Jazz this week: Don Byron, Alvin Lucier and more

Don Byron

While St. Louis' concert stages aren't nearly as busy with jazz music this week as they were last week (perhaps becuase of Easter?), there will be a couple of touring artists in town that are definitely deserving of your attention.

Clarinetist Don Byron opens a four-night stand at Jazz at the Bistro this evening, performing with his Ivey Divey Trio, a group named for a famous recording session featuring Lester Young and originally formed to do new interpretations of the songs from that session. Byron seems to have made a specialty of revisiting certain underappreciated parts of 20th century music history, as in his past explorations of klezmer music and the early swing of Andy Kirk, Fletcher Henderson et al. His approach certainly reflects a real respect for the older musical forms he's playing, but Byron also manages to bring a sense of freshness and immediacy to the work, which helps prevent it from coming off like something that belongs in a musty museum. Recommended.

Also visiting St. Louis this weekend is composer/conceptualist Alvin Lucier, who will perfom Sunday night at Washington University's Mildred Lane Kemper Gallery of Art (aka Steinberg Hall) in a concert sponsored by New Music Circle. Lucier's work is often location-specific, exploring the interaction of sounds with a physical environment, and this interview published last year by New Music Box provides some useful insights into his thinking and process.

Elsewhere, Erin Bode Group pianist Adam Maness will perform a free show on Thursday night as part of Washington University's Jazz at Holmes series; the always-busy Bosman Twins check into Finale for shows on Friday and Saturday nights; and the stages at other clubs around town will be full of feisty female vocalists, prolific pianists, superlative sax players and many of your other local favorites. For all the details, please visit the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar.

(If you are a musician, band, venue or presenter who would like to have your event featured in the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar, please email your information to stljazznotes at yahoo dot com.)