure extra safety for musicians and the audience. A volunteer at Dazzle named Dwight Thompson, who helps the club ensure that CDC guidelines are being met, stated, “We completely rethought the way we do these performances.”
For those working behind the scenes—volunteers, owners and workers alike—it is evident that clubs have radically changed. But for those who come to play and enjoy the music, these changes seem minor to the positive effects of bringing jazz back to Denver. While discussing playing at Nocturne, bassist Jean-Luc Davis said, “They have really made it feel like a safe space to come and enjoy yourself…I mean, it is wild how normal it feels, it’s like an island of normalcy.”
This feeling of normalcy described by Davis is in part because of jazz’s ability to bring people close together.
“I think jazz has kind of thrived a little bit because it’s good for small rooms [and] small audiences. It is an intimate music, and this has been an intimate time. Our social circles have shrunk so it is just the [type of] music has been able to survive through this,” trumpet player Gabriel Mervine said.
Bringing live music back to clubs has done more than bring balance. It has provided financial stability and a sense of gratitude as well.
“There were a lot of musicians that were out of work, [so] our goal was to get them back to work as soon as safely possible,” Mattson explained.
In terms of how playing live has impacted musicians Mervine stated, “I could feel the positivity of being able to share music again…I regained a new appreciation for what I get to do for a living.”
This gratitude extends beyond musicians and into the audience as well. “They are ecstatic,” Mattson stated in terms of people’s reactions to being able to experience live music again. She explained that there have even been some audience members who have been brought to tears by the music that they were forced to live without.
“You need live music—it is part of what makes the world go round, and they [the audience members] are thirsty for it,” Mattson said.
A domino effect may be in action now, as live jazz’s comeback has been a glimmer of hope for the state of in-person performances as a whole. But until other venues open up and the music scene moves closer to normalcy, Davis encouraged people to, “Come out, enjoy yourself, be responsible, be respectful and realize this is somebody who is putting their neck on the line to provide you entertainment.”
If you are feeling the pain of live music deprivation, jazz is just around the corner. Visit Nocturne, Dazzle and Appaloosa’s websites for more details on performances in Denver.
