Ben Rosenblum Brazilian Quartet
3022 Broadway Ave, Oakland
September 12, 2025
They say the neon lights are bright on Broadway, but not in this particular part of town. Located in a neighborhood otherwise devoid of nightlife, many Oaklanders don’t even know that The Sound Room exists.
Originally located in uptown, this all-ages live performance venue has since moved 10 blocks north to a graffiti-covered stretch of auto row in between Pill Hill and Adams Point. Next door to a plumber and across the street from corporate brands like Sprouts, Starbucks, and Chipotle, this small, nondescript spot with barely noticeable signage is actually a hidden gem of the local live music scene.
The good news about this part of town is that there was plenty of available parking at 6:30 on a Friday evening. The bad news is that the parking was all on the street in an area with little foot traffic.
Inside, The Sound Room looks like it may have been an auto body shop at some point in time, but it feels comfortable. On one side of the establishment, a brick wall is adorned with abstract paintings, and the other is all business. The front of the house is a restaurant with a full kitchen, beer and wine, and the sizeable but still intimate theater space is accessible via a walk-through box office in the back.
Thanks to our early arrival, we were able to grab a table right in front of the stage, from where we enjoyed an excellent dinner prior to the show. We shared the watermelon poke salad and oyster mushrooms, which paired well with my west coast IPA. Sadly, the sangria was kinda mid according to my plus one.
I’m not exactly a cheesecake guy, but co-owner Karen Van Leuven strongly recommended trying it, and no cap it was some of the best cheesecake I’ve ever had.
Pianist, accordionist, and composer Ben Rosenblum and his NYC-based Brazilian quartet were the sole act on this night. No opener, no feature, just Karen on the mic welcoming everyone and setting the stage for Rosenblum's group. The show was the first of a three-shows-in-three-nights Northern California tour for the quartet.
A graduate of the Columbia University-Juilliard School of Music joint program, Rosenblum has performed at some of the world’s most respected music venues, including Ravinia, Kuumbwa Jazz Center, the Library of Congress, AngraJazz (Terceira Island), Bird’s Eye (Basel), and Yokohama’s Himawari-No-Sato Concert Hall.
At The Sound Room in Oakland, he was barely a COVID-safe distance away from someone like me.
Rosenblum himself is not Brazilian, but the quartet did feature Brazilians Cesar Garabini on 7-string guitar and Eduardo Belo on upright bass. American Ben Zweig was on the drum kit.
With a lineup that more closely resembled a jazz band configuration than any traditional Brazilian combo, the quartet performed two sets with a break in between.
There may not be a green room at the venue, because the musicians were just hanging around in the audience before the show and during the break. Or maybe they’re just down-to-earth and accessible like that. Whatever the case may be, it felt very on brand for The Sound Room, and I thought it was pretty cool.
The performers were clothed as if dressing up was a lot to ask: the drummer was giving boomer on a cruise ship, the bassist wore a baseball hat with his green oxford, Rosenblum a duckbill cap with his sport coat. The guitarist kept a more classic vibe in a black button-up and charcoal slacks.
They played upbeat songs and ballads inspired primarily by the forrò tradition of Northeastern Brazil, but with elements of several other musical genres as well.
The musicianship was excellent. Rosenblum displayed dexterity and feel on both the piano and accordion. Garabini was constantly playing all 7 strings of his acoustic guitar while also working the entire length of its fretboard, and Belo was solid all around and shined when he took solos.
The drummer, however, seemed to be chasing the groove at times. He had jazz chops and was not a bad drummer, but Brazilian music is a big lift for people who haven’t been playing it their entire life. To be fair, forró music doesn’t involve a bateria traditionally, so there’s that.
I’m not an expert on any type of Brazilian music, but this set sounded more like music that I imagine one would hear in a French cafe. The word forrò means “great party,” and this was more like a great time sitting down and listening to great musicians.
Roseblum’s wife Yoko Sano joined the band on stage to play triangle for two songs, lending those pieces a noticeably more Brazilian feel.
The packed, not quite sold out audience showed its appreciation after every song, and gave a standing ovation at the end of the performance.
