Serving up a hearty riff
At first glance, the exterior of Vibrato, the new jazz grill at the top of Beverly Glen, doesn’t appear all that different from its previous incarnation as Rocco -- another, very different jazz grill. But the view that unfolds after a few steps inside Vibrato will be a shock to those who recall the quirky Rocco interior, with its zigzagged bar seating and patio-like dining area.
It’s goodbye to all that at Vibrato. Designer Clodagh has raised the roof (literally), creating a high-ceilinged, semi-circular space with two levels of banquettes and tables, an elegant bar and semi-private upstairs rooms, all focused toward the centrally placed stage.
Rocco attendees might also be ruffled by the music, which declines to venture into the out-of-the-box sounds heard at the earlier room. On a recent Friday night, trombonist Bob McChesney led a determinedly mainstream group that included Southland jazz stalwarts Tamir Hendelman on piano, Trey Henry on bass and Kendall Kay on drums, with raven-tressed Calabria Foti handling the vocals. The music was dominated by familiar standards, with McChesney’s fluidly mobile trombone playing and Foti’s dark-toned singing leading the way.
Unlike the audiences at Rocco, who often sat mesmerized by adventurous dissonances and disjunct rhythms, the mostly mature-looking crowd for McChesney’s opening set seemed more concerned with their 18-ounce steaks than the coolly engaging music.
One couple, seated at a table on the room’s upper rim, paid little attention until Foti began to sing a slow ballad. But their awareness quickly waned.
“We really didn’t come here specifically for the music,” said Sam, a computer programmer in his 50s who declined to offer a last name. “Roberta and I live a few blocks away, and we’ve been here a few times since we first came for New Year’s. It’s sort of our neighborhood night life -- with the good kitchen, all the action at the bar -- and the music too.”
That’s not exactly the sort of last-place preference that keeps jazz clubs in business. But it represents one important aspect of the multipurpose idea veteran hit-maker and record executive Herb Alpert had in mind when he first decided to become Vibrato’s principal backer.
“I like the idea of people getting jazz on a subliminal level,” he said. “I know it can be a little distracting for the guys on the stage. But when they finish the tune and people start clapping -- because they felt something that they liked -- that’s a good thing for the music. Then, at other times -- and always on the nights when we have the Steve Tyrells -- it becomes a lot less subliminal.”
Alpert first thought of opening a club over a decade ago: “I was going to open up a club with Stan Getz, who was a close friend, called Uncle Stanley’s. But when he passed that ended that idea.”
A visible tribute to the plan remains, however, in a large Alpert painting in the Vibrato entryway, appropriately titled “Uncle Stanley.” The less subliminal aspect of Vibrato’s franchise began to come into focus near the end of the McChesney group’s opening set, when the dining activity slowed, the rhythms livened and the attention shifted to the music.
“This is the way it goes,” explained the room’s amiable manager, Michel Keller. “The emphasis is on the food in the early part of the evening, and then, as we have more activity at the bar, the music moves into the foreground.”
That’s all well and good, but what about the nights when Vibrato becomes a full-out jazz room, with major international artists?
“Ah, that’s very different,” says Keller. “We stop the food and beverage service a half hour before the show and clear the tables. For those patrons who want drinks, we serve them in advance -- one or even two, if that’s what they want. Then we darken the lights and place the accent upon the stage and the music.”
The transformation from fine dining to fine listening will take place regularly at Vibrato but in yet another unusual fashion: Major bookings are on Mondays through Wednesdays -- off nights in most jazz rooms.
“That’s really the idea,” said bassist Pat Senatore, also the venue’s music director. “On weekends we do well with the kitchen and the general vibe of the room. The bar’s always busy. So we thought, ‘Why not book local bands on the weekend and bring the big acts in early in the week?’ We started with Steve Tyrell, and it worked fine.”
The lineup currently includes Toots Thielemans and Kenny Werner (April 12-14), Bobby Hutcherson (April 19-21), Chuck Mangione (May 10-12), Kenny Barron (May 17-19), and Gary Burton and Makoto Ozone (July 19-21), with more to be added.
“There are a lot of artists I’d love to have at Vibrato,” Alpert said. “They don’t know it yet, but if they see the place, feel it and see how comfortable it is to play on the stage, they’ll love it. Because the real concept -- whoever’s on stage -- is to present jazz up close and personal, acoustically as much as possible, in a real cozy environment.”
Don Heckman can be reached at weekend@latimes.com.
*
Vibrato Grill & Jazz
Where: 2930 Beverly Glen Circle, Bel-Air
When: Nightly from 6:30 p.m.
Price: No cover, except on nights when special entertainment is booked.
Info: (310) 474-9400