So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Cool It If You Can, the most recent recording from Miss Jubilee and the Yas-Yas Boys, was reviewed by Michael Steinman for his Jazz Lives blog.

* Drummer Marcus Baylor was interviewed on local CBS affiliate KMOV for a story about his group The Baylor Project being nominated again this year for a Grammy.

* Euclid Records owner Joe Schwab appeared this past Sunday on NBC's Sunday Today program, being interviewed for a story about why vinyl record sales have boomed over the past year.

* Drummer Emanuel Harrold (pictured) is now an endorser for percussion accessories maker DrumDial, and has recorded a new promotional video for the company.

* One of St. Louis' most famous expatriates of the 20th century plays a major role in a new LitHub essay from writer Harmony Holiday, "A Dinner in France, 1973: Josephine Baker, James Baldwin, and a Very Young Henry Louis Gates, Jr."

* Bassist Darin Gray has a new recording, The Reduction (music for dance), set for release on April 2 in digital formats and as a limited-edition vinyl LP.

* Also with a new release this month is keyboardist and vocalist Jesse Gannon, whose recording Live at the Dark Room is out now as a digital-only album on Bandcamp.

* Trumpeter Josiah Burton, a former member of Jazz St. Louis' All-Stars student ensemble, was the subject of a feature story in the Greenville University campus paper The Papyrus.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Two St. Louis venues made it onto the music business trade publication Pollstar's list of the Top 200 Club Venues for worldwide ticket sales in 2018. The Pageant came in at number four on the list, while its sibling just down the street, Delmar Hall, was ranked at number 54.

* Keyboardist and singer Jesse Gannon was interviewed about his new eponymous album by the Riverfront Times' Christian Schaeffer.

* Saxophonists Dave Liebman and Jeff Coffin are featured on On The Corner Live: The Music of Miles Davis, a tribute to Davis' "electric period" that will be released Friday, March 1 on Ear Up Records. Liebman was part of Davis' band from 1970 to 1974. The album (pictured), which was recorded live in 2015 in Nashville, also includes bassist Victor Wooten, drummer Chester Thompson, guitarist James DaSilva, and keyboardist Chris Walters.

* The Arts and Education Council is offering a $20,000 prize for arts entrepreneurs in the St. Louis region via its the third-annual stARTup Creative Competition. The purpose of the competition is "to identify and support organizations filling a hole in the local arts economy." The deadline to apply is Friday, March 1; for more information or to submit an application, go here.

* In what must be the weirdest local music-business story of the week, St. Louis media are reporting that organizers of the ill-fated Loufest are suing the firm that was contracted to provide sound and lights for the event. The suit claims intentional sabotage, and alleges an attempt to hijack the festival's concept after the 2018 event was cancelled.

* The Missouri History Museum has launched "The Townsend Piano Project," a campaign to raise $25,000 to restore a piano that belonged to the late St. Louis blues musician Henry Townsend and incorporate it into the museum's "St. Louis Sound" exhibition planned for 2021. The Museum is accepting donations online, and will stage a fund-raising concert on Sunday, May 26 at BB’s Jazz, Blues and Soups.

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.

Kranzberg Arts Foundation begins "Music Artist in Residence" program

The Kranzberg Arts Foundation (KAF) has announced a new "Music Artist in Residence" program intended to identify "band leaders with original projects and provide them with the performance, rehearsal and recording opportunities that assist them with advancing and building their careers."

The first group of residents consists of nine performers who already are involved with the foundation through performances at the Kranzberg Arts Center and/or The Dark Room, including bassist Bob DeBoo, keyboardists Mo Egeston, Jesse Gannon, Owen Ragland and Ptah Williams, singer Anita Jackson, saxophonist Ben Reece, bassist and singer Tonina Saputo, and trumpeter Kasimu Taylor (pictured).

As artists in residence, they'll continue regular performances at those venues and in conjunction with other programs within the Grand Center Arts District. What makes the residency program new are the additional forms of support being deployed on their behalf, including marketing help, free rehearsal and office space, and more.

Residents will have access to cooperative office space and conference rooms at .ZACK, with rehearsal spaces provided at Kranzberg Arts Center and other KAF venues, said Chris Hansen, executive director of the foundation, in an email to StLJN. The foundation also will provide funding for "paid radio and print, social media, digital activation, as well as helping them (with) graphic design, photography and other essential tools," he said.

In addition to the in-house support from the foundation, Clayton Studios will donate studio time towards production of a compilation album featuring the artists in residence. The album, release date TBD, will be available through digital outlets, along with a "small number" of CDs, Hansen said.

Also, Listen Live Entertainment, producers of the annual LouFest Music Festival, will "provide the artists with main stage opportunities at the festival and other satellite events, plus other exciting opportunities to be announced later."

In total, Hansen said the foundation will spend more than $100,000 annually on the residency program. That's over and above the fees paid to the musicians for performances, and encompasses all the marketing and support services, as well as recent upgrades to The Dark Room including a new piano, sound system, and an in-house sound technician.

While this first group of residents was selected from among performers who had existing relationships with the foundation, that could change in the future. "We will be creating a formal submission process for the next round of residents," said Hansen. "Currently we have not set a definitive time on the residencies. It has been an organic process and we want to serve the current residents until we feel like their and our goals are met."

Jazz this week: Fourth annual Richard McDonnell Scholarship Concert, Gerald Albright, No BS! Brass Band, and more

This week's calendar of live jazz and creative music in St. Louis includes a concert raising funds for music scholarships in honor of a much-loved local jazz supporter; gigs from a popular, groove-oriented saxophonist and a New Orleans-style brass band, and more.

Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, June 14
The third annual Richard McDonnell Scholarship Concert will take place at Jazz at the Bistro, featuring drummer Matt Wilson, members of Good 4 The Soul and the Funky Butt Brass Band, and various other guest musicians.

The event raises money for music scholarships for St. Louis area students in the name of Richard McDonnell, the late founder of MAXJAZZ Records who also was a board member of Jazz St. Louis and an enthusiastic, well-liked supporter of the local jazz scene before his sudden death in 2014.

Also on Wednesday, The Gaslight Squares will play a free outdoor concert for the Whitaker Music Festival at Missouri Botanical Garden.

Thursday, June 15
The Dark Room is changing up their regular music offerings a bit starting this week. Going forward, they're booking a different band every week on Thursdays, with pianist Ptah Williams moving to a regular weekly trio show at "happy hour" on Fridays. This week's debut of the "Thursday Night Revue" will feature drummer Kaleb Kirby's band Animal Children.

Also on Thursday, Cabaret Project St. Louis will present their monthly "Broadway Open Mic" at the Curtain Call Lounge.

Friday, June 16 
Saxophonist Gerald Albright (pictured, top left), will headline a "Salute to Fathers/Mentors" at the Sheldon Concert Hall, with support from saxophonist Tim Cunningham, comedian James Stephens III and singer Denise Thimes. For more about what Albright has been up to lately, and some videos of recent live performances, check out this post from last Saturday.

Also on Friday, guitarist Farshid Etniko Soltanshahi brings his multi-ethnic "world music" sound to Jazz at the Bistro; drummer Steve Davis leads a group with singer Feyza Eren in a free show at the Webster Groves Concert Hall; and Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes return to the Venice Cafe.

Over on the east side, Gypsy jazz/swing trio The Bonbon Plot will play a concert at Jacoby Arts Center; and drummer Marty Morrison leads a trio at Cigar Inn.

Saturday, June 17
The Gaslight Squares will play a matinee at the Blues City Deli; and keyboardist and singer Jesse Gannon and his band The Truth will perform at Jazz at the Bistro.

Sunday, June 18
The Grand Center district will be the site of not one, but two different Frank Sinatra tributes for Father's Day, as singer/impressionist Dean Christopher will do his "Sinatra...and Other Stuff" show for brunch in the relatively intimate confines of The Dark Room, while singer Steve Lippia will be featured with the St. Louis Symphony for a matinee of "Sinatra: 100 Years and Beyond" at the spacious Powell Symphony Hall.

Sunday night, the No BS! Brass Band (pictured, bottom left), a Virginia-based group offering their own contemporary take on the traditional New Orleans ensemble sound, will play at the Old Rock House.

Monday, June 19
A triple bill of free-improvising musicians featuring guitarist Shane Parish, the duo of Christopher E. Trull and Mabel Suen, and the Vernacular String Trio will play at Foam.

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 this week's wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest:

* The late trumpeter and St. Louis native Clark Terry was among the recently deceased musicians, singers, and music business figures remembered at this year's Grammy Awards ceremony and telecast on Monday night. Terry can be seen, and a tiny snippet of his signature song "Mumbles" heard (in what looks like an excerpt from PBS' Legends of Jazz series) at approximately 1:28 into the Grammy memorial/tribute video.

* Saxophonist Greg Osby talked about his record label Inner Circle Music in an extensive interview with Jakob Baekgaard of AllAboutJazz.com.

* Vinyl collectors and aficionados, be advised that Euclid Records will be having a "Giant Colossal Mega-Whopper of a 2 Dollar Vinyl Sale" on Saturday, February 27 and Sunday, February 28. Given the store's extensive stock of jazz records, it seems likely there may be some items of interest to StLJN readers among those $2 selections.

* The STL Free Jazz Collective has posted to YouTube full-length videos of both sets of their recent concert for Washington University's Jazz at Holmes series.

* Bruxism, the series of experimental music performances run by multi-instrumentalist Nathan Cook (aka NNN Cook), is the subject of a feature story from St. Louis magazine.

* Keyboardist and singer Jesse Gannon (pictured) has posted online a new song, "Take Your Time," that's described as "the first of a series of monthly singles to be released in 2016." You can listen, purchase the track, or subscribe to the series via Gannon's website.

* Multi-instrumentalist Sandy Weltman, who plays a standard diatonic harp with virtuoso skill in styles from bebop to bluegrass, will be teaching a group harmonica class at 7:00 p.m. Tuesdays starting March 1 and continuing through April 19 at City Music. For details or to sign up, go to the City Music website.

* Dance St. Louis will include recordings of music by Miles Davis and Lester Bowie into “New Dance Horizons IV: A Celebration inspired by St. Louis’ Legendary Black Artists” on Friday, February 26 and Saturday, February 27 at the Touhill Performing Arts Center.

Jazz this week: SpokFrevo Orquestra, Jesse Gannon and Truth, Dave Dickey Big Band, a new film about Clark Terry, and more

The schedule of jazz and creative music for this Halloween weekend in St. Louis features everything from intimate cabaret shows to roaring big bands, plus the local debut of a new documentary film featuring a St. Louis-born jazz legend. Let's go to the highlights...

Tonight, the Gaslight Cabaret Festival resumes with Ken Haller presenting the first of two performances of his show "Mama's Boy" at the Gaslight Theater; and saxophonist Adam Schefkind will become the first Washington University student to headline a free concert for the Jazz at Holmes series.

Also tonight, Sandy Weltman will lead a harmonica workshop at Mozingo Music's O'Fallon location; and the Tavern of Fine Arts will present their monthly "Experimental Arts Open Improv Night" with live improvised music.

Tomorrow, pianist and singer Jesse Gannon and his band Truth will perform for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro, becoming the first St. Louis act to make their Bistro debut in the new, renovated version of the room.

Also tomorrow, singer Dean Christopher no doubt will be breaking out the celebrity impressions during the performance of his "Rat Pack and More" show at the Ozark Theatre; singer Erika Johnson and guitarist Tom Byrne will duet at Robust Wine Bar's downtown location; Miss Jubilee plays for dancers at the Casa Loma Ballroom; and bassist Darrell Mixon leads a trio at Cigar Inn.

And let's not forget that Friday also is the first evening that Keep On Keepin' On, the new documentary about trumpeter and St. Louis native Clark Terry, will be showing at the Tivoli Theater. The bad news is that the film is only playing here locally for a week; the good news is that the producers are offering free tickets to selected showings this weekend. For more about all of that, see this post.

On Saturday, Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes will play swing, hot jazz and jump blues at Evangeline's; singer Ron Wilkinson will perform at the Ozark Theatre; and the Gaslight Cabaret Festival will present a "Webster Senior Showcase" featuring Webster University students Michael Williams, Eden Rain Eernissee, and Michael Dewar at the Gaslight Theater

Then on Sunday, the St. Louis Record Collector and CD Show will present their November event at the  American Czech Hall, 4690 Lansdowne at Kingshighway on the south side.

That evening, listeners can choose between two big band concerts, both happening in the Grand Center district. At Jazz at the Bistro, the Dave Dickey Big Band will be making their debut at the venue, having moved their monthly shows from their former location at Kirkwood Station Brewing Company.

Meanwhile, just a couple of short blocks away, the Brazilian big band SpokFrevo Orquestra (pictured), which mixes jazz with styles associated with the Brazilan carnival, will be wrapping up their eight-city tour of the USA with a performance at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

As shown in the video of a full concert included in part three of StLJN's fall 2014 jazz preview, this a musically accomplished and sonically explosive group, and it's too bad that their appearance here seems to be flying under the radar of much of the local media.

Fortunately for big band enthusiasts, the shows start two hours apart, meaning that it should theoretically be possible to catch the first set of the Dickey band at the Bistro, then hustle on over to Sheldon to hear SpokFrevo Orquestra. (The only downside to this plan is that it likely means missing the intermission set at the Bistro by the Lindbergh High School Jazz Ensemble.)

Looking beyond the weekend, on Monday the free jazz and improvising ensemble Numbers returns to Tavern of Fine Arts; and Webster University's student jazz combos will be performing at the University's Community Music School.

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.)

Engine Room revs up first month's schedule

The Engine Room at Feraro's, the new live music venue at 7700 Ivory St. on the south side, has announced its first full month's schedule, as assembled by musician and instrument-builder David Certain, who's serving as the club's "minister of music."

Things get underway this Tuesday when the club presents the first in a series of weekly jam sessions, hosted by a trio including Darrell Mixon on bass, Jack Lane on guitar, and Certain on drums. Wednesdays will be Reggae Night, featuring Oba Simba's Onix Reggae band.

Thursdays through Saturdays, the Engine Room will present a mix of jazz, funk, R&B and rock, with the first week's bookings including saxophonist "Blind" Willie Dineen on Thursday, January 9; guitarist Tom Byrne (pictured) and his trio on Friday, January 10; and singer Brian G. Soul and band on Saturday, January 11.

The rest of the month's schedule will include saxophonist Lew Winer III, leading a trio (January 16); Kaleb Kirby's Animal Children (January 17); CertainBeat WorldBop (January 18); a return gig for Dineen (January 23); pianist/singer Jesse Gannon and Truth (January 24); GeoBilly with Billy Barnett & George Potsos (January 25); trumpeter Ben Henderson's trio (January 30); and the Kevin Renick Band (January 31), with UberCool kicking off next month on Saturday, February 1.

Tuesday hours for live music will be 8:00 p.m. to midnight, with no cover charge. Reggae Night performances on Wednesdays will be 9:00 p.m. to midnight, with a $5 cover, while weekend shows will run from 8:00 p.m. to midnight with the same $5 cover. And if you're interested in following along on social media to keep up with future bookings, The Engine Room has both a Facebook page and Twitter account.

(Edited after posting to fix a typo and to correctly identify Brian G. Soul.) 

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Sixty local students have been chosen by Jazz St. Louis to participate in the 2013-14 JazzU program. Auditions were held last month, with 115 middle and high school musicians from around the metro area trying out.

Meanwhile, the players in the current version of the top JazzU ensemble, the Jazz St. Louis All-Stars, are getting some road experience this weekend, performing Saturday on the Youth Stage at the Iowa City Jazz Festival. The free event this year also features notable touring musicians including Charlie Hunter, Christian Scott, Dr. Lonnie Smith, and Pharoah Sanders.

* Here are two more reviews of Opera Theatre of St. Louis' world premiere production of Terence Blanchard opera Champion, from the Chicago Tribune's classical music critic John von Rhein and Andrew Patner of Chicago public radio station WFMT (98.7 FM).

* Pianist and singer Jesse Gannon's CD release event this past Sunday at The Gramophone was reviewed by KDHX's Robin Wheeler.

* The Casa Loma Ballroom (pictured) is the subject of a new episode of the online video series CommunityStL.

* Attendees at the River City Mess Around swing dance event presented this weekend by Lindy Hop St. Louis can get a special pre-registration price on passes for the Nevermore Jazz Ball in November. For the rest of the world, early bird registration begins at 10:01 a.m. next Monday, July 8.

* And speaking of Monday, July 8, for every purchase made that day at The Cup bakery and coffee shop in Edwardsville, local jazz station WSIE (88.7 FM) will get 10 percent of the proceeds.

* Elsewhere on the radio dial,  this weekend's episode of Calvin Wilson's "Somethin Else'" program on Radio Arts Foundation - St. Louis examines the influence of Miles Davis on contemporary trumpet players including Dave Douglas and Tomasz Stanko. Listen in at 8:00 p.m. Saturday via 107.3 FM and 96.3 HD-2, or online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

* The Regional Arts Commission has announced the first 25 recipients of funding from its new Artists Support Grants program. The grants range from $640 to $3,000, and can be used for a variety of projects and opportunities to enhance artists' careers.

Of the first group of 25, just three grants were for work related to music or sound, while 15 went to visual artists and the rest for theater, dance or literature. The next round of Artists Support Grants opens for applications on September 9 and the deadline is October 15. You can find an application form online here.

Jazz this week: Mike Dillon Band, Erin Bode sings standards, Phil Dunlap Quintet with Nicholas Payton, and more

Though many touring jazz stars are busy playing the festival circuit this month, there's still plenty of live jazz and creative music this weekend in St. Louis. Here's what's coming up over the next few days...

Tonight, the Mike Dillon Band returns to perform at The Demo. Led by percussionist Mike Dillon (pictured), the MDB were here last in February, opening for Umphrey's McGee at The Pageant. They mix up jazz, funk, rock and punk in an energetic and entertaining way, and you can check out some samples of them on video in this post from a couple of weeks ago.

Also tonight, guitarists Eric Slaughter and Tom Byrne play at the Schlafly Bottleworks in Maplewood; the Tavern of Fine Arts features live improvised music for its monthly "Avant Garde Arts Night"; and and saxophonist Tim Cunningham plays a free outdoor concert at Bluebird Park in Ellisville.

On Friday, singer Erin Bode returns to her musical roots as a student in the jazz program at Webster University, opening a two-night engagement at Jazz at the Bistro during which she'll revisit material from the "Great American Songbook." Though Bode performs mostly original songs these days, those who remember her early gigs here know that she's a capable interpreter of standards, too.

Elsewhere on Friday, saxophonist Michael Anthony Fitzgerald performs at Jazz on Broadway, Second Generation Swing takes the stage at the Casa Loma Ballroom; and guitarist Brian Vaccaro's trio will play a mini-concert at a rather unusual venue, the Clayton cafe and spa Sip Salon. There's also another free outdoor show of interest on Friday, as trumpeter Jim Manley performs before a screening of The Big Chill for the Old Orchard Gazebo Music and Movie series in Webster Groves. 

Saturday brings a couple of very different grand openings  - one on the Hill, the other on Art Hill - with jazz accompaniment. First up, in the afternoon singer Tony Viviano and band will perform to celebrate the new outdoor cafe at J. Viviano & Sons grocery and deli, located in the heart of South St. Louis' famed Italian neighborhood.

Then a few hours later and just a couple of miles away in Forest Park, pianist and Jazz St. Louis director of education Phil Dunlap will debut a new quintet at the long-awaited grand opening of the new wing of the St. Louis Art Museum. Dunlap's quintet, with drummer Montez Coleman, bassist Jahmal Nichols, saxophonist Ben Reece and trumpeter Danny Campbell, will be augmented for the occasion by special guests including trumpeter Nicholas Payton, saxophonist Willie Akins and singer Brian Owens.

Also on Saturday, guitarist Larry Brown Jr. is back home from Chicago to lead his group at Robbie's House of Jazz; singer Feyza Eren is at Thurman Grill; Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes perform at the Wine Press; and singer Jerome Elliott presents his cabaret show "My Favorite Springs" at The Chapel.

On Sunday, trumpeter/singer Dawn Weber and multi-instrumentalist Lamar Harris (in his alternate identity as "DJ Nune") will supply the sounds for Sauce Magazine's annual "Saucy Soiree" at the Four Seasons Hotel; and singer and pianist Jesse Gannon will promote the release of his new CD with a show at The Gramophone.

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.)