And when Dazzle was again named Best Jazz Club in the Best of Denver 2021, that award was particularly heartfelt. When it couldn't put on live shows, Dazzle offered virtual concerts and other programs. But Dazzle also helped the community with its Bread & Jam program, a setup through which local musicians could get a free meal and food items from its pantry. The community helped keep Dazzle afloat, Rossa recalls, whether it was by raising $40,000 for employees through a GoFundMe page, or getting a grant from the Live Music Society. And just as they were working out the kinks and beginning to again make a profit, the pandemic hit. While the Golden Triangle spot had been more of a neighborhood bar, the new Dazzle was more of a destination - with much more space, including a huge kitchen. ![]() This space came with its own challenge, however. Spira invited Rossa to look at the space, and within two months, they made a deal. ![]() Perkins & Will But a decade later, the physical limitations of that venue were beginning to cramp Dazzle's style. Around the same time, David Spira, who'd bought the circa 1891 Baur’s Building at 1512 Curtis Street in 2004, was closing Baur’s Listening Lounge, which he’d run since 2015. “I remember being blown away by the band, but also by the venue,” says Ruff, who's now also a partner in Dazzle, along with Austin Andres and Jan Cleveland. Rossa became the sole owner of Dazzle in 2003 soon afterward, he interviewed El Paso transplant Matt Ruff for the position of general manager during a performance by the Future Jazz Project. Initially, Dazzle hosted live jazz four nights a week in its bar area over the next year, another stage was added in its second room, and the venue expanded its live-music program to every night of the week. ![]() Rossa reached out to renowned local trumpeter Bob Montgomery, who gave him a list of phone numbers for other local jazz musicians. “And Miles said he was on board with it, because Miles taught me about jazz. “I said, ‘We’re going to celebrate being American, and our original art form is jazz,'” he told Westword in January, when Dazzle officially celebrated its 25th anniversary. That’s when Rossa decided that Dazzle needed to start hosting live jazz. Dazzle quickly became a favorite spot for happy hours and late-night gatherings (since it was just a block from the Westword office, we were regulars), but that September 11, as news came in of the terrorist acts on the East Coast, the scene was much more somber. In 2001, Donald Rossa, who'd previously worked for the Fourth Story, Piatti and Sfuzzi restaurants, was brought in as a managing partner. While it didn't present live music, Snyder created a soundtrack for Dazzle with jazz CDs from his extensive home music collection. Sometime in late November, Dazzle will pack up and leave its current home downtown, moving just two blocks away to 1080 14th Street, where it will become a tenant of the Denver Performing Arts Complex in a decade-long lease with Denver Arts & Venues, which operates the city-owned complex.Īt a time when many venues are struggling and some have given up altogether, including iconic jazz club El Chapultepec, this deal sounds particularly sweet.ĭazzle got its start 25 years ago, when Karen Storck and Miles Snyder opened a restaurant/bar at 930 Lincoln Street, in the former home of Fuji En, a Japanese restaurant. "Denver Arts & Venues welcomes Dazzle as an iconic, local cultural organization that brings a new musical flavor to the Arts Complex and widens its breadth of shows.Denver and Dazzle will soon be making some beautiful music together. It also promised "a continued commitment to diverse bookings, reflecting Denver’s jazz community and rich heritage. In its own statement, Denver Arts & Venues promised that "Colorado’s premier independent-owned venue" will continue its commitment to "showcasing Colorado artists as a celebration of our state’s rich and talented pool of musicians, with a few national acts sprinkled in to spice things up." The new Dazzle will be designed by the architectural firm of Perkins+Will, whose biggest challenge will be transitioning from the iconic high ceilings in the old Baur's building to the much lower ceiling at the former Onyx. Until then, "Dazzle at Baur’s" will continue business as usual at 1512 Curtis St. ![]() The move will most likely take place in late November, but the club is waiting on permit approvals before setting an official opening date. This new long-term lease agreement "is dedicated to solidifying our place in the wider history of jazz and the new sounds that grow from its roots." "The first 25 years established Dazzle as the premier independently owned venue and a solid part of Denver’s cultural fabric," the Dazzle statement continued. Dazzle's home for 20 years had been a small storefront space on Lincoln Street before moving downtown next to the Sam's No.
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