Let the Music Take You Over the “Q”

Ed Tankus of Blue Plate Radio will be debuting a Thursday night  in New Haven on Jan. 26 featuring some of the acts you might recognize from this past summer’s jazz series on the Branford Green as well as some new faces.

Tankus considers himself a fan of the artists he has booked and that’s why he said he’s so excited to launch the series.

Having brought the idea of  to the town, Tankus has been part of the local jazz revival since 2008. Though the  runs the events on the Green, Tankus has always assisted with booking and organizing the performers. As he moves into his role with Café Nine, Tankus said he will still be part of the summer series in town in some capacity.

So how did the Elm City event come to life? Tankus said it was a homegrown effort. Tankus had a chance meeting at  with Café Nine proprietor Paul Mayer who also lives in Branford and the two friends began talking about doing the series.

The conversation, which lasted all of a few minutes in the parking lot behind the coffee shop, was enough for the two to agree on a deal and Thursday night jazz at Café Nine was born.

Starting Jan. 26, guests can attend monthly shows through June, featuring acts like  and  – both who played the Green this past summer. You can check out the upcoming line-up .

Keeping his day job as the owner of website a development firm, Eliant Technologies, Tankus said the New Haven Jazz Series is just one step closer to him fulfilling his dream to book music shows. Of the chance meeting with Mayer, he said, “This was totally a surprise, because it’s what I always wanted to do.”

Tankus hopes this New Haven series will stimulate the city's economy much the way Branford’s weekly summer series did. In fact, other towns have seen the success of what he does and approached Tankus with interest. He’s keyed in on New Haven for now he said. “If that’s successful, we’ll be back in September to run it as a regular occurrence.”

Tankus is not a longtime Jazz buff though his enthusiam for the contemporary sound would lead you to believe otherwise. He came to jazz as a freelance writer in 2005 and discovered that Connecticut was underserved in the genre.

“There was a jazz brunch here and a Sunday morning thing here. As a business person, I saw there was a need and there was a way to fulfill that need through an internet [radio] station and Blue Plate Radio was born,” said Tankus.

Tankus has been hosting Blue Plate Radio live jazz shows on Monday nights, 9 p.m. EST and he interviews contemporary artists from all over the place. These artists, he said, many of whom he has gotten to play locally, are no longer just people he admires – he said he counts them as friends.

So if you’re a contemporary jazz enthusiast or just looking for more of what you love during the summer series here in town, head over the “Q” Bridge and let the community know what you think of the shows.