WINNING SPINS BY GEORGE KANZLER
Two of jazz's most accomplished pianists, Kenny
Barron and Denny Zeitlin, can now be heard on winning new
albums with very different foci. Barron's is dominated by reworkings
of some of his best-known compositions in quartet settings, three of
them with lyrics added by Janice Jarrett and each given to a different
singer. Zeitlin's is, by contrast, a further exploration of the
familiar piano-bass-drums trio format that he's been honing since the
1960s.
Barron's The Traveler (Emarcy/Universal) begins with the title track,
one of his most enticing melodies, played by a quartet that includes
Steve Wilson's rich-toned soprano saxophone, Kyoshi Kitagawa's bass
and Francisco Mela's drum kit. The Cuban drummer brings exotic accents
to the basic 4/4 beat. The same quartet is heard on the exhilarating
bop burner, "Speed Trap," a fine demonstration of Barron's fluid
improvisational ease at racing tempos, and on "Illusion," a lyrically
diaphanous ballad on which the soprano and piano solos flow out of the
enticing melody.
The vocal tracks are a mixed bag. Although the yearning "Clouds" finds
Ann Hampton Callaway slightly above her comfort range in the
beginning, she ends it exquisitely. Grady Tate's warm baritone floats
through the bossa-inflected "Um Beijo," with its extravagantly
romantic lyrics. "Phantoms" opens with some chant-like African vocals
by guitarist Lionel Loueke before the slinky rhythm kicks in behind a
sighing rendition of evanescent lyrics penned by Gretchen Parlato,
making it the CD's most impressive vocal track.
Guitarist Loueke also joins the piano trio on the spirited romp
entitled "Calypso," and pairs, both picking strings and using his
guitar as a hand percussion instrument, with Barron on the spontaneous
"Duet." A springy rhythmic "The First Year" by Alex Nguyen and
Barron's historically eclectic solo rendition of Eubie Blake's
"Memories of You" round out this impressive album.
In Concert (Sunnyside) by the Denny Zeitlin trio, recorded in Los
Angeles and Albuquerque, finds the pianist working with two musicians
who've collaborated with him since 2001: bassist Buster Williams and
drummer Matt Wilson. The rapport these three have developed is
extraordinary, especially considering how intellectually rigorous and
technically demanding Zeitlin's approach can be, with tunes turned on
their heads or transformed into multifaceted mini-suites. A perfect
example is the long opening selection, John Coltrane's "Mr. P.C." It
begins at a lightning tempo redolent of bop and then drops off into an
unaccompanied piano solo that moves from blues to the abstract before
the rhythm section returns at a slower tempo for a soulful final
section marked by solos all around.
Zeitlin can verge on obsession in his thorough plumbing of the
possibities of a particular phrase or chord pattern, bringing an
intensity to his vamp opening of "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes/10,000
Eyes" that is leavened by Wilson's quirky nods to martial drumming,
before the reharmonized theme emerges like a Cubist re-imagining in
7/4 seguing into a free trio improvisation resolving to (in Zeitlin's
words) an "enigmatic pattern" initiated by Williams' bass. Another
standard, "All of You," also gets revamped harmonies, plus a
tour-de-force approach from Zeitlin, who floats across bar lines while
creating cat's-cradle polyphonal lines. Zeitlin's own distinctive
originals include the stately lyrical ballad "The We of Us," and a
"Prime Times" which morphs from swing to a challenging alternation of
7/4 and 5/4 time that nevertheless manages to generate a funky
momentum. David Freisen's "Signs and Wonders" closes the CD with an
invigorating groove.
By the way, Mosaic Records has just released Denny Zeitin: The
Columbia Studio Trio Sessions, making available recordings originally
issued on three 1960s LPs, plus extra material from the sessions. It's
evidence that Zeitlin had already established the exploratory
parameters of his style and interactive approach to piano trio jazz at
an early age.
Jazz at Lincoln Center's Allen Room hosts "Kenny Barron: Words and
Music" with his trio plus vocalists from the CD on March 19 and 21.
Dizzy's Club Coca Cola presents the Denny Zeitlin Trio on March 10-11.
SPOTLIGHT BY PAUL
BLAIR AND George Kanzler
MICHELE ROSEWOMAN
HOSTOS UNIVERSITY/MARCH 14
Composer-pianist Rosewoman, a significant force on the New York scene
since she arrived from the West Coast three decades ago, heads up the
quintet named Quintessence heard on the rewarding 2005 disc called The
In Side Out. At this concert in the Bronx, she'll lead her ten-member
New Yor-Uba ensemble in a program of that fuses vocal chants of West
African origin with rhythmic and harmonic traditions from Cuba. The
venue (Hostos' Reportory Theatre) is located where Grand Concourse
meets 149th St. The music starts at 7:30 PM - and this just might
prove to be one of the year's most exciting concerts. PB
ODEAN POPE
BLUE NOTE/MARCH 10-15
We've heard saxophonist Pope's forthcoming CD, Odean's List, and it's
a knockout. Unlike earlier recordings by his nine-saxes-plus-rhythm
band, the new one features an octet which includes two trumpeters
(Terell Stafford and David Weiss) and only three saxists (Pope, James
Carter and Walter Blanding), with Tain Watts occupying the drum chair.
Watch for it. But wait! To this gig, Odean returns to the Blue Note
with his Philly-based twelve-man Saxophone Choir for six nights of
hard blowing on his own powerhouse arrangements, with Carter as
special guest. Prepare yourself for one of the most intense - and
overwhelmingly beautiful - sounds in jazz today. PB
HANK JONES
IRIDIUM/MARCH 11-15 AND 19
Though he's 90, pianist Jones still plays with the same suave touch
and impeccable swing he brought to countless record dates during the
1950s and 1960s. He's continued to broaden his horizons in this new
century, uniting for the first time with James Moody on one of last
year's best CDs (Our Delight) and collaborating on gigs and albums
with terrific singer Roberta Gambarini. At this event, billed as "The
Jazz Masters Salute The Broadway Masters," Hank will be joined by
Frank Wess, Rufus Reid, Willie Jones III and young Russian guitarist
Ilya Lushtak. Then on Mar. 19, he's a special guest on the the Teddy
Charles All-Stars' opening night. GK
MARC MOMMAAS
CORNELIA STREET CAFΙ/MARCH 15
When a jazz musician speaks about ongoing "projects," he or she is
usually referring to specific ensembles that play a particular body of
material composed and arranged just for them. Dutch-born saxophonist
Mommaas has several of these irons in the fire simultaneously. The
quartet he calls Global Motion is the one he'll bring to this date:
Nikolaj Hess playing piano, John Hebert on bass and Tony Moreno behind
the drumset. But look for his Cotangent band (with Bill Gerhardt, Mike
Holstein and Tim Horner) at Sweet Rhythm on Mar. 13 - and then his
Balance duo with Hess upstate in Briarcliff Manor on Mar. 16. PB
TOM GUARNA
BAR NEXT DOOR/MARCH 28
We know this guitarist best from the four CDs he's recorded for
Steeplechase. On the most recent, Major Minor, he benefits from
sterling support from pianist Peter Zak, bassist Dwayne Burno and
percussionist Billy Drummond, all regulars on that Danish label, while
alternately swinging and caressing his way though an outstanding
program of tunes written by Ellington, Strayhorn, Monk, Frank Foster
and Jackie McLean. Clearly, Guarna's a respecter of tradition -
appropriate since this cozy Village club is situated below street
level in a townhouse originally built by Aaron Burr. With him will be
Josh Ginsberg, bass and Jasmire Williams, drums. PB
MICHEL LEGRAND
BIRDLAND/MARCH 3-8
Best known as Oscar-winning film composer, as well as a songwriter
with many standards - "Watch What Happens," "You Must Believe in
Spring" - Legrand has also had a wide-ranging career in jazz as a
pianist and arranger, beginning with star-studded 1958 LP called
Legrand Jazz, on which his guests included Miles Davis, Bill Evans,
Ben Webster and John Coltrane. At this gig, billed as "Romance, with
Strings Attached," he'll be joined in trio by bassist David Finck and
drummer Lewis Nash, plus a string quartet and harpist Catherine
Michel, to perform music from his orchestral albums. GK
CHRISTIAN TAMBURR
KITANO/MARCH 5
For Tamburr, who plays piano but is best known as a vibraphonist,
there weren't years of scuffling early on. Even as a teenager, he was
performing with stars like James Moody, Clark Terry, Bucky Pizzarelli
and Slide Hampton - all known to have having keen ears for emerging
talent. Another early mentor, multi-instrumentalist Ira Sullivan,
guests on Christian's recent CD, Arrivals. He also gained loads of
exposure through work at venues like the Hard Rock Cafι, Universal
Studios and Hollywood's Brown Derby, where jazz has rarely been heard.
With him will be Brandon Wright (reeds), Oscar Perez (piano), Hans
Glawischnig (bass) and the redoubtable Matt Wilson (drums). PB
SEAMUS BLAKE
SMOKE/MARCH 26-28
In advance of this tenorist's three nights on Upper Broadway (when
he'll enjoy backing by guitarist Lage Lund, bassist Matt Clohesy and
drummer Bill Stewart), you might want to nab a copy of Blake's latest
release, an invigorating double-disc set on the Jazz Eyes label called
Live In Italy. It captures a wholly different foursome - one that
includes pianist David Kikoski, a frequent collaborator on a lengthy
series of Criss Cross albums - at work on several Italian bandstands
two years ago. None of its tracks are filler. And one is especially
remarkable: a gentle reworking of the slow movement from Ravel's
String Quartet. PB
PETE ROBBINS
LONG ISLAND WINTERFEST/MARCH 7
Altoist Robbins' participation in the music weekends continuing on the
Island involves a 1:00 PM set at Palmer Vineyards, although we can't
say which of his ensembles (Silent Z or Centric, both provocative in
the best sense) he'll be leading that afternoon. Pete also plays this
month at Spike Hill (Mar. 16) and at Tea Lounge (Mar. 27). We commend
each of Pete's last three recordings to your attention: Centric, Waits
& Measures and Do The Hate Laugh Shimmy. Rather than suggest where
jazz might be headed in future, each offers a pretty good idea of
where some of the best of it is right now. PB
MICHAEL WOLFF
TRIBECA PAC/MARCH 19
Pianist Michael Wolff grew up in California during the rock era,
embracing the jazz-rock mix known as electric fusion as well as more
acoustic jazz sounds (he worked in groups led by Cannonball Adderley
and Sonny Rollins). Meanwhile, his pop world profile was raised when
he served as musical director on Arsenio Hall's TV show in the 1980s.
More recently, he's widened his perspective to include world music
influences. Joe's Strut, just issued by a label called Wrong, is his
latest recording. At this "I Love A Piano" concert, part of the
Highlights In Jazz series, his trio will share the stage with that of
gospel-and blues-influenced keyboardist Cyrus Chestnut. GK
JAZZ IN JERSEY BY SHEILA ANDERSON
PAULA WEST
NJPAC/MARCH 28
Born into a Marine Corps family in San Diego, Ms. West recalls that
classical music was what she first heard around home. Then, as a
college student, she began listening to Billie Holiday, Dinah
Washington and Sarah Vaughn. After graduation, she relocated to San
Francisco, where she began buying old records to study, took singing
classes and became more secure in her vocal talent by joining local
jam sessions. Known for her remarkable ability to sustain notes
without a vibrato, Paula has mastered a repertoire that includes
everything from Great American Songbook favorites to material
associated with Pearl Bailey and Bob Dylan. Her live performances are
enhanced with witticisms and story-telling that delight audiences. For
an advance sampling of her style, get hold of Come What May, a
typically diverse collection that highlights her soulful voice and
compelling delivery.
WYNTON MARSALIS
BERGEN PAC/MARCH 19 and MAYO CENTER FOR THE PA/MARCH 21
While still a teenager, this celebrated trumpeter joined Art Blakey's
Jazz Messengers, the great finishing school for so many noted jazz
artists. In 1983, he became the first and only artist ever to win both
classical and jazz Grammy Awards in the same year. The virtuosic Mr.
Marsalis now serves as artistic director for the JALCO, which he
co-founded in 1987. Comprised of fifteen of today's finest jazz
soloists and ensemble players, they perform the music of the great
jazz composers, along with original works. We're not certain exactly
what pieces the ensemble will be playing at these concerts. We can
only note that their battle of the bands with the Clayton-Hamilton
Jazz Orchestra last October was more of a love feast.
JUNIOR MANCE
SHANGHAI JAZZ/MARCH 3
Born Julian Clifford Mance Jr., in Chicago, this pianist-composer has
shone on at least forty albums issued under his own name, along with
countless others by other notables. Just how long has he been a major
player on the jazz scene? Long enough to have performed and recorded
with Charlie Parker, Gene Ammons, Dizzy Gillespie, Dinah Washington
and Cannonball Adderley. He marked his 80th birthday with a new fine
CD called Live At Cafι Loup, documenting one of his regular Sunday
brunches at that Greenwich Village spot. Do check out the video
interview posted on at juniormance.com to hear him recall getting
kicked out of music school after being caught playing the wrong kind
of music. This month, Junior's also doing a Jazz Vespers service at
Saint Peter's (Mar. 15) plus two nights at the Knickerbocker (Mar.
27-28).
NATHAN EKLUND
CECIL'S/MARCH 20 AND 21
Growing up near Seattle, Eklund started on piano at six. But inspired
by tales of his grandfather's big band and military trumpet-playing
during the Forties, Nathan picked up the same horn at eleven and soon
became enthralled by the recorded exploits of Armstrong, Gillespie and
Clifford Brown. Today, he's well established within the upper echelon
of NYC hornmen, much in demand as performer, composer, arranger and
teacher. To celebrate the March release of his new CD, Trip to Casbah,
he'll share the bandstand with the same musicians heard to such good
effect on the album: saxophonist Donny McCaslin, guitarist John Hart,
bassist Bill Moring and drummer Tim Horner. By the way, his Crooked
Line album, recorded in 2006 with a different lineup, is also worth
checking out.
SCOTT
ROBINSON: MUSIC LAB TINKERER by Ken Dryden
Widely known for his talents on an impossibly wide variety of horns,
Scott Robinson seems to have collected and mastered nearly every
imaginable brass and reed instrument. Using them, he's been heard on
literally hundreds of albums that range from classic jazz and swing to
bop and the avant-garde. Incredibly, Robinson is largely self-taught.
"I had no lessons as a child," he says on the phone, "although I had
private lessons when I attended Berklee. I've been primarily a tenor
saxophonist ever since high school. But at some point, I started
fooling around with flute and clarinet, then bought an antique trumpet
for $3.00 in college. Although I've always been fascinated with sound,
I certainly never set out to become a multi-instrumental whiz kid or
anything like that. It was always about the music."
Once word of Robinson's versatility spread, he quickly found himself
much in demand for concert dates and recording sessions headed up by
others. Along the way, he also found time to record a few of his own
projects, including albums for the MultiJazz label. "I've done two
recordings with the Czech pianist Emil Viklickύ. We had a band
together at Berklee. Julian Thayer, the bassist, was also a member of
that group."
Robinson has also cut four CDs for the Arbors Jazz label. "Mat Domber
of Arbors was going to record my album of Sun Ra compositions this
spring, at the urging of Nat Hentoff," notes Robinson, "but that's on
hold now, due to the economy. I don't really do tribute albums.
Instead, I explore the oeuvre of a musician and his compositional
output from a variety of perspectives."
He's now somewhat more focused on his own musical interests. "I spent
the 90s playing in every imaginable big band and taking just about any
gig that came along. I was playing every day and night, on the road
constantly, gaining loads of experience. But now I'm trying to be a
little more selective. Since I'm going to turn fifty in a couple of
months, maybe it's time to stop dreaming and start doing. I've got
reams of paper full of project ideas at home."
One of Robinson's particular passions is his Doctette, a five-piece
band that plays a suite of his original pieces based on the titles of
various Doc Savage pulp novels published during the 30s and 40s.
"There's a cadenza in one piece that calls for theremin and slide
saxophone to be played simultaneously. As the slide moves, it actuates
the theremin, causing it to change pitch in parallel or contrary
motion, depending upon where I aim the slide."
Moving from a cramped East Harlem apartment to New Jersey has allowed
Robinson far more space in which to work. "My garage died and was
reborn as a laboratory where I can practice, rehearse, record and do
repair work. Recently, I was overhauling my vibes in the middle of the
night for one upcoming project. I've got incredible sound devices and
percussion instruments of all descriptions, including huge drums and
giant bells that are lashed to the rafters.
"Now that I have this facility up and running, I'm ready to launch my
own ScienSonic Laboratories label. I have two things already
completed: some duets recorded with Julian Thayer; and a project
called Live at Space Farms with Sun Ra saxist Marshall Allen and
several others. The latter was recorded at a very strange place in New
Jersey - a zoo, farm and museum all rolled into one, with a fantastic
bell tower in the middle of a cow pasture. We were using what must be
the world's longest extension cord - and a VW bus equipped as a mobile
sound lab." For a solo project now underway, Robinson is overdubbing
individual instruments parts onto his home recorder. He hopes to have
all three CDs out by the end of 2009. "It's an outlet for me to do
things that don't fit other labels. I thought of calling my operation
'Little Red Hen Productions.'"
Robinson is also a self-taught instrumental repairman. "If I can't
find parts, I make them. At the moment, I have a tenor torn apart that
I hope to have ready for the Vanguard gig. Because the contrabass
saxophone is too big to fit on my workbench, I have to tinker with it
in the backyard. Roscoe Mitchell, who lives out in Wisconsin, wanted
me to play the contrabass in a concert out there for a piece he'd
written. I ended up buying some wood and building a big
refrigerator-sized crate with a hinged top, handles on both ends and
lots of padding. When filled, it ended up weighing 222 pounds. Yellow
Freight had to use a hydraulic lift when they came to fetch it. Now
I'm using that custom-built saxophone case as a closet in the lab."
Robinson is also known for his colorful attire. "My wife Sharon
tailors all of my performance clothes: suits, ties, beautiful
waistcoats, all sorts of unusual, intriguing stagewear. She also made
me a special lab coat with rocket buttons on it. She's a flutist, too.
That's Sharon rehearsing in the background. Although her doctorate is
in mathematics, her first degree was in music. We occasionally perform
together. While in Japan recently, I wrote a chamber music piece for
bass saxophone and flute. We'll be playing it soon at the school where
she teaches."
There aren't many musicians who'd give up gigs under their own names
in favor of sideman work for someone else. But Robinson has enormous
respect for Frank Wess. "I was supposed to head up my own group at the
Kitano during March, playing the Thad Jones pieces I did for my
Forever Lasting CD. But I decided to postpone that appearance after
Frank asked me to join him at the Vanguard - just the two of us,
backed by a rhythm section. He wants me to play tenor and flute. I
first met Frank when we were both in Toshiko Akiyoshi's big band. He
liked my playing and suggested we should start a band together
someday. So we formed an octet and wrote a bunch of music for it.
We're bringing that group into Dizzy's during May."
Scott Robinson performs with the Frank Wess quintet at the Village
Vanguard on March 24-29.
TED NASH: A MOVING FORCE by
Paul Blair
Odeon is Ted Nash's baby, a tango-inflected quintet blending the
voices of accordion, violin, tuba and percussion with Nash's own
saxophone, clarinet and flute work. During their three evenings at the
Jazz Standard this month, its members will include accordionist Bill
Schimmel, violinist Nathalie Bonin, tuba man Clark Gayton (who also
doubles on trombone) and drummer Tim Horner. Much of the group's
repertoire will be familiar to those who've enjoyed two Odeon CDs:
Sidewalk Meeting (Arabesque, 2001) and La Espada De La Noche
(Palmetto, 2005).
"This gig at the Standard is part on an extended tour our group is
making," says Nash, "up into Canada and then to several American
venues. I handled all the logistics myself. That always involves a lot
of headaches, putting things together. But I also work a lot as a
sideman - for example, with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. In a
situation like that, everything's taken care of for you. As a result,
it can be tempting to just sit back and not do too much hustling for
gigs of your own."
Years ago, Nash spent varying periods in large ensembles led by Don
Ellis, Louie Bellson, Toshiko Akiyoshi and Quincy Jones. What did he
learn from them about leadership?
"Well, for one thing," he says, "all those bandleaders were also
writers, so each had a unique musical vision. It's important as a
leader that people working for you understand your vision and feel
eager to help you to realize it. Fronting a group, you first have to
feel sure of your own music, then inspire your band members to feel
that they're partnering with you to reach certain goals.
"I grew up in Southern California and was immersed in music quite
early because both my father and my uncle were prominent studio
musicians with loads of big band experience. As a teenager, I even had
a little bit of a local reputation myself - you know, like. 'Hey, this
kid can play bebop and he's only seventeen!' I suppose I could have
been pretty comfortable financially just by staying on in that scene.
But I began hearing interesting stuff coming out of the East Coast
that just wasn't available around Los Angeles. L.A. simply didn't have
the intensity of the New York music world, or the sheer numbers of
hardcore committed players. So near the end of 1978, I decided to
follow my heart and try my luck here.
"Of course, new players arriving in New York always have to get at the
back of the line. That was a bit of a shock for me and I had to spend
considerable time in the woodshed. I was lucky, though, because some
of the established L.A. guys had urged me to phone their New York
musician friends once I'd arrived. I brought a list of thirty or forty
contacts and called every single one of them - big names like Mike
Brecker, Chuck Israels, Bobby Rosengarden and so on. Everyone was very
nice. 'You want to make this rehearsal? You want a sub job for next
Thursday night?' So one thing leads to another. For example, Mel Lewis
and my father had been roommates with Tex Beneke's band back in the
50s and I eventually ended up playing alto in Mel's Monday night
Vanguard band for ten years, starting in 1981.
"Over the past decade, my role within the Lincoln Center Jazz
Orchestra has changed somewhat. Wynton originally hired me, I guess,
because he liked my clarinet playing. That's what he'd heard me do in
a group led by Marcus Roberts. But these days, I'm featured on other
reed instruments as well. Also, I'm doing more writing and
orchestrating of original music for the band. One example is my
composition called "Portrait In Seven Shades," an hour-long piece that
we premiered a couple of years, in partnership with the Museum of
Modern Art. We subsequently recorded it and that album ought to be
issued this spring. We'll also be performing that work in the course
of the orchestra's upcoming tour, then hopefully presenting it again
at a New York concert later this year."
It should be noted that Wynton Marsalis has appeared as a sideman
himself on two earlier Ted Nash albums: Rhyme & Reason (Arabesque,
1999) and Still Evolved (Palmetto, 2003). Also worth mentioning is the
fact that the most recent Nash CD, The Mancini Project, has won the
affection of radio listeners and sold considerably more copies that
the average jazz release. He'll bring the quartet music from that
project into Kitano on April 10-11.
Odeon performs at the Jazz Standard for three nights: March 31 through
April 2.
JAZZWOMEN! BY ELZY KOLB
March forward
Technology was frustrating bassist Kim Clarke recently. Her
Internet access died while she was in the process of producing and
promoting the 7th annual Lady Got Chops Festival at the Jazz Spot Cafι
in Brooklyn, in honor of Women's History Month. To spread the word,
"I'm going to be on the roof with a blanket sending smoke signals in a
minute," Kim said, laughing. In choosing bands for the festival, she
aims to put together a varied program. For example, trumpeters Tanya
Darby and Jamie Dauber pay tribute to Freddie Hubbard on March 13, and
flutist Andrea Brachfeld brings in a Latin jazz ensemble on March 21.
"I put together every band myself the first year," Kim recalls. "It
was four nights a week then, and I was tearing my hair out. I said,
never again!" She made an exception this year - she put Binghamton,
NY, tenor saxophonist Camille Thurman in touch with pianist Dotti
Anita Taylor, bassist Renee Cruz and drummer Vanessa Cruz for a March
28 gig. "She's from out of town and doesn't know many people," Kim
explains. There will be more festival events on March 6, 7, and 14.
For full lineup check out http://thejazz.8m.com/lady09a.html.
Town and country
Pianist/vocalist/composer Cynthia Hilts loves New York, but
looks forward to spending time at the Montana Artists Refuge in each
year. "The music comes pouring out in all that open space," she says.
At Iridium on March 4, she's celebrating the release of her new trio
CD, Second Story Breeze (Blond Coyote), which features a lot of
material written in Montana. People claim there's a special magnetic
quality in the earth there that inspires creativity, since the
sparsely populated area is home to a high percentage of artists. For
Cynthia, it's a matter of having the time to sit and stare and await
the muse. "I love the solitude of the country," she says. "You have
such huge landscapes out there that are extremely evocative." On the
other hand, the Big Apple is home to "the best musicians." Off and on
for the past twelve years, Cynthia has led an eight-piece band, Lyric
Fury, and "You gotta have access to a lot of musicians to keep the
thing going. It's a big blessing - people are willing to rehearse as a
unit, the music is tough and very heavily written."
Live and more
The SFJazz Collective, including pianist Renee Rosnes will be at
JALC's Allen Room on March 6-7; check out the group's new three-disc
CD Live 2008 (SFJazz)
Singer Kate McGarry opens for Madeleine
Peyroux at the Tarrytown Music Hall on March 7; you can also hear
Kate, along with Lauren Kinhan and Luciana Souza, on Moss (Sunnyside)
The Klez Dispensers, including bassist Heather Versace, violinist
Amy Zakar and trumpeter Susan Watts, blend big band jazz and klezmer
at City Winery on March 8; the group has a new CD, Say You'll
Understand
Great material on reed maven Anat Cohen's Notes from the
Village (Anzic); hear Anat tell "Brazilian Stories" as part of
Paquito's band at JALC's Rose Hall on March 13-14
LaTanya Hall has a
lot going on, including a new CD, It's About Time (Bridge) and a guest
appearance with fellow vocalist Becca Stevens on Dapp Theory's Layers
of Chance (ObliqSound); catch LaTanya at Feinstein's on March 16
Singer Tierney Sutton celebrates the release of Desire (Telarc) at
Dizzy's on March 17-22
Pianist Marilyn Crispell plays The Stone with
Lukas Ligeti on March 21; check out Marilyn's work on Phases of the
Night (Intakt)
Bet Ernestine Anderson sings material from her new
CD, A Song for You (HighNote), at Dizzy's on March 24-29.
Gigs galore
Percussionist Annette A. Aguilar brings a sextet into the Brooklyn
Lyceum on March 1; her ensemble Stringbeans will be at the Jazz Spot
on March 6; Annette's excited about the group's gig at Our Savior's
Atonement Lutheran Church in Washington Heights on March 8
Singer
Melissa Stylianou is busy this month, starting with a jazz mass at
Saint Peter's on March 1 and a March 8 gig at Smoke
Amy Cervini
sings at the 55 Bar on March 3
Baritone saxophonist Lauren Sevian is
at the Jazz Standard with the Mingus Big Band on March 2 and with
Travis Sullivan's Bjorkestra on March 3-4; she leads her own band, the
LSQ, at the Jazz Gallery on March 13
Laurie Krauz sings Carole King
at Iridium on March 3
Catch pianist Geri Allen at Carnegie Hall on
March 4 and at Kitano on March 6-7
Guitarist Sheryl Bailey is
recording "Jazz Guitars Meet Hendrix" at the 55 Bar on March 5
Carrie Jackson sings at Skippers Plane Street Pub in Newark on March
5; she celebrates the 85th anniversary of the birth of the divine
Sarah Vaughan on March 27 at the Priory in Newark, Sassy's hometown
Pam Fleming plays trumpet and flugelhorn with Hazmat Modine at Le
Poisson Rouge on March 7
Pianist Leslie Pintchik plays the Shandelee
Music Festival on March 12
Join composer Maria Schneider for a free
listening party at JALC's Irene Diamond Education Center on March 12
Bassist Esperanza Spalding plays the Schomburg Center on March 12
Pianist Anat Fort will be at Cornelia Street Cafι on March 14
Check
out pianist Jill McManus at Sofia's on March 19
Vocalist Lil
Phillips pays tribute to Sarah Vaughan on March 21 at Sista's Place
Judi Silvano sings at Riverspace in Nyack on March 24
Pianist Deanna
Witkowski plays "Moving with the Spirit," a program of Mary Lou
Williams' sacred music, at Space 38/39 on March 26; Deanna will be a
Cachaca on March 6, 13, and 20 with the Fabiana Masili Quartet
Jody
Sandhaus sings with her trio at the Westchester Arts Exchange in White
Plains on March 27
Percussionist Mayra Casales brings her sextet
into Riverspace in Nyack on March 31.
Try this at home
New from pianist Linda Presgrave: Inspiration (Metropolitan), with
Allison Miller on drums
Since this is the month for the wearing of
the green, check out saxophonist Ada Rovatti's Celtic-influenced Green
Factor (Piloo)
Composer Ayn Inserto's Jazz Orchestra includes
pianist Carmen Staaf and bass trombonist Jennifer Wharton on Muse
(Creative Nation Music)
Check out Brandee Younger's harp on Ravi
Coltrane's Blending Times (Savoy Jazz)
Karolina Strassmayer plays
alto and flute on Drori Mondlak's Point in Time (Lilypad)
Pianist
Satoko Fujii has three new releases: Orchestra Nagoya (Bakamo), Summer
Suite, and Chun (both on Libra)
Give a listen to pianist Myra
Melford and cellist Peggy Lee on Alex Cline's Continuation (Cryptogramophone).
Singer central
Everyone sounds like they're having a great time on In These Shoes
(Zoho), from Claudia Acuna and Arturo O'Farrill
Saxophonist/flutist
Jane Bunnett is Embracing Voices (EMI), specifically those of Kellylee
Evans, Grupo Vocal Desandann, Molly Johnson, and Telmary
Check out
Faye Carol on Harriet Tubman (MSJO) from the Marcus Shelby Jazz
Orchestra
Scott Yanow writes about vocalists from Susanne Abbuehl to
Monica Zetterlund in The Jazz Singers: The Ultimate Guide (Backbeat
Books) ... It's easy to believe Pam Purvis when she sings I Had a Ball
(Progressive Winds)
Gretchen Parlato guests on Francisco Pais'
School of Enlightenment (POI)
Cheryl Bentyne lends her voice to Mark
Winkler's Till I Get it Right (FreeHam).
HOT FLASHES BY PAUL BLAIR
ESPECIALLY NOTEWORTHY
The with-it quartet called Mostly Other People Do The Killing at
Zebulon in Williamsburg (Mar. 1)
an Alex Terrier quartet at Cachaca
(Mar. 2)
a George Cables quartet that also includes Gary Bartz and
Tain Watts at the Blue Note (Mar. 3-4)
Terence Blanchard, James
Carter, Ron Carter and others at Carnegie Hall (Mar. 4)
Arturo
O'Farrill leading the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra at Symphony Space (Mar.
5-6)
a Mar. 5-7 celebration at Smoke of the golden anniversary of
Miles Davis' Kind Of Blue album that involves not only Eddie Henderson,
Vincent Herring, Javon Jackson and Larry Willis but also Jimmy Cobb, who
drummed on that landmark disc
Dave Liebman heading up a group at
Iridium (Mar. 5-8)
the marvelous all-star SF Jazz Collective
headlining at the Allen Room (Mar. 6-7)
keyboardist Marco Benevento at
the Bell House in Brooklyn (Mar. 7)
Joe McPhee at The Stone (Mar. 10)
Mike Holober showcasing new compositions and arrangements with his
18-member Gotham Jazz Orchestra at the Jazz Standard (Mar. 10-11)
a
reunited Microscopic Septet engendering good feelings at Le Poisson
Rouge (Mar. 12)
the Phil Woods quintet, which now includes Bill Mays
in the piano chair, at Dizzy's (Mar. 12-15)
Nicki Parrott's trio at
the Riverdale Y (Mar. 14)
bassist Joe Fonda, pianist Michael Jefry
Stevens, trumpeter Herb Robertson and drummer Harvey Sourgen at Roulette
(Mar. 16)
alto saxophonist Dmitry Baevsky doing After Hours sets at
Dizzy's (Mar. 17-21)
guitarist Mike Moreno at the Jazz Gallery (Mar.
20)
vibraphonist Dave Samuels and pianist Bill O'Connell comprising
two-thirds of a trio at Kitano (Mar 20-21)
Ray Anderson and Bob
Stewart doing a trombone + tuba set at Cornelia Street Cafι (Mar. 28)
and Cecil Taylor at Merkin Hall on the same evening
tenorist Charles
Davis guesting with Peter Leitch at Walker's (Mar. 29)
and Scott
Reeves, whose arsenal includes alto flugelhorn and alto valve trombone,
launches his newest CD at the 55 Bar (also Mar. 29)
YES, BROOKLYN
Good golly, they're now hosting jazz performances inside the
historic Old Stone House, a momento of Revolutionary War days in Park
Slope, with a quartet under pianist Charles Sibirsky kicking things off
at 8:00 PM on the first Friday of every month through June
(718-768-3195)
Or catch music at Le Grand Dakar in Clinton Hill, with
trombonist Michael Dessen, best known for his work with Cosmologic,
leading a trio there on Mar. 19 (718-398-8900)
There's quite a
concentration of newish venues in the Gowanus neighborhood; Google spots
like I-Beam Music, Douglas Street Collective and Brooklyn Lyceum for
particulars. Catch the marvelous quartet called Spoke at the Tea Lounge
(Mar. 26)
Finally, note that Puppets Jazz Bar has moved into spiffy
new digs at 481 Fifth Ave., with John McNeil and Noah Preminger sharing
the bandstand on Mar. 4, 11, 18 and 25.
MVP STATUS
While some talented local players wait for their phones to ring,
others work a lot. Masterful organist and pianist Gary Versace, much in
demand for recording sessions, is a good example. He's not only leading
his own group (with Donny McClasline and Adam Rogers) at the Jazz
Standard on Mar. 24 but also playing there with vocalist Theo
Blackmann's trio on Mar. 17
Look for guitarist Gene Bertoncini at the
Arts Club bordering Gramercy Park (Mar. 6); at the Lycian Center upstate
in Sugar Loaf with Bucky Pizzarelli and Frank Vignola (Mar. 14) and at
the Jazz Standard with backing by a string quartet (Mar. 25)
Up-and-coming saxophonist Logan Richardson also has a busy month
planned, with gigs under his own name slated at Fat Cat (Mar. 9) and the
Jazz Gallery (Mar. 12), along with sideman work with Mike Pinto at the
Jazz Gallery (Mar. 14) and Jesse Elder at Fat Cat (Mar. 17).
AT SAINT PETER'S
Prez Fest 2009, taking place at Saint Peter's Lutheran Church on
Mar. 14-15, celebrates the life and legacy of composer/arranger/pianist
Billy Strayhorn (1915-67) with listening sessions, a presentation by
Strayhorn biographer David Hajdu, an exhibit of Strayhorn memorabilia, a
jazz vespers service involving Junior Mance (playing Billy's own piano,
donated to the church decades ago) and a Sunday evening concert
featuring a most impressive lineup of singers and instrumentalists. For
particulars, check saintpeters.org/jazz
Note, too, that Saint Peter's
will also also host a memorial service for David "Fathead" Newman
beginning at 7:00 PM on Mar. 9; among those probably playing are Lou
Donaldson, Jimmy Cobb, Joe Lovano, Cedar Walton, Frank Wess, Javon
Jackson, Benny Powell, Marcus Belgrave, Randy Brecker, Rufus Reid and
Howard Johnson.
ELSEWHERE
"Jazz On The Vine" is a key component of this year's Winterfest out
on Long Island, with an assortment of weekend concerts (mostly at
wineries) that continues through Mar. 22; attractions this month include
Tessa Souter, Stephane Wrembel's Django Experiment, Pete Robbins, Omer
Klein, Mike Moreno, Linda Ciofalo and David Amram. For dates and venues,
visit liwinterfest.com
There's now Monday jazz at the far eastern end
of Bleecker, inside a building that was once headquarters for the Yippie
Movement. On tap this month are groups led by Billy Bang and Todd
Nicholson (Mar. 2), Bern Nix and James Keepnews (Mar. 9) and Joe Morris
(Mar. 16). You'll find the Yippie Cafι at 9 Bleecker
There's an
outstanding lineup, too, scheduled for the Creole Restaurant in East
Harlem: Curtis Fuller (March 6-7), Dave Valentin (Mar. 13-14), Lee
Konitz (Mar. 20-21) and Sonny Fortune (Mar 27-28)
Much-admired
vocalist Marion Cowings, who's been doing Sunday evening sets at Smalls,
also hosts vocal workshops for aspiring jazz singers beforehand. You'll
find details at marioncowings.com.
MOODY NEWS
They'll be swinging at B.B. King's on Mar. 30 with an evening
program to benefit the James Moody Scholarship Fund. Jon Faddis will
lead what promises to be a sensational band. Its members include Randy
Brecker, Paquito d'Rivera, Hank Jones, Tim Ries, Mike Longo, Adam
Nussbaum, Todd Coolman, guitarist Yotam Silberstein, singer Barbara
Morrison and a pair of Moody scholars: saxist Duncan Hardy (2008) and
pianist Andy Roninson (2009). James will, of course, be on hand himself.
You'll find details on the man's own website, which also offers you the
chance to own a James Moody tee-shirt or mousepad.
