20% Off Tasting Notes Tickets for Patreon Subscribers! July 25th, Benaroya Hall

Hey folks -

Tasting Notes, my live multi-sensory stage show combining classical chamber music with cooking demonstrations from the world class chefs and top musicians is coming back to Seattle next Friday, July 25th, at Benaroya Hall and I couldn't be more excited.

You can get tickets here. Use the code "kenji20" when checking out for a 20% discount.

What is Tasting Notes?

Tasting Notes is a live, multi-sensory stage show that features musical performances and demonstrations from some of the best chefs and musicians in the world. Experience how chocolate-maker Kelly Van Arsdale making great chocolate is like orchestrating a piano quintet. Watch as violinist James Ehnes guides us through the anatomy of a piece of music and butcher Kevin Smith guides us through anatomy of a whole pig. Listen to how Mozart explores a single melody in a half dozen variations as you watch myself and chef Lee Kindell make two entirely different pizzas with the exact same set of ingredients (and taste the results). Learn how a chef Renee Erickson and musician/composer Tessa Lark channel their upbringings to inform the way they approach classic recipes or musical works and breathe new, modern life into them.

Some of Seattle’s finest chefs are participating:

• Kelly Van Arsdale of Spinnaker Chocolate

• Kevin Smith of Beast and Cleaver

• Renee Erickson, the James Beard Award-winning restaurateur

• Lee Kindell of MOTO Pizza

They will be joined by some of the world class musicians of the Seattle Chamber Music Society:

• James Ehnes, violinist and artistic director of the Seattle Chamber Music Society

• Tessa Lark, violinist, composer, and musical director of the Moab Music Festival

• Adam Neiman, pianist and composer

• Jun Iwasaki, violinist and concertmaster of the Nashville Symphony

• Joan DerHovsepian principal viola of the Houston Symphony

• Bion Tsang, award-winning cellist

• Brant Taylor, cellist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra

How did Tasting Notes Start?

A fact about me: I'm a classical music nerd.

Before I ever cracked my first egg, picked up my first knife, or seared my first steak, I wanted to be a violinist and composer. I was one of those kids that went to chamber music parties on weekends where we'd stay up all night sight-reading Beethoven and Schubert. I busked for donations on the streets of New York with my sisters. I went to music school on Saturdays and several nights a week. I practiced violin multiple hours a day (OK, my mom made me practice violin multiple hours a day). In college, I minored in composition and was the concertmaster of the symphony.

Like I said. I was a music nerd.

Playing music was what I spent most of my free time on until I got my first restaurant job and suddenly found myself with no free time, and when that happened, I assumed that music would always be relegated to a simple hobby for me.

That was until I moved to Seattle and teamed up with the wonderful folks at the Seattle Chamber Music Society. What started as the occasional get together to relive some of those late night chamber music parties became a full-fledged partnership when I suggested last year that we should put on a show that features chefs and musicians live on stage together.

It was partly a selfish request: I wanted the opportunity to share my two greatest passions with an audience, and perhaps get to share a stage with some of the world's greatest musicians in the process. Even as the lights in Benaroya Hall went down and the show started, I didn't really know what to expect. Would folks who were there for the music be interested in the food? Were folks there for the chefs get into the music?

Turns out, the answer to both those questions was a resounding yes. The first Tasting Notes turned out to be a first-of-its-kind show, and a smashing, rousing success.

This year, it's set to be even better, and I cannot wait to see you all there.

You can get tickets here. Use the code "kenji20" when checking out for a 20% discount.

For VIP ticket holders there will be an exclusive reception with tasting menus, Gård Vintners wine pairings, and artist meet-and-greets.

Not in Seattle?

Stay tuned, because Tasting Notes is only growing. This year we'll be in La Jolla in August and Moab in September. Next year's lineup should be even bigger.