Friday, January 10, 2014

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Here's the latest wrap-up of assorted links and short local news items of interest:

* The Route 66 Jazz Orchestra has openings for a guitarist, lead tenor saxophonist, and trombonist. Rehearsals begin on January 15 and are held Wednesday evenings in South County. To schedule an audition, contact the band via their website.

* The blog Killed in Cars has available for free download a remix/sampler of live bootlegs of Miles Davis performances from October and November 1971 in Milan, Brussels, Belgrade, Oslo, and Turin.

* Meanwhile, guitarist Henry Kaiser talked with Guitar Player magazine about Yo, Miles!, the band he co-led with trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith that drew inspiration from Davis' electric music of the same period.

* Drummer and University City native Ronnie Burrage will celebrate the release of Heal, the latest album by his Band Burrage (also featuring St. Louis guitarist Eric Slaughter) with a late-night show on January 18 at NYC's Blue Note.

* Meanwhile, another former U. Citian, multireedist Marty Ehrlich, will team with alto saxophonist and St. Louis native Greg Osby for the tribute concert "Compulsion: The Music of Andrew Hill" this coming Tuesday, January 14 at NYC's Jazz Standard. Osby and Ehrlich, who both are former Hill collaborators, will be joined by saxophonists Donny McCaslin and Jaleel Shaw; trumpeter Jeremy Pelt; bassist Ben Allison; and drummers Matt Wilson and Billy Drummond.

* Out on the West Coast, drummer Dave Weckl (pictured), who just celebrated a birthday on Wednesday, will perform with his new Acoustic Band on January 20 and 21 at Catalina Jazz Club in Hollywood. The lineup for the group features a couple of familiar collaborators - bassist and fellow St. Louis native Tom Kennedy and saxophonist Gary Meek - along with pianist Makoto Ozone.

* Pianist Peter Martin has revamped the look and added new material to the video lessons section of his website.

* KDHX will present a free workshop on "How To Get Your Music On The Radio" at 1:00 p.m. tomorrow at the station's new HQ at 3524 Washington Ave.

* Jazz radio update: On this Saturday's episode of Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis' "Somethin' Else," host Calvin Wilson will feature recordings from top jazz drummers such as Art Blakey, Bobby Previte and Jeff “Tain” Watts.

Then on "The Jazz Collective," Jason Church will have an all-St. Louis program, with music from Erin Bode, Farshid Etniko, Jim Manley, Funky Butt Brass Band, Jesse Gannon, Tommy Halloran, Dawn Weber, Tom Byrne, Tim Cunningham, Jim Stevens, Vince Varvel, Jeanne Trevor, Kim Massie, Robert Silverman, "Peanuts" Whalum, Clave Sol, Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes, Brian Vaccaro, Rod Tate and Gregg Haynes, Soul Cafe, Carolbeth True, Elliott Ranney, and Jason Swagler.

Wilson's program can be heard at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays, followed by Church at 9:00 p.m., via 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen

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