Roosevelt Live Summer Art, Music & Food Festival Comes To Roosevelt Island's Riverwalk Commons With Eclectic Jazz, Interactive Figment & BBQ Festival

You Tube Video of Albert Ayler's Summertime

The same folks who brought last year's fantastic Roosevelt Live Concert Series to the Riverwalk Commons are at it again with a new 2010 Series of Summer Art and Music on Roosevelt Island. From Roosevelt Live:

ROOSEVELT L!VE 2010 BRINGS FREE MUSIC AND ART TO NYC ALL SUMMER LONG!

This summer, the central green lawn at Roosevelt Island's Riverwalk Commons will be filled with the sights and sounds of ROOSEVELT L!VE. From an eclectic jazz festival to the perfect summer barbeque, ROOSEVELT L!VE is bringing exciting entertainment to this fantastic spot steps away from the F train stop at Roosevelt Island. Enjoy views of Manhattan from the lawn while experiencing music, art and fabulous fun -all for FREE!

Kicking off the live entertainment series is the First FREE Annual Albert Ayler Festival. This marathon record fair and musical celebration honoring the influential tenor saxophonist Albert Ayler will take place on Saturday, July 10 from 2:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Forty years after his death, Ayler's music continues to inspire artists of all disciplines to delve into jazz, improvisation and beyond, and will be brought to life on stage this summer. With over 30 musicians and 20 record vendors, this festival promises to be the must-see event of the summer for jazz music lovers throughout the city.

For lovers of the visual arts come two innovative projects from FIGMENT, a forum for interactive art by emerging artists. The first installation features HiveMind, a steel sculpture by Deborah Yoon. The HiveMind will be on display in RiverWalk Commons from July 18 - August 14, 2010. On the weekend of July 24 and 25, sound artist Zemi17 will install his Gamelatron in the HiveMind. The Gamelatron is the world's first fully-robotic Indonesian Gamelan orchestra. The combination is mesmerizing.

During the last weekend in July, Conscious Cycle will bring artists together to motivate and dignify conscious living, particularly highlighting life's cyclical nature on Roosevelt Island. Using reclaimed materials from the side of the road, Conscious Cycle will build a canvas wall and invite artists to paint the wall, after and over one another. At the same time, DJs play music, dancers perform, yogis and taiji practitioners teach and demonstrate, artists teach, learned folk talk, and spectators interact. The whole event is videoed for a time-lapse production complete with soundtrack.

The festival culminates with Yelp's So Long, Summer BBQ! On Sunday, September 12, members of the Yelp Community will dine on RiverWalk Bar & Grill's complimentary sliders, dogs and dip as they relax on the lawn and chat with fellow Yelp-ers. This event is RSVP only and brings likeminded individuals together in a picturesque setting, and is the perfect way to end the summer, as well as ROOSEVELT L!VE.
Riverwalk Commons -- the site of ROOSEVELT L!VE -- is one of Roosevelt Island's many open green spaces and includes a central green lawn, landscaped gardens, shops, and restaurants. Roosevelt Island features some of New York City's most breathtaking views. Boasting two miles of riverfront vistas along midtown Manhattan, it is truly a hidden gem.

ROOSEVELT L!VE attendees can use their metro cards on the F train to Roosevelt Island, which will let them out steps away from the Riverwalk Commons performance venue.

ROOSEVELT L!VE is sponsored by Riverwalk Court, Related Companies, The Hudson Companies Inc., and Time Out New York.

Roosevelt Island Saturday's at the Riverwalk Commons are going to be a lively and entertaining place this summer.