Jazz this week: Dianne Reeves & Peter Martin, Lou Donaldson, FLOW, St. Louis Musicians for Haiti, and more

It's looking like a very good weekend of live music in St. Louis, with a number of events of interest to fans of jazz and creative music. Let's go to the highlights, presented in chronological order:

Things get started tonight with the veteran saxophonist Lou Donaldson (pictured), who's back in town to perform at Jazz at the Bistro through Saturday. For more on Donaldson, see this video post from a couple of weeks ago, and this recent podcast interview from Jazz St. Louis.

On Thursday, Broadway actress and singer Sutton Foster will perform at the Sheldon Concert Hall as part of a fundraising gala for Cabaret St. Louis. You can find links to a couple of interviews with Foster about the event here. Also on Thursday, saxophonist Jason Swagler will lead his group in a free concert for Washington University's Jazz at Holmes series.

On Friday, pianist Peter Martin's eponymous new series at the Sheldon kicks off with a duo performance featuring Martin and singer Dianne Reeves, for whom he has served as music director since 2001. For more on both, check out this video post, these previous posts on the Peter Martin Music series, and this interview with Martin from the St. Louis Beacon.

Also on Friday, NYC saxophonist Kim Bock and his organ-centric trio FLOW will perform an early show starting at 8:00 p.m. at The Gramophone. The next morning, they'll be at Saxquest at 11:00 a.m. for a concert and clinic.

Later on Saturday, the Nu-Art Series begins "The Jazz Composers Series: Re-Arrangements & Nu-Compositions" with a matinee concert at the Metropolitan Gallery downtown. The first installment of the series features an ensemble led by bassist Darrell Mixon doing original compositions and the music of Charles Mingus. For more on Nu-Art's jazz composers series, see this post.

On Saturday evening, percussionist and trumpeter "Baba" Mike Nelson will bring his group Sworn to the Drum to Robbie's House of Jazz.

Looking beyond the weekend, on Monday pianist Carolbeth True and her trio will back saxophonist Willie Akins in a concert at Webster University's Winifred Moore Auditorium.

On Tuesday, the Sheldon Concert Hall will present "St. Louis Musicians For Haiti," an event raising funds for post-earthquake relief efforts in the beleaguered island nation. The lineup includes singer Brian Owens; folk group Mayor Taylor, featuring Lydia Ruffin and Charlie Pfeffer; the Bottoms Up Blues Gang; pianist Peter Martin; singer Mardra Thomas and her pianist/husband Reggie Thomas; singer Kim Massie; pianist Peter Henderson; singer Christine Brewer; and more. Author and former TV newscaster Julius Hunter will serve as host for the evening, and it appears as of this writing that there are still some tickets available.

Also, Jazz St. Louis has two Stevie Wonder-related events planned for the first part of next week. On Tuesday, the monthly meeting of the CD Listening Club at Borders in Brentwood will focus on Wonder's Songs In The Key of Life, with keyboardist and jazz educator Reggie Thomas as the special guest. Then on Wednesday, Thomas will lead his band in a free concert of music from the same album at East St. Louis High School as part of JSL's Whitaker Community Concerts series.

For more jazz-related events in St. Louis this weekend and beyond, 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 by becoming a "fan" of 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.)

(Edited after posting to add the Carolbeth True concert at Webster U.)

FLOW returning to St. Louis on February 5 & 6

Saxophonist Kim Bock's organ-driven trio FLOW (pictured) will be returning to St. Louis next weekend for two events - a performance at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, February 5 at The Gramophone, and a concert/clinic at 11:00 a.m., Saturday, February 6 at Saxquest.

In addition to Bock on saxophone, the group features organist Soren Moller and drummer Peter Retzlaff.

Their last trip to St. Louis was in April, 2009, and you can see pictures from the clinic that Bock did then at Saxquest here. Tickets for the February 5 show at The Gramophone will be $10 at the door.

Jazz this week: Greater St. Louis Jazz Festival, Sean Jones, John Jorgenson, Medeski Martin and Wood, FLOW, Dixie Daredevils, Stan Hale, and more

It's the busiest week so far this year for jazz and creative music performances in St. Louis, with a number of touring artists in town and a schedule of shows representing a wide variety of styles, from traditional jazz and big band to straight-ahead modern jazz to free improv, intermedia and more.

Let's go the highlights in chronological order, starting with this evening, when the acclaimed young trumpeter Sean Jones opens a four-night stand continuing through Saturday at Jazz at the Bistro. Jones is considered by many to be a rising star among jazz trumpeters, and this weekend marks his St. Louis debut as a bandleader. For more on Jones and some video samples of his playing, see this post.

On Thursday, singer and pianist Anita Rosamond is doing a free concert for the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University, backed by a group featuring keyboardist Nathan Jatcko, bassist Bob DeBoo, and drummer Jerry Mazucca. That same evening, the Detroit-based free improv duo of saxophonist Wally Shoup and percussionist Ben Hall will perform at Open Lot, 1310 S. 18th St, with opening sets from Dave Stone & Danny McClain and Brain Transplant.

On Friday, the public performance portion of the Greater St. Louis Jazz Festival kicks off with a concert featuring guest artists Peter Erskine on drums and Lou Marini (pictured) on saxophone with the University of Missouri - St. Louis Jazz Ensemble at the Touhill Performing Arts Center. For some background on Erskine and some video samples of his playing, see this post. Also on Friday, the NYC-based saxophonist Kim Bock and his jazz organ trio FLOW will take the stage at The Gramophone.

Saturday brings some free educational opportunities for aspiring musicians during the morning and afternoon, with Erskine and trumpeter Jon Faddis each presenting free master classes at the Touhill while Bock and FLOW will be giving a free workshop and performance at Saxquest.

On Saturday night, the Greater St. Louis Jazz Festival continues with a concert featuring Faddis, singer/guitarist John Pizzarelli and the UMSL Jazz Ensemble at the Touhill. For more about Faddis and some video samples of his playing, see this post.

Also on Saturday, guitarist John Jorgenson brings his Django Reinhardt-inspired quintet to the Sheldon Concert Hall. For some background on Jorgenson and a video sample of his playing, check out this post from when he was last in St. Louis in September 2007.

That same evening, New Music Circle will present a program at Webster University's Winifred Moore Auditorium featuring videos created by Van McElwee, Roy Zurick and others with live musical accompaniment by S.A.N.E. (Semi-Acoustic Noise Ensemble), percussionist Rich O'Donnell, and friends

Sunday is another busy day, as the St. Louis Jazz Club presents a performance by the Peoria, IL-based traditional jazz band Dixie Daredevils at Bel Air Bowl in Belleville, and St. Louis Jazz and Blues Vespers ends its spring 2009 series with a free concert featuring guitarist Steve Schenkel and singer Ashley Mason at the Second Baptist Church.

Also on Sunday, veteran drummer Stan Hale is having a CD release event at the Jazz Spot to promote The Stan Hale Experience, his debut jazz recording as a leader. Hale's band for the show will feature Jeff Anderson on tenor sax, Tony Simmons on keyboards, Henry Taylor on guitar, and Jamal Nichols on bass, with vocals by Ralph Butler and Virginia Williams, and the $10 admission price includes a copy of the CD. (Full disclosure: Hale is a musical associate of yr. humble editor, and there's a possibility I may end up playing some intermission piano at this gig.)

Last, but not least, Sunday also is the pick day for jazz fans at this weekend's jam-band-oriented Loyal Earth Festival, with performances scheduled during the evening by the groovalicious organ trio Medeski Martin and Wood and pan-stylistic Chicago guitarist Fareed Haque of Garaj Mahal fame.

Looking beyond the weekend, on Monday the Sessions Big Band is back at BB's Jazz, Blues and Soups, and on Tuesday, the ambient music duo Mountains will perform at Open Lot, while the David Wiatrolik Trio is set to perform at The Gramophone.

With so much going on, these are just some of the noteworthy shows happening around St. Louis over the next few days. To see more jazz-related events in St. Louis this weekend and beyond, please visit the St. Louis Jazz Notes Calendar.

(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.)

Kim Bock, FLOW to present free clinic and performance this Saturday, April 18 at Saxquest

In a previous post announcing a show by saxophonist Kim Bock and his jazz organ trio FLOW this Friday at The Gramophone, we mentioned that Bock would be doing a saxophone clinic the next day in south St. Louis at the woodwind sales and repair shop Saxquest.

Saxquest president Mark Overton was kind enough to get in touch with StLJN to provide the rest of the details on the event, which are as follows:

Bock and FLOW will be giving a performance and clinic from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 18 at Saxquest, 2114 Cherokee (on Antique Row about five blocks west of the old Lemp Brewery). The event is free and open to the public, and refreshments will be served. If you have questions, call Saxquest at 314-664-1234.

Coming attractions include FLOW, BoxDeserter Trio, Skeletonbreath

The last couple of days have brought announcements of upcoming St. Louis shows by three touring trios that may be of interest to fans of jazz and creative music:

* The New York-based organ trio FLOW will perform on Friday, April 17 at The Gramophone. Formed in 2006, FLOW includes saxophonist Kim Bock (pictured), organ player Soren Moller and drummer Peter Retzlaff, whose collective experience include performances and recordings with artists such as Kenny Werner, Greg Osby, Maynard Ferguson, Dick Oatts, Antonio Sanchez and Jason Marsalis.

According to their press kit, FLOW's music includes "straight grooves, lyrical modernism, free explorations and hard core swing." Tickets are $10, the show is 21-and-older only, and the music starts at 10:00 p.m. FLOW is being co-presented by Saxquest, where Bock will do a saxophone clinic earlier that day.

* The BoxDeserter Trio, featuring pianist Thollem McDonas, saxophonist Skeeter Shelton, and multi-instrumentalist Joel Peterson, will play free shows in two different rooms at the Schlafly St. Louis Brewery and Tap Room on Thursday, April 23 and Friday, April 24. On Thursday, they'll be part of three-band bill starting at 9:00 p.m. in the Eliot Room along with St. Louis bands Holy!Holy!Holy! and Allgorithms. Then on Friday, they'll play in the Club Room, with poet K. Curtis Lyle and bassist Zimbabwe Nkenya opening the show at 8:00 p.m.

The BoxDeserter Trio "encompasses a whole world of music-making that is part erudite composition, part virtuosic improvisation, part populist affability...melodic modernism, classical economy and elemental Free Jazz all inform (their) direction." McDonas is from the Bay Area and has toured almost non-stop for the past several years, previously performing in St. Louis both as a solo artist and as a member of the Bloom Project. Shelton and Peterson (whose primary instrument is bass) are both from Detroit, and have wide-ranging experience encompassing jazz, free improv, world music and more.

* Lastly, the online touring information service Pollstar has just added a listing showing a performance by the Brooklyn, NY-based instrumental trio Skeletonbreath at the Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center on Thursday, May 7. Skeletonbreath is comprised of Andrew Platt (electric bass), Bob Pycior (electric violin), and Tris Palazzolo (drums), and their Wikipedia page says they "play dark, technical, melodic music that has been self-described as "Transylvanian Surf Rock" and "Halloween party music.""

As is always the case with Pollstar listings, this show should not be considered confirmed until officially announced by the venue or presenter. StLJN will have more on the ticket price and show time if/when such an announcement is made.