Irvin Mayfield is one of the performers featured in the film
Make It Funky, which will be shown at a special benefit
screening at BB's on Saturday.
Time is tight today, so I'll apologize in advance if this post seems somewhat terse. Yet even with the twin pressures of work and the impending holiday season bearing down, there's a variety of sounds in St. Louis this week that may offer respite to the weary music lover.
Tonight, vocalist Anita Rosemond celebrates the release of her new CD Timeless with two sets at Busch's Grove. With a band including Tim Cunningham on saxophone and Dan Smith on trumpet, there should be some good jazz chops on display.
The Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra's series of modern chamber music performances at the Pulitzer Arts Foundation continues this week, with Philip Glass' "1 + 1" and "Music in Similar Motion" and Terry Riley's "In C" set to be performed both Wednesday and Thursday. .
On Friday and Saturday, singer Erin Bode takes the stage at Finale Music and Dining for two nights of holiday standards, while over at Jazz at the Bistro, the Carolbeth True Trio appears the same two nights as part of the Bistro's "Spotlight Series".
Saturday is also the day that BB's Jazz, Blues and Soups will present a screening of the New Orleans music documentary Make it Funky, with the doors opening at 6 p.m., the movie at 8 p.m. and live music by Jumping Johnny Sansone and Scottie Miller & Wailing Wall following the film at around 10 p.m.
Although this is billed as a "premier screening," the film has been available on DVD for a while now; I rented it at a nearby Blockbuster outlet. And while the emphasis is on on New Orleans' R&B and brass band traditions, there's some jazz content, too. I particularly enjoyed the in-concert trumpet battle shown early in the film, as the lesser known (to me, anyway) Troy Andrews gives Irvin Mayfield and Nicholas Payton all they can handle, and then some, and trombonist Big Sam and his band the Funky Nation provide some moments reminscent of Fred Wesley and the JBs. Jazz critic and Rifftides blogger Doug Ramsey has also seen the film, and weighs in here: "If you have never been to New Orleans or can’t quite remember what it was like before Katrina, this disc—part documentary, part concert—captures much of the look and feeling of the Crescent City and the spirit of a swath of its music," says Ramsey. The suggested $10.00 minimum donation for admission to the screening will benefit the Louisiana Cultural Economy Foundation.
On Sunday, the New Orleans sound gets an airing in another venue, as traditional jazz band Cornet Chop Suey performs at the annual Christmas event for the Saint Louis Jazz Club. StLJC events are open to the general public; call 636-305-0285 or 314-962-0683 for details.
And for more details on what else is going on this week, check the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar (still needing a bit of an update, but it's coming soon, honest). If you're a musician or venue who'd like to have your gig listed on the calendar, and possibly in this space as well, send all the crucial details about the event to stljazznotes at yahoo dot com.
No comments:
Post a Comment