Cindy Douglas
Cindy Douglas has come up with a novel way of combining two of her passions – food and jazz – and serving them up to people in rural communities.
On a recent trip to New York, Douglas observed that citizens of the Big Apple can go out for dinner and enjoy jazz at the same time in intimate and sophisticated surroundings, whereas jazz in Scotland tends to be presented either in formal concert halls and arts centres or in pubs where the jazz becomes relegated to background music.
Following the trend in larger towns and cities for pop-up cafes and restaurants, the Aberdeenshire based singer has devised Eat to the Beat, a jazz supper club that will pop-up initially in villages in Aberdeenshire and the Mearns. On the menu will be great food from a roster of high-class chefs and fine jazz from Cindy Douglas and her musicians in locations where jazz concerts are a rarity.
“I think of Ronnie Scott’s in London and The Blue Note and The Village Vanguard in New York, and these are places where food is part of the experience that makes going out more of an event,” says Cindy, whose singing style has been described as exuberant, mesmerising and versatile and whose repertoire covers jazz standards and original songs.
“Village halls in Scotland may be miles away from these venues in every sense," she adds. "But I think we can give people in these communities an opportunity to socialise and make their night out one to remember for all the right reasons.”
You can experience the Eat to the Beat jazz supper club at the following venues:
23rd November - Auchenblae Village Hall, Monboddo Street, Auchenblae AB30 1XQ – 7.30 pm – £25 (inc 2 course meal)
27th November - Touched By Scotland, Ryehill Cottage Oyne, Insch, Aberdeenshire AB52 6QS – 7.30 pm - £25 (inc 2 course meal)
Note to editors: for further information on the Eat to the Beat pop-up jazz supper club, please contact Cindy on 07840 884973 or by email at cindy@cindydouglas.co.uk. Her website is at www.cindydouglas.co.uk.
