Tuesday, May 31, 2005

Happy birthday, Marty Ehrlich!


One of Marty Ehrlich's many projects is the Julius Hemphill Sextet,
which performs and records the music of one of Ehrlich's St. Louis mentors


Today, it's a party for Marty, as we celebrate the versatile multi-reedman and composer Marty Ehrlich, who was born on this day in 1955. Though actually born in St. Paul, MN - some references say St. Louis, but that's wrong - Ehrlich was raised in the St. Louis suburb of University City, and as a teenager took part in educational programs and performances sponsored by St. Louis' Black Artists Group.

Ehrlich plays alto sax, clarinet, bass clarinet and flute and thus has been compared by some to the great Eric Dolphy, but he's definitely his own man as both a composer and an improviser. He's performed and recorded everything from free improvisation to relatively straight-ahead jazz to modern chamber music with prominent musicians including Anthony Braxton, Muhal Richard Abrams and many others too numerous to list here. So, to find out more about Ehrlich, visit his Web site, which has a biography, discography and all sorts of other information.

You may also enjoy reading these other brief biographies, these two interviews I found online, this page dedicated to his clarinet playing, and this discography, which has lots of detail but unfortunately stops in 1999. The prolific Ehrlich has put out at least four more discs as a leader since then, as seen in this entry in All Music Guide, and continues to write, perform and record in a variety of instrumental settings.

Deaprtment of corrections, part 2


Regina Carter

In a post last week, I wrote that the Yellowjackets were the final act of the 2004-05 season at Jazz at the Bistro. Not so - I had forgotten that Regina Carter had rescheduled her shows here after her appearance earlier this year was postponed. She'll be appearing at the Bistro this Wednesday through Saturday.

Also, this post made it seem as if the Bistro's "Summer Jazz Spectacular" would be taking place in July 2006, when in fact it begins next month with an appearance by guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli, followed by Pat Martino and the Tribute to Jimmy Smith featuring OGD and Willie Akins.

Finally, based on bad information, I had reported that this Friday's Bass Player's Ball featuring Michael Henderson would be taking place at Pop's, when in fact the show will be at the Ambassador, 114 Northland Shopping Center. Tickets are $30-$38.50 and can be purchased through Metrotix, 314-534-1111.

Obviously, I regret the errors. One was just a dumb mistake, and in the other two cases I relied on ambigious or faulty information in an effort to get news posted as quickly as possible. That's one of the inherent perils of blogging, I suppose, but I can and will do a better job of vetting sources in the future.

Monday, May 30, 2005

Welcome, Brooklyn Vegan readers

So I checked the referrer logs from the last two days, and noticed several hits coming from a weblog called Brooklyn Vegan, also celebrating Miles Davis' birthday with a tribute post.

I thought this was kind of cool because, well, it's the first blog that has linked to me that wasn't run by someone I already know. But I bring it up now because I wanted to point out to those visiting looking for Miles Davis links that there were actually two posts on this blog for Miles' birthday, the other one being right here. Otherwise, welcome - feel free to look around, put your feet up, and make yourself at home.

Happy birthday, Frankie Trumbauer!


Frankie Trumbauer

In today's installment of our continuing series of tributes to jazz musicians with St. Louis roots, we mark the birth of Frankie Trumbauer, born on May 30 all the way back in 1901. Trumbauer, one of the most famous jazz saxophonists of the Twenties and Thirties, actually was hatched down the road in Carbondale, IL, but is often associated with St. Louis because he worked here during the earliest part of professional career, and also co-led a band in the Gateway City with Bix Beiderbecke during 1925 and '26.

Trumbauer was known for playing the C melody saxophone, which is in concert key and sounds a bit like the missing link between tenor and alto saxes. In addition to his ongoing collaboration with Bix, he also worked with Jean Goldkette, Paul Whiteman, Jack and Charlie Teagarden, Eddie Lang and others, and his cool style and vibrato are said to have influenced Benny Carter and Lester Young.

When war came and styles changed, Trumbauer got out of the music business. He was a test pilot during World War II, and afterwards he played briefly in studio groups from 1945-7 before leaving music forever to work in aeronautics.You can find out more about him by reading this short biography and his All Music Guide page. You can also see a discography and hear Real Audio samples of Trumbauer's own Orchestra here.

(You say you don't like Real Player, and that it's full of ads, makes constant annoying attempts to update itself and download unwanted content, and is otherwise also quite troublesome? I agree, and thus suggest you go here to download the BBC version of Real Player, which is ad-free and (mostly) reminder-free as well. It seems Real had to agree to produce a more well-behaved version of their player in order for the BBC to continue encoding its content in the .rm format, and you and I are the ancillary beneficiaries of the deal. It comes in handy for certain types of content, such as the above Frankie Trumbauer samples, not readily available elsewhere.)

Friday, May 27, 2005

Still more Miles ahead


To simultaneously view a transcription and hear
the first 16 bars of Miles' solo on "So What," go here.


East St. Louis celebrates the birthday of one of its most famous sons this weekend with the Miles Davis Arts Festival. "The main event is a gathering of artists, DJs and poets from noon to 8 p.m. Sunday at the East St. Louis Higher Education Campus, followed by a jam session at JoJo's, 512 Missouri Avenue," writes Kevin Johnson in a brief article found on STLtoday.com.

If I'd known about this yesterday, I would have included it in the post for Miles' birthday. But since I just found out today, as a conscientious blogger I make amends as best I can by mentioning it now. Also, it's a good excuse to run another picture of Miles and links to transcribed Davis solos from "All of You," "Autumn Leaves" and "If I Were A Bell." (Note: the first two are pdf files, the third is regular html.)

Thursday, May 26, 2005

Happy birthday, Shorty Baker!


"I believe in melody. You must have a lead, a guide."
- Shorty Baker, as quoted in
The World of Duke Ellington

Today, we pay tribute to another of St. Louis' trumpet greats. Harold J. "Shorty" Baker was born in St. Louis on May 26, 1912, and went on to play with Don Redman, Teddy Wilson; Andy Kirk, Mary Lou Williams (whom he also married) and many others. But he's best known as one of the Duke's men. Baker first performed with Ellington in 1939, became one of the mainstays of the band's trumpet section in the Forties, and returned for yet another tour of duty in the late Fifties and into the Sixties.

There's not much in the way of biographical material about Baker on the 'Net, and the album cover shown above is the only photo I could find. So, I'll take the liberty of quoting in full from the print edition of Who's Who in Jazz by John Chilton (Time-Life Books, 1978 edition), which offers the most detailed biography within reach:

Harold J. “Shorty” Baker

Born: St. Louis Missouri, May 26, 1914
Died: New York, November 8, 1966

His brother, Winfield, was a trombonist. Originally a drummer, then switched to trumpet and playing in his brother's band. Lessons from P. G. Lankford in St. Louis. With Fate Marable (c.1930), then with Erskine Tate in Chicago before returning to St. Louis to join Eddie Johnson's Crackerjacks (1932-3), then in band led by his brother. With Don Redman from late 1936 until 1938 (briefly with Duke Ellington in 1938). Joined Teddy Wilson Big Band in April 1939, left early the following year to join Andy Kirk. With Kirk until spring 1942, then co-led sextet with Mary Lou Williams (to whom he was then married). With Duke Ellington from c. September 1942 until Army call-up in spring 1944. Guested with Duke Ellington in 1945, then regularly with Duke from summer 1946 until early 1952. Played with Teddy Wilson Quartet, Ben Webster small band, and free-lanced in New York. Joined Johnny Hodges Band in late 1954. From 1957 until 1963 worked on and off with Duke Ellington, during this period also with Dick Vance, Claude Hopkins, Bud Freeman, George Wein, etc., also led own quartet. Played at the Metropole, New York, in 1964 and had his last dates at The Embers, also in New York, then regular playing was curtailed by illness. He underwent a serious operation late 1965, was temporarily released from the hospital, but was unable to continue trumpet playing. He died of throat cancer in the New York Veterans' Hospital.

I did find a couple of other Baker-related items of interest, including this discography (which, given Ellington's output, may be incomplete, but gives some idea of the scope of of Baker's career), and this transcription (.pdf) of a Baker solo on the standard "All of Me". During his time with Duke, Baker was known especially for his ballad playing, and several references cite him as an early influence on and personal favorite of Miles Davis.

It appears as if the album pictured above is the only recording of Shorty Baker as a leader (or co-leader, in this case) that's still in print. (Interestingly, this album also features another St. Louis native and former Ellingtonian, bassist Wendell Marshall.) However, Ellington's recordings from the Forties are readily available, and they're a good starting place to hear some of what Baker could do.

Wednesday, May 25, 2005

Happy birthday, Miles!


Miles Davis, as seen on the cover
of his landmark album
Kind of Blue

On this day in 1926, Miles Dewey Davis was born in Alton, IL. A year later, the family moved to East St. Louis, and...well, if you're any sort of jazz fan, you already know a lot of what happened after that.

Miles will always hold a special place in my heart, because it was his work that first led me to jazz. If I hadn't heard Bitches Brew as an impressionable 15-year-old, I might never have become a musician or music journalist, and could very well be blogging instead about baseball, politics or some other random topic.

To celebrate this jazz giant who changed the course of music so many times over the years, check out his official site or the site maintained by Sony/Legacy, the label for which he did some of his most memorable work. You may also enjoy the fan sites Milestones and Miles Ahead (which has a nice discography and lots of links), as well as Miles Beyond and this essay, which deal with Miles' electric music of the Sixties, Seventies and Eighties.

Jazz this week: Yellowjackets, an all-star benefit for the Sheldon, back to Gaslight Square and more


St. Louisan Marcus Baylor (third from left) returns
home this week to drum with the Yellowjackets


Jazz at the Bistro concludes its 2004-05 season this week with the Yellowjackets, who will appear Wednesday through Saturday night at the club in midtown's Grand Center district. The current edition of the band features St. Louis native Marcus Baylor on drums, and you can find out more about them by reading my Critic's Pick in this week's Riverfront Times.

Also in Grand Center on Thursday beginning at 7:30 p.m., the Sheldon Concert Hall will host an all-star ensemble of St. Louis jazz players to celebrate the release of St. Louis Jazz, a limited-edition CD featuring songs about St. Louis performed by Dave Brubeck, Willie Akins, Kim Portnoy, Erin Bode and more. Alas, the CD will be available only to donors of $100 or more to the Sheldon Arts Foundation, but if you're not quite that flush, you can still see a fine lineup of talent that includes pianists Carolbeth True and Reggie Thomas, singer Mardra Thomas, guitarist Rick Haydon, trumpeter Randy Holmes and vibraphonist Jonathan Whiting for just $10 at the door.

Also on Thursday, and continuing on Friday night, Finale presents "Back to Gaslight Square," featuring the vocal stylings of ultrasuave crooner Gene Lynn and longtime St. Louis favorite Jeanne Trevor. Then on Saturday, saxophonist Tim Cunningham brings his smooth jazz sounds to the new music and supper club in Clayton.

In University City this weekend, Brandt's features singer Victoria Gough with Bob Bosch on Friday, a return appearance by Mae "Lady Jazz" Wheeler on Saturday, and a Sunday brunch performance by Jobim Dreams.

Over in my swingin' hometown of Webster Groves, guitarist Corey Christiansen and vocalist Erika Johnson will perform together Friday night at Cookie's, while just around the corner at Crossings Taverne and Grille, bassist Tom Kennedy leads a trio on Thursday night, Erin Bode performs on Friday, and the duo of clarinetist Scott Alberici and pianist Kim Portnoy will play on Saturday.

And back in the city on South Grand, saxophonist Dave Stone continues his long-running Friday night gig at Mangia Italiano. (Warning: website contains annoying, user-unfriendly animated calendar.)

If you'd like to see your gig or concert featured here, or you want a link for your band or club on the sidebar, use that new-fangled thing called "email" to beam some packets of electrons with the relevant info to me at stljazznotes at yahoo dot com.

Lone Wolf


John Wolf

Trombonist John Wolf emailed with the news that he's parted ways with the Soulard Blues Band after almost four years in order to pursue his own musical projects.

"I'm going to be recording with Dave Black as a duo, possibly with vocals on a couple of tracks, and also recording with my Quartet, including Tom Rickard on vibes. Various personnel will be used, including vocals by Margaret Bianchetta and possibly others," writes Wolf. A skilled and versatile player, Wolf has also performed and recorded with Roomful of Blues, Gunter Hampel's Galaxie Dream Band and many others in addition to his solo work. You can get the scoop on his various projects over at his website, Bonehenge Music.

Monday, May 23, 2005

Department of corrections


If you want to see her, you'll have to
go to the Pageant, not the Orpheum.


A couple of weeks ago, this blog reported, based on information from Pollstar, that the 2005 version of the smooth jazz "Guitars and Saxes" tour would play the Roberts Orpheum Theater on August 12, bypassing the Pageant, which had hosted previous editions of the package.

Although the date was correct, the venue listed was wrong - the show will be at the Pageant, not the Orpheum, and I regret the error. (Pollstar's site still lists the show as being at the Orpheum, but the Pageant began selling tickets last Friday, so one can expect that a correction at Pollstar will be forthcoming.)

In other smooth jazz news, the Spyro Gyra show originally scheduled for June 6 at the Orpheum has been cancelled, and The Rippingtons featuring Russ Freeman are booked to perform at The Pageant on Wednesday, July 13. Tickets for both "Guitars and Saxes" and The Rippingtons are on sale now.

Sunday, May 22, 2005

Article recounts BAG history


Floyd LeFlore (back) and Julius Hemphill
were two of the key members of BAG


The Black Artists Group (BAG) was active in the late Sixties and early Seventies, and with its mix of music, poetry, dance, visual arts and theater was considered the St. Louis counterpart to Chicago's Assocation for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM). A number of BAG members went on to prominent careers, including Julius Hemphill, Oliver Lake and Hamiet Bluiett, and the organization's accomplishments are a fascinating chapter in local music history.

Benjamin Looker, who matriculated at Washington University and played jazz gigs around town as a bassist during his time in St. Louis, has written a book entitled The Point From Which Creation Begins: The Black Artists' Group in St. Louis. There's an excerpt online at AllAboutJazz.com that gives an overview of BAG's history and impact, and despite Looker's somewhat stilted, academic prose style, it's a well-researched and worthwhile read, especially if you are unfamiliar with the group's work. Some of the internal links among the four sections of the article are non-functional, but you can follow these links to read parts 1, 2, 3 and 4.

Thursday, May 19, 2005

Remembering Johnnie Johnson


We're gonna miss you, Johnnie

Our town's late piano great Johnnie Johnson has already been eulogized many times in the local media. There's not a lot for me to add, except to say that on the handful of occasions I had the opportunity to work with or around Johnnie, he more than lived up to his reputation as a gentleman, a generous collaborator, and a superlative blues pianist.

Though he played blues and rock, Johnnie was inspired by a lot of jazz players. You can find out which ones were his favorites in this interview, done just after his induction to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2001 and recently reposted on Jambands.com. And not coincidentally, this blog entry also provides a convenient pretext for me to suggest that you read my other article in this week's RFT, about the sessions for Johnnie's final album, which was released the week after his death. (If you'd like to purchase a copy, it's now available in local stores and through the Web site of songwriter/producer Jeff Alexander's label, Cousin Moe Music.)

Jazz this week: Stanley Jordan, hard bop in Webster, Gaslight Square in U. City and more


Stanley Jordan

This week's jazz and creative music menu offers a variety of tastes for the hungry ear, from guitar heroics to hard bop to multi-media performances and lots more.

Guitarist Stanley Jordan is the most notable touring act in town this week, performing at Finale in Clayton on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. You can read more on Jordan in my Critic's Pick article about him in this week's Riverfront Times.

Also on Thursday is the final night of Ancora il Più Estinto II, a sound art performance/installation at Dunaway Books on South Grand. There are a lot of familiar names from the local improv scene involved in this intriguing-sounding project, and admission is free.

Iin midtown's Grand Center, Jazz at the Bistro is holding their annual open house on Friday and Saturday. The event serves simultaneously as a "thank you" to listeners for attending the season that's winding down and as a way to promote the Bistro's schedule for next year. Admission is free, with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. and music at 8:30 p.m. by Bob Bennett's Swing and Soul, a band led by the Bistro's director of operations. I've never heard them before, so I can't tell you much about them. But I will hazard a guess that at some point this weekend, JATB head honcho Gene Dobbs Bradford will be coaxed on stage to play some blues harmonica.

Cookie's in Webster Groves will be bopping hard this weekend with the Freddie Washington Quartet on Friday and the Randy Holmes Quintet on Saturday. When he's on, Washington is a fine modern jazz player on both tenor and soprano, while Holmes pretty much sets the standard by which local jazz trumpeters are measured. Count on both men to have first-rate ensembles alongside.

In University City, Brandt's brings a little bit of Gaslight Square to the Loop with an appearance by Mae "Lady Jazz" Wheeler on Saturday night.

Meanwhile that same night, back downtown Tory Z. Starbuck and Thee State Machine will perform at the Studio Cafe, 1309 Washington, beginning at 10:00 p.m. Thee State Machine is described as an "abstract analogue synthesizer artist," and for this gig, Tory will be serving up "experimental Asian/Middle-eastern muzik with sitar, violin, saz, theremin, percussion, etc."

Some of you may know Tory for his Bowie-esque rock material, but he's also done experimental electronics and improv for years. Often, his work even has an element of conceptual art - for example, the notice for this show says, "You are instructed to sit in a chair and make animal sounds." (Actually, that sounds like a pretty typical Saturday night for some people I can think of.)

To round out the weekend, New Music Circle is presenting X-P.O.E. Anima(L), an experimental multi-media performance with shows at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.on Friday and Saturday night at the old Lemp Brewery complex. With a first-time event like this, it's hard to know in advance just what it will sound like, but with the Nuclear Percussion Ensemble and ex-Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra percussionist Rich O'Donnell performing, it is likely - indeed, almost certain - that plenty of drums will be involved.

Want me to write in this blog about your next gig or concert? Want a link for your band or club on the sidebar? I can't write about stuff I haven't heard about, so hurry up and send your news releases, links, love letters and/or hate mail to stljazznotes at yahoo dot com.

Wednesday, May 18, 2005

René Marie, Turtle Island String Quartet to appear as part of Edison Theater's 2005-06 series


René Marie

The OVATIONS! series at the Edison Theater on the Washington University campus mostly features theater and dance, but each season usually includes at least a couple of musical performances, too. The Edison recently announced their 2005-06 schedule, and it includes two events that should interest fans of jazz and/or creative music.

On January 20, 2006, the Turtle Island String Quartet will join forces with with the Ying Quartet, quartet-in-residence at the Eastman School of Music, for a concert at the Edison featuring music from their CD Four + 4. TISQ uses classical forms and techniques, jazz harmonies and an eclectic repertoire (including on this CD, "Yearnin" a tune by St. Louis native Oliver Nelson) to create their own distinctive take on the notion of a string quartet. On Four + 4, they've doubled the sound with double the strings; I heard a cut from it on NPR the other day, and, while it's not exactly jazz, it sounded great, and certainly qualifies as creative music in my book.

Jazz fans and local history buffs likely will both take an interest in the final event of the OVATIONS! season on April 28, 2006, when "jazz vocalist René Marie joins the African- and Latin-American ensemble Imani Winds for The Josephine Baker Project: Le Jazz Hot, celebrating the 100th birthday of the legendary St. Louis-born performer."

While the nice folks at the Edison certainly would be happy to sell you a season subscription, note that it is possible to buy single tickets for just these performances, too. But if you're interested, I'd suggest acting quickly, as the seating capacity is limited and popular events tend to sell out.

Tuesday, May 17, 2005

Another model for a successful jazz festival?


"So...good jazz festival, eh?"

In a recent post about the upcoming US Bank St. Louis Jazz Festival, I suggested that the event might benefit from expanding its vision beyond the constraints of a two-day outdoor concert. Shortly after writing that post, I ran across this news story about another festival that incorporates some of the ideas I mentioned - a multi-day festival with more acts (37 in all) and multiple venues (seven, incuding clubs, concert halls and outdoor spaces) - as well as one idea I didn't think of, but should have: a jazz cruise.

(Wouldn't a jazz cruise be perfect for St. Louis? There is already an annual series of blues cruises which, by all accounts, does pretty well. I wouldn't think one or two jazz cruises, especially during a city-wide festival, would be stretching luck too much.)

The kicker is that this particular festival is in that well-known traditional hotbed of jazz, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Yes, it is sort of an eye-opener to think that a city otherwise best known for a big rodeo could outdo our city along the Big Muddy, home of Miles Davis, Clark Terry, Lester Bowie and many other jazz greats, in the creative programming of a jazz festival. But it does look like they have their act together.

There are some similarities - like St. Louis' jazz festival, the Calgary event has booked a mix of well-known jazz artists (David Murray, Terence Blanchard, David Sanchez), "crossover" acts representing other styles of music (Solomon Burke, Daniel Lanois), and various local bands. But there's also another big difference, financially speaking, in that the Calgary festival officials say that they're securely in the black. That's impressive, expecially in a time when not-for-profits face shrinking supplies of money from both arts agency grants and corporate sponsors. Could St. Louis learn from Calgary's example? Read the story, check out their festival's website, and then add your comments.

The way here

Once I started this site, I emailed a few friends, mentioned it a couple of times on a favorite Yahoo Group that includes a large percentage of St. Louisans, and posted short notices on a couple of other message boards. The idea was to do a sort of "soft launch," so that I could get a feel for how to blog, what to blog about, and so on, while also getting some feedback from a small group of people who would, presumably, not be too brutal in their criticism.

Well, so far, the reaction has been good - better than expected, even. I haven't asked anyone's permission to quote them by name, but I.can say that various people - none of whom are related to me, or owe me money - have written to say things like "cool," "awesome," "long overdue," and "an excellent resource." While I'm not planning on letting any of it go to my head, this kind of feedback does reinforce my belief that there's some sort of potential audience out there for a site like this.

There haven't been enough hits so far for the information generated by the counters to be of any statistically significant use, but it is interesting to see what search engine queries and keywords have led people here.

So far, St. Louis Jazz Notes seems to have appeared in search results from Yahoo, Technorati and Ask Jeeves, but nothing yet from Google, which as far as I can tell must not have spidered or indexed the site yet. Yahoo's search seems to rank StLJN highest, as the site shows up in the top 10 results for various combinations of "St. Louis," "jazz" and even "festival," no doubt helped along by several recent posts on summer festivals.

Beyond those three terms, the names of musicians and bands seem to be the most common keywords bringing people to the site. Only one searcher has come here so far looking for a St. Louis musician, and I hope whoever was looking for information on saxophonist Tim Cunningham found their way to his site via the link on the sidebar. Others have arrived here searching for Herbie Hancock, John Mayer and/or Marcus Miller; the Neil Caine Quartet, Annie Lennox, the Jazz Attack smooth jazz package, and even Django Reinhardt, who was mentioned in conjunction with the scheduled appearance of violinist Mark O'Connor's hot jazz group next year at the Sheldon.

What's the lesson? I guess it could be "to pack every post with the names of famous jazz musicians," which could easily be carried to ridiculous extremes, like porn or warez keyword spamming but with Duke, Louis, Bird, Miles, Dizzy, Trane, etc as keywords. That seems rather cheap, not to mention tawdry and unseemly. So now, as I'm preparing to take things to Phase 2, and work more actively to get the word out about this site to more people, I don't see this little nugget of information changing the way I write in any substantive way.

But I suppose it may be useful in the future to know what subjects are of interest to potential readers, even after the fact. So I'll keep watching the logs, hoping to glean some wisdom from the data therein. All part of the learning curve, right?

Sunday, May 15, 2005

Putting the bass in your face


"Hit me with your wide receiver!" - Michael Henderson, then and now

Bass players can be reclusive sorts, staying out of the spotlight toward the back of the stage so as to better concentrate on laying down the groove. However, there have certainly been many exceptions to that rule, as fans of Stanley Clarke, Jaco Pastorius, Larry Graham and their musical heirs will attest, and two concerts coming to the St. Louis area in June will feature famous electric bass players who have made careers out of attracting attention to themselves.

On Friday, June 3, the East Side rock club Pop's will play host to the Bass Player's Ball, a conglomeration of familiar names from funk, R&B and soul music of the Seventies and Eighties. So what's that got to do with jazz? The lineup for the show includes Michael Henderson, former bassist with Miles Davis and Norman Connors who went on to have several pop hits as a vocalist, as well as Ray Parker, Jr., Adina Howard, Calloway Brothers, Slave, Sir Nose, and George Johnson of the Brothers Johnson. Sounds like it could get funky up in there.

And the forecast also calls for funk at the VooDoo Lounge at Harrah's Casino when Victor Wooten performs there on Thursday, June 30. Wooten, best known as the bassist for Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, is taking advantage of the Flecktones' hiatus from the road this year to tour in support of his new solo album Soul Circus.

Jazz at the Bistro announces 2005-06 schedule


The World Saxophone Quartet performed their interpretations of the music of Jimi Hendrix on this CD from 2004.

Jazz at the Bistro has announced their 2005-06 season in a story appearing in Sunday's Post-Dispatch. (As of late Saturday, the schedule was not on JATB's own Web site yet.). Reporter Kevin Johnson says the Bistro's tenth anniversary season represents a look back, and in one sense he's absolutely right, because the season schedule is comprised primarily of returning favorites who have performed there at some point during the series' first ten years.

But the '05-'06 season also represents forward progress on a couple of fronts. First, JATB is adding more weeks of programming, edging ever closer toward becoming a year-round operation. The schedule retains the basic pattern of touring acts (the main subscription series) alternating weeks with St. Louis-based musicians (the "Spotlight Series") , but there are also a couple of "special event" concerts, and a new "Discovery Series" allegedly aimed at introducing new talent.

I say "allegedly" because Mulgrew Miller, who kicks off the series in September, is hardly an unproven commodity, though Chicago pianist/vocalist Patricia Barber and young piano phenom Taylor Eigsti, barely into his twenties, do qualify as "talent deserving wider recognition." With these three series, plus a "Summer Jazz Spectacular" set for three weekends in July, there are 38 weeks where some sort of live music is scheduled, and that's a welcome development.

Another sign of progress, at least by my moderately curmudgeonly standards, is that there are some carefully chosen departures from the "hard bop, Latin jazz and standards" formula that serves as JATB's bread-and-butter. The returns of Joshua Redman's electric group and the Yellowjackets seem to indicate that a discreet bit of fusion is now welcome at the Bistro, while the first-time bookings of Fly and the World Saxophone Quartet indicate a new willingness to take some risks on something even more musically adventurous.

All in all, it's a very solid lineup of talent, and given my past complaints about the room being unused too many weeks a year, and JATB's booking policy being a bit too timid, I've got to give credit to Gene Dobbs Bradford and his crew for putting together what looks like a fine season of music. (Now, how about filling up those other 14 weeks, ya lazy slackers?....OK, take a week off for Christmas if you must....I'm just keeeeding!!)

I'll have lots more to say about the Bistro and the individual artists performing there in the weeks and months to come. But for now, here's the schedule itself, rendered in straight-up chronological order for your convenience, and annotated with links to artists' websites, where available:

Jazz at the Bistro 2005-06 season schedule

Aug. 26-27: Erin Bode (CD Release Party)*

Sept. 9-10: Mulgrew Miller#
Sept. 16-17: Kim Massie*
Sept. 21-24: John Pizzarelli Trio
Sept. 30-Oct. 1: Willie Akins*

Oct. 5-8: Joshua Redman Elastic Band
Oct. 14-15: Denise Thimes*
Oct. 19-22: Joey DeFrancesco, Houston Person, Marlena Shaw
Oct. 28-29: Mae Wheeler*

Nov. 2-5: Toots Thielemans & Kenny Werner
Nov. 11-12: Taylor Eigsti#
Nov. 16-19: Cyrus Chestnut with Carla Cook
Nov. 25-27: Jeremy Davenport^
Nov. 30-Dec. 3: Lou Donaldson

Dec. 9-10: Carolbeth True Trio*
Dec. 14-17: Ray Vega's Latin Jazz Quintet

2006

Jan. 4-7: Fly
Jan. 13-14: Montez Coleman*
Jan. 18-21: Nicholas Payton Quintet
Jan. 27-28: Erin Bode*

Feb. 1-4: To be announced
Feb. 10-11 & 14: Valentine's Day with Mardra and Reggie Thomas^
Feb. 15-18: World Saxophone Quartet

March 1-4: Ahmad Jamal
March 10-11: Patricia Barber#
March 15-18: Ann Hampton Callaway
March 24-25: The Bosman Twins*
March 29-April 1: Benny Green & Russell Malone

April 7-8: THF Realty All-Star Student Ensemble*
April 12-15: The Yellowjackets
April 26-29: Kenny Barron Trio

May 5-6: Erika Johnson*
May 10-13: Kurt Elling
May 19-20: Jazz at the Bistro Open House
May 25-28: Freddy Cole with James Moody


"Summer Jazz Spectacular"

July 8-9: Bucky Pizzarelli
July 15-16: Pat Martino
July 22-23: Tribute to Jimmy Smith with OGD and Willie Akins


* Spotlight Series
# Discovery Series
^ Special Event

Which of these artists are you most interested in seeing? And who would you like to see play at the Bistro who hasn't been booked there yet? Use the comments feature to let us know your thoughts.

Friday, May 13, 2005

Divas and more at Brandt's


Mae "Lady Jazz" Wheeler

If you saw the recent KETC special on the rise, fall and rebirth (as a residential neighborhood) of Gaslight Square, you may have noticed an interview segment with restaurateur Jay Brandt in which he talked about working at his parents' place in the historic entertainment district while still a teenager. Now it looks like Brandt is bringing a bit of the old Gaslight Square to the U. City Loop, booking well-known names from back in the day like Mae Wheeler, Jeanne Trevor and Hugh "Peanuts" Whalum into his place.

Part of Brandt's entertainment calendar is devoted to what they're calling "Divas of Jazz," and it is under that banner that Ms. Trevor will appear tonight, Friday, May 13, with Ms. Wheeler to follow tomorrow night, Saturday, May 14. Whalum, the uncle of well-known smooth jazz saxman Kirk Whalum, is doing one Thursday a month and performs next on June 9. In addition, both Trevor and Wheeler have return dates throughout the summer, and Brandt's schedule also includes several other performers jazz fans may enjoy, such as the John Norment Trio, Swing Set, Jobim Dreams, and the still-ubiquitous Erin Bode.

More coming attractions


The Wayne Shorter Quartet

I was checking out the listings of upcoming concerts on Pollstar - yes, sometimes we journalist/blogger types get our information from the most routine of sources - and ran across a couple of previously unmentioned items of interest.

It looks like the Roberts Orpheum Theater downtown is making a serious move this summer to capture the local audience for smooth jazz. In addition to the acts mentioned earlier this week, on Friday, August 12 the Orpheum will host this year's edition of the "Guitars and Saxes" smooth jazz package, starring Jeff Golub, Mindy Abair, Warren Hill and ex-NBA-star-turned-bass-thumper Wayman Tisdale. This tour played at the Pageant the last couple of times through town, and it makes me wonder if there will be any smooth jazz acts left for them to book after the Orpheum gets done, or if they're just ceding that segment of the market to the newcomers.

Something else that should have been a much bigger deal last month when it was first announced is the news that legendary saxophonist Wayne Shorter and his quartet will perform in concert with members of the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra on Wednesday, September 28 at the Touhill Performing Arts Center on the UMSL campus.

This is part of the new "fusion" series begun by incoming SLSO music director David Robertson, and the prospect of hearing Shorter and his superlative band (Danilo Perez on piano, Brian Blade on drums and John Patitucci on bass) with orchestral backing is tempting indeed. And I think I already like Robertson - he's young (at least by the standard of orchestral music directors), energetic, and seems to be bringing fresh ideas to the table, including programming a number of contemporary compositions for the SLSO's 2005-06 season

I visited the TouPAC for the first time last month, and it should be an excellent venue for this concert. You can bet I'll do whatever I can to be in that audience on 9/28.

More on Headhunters 2005

What looks like a slightly updated version of the Billboard story about Herbie Hancock's new ensemble of Headhunters linked here last week is now on the wires, and there are a couple of added details. First, Paul Simon and Angelique Kidjo have been added to the guest list on Hancock's next album, due this fall. And the second tidbit, the one of local interest, was that St. Louis is one of just a handful of cities that are going to see the updated version of the Headhunters this summer.

It seems that Hancock will be the guest artist-in-residence at this year's Bonnaroo Festival in Tennessee, and so presumably was looking for some surrounding dates within easy travel distance. I wanted to point this out because St. Louis seems to be passed over by a lot of touring artists, and there are many major figures in jazz who have appeared here once or twice in the last twenty years (Sonny Rollins, I'm looking at you!) or not at all (Hello, Cecil Taylor? Come on down!), so it's kind of cool that, for once, we're getting something that most of the rest of the country won't get to see (at least until Hancock's new record comes out at the end of the summer).

(Edited on May 15 to add: Steve Pick tells me that Cecil Taylor has performed in St. Louis at least once. In 1989. Taylor was booked to play the VP Fair (!) over the Fourth of July weekend, but ran into travel problems and missed his set time down at the riverfront. He wound up playing an impromptu concert that night at the Prestige Lounge in Gaslight Square, since torn down and replaced by a new housing development. If anyone reading this was at that performance, I'd love to hear your account of it. Notwithstanding this new information, for which I am indebted to the always well-informed and erudite Mr. Pick, I still wish someone would bring Taylor back to St. Louis for a proper concert.)

Thursday, May 12, 2005

Are the shark and weasel lessons next semester?


I hope students will be taught
not to behave like these creatures

Students at St. Louis Community College - Forest Park are getting practical experience in the music business by running a record label, as recounted in this story from earlier this week in the P-D

FoPa is the label name, assistant music professor Thomas Zirkle is the man who got it started, and the students involved in the program recently cut their first session with a non-student ensemble, recording the jazz-funk band Cherry Octopi live at the college's Mildred E. Bastian Performing Arts Center. So far, the label's recordings are available only by mail.

(On a related note, I know I once saw a web site for Cherry Octopi, but now I can't seem to find it again. If anybody has an URL for them, please leave it in the comments. Thanks.)

Wednesday, May 11, 2005

Jazz this week: Singers, sound art, not-so-silent film and more


Freddy Cole

There's a big variety of jazz-related sounds on tap this week, so let's get right to the previews:

Freddy Cole opens tonight at Jazz at the Bistro and continues with two sets per night through Saturday. The brother of the late Nat "King" Cole and uncle of R&B diva Natalie Cole, Freddy is a fine singer who's proved to be a popular attraction at the Bistro, and Terry Perkins interviewed him for the Post-Dispatch earlier this week.

On Thursday, May 12, there's a sound art installation/performance at Dunaway Books on the south side, or if you're in the mood for something a lot more mainstream, head down to the Savvis Center to hear young jazz-pop crooner Michael Buble.

And if you're not too superstitious to go out on Friday the 13th, that's the night the St. Louis Art Museum auditorium will host a screening of the 1918 silent film The Blue Bird with live improvised musical accompaniment. Afterwards, you could head over to Cookie's Jazz and More, where vocalist Cherilyn Evans is having her CD release party.

On Saturday, there are a number of club gigs to choose from, including saxophonist Willie Akins' usual late-afternoon matinee at Spruill's, just northwest of downtown, and the seemingly ubiquitous Erin Bode, this time appearing at Crossings Taverne in Webster Groves. All in all, it looks like a fine week to get out and enjoy some live music.

Monday, May 09, 2005

Whitaker Music Festival announces 2005 summer concerts


Sandy Weltman

With a varied menu of music, Edenic surroundings and free admission, the Whitaker Music Festival at the Missouri Botanical Garden is usually one of the most popular annual summer concert series in the city. This year's edition includes several concerts that will be of interest to jazz listeners.

The series kicks off Wednesday, June 1 with the James Matthews Trio. I've briefly met Mr. Matthews, a genial gentleman to be sure, but don't know his music. However, my buddy Gus Thornton, esteemed bassist who's played with some fine pianists including Johnnie Johnson and Katie Webster and thus knows his stuff, says Matthews is a good piano player who's worth hearing.

The always listenable Reggie and Mardra Thomas are up next on Wednesday, June 8, and then on Wednesday, June 15, bassist Neal Caine (scroll down for bio) returns to his hometown with a quartet. Caine, who grew up in University City, is one of a number of St. Louis musicians now living in New Orleans, and he's racked up some impressive credits as a sideman, including stints with Elvin Jones, Diana Krall, Harry Connick, Betty Carter, Ellis Marsalis and more. St. Louisans always like to see a local boy who's made good, so expect an especially big crowd for this one.

Guitarist Corey Christiansen performs on Wednesday, June 22, and then the focus shifts to other musical genres, with concerts by Wil Maring and Shady Mix (bluegrass, folk and western music) on June 29 and the Augusta Bottoms Consort (Missouri-inspired acoustic music) on July 6.

On July 13, one of my favorite St. Louis musicians will take the stage. Sandy Weltman is a multi-stylistic virtuoso on both banjo and harmonica; he can and does play jazz, blues, country, bluegrass, klezmer, classical, Latin and a half-dozen other musical genres, sometimes all in the same concert, and somehow makes it all work together.

Sandy is a terrific musician, skilled entertainer, and a heck of a nice guy, and it's a mystery to me why he is not better known on a national scale. Even though he's not strictly a jazz artist, I can heartily recommend him without reservation to any open-minded jazz fan.

The 2005 Whitaker series closes out with a couple more local favorites, the soulful rock band Fairchild on July 20 and blues/rock guitar hero Billy Peek on July 27.

Roberts Orpheum Theater looks smooth this summer


Peter White

The newly reopened Roberts Orpheum Theater downtown (formerly the American Theater) is presenting a variety of concerts, including some upcoming appearances by smooth jazz favorites who might otherwise have played The Pageant.

Spyro Gyra will be at the Orpheum on Thursday, June 9, and on Wednesday, June 22 it's Jazz Attack, a smooth jazz package featuring Peter White, Rick Braun, Jonathan Butler and Richard Elliot. (Parenthetical note: My bandmate Mark Arbogast is friends with Mr. White, and so if schedules permit, I may try to to get him to arrange a brief interview with the very popular guitarist while he's in town. Stay tuned.) Later this summer, Dave Koz and Friends will keep the smooth sounds going at the Orpheum with an appearance on Friday, July 22.

With any luck, the competition between the Orpheum and Pageant will result in more choices for St. Louis concertgoers. I think there's there room in this market for at least two concert venues of this size, but it will be interesting to see what sorts of acts they book and how they jockey for positioning in the public mind over the coming months.

Another Saint Louis jazz festival


Another jazz festival in another river city

With all the festival talk here recently, it seems oddly appropriate to find out about one more jazz festival that just concluded in Saint Louis - Saint Louis, Senegal, that is.

Lineup confirmed for US Bank St. Louis Jazz Festival, and snow falls in May



Yesterday's Post-Dispatch had a story officially announcing the lineup for the 2005 US Bank St. Louis Jazz Festival, and the roster of touring acts is precisely as previously revealed in down beat magazine and blogged about here last week. Oddly, there's barely a mention of Dave Douglas, who for my money is the most interesting musician on this year's bill, by either writer Kevin Johnson or Cynthia Prost, the Festival's executive director and source for the story.

There is plenty of info in the article about the Festival's precarious financial situation, how they fear the recent loss of the local smooth jazz radio outlet will hurt them, and the steps they're taking to attract a larger audience, many of which seem to involve providing additional physical comforts for people who won't attend just for the music. (You can read the whole article here.)

The other newsworthy bit is the announcement of the local groups that will be performing at this year's Festival. The Carolbeth True Trio was a logical choice - she's a fine mainstream jazz pianist, one of the best in the city, and I'm sure she'll bring a little extra something to her performance for a special occasion.

I don't know anything about the Jonathan Whiting Trio. A Google search revealed mentions of a scant half-dozen or so local gigs over the past several years, including one at a previous Jazz Festival and one at the St. Louis Art Fair, which shares management with the Festival, so perhaps he's a proven commodity and favorite of theirs. The info about one of the vibist's gigs lists the band members as Darell Mixon on bass and Gary Sykes on drums, which at the very least suggests that he has excellent taste in musicians.

The third local act booked is Hot House Sessions, which I must admit leaves me a bit puzzled. From what little I've heard of them, I thought they were a DJ-based electronic dance music group that uses occasional improvised solos, often over single-chord vamps. But apparently, they're a jazz group, or close enough for Ms. Prost, who's quoted as saying, "We were attracted to them because of the way they meld together different styles. They provide a fresh take on music."

Now this is where I began to feel the snowflakes falling. If Ms. Prost had just come out and said that Hot House Sessions was booked in hopes of attracting the young crowd that frequents Washington Avenue dance clubs, I'd have believed her and admired her candor, if nothing else.

If there were 10 or 20 local jazz groups performing at the Festival, perhaps one could justify giving a slot to such a band from a genre with a tangential relationship to jazz as a way of potentially broadening the overall audience. But to give a non-jazz group one of just three coveted slots allocated to local bands in the Festival would seem to be giving short shrift to an awful lot of other deserving local jazz musicians. And attempting to paper over that fact by making exaggerateed claims for Hot House Sessions just compounds the problem. (And, for the record, let me state that I've got no beef against Hot House Sessions. For the most part, I've liked what little I've heard of their music - it's just that they're not a jazz group, even by the most elastic definition of the concept.)

Mr. Johnson piles up a bit of snow on the subject of local bookings, too, stating that "the festival will continue its commitment to St. Louis acts this year," like it's a big deal.

But consider this: Based on best guesses and the prevailing pay scales for other similar local gigs, the three St. Louis bands at this year's Festival will probably earn, in total, something less than 1 percent of the event's $500,000 budget. Does spending less than 1% of your budget on local talent really constitute a "committment"? I'm just askin'.

And the final bit of blizzardy goodness is this:

All in all, says Prost, "We have a variety of stylings from smooth jazz to jazz vocalists to purist jazz," says Prost. "This is jazz festival programming at its best."

Um, no - what it really is, is a couple of good half-days of outdoor concert programming.

Jazz festival programming at its best should have a more expansive spririt, and should involve the community more. Other festivals, both larger and smaller, have, for example, successfully incorporated events at clubs and concert halls all over the host city; educational programs for local music students, and non-concert programming like film series, "meet-the-musicians" sessions, public or academic panels and symposia, and much more. And other festivals also find a way to incorporate pre-war New Orleans, Chicago and swing styles alongside newer strains of jazz, providing context and a sense of history.

Beyond the artistic and educational benefits, this approach to programming can offer real economic benefits. A multifacted festival would provide more incentive for out-of-town visitors to make St. Louis a destination every year. And involving more organizations - universities, museums, other businesses, presenters and not-for-profits - in the festival would tend to increase the St. Louis community's stake in its success.

But most important, jazz festival programming at its best should be done from an aesthetic point of view, and with a desire to give audiences something they can't hear anywhere else. Excellence must mean more than just seeing who's on tour this summer, and then trying to book a viable balance of mainstream and smooth jazz acts. Where are the original programming ideas for the St. Louis festival, ideas that are specific to our city and its musical heritage?

Everyone's done a Miles Davis tribute by now, so there are compelling reasons not to go there again. But what about an Oliver Nelson tribute? A Black Artists Group reunion? An R&B sax retrospective with homeboy David Sanborn, his stylistic forefather Hank Crawford, and a young smooth jazz star or two jamming on some Oliver Sain and Jimmy Forrest tunes? How about commissioning some new work from St. Louis jazz composers, or giving John Norment some bucks to reform his Universal Orchestra, or giving Dave Stone the cash to assemble a big band of young local improvisors? How about putting Dave Venn, Ptah Williams, and Carolbeth True onstage together, for a local jazz piano summit? Sure, there are budget constraints, but the Festival needs to start cooking from scratch, not just ordering off the menu.

I don't mean to be too harsh on Ms. Prost or the Festival organization. In all my dealings with them, they've been pleasant, professional and extremely accomodating. They do an excellent job managing all the physical and logistical aspects of a large outdoor concert, and every year they seem to book at least one musician or group that I'm surprised and truly excited to see.

The performances at the Festival by the Dave Holland Big Band two years ago and the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra last year were thrilling, and exactly the sort of thing that exemplifies the best of what only a relatively big-budget festival can do.

I understand there's a need to balance artistic and business concerns, but I wish the Festival's booking committee were willing to think a bit larger, to challenge themselves, the community and the listening audience a bit more.

It is their past successes in taking risks, coupled with the Festival's unrealized potential, that make me want to hold someone's feet to the fire a bit when the snow starts flying, like in the P-D story. I'll close by saying that despite all these criticisms, I urge anyone reading this who cares about jazz to attend and enjoy this year's Festival. There will be plenty of good music each day to justify your time and the price of a ticket.

Friday, May 06, 2005

Cherilyn Evans to release debut CD



Singer Cherilyn Evans will celebrate the release of her debut CD Truly Loved with a gig from 8 p.m. to midnight next Friday, May 13, at Cookie's Jazz and More in Webster Groves.

I had the pleasure of working with Cheri a few years back in one of the unnamed cover bands briefly mentioned in the biography on her site. (The name of the band will remain undisclosed, to protect both the innocent and the guilty.) Although the material in that particular group was not well suited to her voice, I could tell then she had considerable talent, and just needed the right vehicle or context for it. (The singer she replaced was a big-voiced belter in the Aretha Franklin mode, while Cheri has a lighter, more supple voice, reminding me a bit of Nancy Wilson or pop-jazz singer Sade.)

Apparently, she's now found a more fitting combination of musicians and material, and though I have yet to hear any of the CD - the longish .wav file samples downloadable from her site kept timing out my poor dial-up connection - I'm abandoning journalistic objectivity for the moment and rooting for it to be good.

Cheri and her husband Jasper are two extremely nice people, and the fact that she's had to overcome cancer (while still very young) in order to continue her performing career shows that she's tough-minded as well as talented. I hope her CD release party is a big success and the record sells a lot of copies.

Perkins on Freddy Cole

Freddy Cole, brother of Nat "King" Cole and an accomplished jazz singer in his own right, is returning to St. Louis next week for what has become an annual four-night stand at Jazz at the Bistro. Cole's gig doesn't start until next Wednesday, but STLtoday/Post-Dispatch contributor Terry Perkins is ahead of the game and has the story for you now right here.

Where to bring the noise

The last post about the sound art performance/installation at Dunaway Books reminds me that I'm overdue to mention here a couple of alternative performance spaces where St. Louis listeners can go to hear free improvisation, electronic music, noise and sundry forms of experimental music, as well as lots of punk and alt-rock bands, spoken word, multimedia and all sorts of other things.

Perhaps the best known of these spaces is the Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center, which offers a wide variety of performances, as well as other arts programs and activities focused on the surrounding neighborhood.

At 8 p.m. on Thursday, May 12, the LNAC will play host to Phantom Limb & Bison, an ensemble comprised of Jaime Fennelly on electronics, guitarist Chris Forsyth, Shawn Hansenon on EMS Synthi and radio feedback, and reed player Chris Heenan. The group records for a small label called Evolving Ear, which seems to revolve around the work of Forsyth, a Brooklyn-based musician who "is mainly concerned with exploring the limits and usage of sound as music and the guitar as a sound-generating device.”

Radio Cherokee, also located on the South Side, presents a similarly eclectic menu of performances, including some free improv and electronic stuff. A word to the wise: be aware that both of these venues lack some of the amenities one typically associates with either club- or concert-going, and with their wide-open booking policies, music can vary vastly from night to night in terms of both genre and quality.

Finally, any discussion of creative music in St. Louis would be incomplete without at least a mention of New Music Circle, which has been presenting various sorts of avant garde musical performances since the late Fifites, making it the longest continuously operating group of its kind in the USA. (Full disclosure: I was a board member for NMC from 1992-1994, and then served as the organization's administrator, overseeing the concert series and all other operations, from 1994-1999.)

NMC's current season is winding up with two events this month. At 7 p.m. on Friday, May 13, they'll present a screening of The Blue Bird, a 1918 film by French artist, designer and filmmaker Maurice Tourneur (1873-1961) with live improvised music by guitarist Larry Marotta, bassist Nick Mancini, percussionist Ted Royalty and Mark Sarich. The event information says that "the innovative effects, striking imagery, and unusual lighting techniques are strongly reminiscent of German Expressionist films—although The Blue Bird predates The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari by a year."

Then at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. on Friday, May 20 and Saturday May 21, NMC will present
X-P.O.E. Anima(L), a multimedia performance conceived by artist Kelsey LaPoint, at the historic Lemp Brewery, 3500 Lemp Avenue. What to expect? NMC's website says it "explores our relationship to animals—particularly how we perceive them for our own empowerment and entertainment. Enter an environment of puppets, poetry, video projections, and live music from the Nuclear Percussion Ensemble, Richard O’Donnell, and others."

Thursday, May 05, 2005

Sound art at Dunaway Books

Brett Underwood of KDHX's No Show has sent along notice of a performance/installation at Dunaway Books, 3111 S. Grand Blvd, one-half block south of Arsenal. (Note: the second link is to a Google cache; the actual site is "currently unavailable.")

Ancora il Più Estinto II
takes place from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on the first three Thursdays in May - that's tonight, May 12 and May 19. The name translated from Italian means "staying as soft as possible" (literally: "repeat", "the most", and "very very quiet"). Here's how the email from Eric Hall, one of the organizers, describes it:

"Over the course of the three evenings dozens of artists (invited based on their ability to, and interest in, improvising within these intimate conditions) from around the region will participate. For each set a multitude of players will perform from various parts of the space, thereby creating a unique sound-art event where what each listener hears depends on when, where, and how often they move about.

Furthermore, (through the use of
mixers, discrete speaker arrangements, and close mic placement) certain performances will be amplified in different parts of the store, detaching the sound from the gestures of its creation...This way the experiences are not about seeing specific collections of performers and, as much as possible, the audiences' role as spectator and the performers' sense of ego are diminished allowing for sound itself to be the focus."

There's an extensive cast of participants, including Robin Allen, Jeremy Brantlinger, Glenn Burleigh, Mike Cook, Chris Dee, Jamie Gartelos, Robert Goetz, Darin Gray, James Grubbs, Eric Hall, Matt Harnish, Ben Hanna, Andrew Hefner, James Hegerty, Jason Hutto, Jeremy Kannapell, Ajay Khanna, Sunyatta Marshall, Rich O'Donnell, Heather Oppitz, Joseph Potthoff, Joe Raglani, Tony Renner, Chris Smentkowski, Dana Smith, Joe Stulce, Dave Stone, Brett Underwood, James Weber, Jr., Ben West, John Wolf and "others to be announced."

I don't know all of these folks, but I know enough of them to convince me that this event will probably be worth checking out (provided that this sort of thing interests you in the first place). Admission is free, and you can get more information by calling 314-771-7150.

Wednesday, May 04, 2005

Department of shameless self-promotion

Widespread Panic isn't a jazz band, but they do improvise. And that's how I can justify using this space to point you to my brief article on the band published (with some revisions from my original copy) in this week's RFT. This ability of the human mind to rationalize, it's a wonderful thing...especially on a day when I don't have much time to generate any other new posts.

The Sheldon announces 2005-06 jazz concerts


The Dave Holland Quintet

The Sheldon has announced its 2005-06 series of jazz concerts, and there are also a couple of shows on their "special concerts" list (i.e. not included in the regular series subscription price) that will be of interest to jazz listeners.

The first special concert of the season on Friday, September 23 will feature guitarist Bill Frisell and band performing music from his Grammy winning album Unspeakable. Frisell is one of the most inventive guitarists around, and it's good to see him finally getting more attention from the mainstream. (Guitarist Corey Christiansen will open.)

That's followed by the first official concert in the jazz series on Saturday, October 8, when violinist Mark O'Connor brings his Hot Swing Trio to town. I've heard O'Connor's fusion work with the Dregs, and some of his "newgrass" fiddling, and he's a fine player. Should be fun to hear him take on music associated with Stephane Grappelli and Django Reinhardt.

Next is vocalist Jane Monheit on Saturday, November 5, and then it's the Marcus Roberts Trio on Saturday, January 28. Roberts will present a program called "New Orleans Meets Harlem," and though I admire his skill and technique very much, I do wish he'd stop wallowing in the past and make some modern music every once in a while. (For more on Roberts' retrograde tendencies and the influence of his former employer and mentor Wynton Marsalis, check out this article I wrote for the RFT earlier this year.)

On Saturday, February 18, it's another Marsalis crony, saxophonist and clarinetist Victor Goines, who will team with vocalist Mardra Thomas to offer tributes to the music of Artie Shaw and Billie Holiday. Then on Friday, March 31, another non-series concert will feature the Dirty Dozen Brass Band and the Dixie Hummingbirds in a program focused on New Orleans and Southern gospel music. Perhaps saving the best for last, the Sheldon's 2005-06 jazz series wraps up on Saturday, April 8 with the Dave Holland Quintet. Simply put, this is one of the best working bands in jazz, and should not be missed.

That enthusiasm aside, if anything strikes me about the series as a whole, it's the backward-looking nature of it. With the exceptions of Frisell and Holland, all of the artists featured will be dealing, either explicitly or implicitly, with the music of the past. That's fine as far as it goes - but if well-funded, prestigious presenters like the Sheldon, JATB and the US Bank festival are afraid to take chances on anything that's not tried, true and presold, where and when will St. Louis audiences ever get the chance to hear musicians who are a bit more adventurous?

Admittedly, this is a sore subject with me. I've ranted many times before to friends and musical colleagues about the conservatism of the jazz venues in St. Louis, and this schedule, while rating generally high in terms of musical quality, seems like yet another example of that unfortunate tendency toward artistic timidity.

Jazz as diplomacy, jazz as world language



Jazz was created in America, and while it may be a niche music commercially in its home country, it is also well loved all over the world. Over the past half-century, musicians from Europe, South America, Asia and Africa have made valuable contributions to jazz, and listeners in countries like Japan and Germany have proven to to be just as committed, if not more so, than jazz fans in the USA.

And so with the 30-year anniversary of the fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam war in the news last week, I was fascinated to see this article about jazz in Vietnam. What particularly struck me was this quote from musician Quyen Van Minh (shown above), and how similar it is to statements I've read from other jazz musicians born and raised outside the USA, particularly those who grew up in Russia and the Eastern Bloc under Communism.

"One day, I tuned on an unknown programme and heard a kind of music which had highly sophisticated harmonisation and I loved it. I promised myself that I would learn to play that kind of music, although I did not even know what it was. Years later, I was lucky to get some jazz tapes that were brought home by Vietnamese students studying in Russia, Germany, Poland and other eastern European countries."

Considering that the roster of jazz-loving countries now includes pretty much all of the United States' former adversaries from the 20th century, I suppose this is really just an excuse for me to muse that perhaps America would be held in higher esteem by the rest of the world today if we were to send more jazz musicians - and fewer soldiers, tanks and weapons - overseas to represent our way of life. Or maybe we could just bombard our adversaries with albums by Bird, Duke, Miles and Trane instead of cruise missles. Think we'll see bebop bands in Baghdad thirty years from now?

When jazz "matinee idols" attack....



John Mayer won't be the only young heartthrob playing a jazz concert in St. Louis during the first part of June, as pianist and singer Peter Cincotti will be at the Pageant on Saturday, June 4 and Finale is bringing in trumpeter and vocalist Jeremy Davenport for shows on Thursday, June 9 and Friday, June 10.

Cincotti has been getting a lot of buzz lately, appearing on the covers of both Keyboard and Jazz Times and performing in a special on PBS, while Davenport is a University City native now living in New Orleans who's drawn comparisons to Harry Connick and Chet Baker. For those of us who tend to evaluate musicians by how they sound rather than how they look, it should be noted that both Cincotti and Davenport are, in addition to being sharp dressers, pretty darned good at music, too.

Hancock's new Headhunters to include...John Mayer?



As a longtime fan of Herbie Hancock, I was excited to hear that he'll be playing the Pageant on Wednesday, June 8 with a band billed as "Headhunters 2005". The group includes some familiar names - Terri Lynn Carrington on drums, Marcus Miller on bass and Roy Hargrove on trumpet - as well as percussionist Munyungo Jackson and guitarist Lionel Loueke, who are new to me.

The big surprise is the presence of platinum-selling guitarist/singer/MTV heartthrob John Mayer, who, according to Billboard magazine, will guest on Hancock's next album due this fall. (Apparently aping the formula of Ray Charles' Genius Loves Company, the record will feature a number of guests, including Mayer, Carlos Santana, Trey Anastasio, Sting and Annie Lennox.)

It's not quite as crazy as it sounds at first - Mayer is a Berklee grad who's been turning up in some other unexpected places lately, including alongside Buddy Guy at the Jammy Awards show and at Eric Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival in Dallas last year. We can only hope that he will wear a big Seventies-style brim and a suit made from velour, and sit in a chair surrounded by dozens of foot pedals, in homage to Wah Wah Watson.

More on this later, as I'll be writing about the Hancock/Mayer collaboration for the RFT the week before the show.

STLtoday features Bode

I somehow missed it until yesterday, but the Post-Dispatch had a longish feature on songstress Erin Bode, written by pop critic Kevin Johnson, in Sunday's paper.

The article doesn't contain any startling revelations - it's mostly just a recap of Bode's career so far - but I thought it was interesting that MAXJAZZ label head Richard McDonnell was quoted discussing Bode's career in terms of her potential for crossover to pop (presumably in the multi-platinum manner of Norah Jones) rather than in terms of her further development as a jazz artist. Bode will be recording her second CD soon, and I look forward to hearing how she balances the pop and folk influences mentioned in the article with the jazz work she's done up to now.

Monday, May 02, 2005

More on jazz at UMSL

A couple of addenda to last week's post about the jazz festival at UMSL....

The university will host a jazz camp for both instrumentalists and vocalists this summer from July 17 to July 22. The $299 registration fee includes instruction, master classes, concerts and lunches. Faculty will include Jim Widner (bassist, bandleader and teacher who heads the jazz program at UMSL), Dave Pietro, Dr. Wayne Goins, Ken Kehner, Dr. Gloria Cooper, Miles Vandiver, Andy Tichenor and Brett Stamps. For more information, call 314-516-4235.

You can also find out more about Jim Widner, his active schedule as a clinician and performer, and his Big Band at Widner's website.


For the guitarist who has (almost) everything...

Rick Metz's Les Paul chair

This isn't really related specifically to jazz or St. Louis - I just thought it was kind of cool.

Rick Metz, a furniture designer in Cincinnati, Ohio, is custom-building chairs that resemble electric guitars. The photo shows one that's based on the design of a Gibson Les Paul, but he's made others, too.At $375, it's an expensive chair, but it would make a nice addition to a studio or music room. Just imagine the recursive possibilities of playing guitar while sitting in a chair shaped like a guitar....

(Link via the always interesting Boing Boing.)

Jazz this week: Bode at the Bistro, Kittrell and coffee

Erin Bode
Erin Bode

This isn't a hugely busy week in St. Louis jazz, but there are a couple of noteworthy events beyond the usual weekly gigs:

Vocalist Erin Bode seems to be staying quite busy these days, headlining this Friday and Saturday night at Jazz at the Bistro. The blurb at the JATB site says she also has a tour of Italy in the works, so this week might be a good time to catch her before she's off to Europe.

Ever hear a jazz concert on a weekday morning? Now's your chance, because on Tuesday, the Sheldon is presenting the traditional New Orleans-style hot jazz of Jean Kittrell's Jazz Incredibles in a "Coffee Concert," with free java and pastries served to ticket buyers beginning at 9 a.m., with the performance following at 10 a.m.

Since I mentioned Commander Cody and boogie-woogie piano last week, it only seems fair to note that the Sheldon will also be playing host to George Winston this Saturday night. Despite his reputation as a purveyor of New Age easy listening music, Winston has been influenced by a number of blues and boogie players, and has been known to bust out some boogie or stride piano during his encores.

The Sheldon also has just announced their jazz concert series (and their various other series) for 2005-2006. I'll be blogging about it later today or tomorrow, but if you'd like to take a peek at the lineup right now, go here.

Sunday, May 01, 2005

down beat previews US Bank Jazz Festival lineup


Roy Hargrove

For the last several years, the US Bank Saint Louis Jazz Festival has brought some top-flight talent to St. Louis for concerts in Clayton's Shaw Park. The 2005 editition of the Fest is set of Friday, June 24 and Saturday, June 25, but if you go to their Web site looking for the lineup of musicians, you're greeted by a brief note on the home page stating, "Sorry for the delay! Please return in May, 2005 for a complete line-up." .

Fortunately for those who just can't wait that long, the current (May) issue of down beat contains the magazine's annual guide to summer festivals, and said guide offers a preview of the potential lineup for the St. Louis Jazz Festival.

First, a caveat: Like all monthly magazines, down beat has a deadline well in advance of the cover date, so the information for the guide had to be compiled some time ago. Lineups can change, depending on musicians' schedules, promoters' budgets, and a thousand and one other factors. Nothing is official until the Festival says it is.

That said, it looks like the 2005 Festival could be a big year for groups led by trumpet players, since the lineup as listed in down beat's preview includes Dave Douglas, Roy Hargrove's RH Factor and New Orleans' Latin-jazz-funk group Los Hombres Calientes, featuring trumpeter Irvin Mayfield and percussionist Bill Summers, a charter member of Herbie Hancock's Headhunters. Also mentioned in db's brief preview are vocalist Jane Monheit and Summer Storm, a smooth jazz package featuring guitarist Norman Brown, saxophonist Everette Harp and vocalists Peabo Bryson and Brenda Russell.

Given the constraints under which they must work, I think that in the past the Festival organizers have done a reasonably good job of balancing musically adventurous artists with more commercial or recognizable ones. With Douglas as this year's choice for the hard-core jazz fans, and Los Hombres and Hargove's RH Factor band mixing jazz with Latin and hip-hop, respectively, this projected lineup has some real potential even for those with scant interest in vocals or smooth jazz.

Whenever the offical Festival lineup is announced, I'll blog it, hopefully with annotations and/or commentary, right here.