So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Here's StLJN's latest wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* Trumpeter Russell Gunn (pictured) has launched a crowd-funding campaign to pay for the next recording by his Royal Krunk Jazz Orchestra.

* Reid Anderson, bassist for The Bad Plus, was interviewed about the group's return to Jazz St. Louis next week by the Post-Dispatch's Daniel Durchholz.

* A new article in DownBeat recalls how the late trumpeter and St. Louis native Clark Terry "fostered generations of performers."

* The closing last weekend of the south side venue Foam was the subject of stories by St. Louis Public Radio's Jeremy D. Goodwin and St. Louis magazine's John J. Goddard.

* Singer Katie McGrath's show last Saturday at Blue Strawberry was reviewed by KDHX's Chuck Lavazzi.

* Funeral arrangements for the late pianist, singer and saxophonist Hugh "Peanuts" Whalum have been announced. A wake and memorial jam session is scheduled from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. today at Archway Memorial Chapel, 111 Taylor Road in Hazelwood. A funeral Mass will take place at 11:00 a.m. tomorrow, Saturday, January 4, at St. Elizabeth Mother of John church, 4330 Shreve Ave in St. Louis, with a repast immediately following. Burial will be at 10:00 a.m. Monday, January 6 at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery.

Whalum's obituary as published in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch can be seen here, and his passing also was noted in a story by the St. Louis American's Kenya Vaughn.

* Radio host, author and photographer Dennis Owsley bade farewell to listeners of his "Jazz Unlimited" radio show with a message on Facebook (also published in abbreviated form on the St. Louis Public Radio website). In that message, he revealed that the program's Sunday night time slot will be filled, at least for the time being, by music from the nationally syndicated "Jazzworks" service (also heard on one of StLPR's digital sub-channels).

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Here's StLJN's latest wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* Drummer and St. Louis native Marcus Baylor and his wife, singer Jean Baylor (pictured), have launched a campaign via IndieGoGo to crowd-fund the next album by their group The Baylor Project.

* Chuck Lavazzi of KDHX reviewed recent shows at Blue Strawberry by David Giuntoli and John McDaniel.

* In related stories, St. Louis Public Radio's Sarah Fenske interviewed cabaret artists Beverly Brennan, Robert Brieg and Dionna Raedeke about upcoming shows at Blue Strawberry; and the venue also was the subject of a brief feature story from St. Louis magazine's Melissa Meinzer.

* Another item at St. Louis Public Radio's website notes the retirement of "Jazz Unlimited" host Dennis Owsley, mostly reiterating information already made public, but also adding the intriguing tidbit that "jazz music will continue on 90.7 KWMU-1 on Sunday nights from 9 to midnight" without any specifics. So, stay tuned...

* The Northsider has posted to Facebook a photo album from the Funky Butt Brass Band's early Saturday matinee of last weekend's "Holiday Brasstravaganza."

* With the southside venue Foam closing permanently this week, the Post-Dispatch's Kevin Johnson took a look back at a decade of shows there.

* The Bosman Twins were interviewed by ChicagoJazz.com in advance of their gig this week at Winters Jazz Club.

* Trumpeter George C. Davis, one of the founders of the Jazz Edge Orchestra, has died.

Jazz this week: Joshua Redman Quartet, a benefit for Kwanae Johnson, and more

This week's calendar of live jazz and creative music in St. Louis features the return of one of the top tenor saxophonists in modern jazz; a benefit concert to raise funds for a local musician in need of help; and more.

Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, September 25
Saxophonist Joshua Redman and his quartet return for the first of five nights of performances at Jazz St. Louis.

Redman (pictured, top left) and the quartet last performed here in January 2018 at the Bistro, but this time, they've got a new album to support.

Though they first played together more than 20 years ago, Redman's quartet with pianist Aaron Goldberg, bassist Reuben Rogers and drummer Greg Hutchinson has had long stretches of inactivity while the leader pursued other projects, including in recent years tours with the cooperative band James Farm and with The Bad Plus.

As a result, the new album Come What May, released this spring on the Nonesuch label, actually is the quartet's first recording since 2001, and only their third overall.  Featuring seven new Redman originals, the album likely will provide the backbone of at least a few of their sets this week, although the extended run also should provide opportunities to get into the back catalog as well.

Also on Wednesday, the free "Wednesday Night Jazz Crawl" in Grand Center features Tommy Halloran and Rob Nugent at The Stage at KDHX, the jam session hosted by bassist Bob DeBoo at the Kranzberg Arts Center, and guitarist Joe Park's trio at The Dark Room.

Thursday, September 26
The Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University presents a free concert from saxophonist Harvey Lockhart and his quintet; the French father-and-son guitar duo Paquito and Sandro Lorier (pictured, center left) play Gypsy jazz and swing at Joe's Cafe; and trumpeter Brady Lewis and his BLStet return to The Dark Room

Friday, September 27
Vincent Varvel presents a guitar recital at 560 Music Center; keyboardist Ryan Marquez and his trio with guest vocalist Lola return to Evangeline's; and jazz/funk collective Orchestrated 9th offers a tribute to the music of Herbie Hancock at Troy's.

Saturday, September 28
Singer and bassist Janet Evra teams up with Americana group The Main Street Remnants for a performance at The Monocle; singer Jan Shapiro and the Dave Venn Trio return to the Ozark Theater; and The Gaslight Squares are back at the Frisco Barroom

Sunday, 
September 29
On Sunday afternoon, "ONE LOVE: A Benefit For Kwanae Johnson & Family" at .ZACK will raise money for saxophonist Kwanae Johnson and his family, who earlier this year lost their home to a fire. The event will feature music from trumpeter Kasimu Taylor, singer and bassist Janet Evra, the Funky Butt Brass Band, R&B vocalist Roland Johnson, and more.

Also on Sunday, saxophonist Tim Cunningham returns to Mount Pleasant Estates, and the Ambassadors of Swing play a free outdoor concert at the Sunset Hills Community Center.

Then on Sunday evening, Dallas-based drummer Stefan Gonzalez (pictured, bottom left), who's the son of veteran free-jazz trumpeter Dennis Gonzalez, will team up with violinist Alex Cunningham and bassist Damon Smith, a recent transplant to St. Louis, for a performance of improvisational music at Foam.

Tuesday, October 1
Kicking off this year's "Whitaker Jazz Speaks" series, Jazz St. Louis presents "An Evening with Benny Golson," featuring a conversation with the veteran saxophonist and composer, plus a short performance. While the free event already is "sold out," it might be worth checking with the box office on the day of the event for cancellations or no-shows.

Also on Tuesday, the Tick Tock Jazz Band plays traditional jazz in their monthly gig at the Tick Tock Tavern.

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: Pedrito Martinez, Boney James, STL Free Jazz Collective, a New Music Circle "pop-up" concert, and more

This week's calendar of live jazz and creative music in St. Louis offers Afro-Cuban rhythms, smooth jazz with a backbeat, free improvisation, a tribute to one of the greatest composers and bandleaders in jazz, and more.

Let's go to the highlights...


Wednesday, April 24
Percussionist Pedrito Martinez brings his band to Jazz St. Louis for the first of five nights of performances, continuing through Sunday.

Born in Cuba and now based in NYC, Martinez (pictured, top left) has spent the past two decades lending his considerable talents to a variety of well-known jazz and pop performers, and in recent years has been getting more attention as a bandleader, too.

You can find out more about him and see some videos of his band in action in this post from Saturday before last.

Thursday, April 25
The 442s and Erin Bode will headline "Hope Happens - 15th Annual Evening of Hope," a benefit for the Hope Center for Neurological Disorders at Washington University School of Medicine, at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

Also on Thursday, singer Jan Shapiro, pianist Dave Venn and bassist Ben Wheeler perform at the Ozark Theatre, and singer Chuck Flowers croons at Jazzy 159, a relatively new spot across the river in Fairview Heights.

Friday, April 26
Saxophonist Boney James still a popular favorite among those who enjoy jazz in the form of R&B- and funk-infused grooves, plays at The Pageant.

Though James (pictured, center left) hasn't released any new music since his most recent St. Louis appearance at the Gateway Jazz Festival last summer, fans no doubt will relish the opportunity to hear a full-length show while seeing him up close.

You can see him on video performing some of the material from his most recent album, 2017's Honestly, in this post from last Saturday.

Elsewhere around town, the Hot Club of St Louis, a new group featuring guitarists Joe Park and Paul Davis, violinist/guitarist Christopher Voelker, and bassist Willem von Hombracht, will make their debut playing Gypsy jazz and vintage swing at Focal Point; and Carolbeth True and Two Times True with saxophonist Larry Johnson return to Parkside Grille.

Also on Saturday, out west in Union, MO the Dave Dickey Big Band will headline the East Central College Jazz Festival at Anglin Performing Arts Center on the ECC campus.

Saturday, April 27
In their first performance since the passing of one of their founding members, poet Michael Castro, the STL Free Jazz Collective (pictured, bottom left) is inviting other poets to sit in with them for a concert at Link Auditorium in the Central West End.

Also on Saturday, the Funky Butt Brass Band returns for their monthly gig at the Broadway Oyster Bar.

Sunday, April 28
In what they're caling a "pop-up" show, New Music Circle has a last-minute addition to their 60th season schedule, presenting an concert of improvised music by trombonist Steve Swell, percussionist Michael Zerang, cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm and saxophonist Gebhard Ullmann at Foam.

Monday, April 29
Pianist Christopher Parrish leads a quartet celebrating the legendary pianist, composer and bandleader with a show called "Duke Ellington's 120th Birthday: Ellington Plugged In" at Focal Point.

Tuesday, April 30
Trumpeter Jim Manley and keyboardist Chris Swan return to Evangeline's.

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.)

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Here's StLJN's latest wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* The Gaslight Squares appeared last week on the morning news broadcast at Fox 2/KTVI, promoting their upcoming "coffee concerts" next Tuesday and Wednesday at The Sheldon.

* Bassist and Washington University faculty member Paul Steinbeck talked with Black Agenda Report about Message to Our Folks, his book recounting the history of the Art Ensemble of Chicago.

* The Cherokee Street venue Foam (pictured), purveyors of coffee and beer and home to performances of all sorts of music including free improv and (occasionally) vintage jazz, is continuing their GoFundMe campaign in an effort to keep their doors open.

* The Funky Butt Brass Band has posted to their website audio recordings of their recent weekend gig at Jazz St. Louis.

* Student musicians in the Jazz St. Louis All-Stars will provide some live music for Big Muddy Dance Co's show “Footnotes” next week at the Grandel Theatre.

* Cabaret Project St. Louis has announced that this year's St. Louis Cabaret Conference will take place as three different educational "tracks," with the first starting Saturday, July 13 and the last wrapping up on Sunday, July 21. The organization also will present "Sing Center Stage," an intensive workshop specifically for singers of high school age, from Friday, July 12 to Tuesday, July 16.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

Here's StLJN's latest wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* A tribute to Ella Fitzgerald by singer Anita Jackson (pictured), set for Saturday, February 2 at The Sheldon, is previewed in a short article by St. Louis magazine's Amanda Woytus.

* Opera Theatre of St. Louis is sponsoring a series of events to promote Fire Shut Up In My Bones, the new opera by trumpeter Terence Blanchard that will premiere in June at OTSL.

You can read about the first event, a film screening and talk by the opera's librettist, writer/director and St. Louis native Kasi Lemmons, in this story by the St. Louis American's Kenya Vaughn.

* Singer and actor Lea DeLaria was a guest Wednesday on KSDK's Show Me St. Louis program. DeLaria performs tonight and tomorrow night at Jazz St. Louis.

* Keyboardist and singer Jesse Gannon talked about his eponymous new album for a story by the Post-Dispatch's Kevin Johnson.

* The Friends of Scott Joplin are conducting their annual membership drive; find out more on their web site.

* Benjamin Cawthra, the former St. Louisan who in 2001 curated the Missouri History Museum's exhibit "Miles: A Miles Davis Retrospective," writes in a recent blog post about consulting with director Stanley Nelson on Nelson's documentary Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool, which premieres this Sunday at the Sundance Film Festival.

* Two local music venues that are experiencing hard times financially are asking the public for help. Foam, the south side spot that serves up coffee, beer and performances ranging from alt-rock to free improv, has set up a GoFundMe page to help keep the doors open after revenue shortfalls in recent months.

Meanwhile, The Focal Point, which in recent years has featured vintage jazz and swing along with folk, bluegrass, singer-songwriters, and Americana, is "faced with the loss of a key subsistence grant and some unexpected expenses." As a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, they're able to solicit and accept donations directly via their website.

* The UMSL Symphonic Band is looking for additional woodwind, brass, and percussion players. The band is open to all musicians with at least six years of experience on their instrument, and rehearses under the direction of professor Gary Brandes on Monday evenings starting January 28 at the Lee Theater in the Touhill Performing Arts Center. For information on auditions, contact Brandes by email at brandesg@umsl.edu.

Jazz this week: Melissa Aldana Quartet, Ben Wendel's "The Seasons," Galactic, and more

This week's calendar of live jazz and creative music in St. Louis features performances from two stellar saxophonists, one of New Orleans' favorite funk bands, and more.

Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, 
March 14
Saxophonist Melissa Aldana returns with her quartet for the first of four nights of performances at Jazz at the Bistro.

Aldana, who was born in Chile and educated at Berklee, has enjoyed a fast rise in the jazz world since becoming the first female instrumentalist and the first South American to win the annual Thelonious Monk competition in 2013, thanks to her distinctive tone on tenor sax and a musical approach influenced by players such as Sonny Rollins, Don Byas and Mark Turner.

For more about Aldana, you can see and hear some samples of her playing on video in this post, which dates from her St. Louis debut two years ago, and read an interview with her published a few weeks ago by the Chicago Tribune here.

Aldana's sets also will be simulcast on video to the first-floor lounge opposite the Bistro, where they can be viewed for free as part of the "Grand Center Jazz Crawl,"  which this week also includes Jacob Alspach and Friends at The Stage at KDHX, the jam session led by bassist Bob Deboo at the Kranzberg Arts Center, and trumpeter Kasimu Taylor's quartet at The Dark Room.

Thursday, March 15
Saxophonist Ben Wendel performs at The Ready Room. Wendel (pictured, top left), best known as a member of the cooperative band Kneebody, currently is touring with music from a project called "The Seasons," which featured 12 original compositions dedicated to musical friends and colleagues that were released as a series of duo performances on video over the course of a year.

You can find out more about Wendel and "The Seasons," and hear some of the compositions that have been expanded to full-band arrangements for the tour, in this post from a week ago Saturday.

Update: 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 14: StLJN has just gotten word from Ben Wendel's publicist that his St. Louis date has been cancelled. If you bought tickets, contact your point of purchase for refund details.

Also on Thursday, New Orleans funk/jazz band Galactic (pictured, bottom left) will be back for another visit to St. Louis, their destination this time being Delmar Hall; Cincinnati "garage jazz" band Animal Mother tops a bill that also includes Animal Children and saxophonist Dave Stone at Foam; and saxophonist Ben Reece's Unity Quartet returns to The Dark Room.

Friday, March 16
Catch some of St. Louis' own at one of several weekly residencies happening on Fridays, including pianist Ptah Williams' trio at The Dark Room; singer and guitarist Tommy Halloran at Das Bevo Underground, or saxophonist Tim Cunningham at Troy's Jazz Gallery.

Saturday, March 17
Pianist Christopher Parrish plays a matinee at the Scott Joplin House State Historic Site's Rosebud Cafe as part of a new monthly series presented by the Friends of Scott Joplin.

Then on Saturday night, singer Tony Viviano will be doing his thing at Table Three, while keyboardist Mo Egeston offers late night grooves at The Dark Room.

Sunday, March 18
The St. Louis Jazz Club presents Miss Jubilee in concert at the Moolah Shrine Temple in Maryland Heights.

Monday, March 19
Trumpeter Jim Manley will be back at Momo's Greek Restaurant, and pianist Carolbeth True and saxophonist Paul DeMarinis will perform a duo concert at Webster University's Winifred Moore Auditorium.

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: Laurence Hobgood, three young St. Louis jazz stars come home, COCA goes "Uptown," and more

This week's calendar of live jazz and creative music in St. Louis includes a visit from a fine veteran pianist, a homecoming gig for three St. Louis natives who have earned international recognition, a dance production with live music paying tribute to the Harlem Renaissance, and more.

Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, April 5
Pianist Laurence Hobgood and his trio will perform for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro.

Known to many jazz fans primarily for his long tenure working behind singer Kurt Elling, Hobgood (pictured, top left) stepped into the spotlight himself a few years ago, and has enjoyed success as a solo performer, bandleader, composer, and producer.

For more about his work as a solo artist, plus some videos of him playing in some different musical contexts, see this post from a couple of Saturdays ago.

Thursday, April 6
The Vernacular String Trio will promote the release of their new album Parlance with a performance at Foam; and the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University finishes the spring semester with a free concert featuring two Chicago-based musicians, saxophonist Rob Denty and drummer Tim Mulvenna, with St. Louis guitarist Vincent Varvel.

Friday, April 7
An ad hoc ensemble featuring three St. Louis natives now living in NYC - trumpeter Keyon Harrold, pianist Lawrence Fields, and drummer Kimberly Thompson (pictured) - plus saxophonist Adam Larson, who's originally from Normal, IL, will perform for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro.

These four rising jazz stars with Midwestern roots are back home this week for an educational residency with Jazz St. Louis, working with students in the organization's JazzU program and at local schools, and closing out their stay with a weekend of performances at the Bistro. 

Since this weekend is a one-off for this ensemble, it's difficult to preview in the usual way, but you can find out more about what Keyon Harrold has been up to since his last shows here (as a guest with pianist Robert Glasper in 2015), and see some videos from some recent performances of his in last Saturday's video showcase post.

Also on Friday, COCA presents the first of five performances this weekend of  "Uptown,"  a work about the Harlem Renaissance created by Alvin Ailey dancer/choreographer Matthew Rushing.

Described as "an episodic tour through 1920s Harlem bringing to life the rich artistic activity of the era," the production features students from COCA's dance programs accompanied by a live band including Phil Dunlap (piano), Andy Hainz (bass), Kaleb Kirby (drums), Adam Hucke (trumpet), Kwanae Johnson (tenor sax), Ben Reece (alto sax), and Cody Henry (trombone).

Elsewhere around town, Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes return to Evangeline's; singer Joe Mancuso brings his Organ Trio to @Nesbys, and Miss Jubilee will perform for dancers at the Casa Loma Ballroom, with special guest, Cincinnati blues pianist Ricky Nye.

Saturday, April 8
Trumpeter Jim Manley's trio will perform for brunch at Evangeline's, and saxophonist Tim Cunningham will play an afternoon show at Mount Pleasant Winery in Augusta.

Monday, April 10
Dizzy Atmosphere plays swing and Gypsy jazz for diners at The Shaved Duck.

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: Jeremy Davenport, Kawabata Makoto & Tatsuya Nakatani, and more

This holiday weekend isn't a particularly busy one for the jazz and creative music calendar in St. Louis, but even so, there are some noteworthy shows happening around town over the next few days that you may want to know about.

Let's go to the highlights...

Friday, November 25
Trumpeter, singer and U City native Jeremy Davenport returns home for the first of two nights of his annual Thanksgiving weekend gig at Jazz at the Bistro.

Davenport (pictured), who spends most of the year leading the house band at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in New Orleans, frequently sells out these homecoming gigs, but as of this writing on Friday morning, there still seem to be some tickets available.

Also on Friday, guitarist Eric Slaughter leads a quartet at Cigar Inn, and the Funky Butt Brass Band plays their monthly show at Broadway Oyster Bar.

Saturday, Nov 26
Drummer Marty Morrison leads a group in concert at The Dark Room, and jazz/fusion group Spaceship plays at Evangeline's.

Monday, November 28
Fans of free improv and/or noise will want to check out a rare early-week gig featuring the duo of Kawabata Makoto, guitarist for Japanese psychedelic rock band Acid Mother Temple, and improvising percussionist Tatsuya Nakatani at Foam, with Vernacular String Trio and Oxherding opening.

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: Karrin Allyson, Olivia Block, Eric Marienthal, Tommy Halloran, and more

This week's schedule of jazz and creative music in St. Louis includes a typically varied assortment of sounds and styles, with a couple of notable touring performers in the middle of the week. So, without further delay, let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday November 11 
Singer Karrin Allyson (pictured, top left) returns to St. Louis for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro, touring in support of her recent release Many a New Day: Karrin Allyson sings Rodgers and Hammerstein.

The album has received generally positive reviews, and you'll find links to several of them, plus some videos of Allyson performing, in this post from last Saturday.

Also tonight, electronic musician and composer Olivia Block performs at Foam, with Circuit des Yeux opening the show; and singer Eve Seltzer returns to Nathalie's.

Thursday, November 12
The Gaslight Cabaret Festival fall series continues with an encore performance from the duo Sleepy Kitty at the Gaslight Theater.

Also on Thursday, the SIUE jazz faculty will feature saxophonist Jason Swagler in a concert entitled "Brazil and Beyond" at Dunham Hall on the SIUE campus; and Wack-A-Doo returns to the Tavern of Fine Arts.

Friday,
November 13
Guitarist and singer Tommy Halloran’s band Guerrilla Swing (pictured, center left) are regulars at Jazz at the Bistro, performing weekly for Sunday brunch, but they're also playing Friday and Saturday nights this week to promote the release of Halloran's new album State Streets.

Ticket buyers will get a free digital download of the album, which will be released on vinyl at a date TBA.

Elsewhere on Friday, singer Karen Oberlin explores the songs of Elvis Costello in the first of two performances of her show "His Aim Is True" at the Gaslight Theater; trumpeter Randy Holmes' quintet featuring pianist Carolbeth True will pay tribute to trumpet legend Clifford Brown at the Ozark Theatre; and Miss Jubilee plays for dancers at the Casa Loma Ballroom.

Saturday, November 14
On Saturday afternoon, saxophonist Frank Catalano will be in from Chicago for a free performance and workshop at Saxquest

That evening, saxophonist Eric Marienthal teams up once again with St. Louis' Bach to the Future, this time in a benefit for the Dillon International adoption agency at the Mandarin House Banquet Hall in U City; and trumpeter Jim Manley performs at Thurman Grill.

Also on Saturday night, percussionist Herman Semidey and Orquesta Son Montuno will play salsa, Latin jazz, and more at Club Viva; and Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes return to the Venice Cafe.

Sunday, November 15
The St. Louis Jazz Club will present Cornet Chop Suey playing traditional jazz and swing in a matinee performance at the DoubleTree Hotel at Westport.

Also on Sunday, the Community Women Against Hardship's annual "Circle of Support Gala" will feature singer Kimmie Horne (pictured, lower left), a Detroit native and cousin of the legendary Lena Horne, at the Sheldon Concert Hall; and the St. Louis Big Band gets ready for an upcoming road trip with a show at CJ Muggs in Webster Groves.

Monday, November 16
Guitarist Dave Black plays for diners at The Shaved Duck, and Webster University's student jazz singers will show off their skills in a concert at Winifred Moore Auditorium on the Webster campus.

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.)

Olivia Block, Circuit des Yeux to perform Wednesday, November 11 at Foam

Electronic musician, composer and sound artist Olivia Block is returning to St. Louis to perform at 9:00 p.m. next Wednesday, November 11 at Foam, 3359 Cherokee.

Block (pictured), who's based in Chicago, uses a combination of field recordings, composed music for acoustic instruments, and electronically generated sound to create works for live performance, recorded media, chamber ensembles, video, and site-specific sound installations.

She has performed here before a couple of times in events presented by New Music Circle, most recently as part of a program co-presented by NMC and the St. Louis International Film Festival in November 2013 at the St. Louis Art Museum.

The opening act for Block's show at Foam will be Circuit des Yeux, aka Haley Fohr, a solo performer who works with bent electronics, vocals, percussion, piano, and acoustic guitar.

Admission to the all-ages show is $10 and $15 at the door.

Jazz this week: Marcus Miller, Jonah Parzen-Johnson, Pamela Rose's "Wild Women of Song," Jazz Edge Big Band, and more

There's lots going on in jazz and creative music this week in St. Louis, and so you don't miss out, here's a special early edition of our weekly highlights post...

Tuesday, June 16
Tonight, bassist Marcus Miller and his band return to St. Louis to begin a three-night stand continuing through Thursday at Jazz at the Bistro.

Miller, also known for his production work on behalf of musicians including Miles Davis and David Sanborn, is on tour promoting a new album, Afrodeezia. As the title suggests, the recording adds some African and "world music" flavors to Miller's usual stew of funk and jazz elements.

For more about that, plus videos of performances of music from Afrodeezia, see this post from a week ago Saturday. And for even more, Miller (pictured, top left) talked with Calvin Wilson of the Post-Dispatch for a brief preview story about the gig.

Also tonight, baritone saxophonist Jonah Parzen-Johnson will be in town to perform at Foam, 3359 Jefferson Ave. You can find out more about him and see some examples of his electronically augmented solo performances in this post from last Saturday.

Wednesday, June 17
Singer Joe Mancuso will be this week's featured performer for the Whitaker Music Festival at the Missouri Botanical Garden; Cabaret Project St. Louis presents their monthly "Open Mic Night" at Tavern of Fine Arts; and guitarist and singer Tommy Halloran plays at Nathalie's.

Update - 1:30 p.m. 5/16/15: Due to rain saturating the grounds of the Missouri Botanical Garden, Joe Mancuso's concert has been postponed until next year. Instead, Mancuso and band will play a free show starting at 7:30 p.m. at Thurman Grill.

Thursday, June 18
Guitarist Dave Black and friends, including featured vocalist Feyza Eren, will perform at Nathalie’s; and pianist Brad Ellebrecht and singer Diane Vaughn will play a duo show at Tavern of Fine Arts.

Friday, June 19
The trio of bassist Bob DeBoo, saxophonist Dave Stone, and drummer Montez Coleman will perform for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro; and the Jazz Edge Big Band presents "A Tribute to St. Louis Saxophonists" at the Touhill Performing Arts Center, with guest performances from Eric Person (pictured, center left) as well as the Bosman Twins, Willie Akins and Paul DeMarinis.

Also on Friday, the St. Louis Big Band will present "Tap + Jazz," featuring tap dancer Tommy Wasiuta performing with the band, at Casa Loma Ballroom; and Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes return to the Backstreet Jazz & Blues Club in Westport.

Saturday, June 20 
The Old Rock House presents their second annual "Summer Gras," an all-day event with music from New Orleans' Dumpstaphunk, with Ivan Neville on keyboards, plus Austin, TX funk band Mingo Fishtrap, singer-songwriter Marc Broussard, the Funky Butt Brass Band, and more. 

Elsewhere around town, trumpeter Jim Manley and friends - singer Charlie B, keyboardist Arthur Toney, guitarist Randy Bahr and drummer Joe Weber - return to Nathalie's; guitarist Todd Mosby and cellist Traci Andreotti will greet the summer solstice with a duo performance at Seedz Café; and Gypsy jazz band Franglais hosts a late-night jam session at Evangeline's.

Sunday, June 21
San Francisco-based singer Pamela Rose (pictured, lower left) makes her St. Louis debut with a benefit performance of her show "Wild Women of Song” at the Ferring Jazz Bistro.

Monday, June 22
Rose presents a free performance of "The Life and Music of Etta James" at the  Emerson Performance Center on the campus of Harris Stowe State University; and singer Dean Christopher reprises his "Rat Pack & More" show at One 19 Tapas and Wine Bar.

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.)

StLJN Saturday Video Showcase: Introducing Jonah Parzen-Johnson

This week, let's get acquainted via video with saxophonist Jonah Parzen-Johnson, who will be in St. Louis to play at 8:00 p.m. this coming Tuesday, June 16 at Foam, 3359 Jefferson Ave. The $5 admission charge also includes sets from New Music Circle's Jeremy Kannapell and another opening act TBA.

A Chicago native now residing in NYC, Parzen-Johnson specializes in solo works performed on baritone sax, augmented with electronics, and which often have titles that would fit right into a playlist of emo-rock tunes. Though there's an improvisational flavor and a fairly frequent use of extended techniques, Parzen-Johnson's pieces tend to be structured and relatively short, rather than lengthy, free-form blowing exercises.

So far, he's put out three albums of what's been described as “lo-fi experimental folk music”: his debut Michiana in 2012, Look Like You're Not Looking in 2013, and his latest, Remember When Things Were Better Tomorrow, which was released just last week on Primary Records.

The first clip up top is a music video produced to promote that new album, featuring a composition called "I Wrote A Story About You, Without You."

After the jump, there are three clips of live performances from 2012. In the first, recorded at a gig for CapitalBop in Washington DC, Parzen-Johnson talks for a moment about his playing style and then performs "Never Meant To Keep In Touch." (Note that while the the performance footage is dark, the audio quality is still good.)

After that, there are compositions called "Stay There, I'll Come To You," recorded at WOBC radio in Oberlin, OH, and "What's Coming When They Stop Coming," from a gig at The Garage in Charlottesville, VA. The final two clips were recorded in 2013, at a venue called Hardware in Buffalo, NY, and at Spectrum in NYC.

For more about Jonah Parzen-Johnson, check out his interviews with the websites Animal New York and Avant Music News.

You can see the rest of today's videos after the jump...