Jazz this week: Eric Person, Musica Slesa, Thomas Buckner and Dave Wessel, and more

There's a nice variety of jazz and creative music in St. Louis this weekend, in ranging in styles from traditional to modern, as performed by ensembles varying in size from a duo to a big band.

Perhaps the most highly anticipated performance of the weekend takes place on Saturday, when saxophonist and St. Louis native Eric Person and his band Meta-Four take the stage at Finale Music and Dining in Clayton. Person's got a fine new CD, Rhythm Edge, that's just come out, and he's in the midst of a four-week DIY tour to promote the new release. Look for a interview with Person here on StLJN later today or tomorrow.

Heading east to the Grand Center district, Jazz at the Bistro has the monthly performance by the St. Louis Jazz Orchestra tonight and the brand new St. Louis-based Latin jazz group Musica Slesa (pictured) on Friday and Saturday.

For those inclined toward more avant-garde sounds, on Sunday New Music Circle presents the improvising duo of vocalist Thomas Buckner and electronic musician Dave Wessel at Christ Church Cathedral downtown. Also on Sunday, the St. Louis Jazz Club is sponsoring a concert featuring the traditional jazz of Bud Shultz and the You Can't Beat Experience Jazz Band at the Moolah Shrine Center in West County.

Other noteworthy sounds this week: Guitarist Vince Varvel will do a free concert on Thursday at Washington University as part of the Jazz at Holmes series. On Friday, singer Erin Bode performs at Missouri Baptist University, and on Saturday, trumpeter Randy Holmes will head up a tribute to Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers at Cookie's Jazz and More.

If all that's still not enough for you, please visit the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar to see a more extensive list of local jazz-related events.

(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.)

New Music Circle season starts Friday, September 28 with concert by Konk Pack

New Music Circle has announced most of its 2007-08 season schedule, starting with a concert next Friday, September 28 by Konk Pack (pictured), a trio of improvising musicians from Great Britain and Germany. The group will perform at 8 p.m. at the Kerr Foundation Building, 21 O’Fallon Street (on the riverfront just north of Laclede's Landing).

The rest of New Music Circle's 07-08 schedule includes a varied mix of experimental/avant-garde music and performances. On Sunday, October 14, NMC will present vocalist Thomas Buckner and computer music performer/composer Dave Wessel at Christ Church Cathedral. Next up is NMC music director (and retired Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra percussionist) Rich O'Donnell, who will will headline a concert on Friday, November 9 at Satori, 3001 Locust Street.

That same weekend - either Saturday, November 10 or Sunday, November 11, the exact date and time are TBA - the organization will team up with the St. Louis International Film Festival and the St. Louis Art Museum to present another installment of the Circle/Cinema series, which pairs silent films with live improvised music, at the St. Louis Art Museum Auditorium.

On Sunday, December 2, French composer, performer, and sound installation artist Laetitia Sonami will present a performance called "Lady's Glove," which utilizes a custom-designed controller worn on Sonami’s hand that allows her movements to control sounds, mechanical devices, and lights in real-time. This show will take place at the Mildred E. Bastian Center for the Performing Arts at Forest Park.

There's something called "Holiday Havoc Heraldry" scheduled for Sunday, December 9, and then NMC takes a break until the New Year. The season resumes on Saturday, March 15, when James Hegarty and Mary-Jean Cowell present a music/dance performance piece called "Sp(l)aces" at the Annelise Mertz Dance Studio, located in Mallinckrodt Center at Washington University.

On Sunday, May 4, the percussion duo HaZMaT (Thomas Zirkle and Matt Henry) will present a concert at the Mildred E. Bastian Center, followed by "Spring Into June," another Rich O"Donnell joint on Sunday, May 25 at Laumeier Sculpture Park.

NMC also promises two more touring artists as part of the Spring schedule as well as two other shows with date, time and locations TBA: "Meta-Morph-Us," a performance piece by "yoga practitioner, artist, and jungle jedi" Kelsey L. LaPoint, and "Synaesthesia," a "four-part concert of original music compositions set to experimental video works by Van McElwee, Peter Rose, and Roy Zurick."

Find out more by visiting New Music Circle's Web site.

UPDATE - 4:30 p.m.: NMC is also the subject of a feature story by Brett Underwood in the September issue of St. Louis magazine, found online here.