Improvisation on a Jazz Club

What comes to mind when you hear the words “jazz club”? A smoky bistro on Manhattan’s 52nd Street? A crowded neighborhood bar with a bandstand filling a corner? Or maybe an odd-shaped room that started out as a funky cellar? Well, sure, jazz has surfaced in all those arenas-along with some considerably more eccentric.

But here’s a different take on a jazz club. It’s called Spazio, and it’s in Sherman Oaks--not exactly a familiar jazz destination. Situated across the street from Billy Blank’s TaeBo kick boxing emporium, with a Borders bookstore and a Starbucks a block or so away, Spazio is in an area that has been more notable for its casual shopping and snacking than its night life.

A closer look at the club produces even more surprises. Situated up a flight of stairs from the Ventura Boulevard sidewalk, Spazio is an attractive, open room. The exterior walls on the west and south sides are completely windowed, creating an airy lightness during the day, offering blinking exterior lights after dark. An outdoor patio includes a pillared atrium with a flowing fountain with a centerpiece topped by a torch of flame-an installation that would do Las Vegas proud.

“We knew we had a very attractive space,” says Merle Kreibich, whose In-House Music has taken over the booking, marketing and public relations for the club. “But it took a while to figure out what to do with it.”

In its first incarnation as a quasi-jazz room a year and a half ago, Spazio could only provide a small performance space in front of the kitchen, with a bar to one side. Lacking spotlights and a dependable sound system, performances were uneven and the kitchen was distracting. When Kreibich took over the room’s creative direction in April, she moved the stage to a corner of the large dining area.

But this created other problems-problems endemic to all venues that place live music in a fine dining atmosphere.

“There were regulars,” says Kreibich, “who either asked to be moved away from the music, or who simply never came back. But the upside of the situation was that we began to get a newer clientele, as well, consisting of folks who wanted to hear the music and enjoy first-class cuisine.”

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Nonetheless, Kreibich began to realize that the original performance space, placed between the bar and the dining area, was the most logical. So she curtained off the kitchen area-reducing the distractions-added a decent sound system and spotlights.

“And by adding more tables next to the stage we created the possibility for a very intimate connection between the musicians and the listeners,” she says.

She’s right about that. During one of Spazio’s recent Tuesday night guitar programs, an enthralled audience sat within arm’s length as two young players tossed licks back and forth, propelled by the rhythmic groove of bass and drums. Between numbers, listeners did not hesitate to make special requests (sometimes successfully, sometimes not). This sort of relaxed environment is quickly becoming one of the room’s most engaging characteristics.

“We’re planning to enhance that quality even more,” says Kreibich, whose husband is highly regarded drummer Paul Kreibich. “In the next few weeks, we will move our entrance door to the center of the club, which will allow us to define the jazz club area--with its stage, its bar and its tables--from the dining area with a small partition. Hopefully, we’ll have a lot of moving back and forth between both areas.”

Kreibich also is planning to use another room at the club-its banquet facility--to further raise Spazio’s profile. She’s booking special monthly shows, starting with pianist-singer-songwriter Mose Allison on Aug. 18, with performances at 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. for a $20 cover charge.

“A tremendous amount of jazz lovers live in the Valley. Then there’s the film community-the directors, writers, actors and so forth who are generally very supportive of the music. We want to let them know that there now is a place nearby, without having to drive over the hill, where they can come and feel comfortable and at home, with great music and world-class food.

“Live presentation of the music,” she says, “that wonderful feeling of energy that was always part of experiencing jazz, is something that’s absolutely vital, something that’s really worth trying to keep alive. And that’s what we’re hoping to do at Spazio.”

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Spazio, 14755 Ventura Blvd. (second floor), Sherman Oaks. Music nightly. No cover. Two-drink minimum. Free parking. (818) 728-8400.