Sheldon Concert Hall announces 2007-08 season

The Sheldon Concert Hall has announced its 2007-08 season, and the hall's jazz series for next year includes a number of familiar names.

Three of the announced shows confirm information previously revealed by Pollstar (and StLJN): guitarist/singer John Pizzarelli (Saturday, October 6), Lavay Smith and Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers (Saturday, November 10) and pianist Ahmad Jamal (Friday, January 26, 2008).

In addition, the Sheldon also will present pianist Michael Wolff (pictured), best known as the former bandleader for talk show host Arsenio Hall, on Friday, February 23, 2008, and singer Carla Cook, who's recorded for the local MAXJAZZ label, on Friday, April 26, 2008. Subscriptions for the 2007-08 jazz series are $175-$195.

The Sheldon's Coffee Concerts, Saturday Matinee and Special Concerts series will also feature some musicians of interest to jazz listeners. The Coffee Concerts will include appearances from Anita Rosamond (October 9 & 10), the St. Louis Stompers (November 12 & 13), Sherry Drake and Carolbeth True (December 4 & 5), and the St. Louis Ragtimers (March 4 and 5, 2008). In addition, Jean Kittrell and the St. Louis Rivermen will do a special concert on Sunday, September 23 and trombonist Brett Stamps will do a Saturday matinee on April 12, 2008.

To yr. humble editor, this lineup of touring performers, while comparatively safe from a box-office standpoint, seems rather uninspired. Pizzarelli, Cook and Jamal are all well-known to local audiences, with each having several recent St. Louis gigs to their credit; their appearances here once again serve as yet another example of recycling by a local presenter, a practice I've criticized on numerous prior occasions. Meanwhile, Smith and Wolff, while no doubt competent and entertaining, are musicians of minor importance at best. And while the lineup of local bands and musicians consists of proven performers, it appears to offer no particular surprises, either.

Although there's always the possibility that an interesting show or two may be added to the schedule somewhere down the line, as happened this year with the Pat Metheny/Brad Mehldau concert, overall it feels like the Sheldon is just treading water here. Given the vast universe of exciting artistic possibilities available for a jazz series at a high-quality concert venue, it's hard not to see this mostly recycled lineup of musical moderates as something of a disappointment, a case of pandering to audience tastes rather than expanding or challenging them.

You can find out more about the rest of the Sheldon's 2007-08 series in this article, written by Post-Dispatch pop critic Kevin Johnson and published in today's paper.