Jazz this week: Tortoise, Jazz at Lincoln Center Group, Anat Cohen, and more

Unpredictable weather is just one reason that a lot of touring acts like to stay home in early January.

But whether St. Louis this weekend ends up with the spring-like temperatures we're enjoying at midweek, or with the ice storm being promised (threatened?) by Friday, the calendar of upcoming live jazz and creative music performances in St. Louis features several shows that definitely are worth leaving the house to hear.

Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, January 11
Five young local musicians associated with Jazz St. Louis' educational programs will reunite as the Jazz St. Louis All-Stars Alumni Quintet for the first of two nights of performances at Jazz at the Bistro.

The group features saxophonist Carlos Brown, Jr., trumpeter Brady Lewis, drummer Everette Benton, pianist Eliot Courtois, and bassist Nathan Pence, all of whom currently are studying music at various universities around the country.

Also on Wednesday, guitarist Eric Slaughter and bassist Glen Smith will be playing duets at Evangeline's.

Thursday, January 12
The eclectic instrumental quintet Tortoise (pictured, top left), who have been enjoying a period of renewed activity since the 2016 release The Catastrophist, their first album since 2009, returns to perform at the Old Rock House.

Elsewhere around town, the Peoria, IL-based band The Perrilles Project will be playing music associated with iconic drummer Max Roach at Evangeline's; and singer and impressionist Dean Christopher brings his "Rat Pack and More" show to Joe's Cafe & Gallery.

Friday, January 13
Four musicians in town this week to do educational residencies for Jazz St. Louis - trumpeter Terell Stafford, trombonist Andre Hayward, bassist Rodney Whitaker, and drummer Steve Fidyk -  will join forces to perform as the "Jazz at Lincoln Center Group" for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro.

Stafford and Whitaker already are familiar to local jazz fans thanks to multiple previous appearances here - in fact, the trumpeter played the Bistro just last month as part of saxophonist Tim Warfield's holiday show - while Fidyk, though not a marquee name, is a well-regarded drummer and teacher known for his work with big bands.

But the sleeper attraction on this gig may very well be Hayward (pictured, center left) a veteran of the SFJAZZ Ensemble who last played here in 2013 at the Bistro as part of a similar setup with Whitaker, Warfield, and pianist and former St. Louisan Reggie Thomas. He's one of the top trombonists working today, with a quick imagination as an improviser, fine technique, and a well-rounded tone.

Also on Friday, vocal group Java Jived will bring their Manhattan Transfer-esque harmonies to the Emerald Room at The Monocle; and Miss Jubilee will play for dancers at the Casa Loma Ballroom.

Saturday, January 14
Clarinetist and saxophonist Anat Cohen (pictured, bottom left) returns to play at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

While one of Cohen's major projects of the past year was working with arranger Oded Lev-Ari and a new ten-piece band, for this show she'll be fronting her quartet, a versatile and free-wheeling band that can handle music ranging from classic swing numbers associated with Fats Waller and Benny Goodman to Brazilian choro music.

Also on Saturday, singer Erika Johnson and guitarist Tom Byrne will perform at Montrey's Cigar Lounge.

For more jazz-related events in and around St. Louis, please visit the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar, which can be found on the left sidebar of the site or by clicking here. You also can keep up with all the latest news by following St. Louis Jazz Notes on Twitter at http://twitter.com/StLJazzNotes or clicking the "Like" icon on the StLJN Facebook page.

(If you have calendar items, band schedule information, news tips, links, or anything else you think may be of interest to StLJN's readers, please email the information to stljazznotes (at) yahoo (dot) com. If you have photos, MP3s or other digital files, please send links, not attachments.)

Jazz this week: Thomas, Whitaker, Hayward & Warfield; Chris Hazelton & Cory Weeds; Oikos Ensemble; and more

This week's schedule of live jazz and creative music includes a diverse group of musician/educators brought together here by a returning St. Louisan; visiting players from Kansas City, Vancouver and Mississippi; the debuts of two new ensembles featuring some top local musicians; and more. Let's go to the highlights....

Tonight, the Route 66 Jazz Orchestra performs at First Unity Church of St. Louis, 4753 Butler Hill Rd in south county.

On Thursday night, the Young Friends of Jazz St. Louis and two other local organizations' "young friends" groups will present the annual "Jazz Under The Stars" benefit at the Planetarium in Forest Park. The event will include live music from guitarist Eric Slaughter, bassist Bob Deboo, saxophonist Willie Akins, pianist Jesse Gannon, and drummer Marty Morrison.

Also tomorrow, the St. Louis Avant Garde Ensemble makes its debut at the Tavern of Fine Arts. This new project features Fred Tompkins, flute and melodica; Jim Hegarty, piano and electronics; Tracy Andreotti, cello; Lee Scott Price, guitar; and Thomas Zirkle, percussion and electronics.

And while all that's going on, the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University will have something a little different this Thursday: a free screening of the Mississippi blues documentary film We Juke Up In Here, produced and directed by St. Louis resident Jeff Konkel and former St. Louisan Roger Stolle. Along with the film, the event will include a Q&A with Konkel and Stolle and a performance by guitarist and singer Jimmy "Duck" Holmes.

On Friday, pianist Reggie Thomas, who grew up and worked here for most of his life but moved away last year for a teaching job in Michigan, will be back in town to perform for the second time since the move. Thomas (pictured) will join forces with bassist Rodney Whitaker (a fellow faculty member at Michigan State University), trombonist Andre Hayward, and saxophonist Tim Warfield for shows on Friday and Saturday at Jazz at the Bistro.

All four men have been in town throughout the week as part of an educational residency for Jazz St. Louis, performing and teaching at local schools and working with students in the Jazz St. Louis All-Stars and JazzU programs. Thomas, of course, is a longtime StLJN favorite who's well known to local jazz fans, and yr. humble editor found Hayward to be particularly impressive a few years ago here with the SF Jazz Collective at the Bistro. (And that's certainly not to slight Whitaker or Warfield, both of whom have impressive resumes of their own.)

Also Friday, the St. Louis Big Band plays for dancers at Casa Loma Ballroom, singer Joe Mancuso brings a quartet to Robbie's House of Jazz; and Eric Slaughter will lead a quartet with Akins, Morrison and DeBoo at Cigar Inn.

On Saturday afternoon, singer Wendy Gordon and her band will be playing a new jazz brunch, this one at Ace's Bar and Grill, 9600 Natural Bridge Rd (inside the Comfort Inn) on the north side. Meanwhile, across town, trumpeter/vibraphonist Joe Bozzi and his group will be performing a matinee at Schoemehl's Southside Grill, 7529 Michigan Ave.

Then on Saturday evening, organist Chris Hazelton, who's from Kansas City, and Cory Weeds, a saxophonist from Vancouver, will team up for a performance at Robbie's. Hazelton is a former student of Hammond master Dr. Lonnie Smith, while Weeds frequently plays in the organ-trio format and also operates a club called the Jazz Cellar in Vancouver. As far as StLJN can tell, this gig is the St. Louis debut for both men; check out their respective websites for some music samples.

Also on Saturday, singer Danita Mumphard will perform at Jazz on Broadway; and the WirePilots, a new group featuring brothers Dan and Ted Rubright on guitar and percussion plus Ric Vice on bass, will debut at the Tavern of Fine Arts.

On Sunday, the Oikos Ensemble, featuring Rev. Cliff Aerie on saxophone, will present a free concert called "Inner Jazz" at Kirkwood United Church of Christ, 1603 Dougherty Ferry Rd. Aerie's collaborators for the performance will include Carolbeth True (piano), Danny Campbell (trumpet), Dave Troncoso (bass) and Kevin Gianino (drums).

Also on Sunday, multi-instrumentalist Lamar Harris will present a free concert at Missouri History Museum in Forest Park, offering jazz interpretations of the music of the late hip-hop performer/producer J Dilla.

For more jazz-related events in and around St. Louis, please visit the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar, which can be found on the left sidebar of the site or by clicking here. You also can keep up with all the latest news by following St. Louis Jazz Notes on Twitter at http://twitter.com/StLJazzNotes or clicking the "Like" icon on the StLJN Facebook page.

(If you have calendar items, band schedule information, news tips, links, or anything else you think may be of interest to StLJN's readers, please email the information to stljazznotes (at) yahoo (dot) com. If you have photos, MP3s or other digital files, please send links, not attachments.)