So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Saxophonist Oliver Lake was interviewed on the Free Improv Pod podcast.

* Guitarist Todd Mosby has posted video of a new solo guitar composition, "Joni's Song," on YouTube and Vimeo.

* The St. Louis Low Brass Collective has turned to Kickstarter to finance the recording of an upcoming album featuring commissioned works by Kim Portnoy, Barbara Harbach, John Cheetham, Matt Harris, and Jim Pugh. As of this writing, they've raised $4,070 toward a goal of $6,000. The deadline for the campaign is Monday, August 31

* Trumpeter Keyon Harrold is one of the featured musicians on Revive Music Presents Supreme Sonacy, Vol. 1, a compilation album released last week on Blue Note. Harrold performs with fellow trumpeter Maurice Brown and saxophonist Jaleel Shaw on a version of Lee Morgan's "The Procrastinator" and a remix/interlude called "Playing Catch Up."

* Washington University graduate Sarah Plovnick has received a 2015-16 Fulbright-mtvU Fellowship to study combinations of jazz and Dominican music and their influence on music education in the Dominican Republic. Plovine is one of five recent U.S. college graduates selected to participate in the joint effort by the U.S. Department of State and mtvU, MTV’s 24-hour college network, which seeks "to explore the power of music to influence culture and engage audiences overseas on topics of global importance."

* The St. Louis Public Library's free public recording studio (pictured) is featured in an article on the website of Pro Sound News. More than 2,000 people have used their library cards to book free time in the SLPL's studio since it opened in May, 2014.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Drummer and St. Louis native Marcus Baylor and his wife, singer Jean Baylor (pictured), have launched a Kickstarter campaign raising money to complete the debut album by their new band The Baylor Project. You can read more about it and pledge your support here.

* The Miles Davis Memorial Project has scheduled another informational meeting at 4:30 p.m., Tuesday, January 21, at Bossanova Restaurant and Lounge, 112 West Third St. in Alton.

The project's organizers will give a short presentation and show a video about the effort to place a statue of Davis in downtown Alton. For more information, call the Alton Pride office at 618-467-2375 or email them at pride at prideincorporated dot org.

* The Funky Butt Brass Band has posted on Facebook an album of photos from last weekend's Holiday Brasstravaganza shows.

* Meanwhile, Jazz St. Louis has posted to their Facebook page an album of pictures from last week's performances by John Pizzarelli and Bucky Pizzarelli.

* A new interview with drummer Pheeroan ak Laff over at Destination: Out includes a track from saxophonist and former St. Louisan Oliver Lake.

* Jazz radio update: For 2013's final edition of “Somethin’ Else” on Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis, host Calvin Wilson will herald the coming of the new year with recordings by trumpeters including Tom Harrell, Ambrose Akinmusire and Russell Gunn. The program can be heard at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays via 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2 and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* With a little more than 24 hours to go, KDHX (88.1 FM) yesterday met their Kickstarter campaign goal of $50,000 to build a 125-seat performance space at the station's new headquarters on Washington Ave in the Grand Center district.

The campaign's final days were marked by a social media push on Facebook and Twitter involving local music fans and bloggers, and also got some coverage from reporter Heidi Glaus of local NBC affiliate KSDK. The various premiums still are available to anyone who pledges before the campaign ends at noon on Friday.

* Metrotix and Tap Heritage, Inc. are offering a $5 discount on tickets for "All That Tap XXII," this year's installment of the annual tap dance festival to be held Saturday at the Edison Theater on the Washington University campus.

The event features tap stars of movies, Broadway and TV performing in tap dance styles from jazz to hip-hop, with live music from pianist Carolbeth True's trio. The regular ticket price is $25, so the discounted price is $20 per ticket. To access the offer, go to the Metrotix site and enter promo code ATT.  The offer ends at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday.

* Quartette Humaine, the new album from David Sanborn and Bob James, was reviewed by Chris Parker for London Jazz News.

* Jim Widner (pictured)  - bassist, bandleader, educator and head of the Greater St. Louis Jazz Festival - was the subject of a profile by Ruth Ezell of local PBS affiliate KETC's Living St. Louis, as well as a feature story by the UMSL Daily.

* And speaking of profiles, Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes this week were the subjects of one written by Terry Perkins for the St. Louis Beacon.

* Perkins this week also wrote for the Beacon a preview of the upcoming St. Louis Cabaret Festival.

* And on the same subject, singer Jason Graae, who will be appearing at the Cabaret Festival and accompanying conference, was interviewed by KDHX's "Break A Leg" podcast.

* The St. Louis Stompers are headlining this weekend at the 21st annual Lakeside DixieFest in Clear Lake, IA.

* Jazz St. Louis this week announced that the organization posted double-digit percentage increases in subscription and single ticket sales revenues this past season, with total revenue for all Jazz at the Bistro activity up 17% over the previous year.

Subscription revenue grew by 13% to $151,417, with total subscription seats sold rising 8% to 5,755. New subscription seats sold for Jazz at the Bistro increased 26% over fiscal 2012, and average per-set attendance increased 7% compared to the previous year. In a press release, Jazz St. Louis' Bob Bennett attributed the growth to a record number of new subscription seats purchased, an 85% renewal rate, and an overall increase in the number of shows subscribers are purchasing.

JSL also announced this week that Wells Fargo Advisors will contribute $100,000 to be "presenting sponsor" of the 2013-14 Jazz at the Bistro season, marking the third year the company has made a "leadership gift" to the organization.

* Jazz radio update: This week at Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis, saxophonist Joe Henderson's  achievements as a bandleader, composer and accompanist will be the subject of this week's episode of Calvin Wilson's "Somethin' Else." In addition to music from Henderson, the program also will feature sounds from saxophonist Marcus Strickland and singer Holly Cole. The program can be heard at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays via 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2 and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen. 

Elsewhere on the radio dial, Dennis Owsley's "Jazz Unlimited" program this Sunday will feature the music of Fats Waller, as interpreted by Waller himself and pianists James P. Johnson, Earl Hines and Dick Hyman, plus St. Louis’s own Ralph Sutton and his sister Barbara Sutton Curtis.

Owsley also will spin new music from Ralph Alessi, Melton Mustafa, the Joel Harrison 19, Mark Gross, Oliver Jones, Fred Hersch, Laszlo Gardony, Kenny Barron, Jacky Terrasson, Edward Simon, Scott Newman, Ben Monder, and RJ and the Association. "Jazz Unlimited" can be heard from 9:00 pm to midnight Sundays on KWMU (90.7 FM) or online at http://www.news.stlpublicradio.org.

Crowd-Funding Countdown: The Jazz Session, The Stage at KDHX, Tommy Halloran

Three crowd-funding campaigns of possible interest to StLJN readers are scheduled to end in the next few days:

* The Jazz Session is a series of podcast interviews of jazz musicians conducted by Jason Crane. After more than 400 episodes, Crane ended the series last year, but now is seeking to restart it with a funding assist from listeners via Kickstarter.

Crane hopes to raise $6,000 with the campaign, and will use it to produce 12 expanded monthly episodes of the podcast over the next year. Premiums for contributing include free music on MP3 or CD, in-show acknowledgements, and chances to attend a taping or even guest on a future episode.

You can hear an audio endorsement of Crane's effort by none other than Sonny Rollins here, and see some additional endorsements and promotional videos for the campaign here. The campaign ends on July 31 and so far, Crane has raised $3,436 toward the goal.

* KDHX (88.1 FM) continues their campaign to raise $50,000 through Kickstarter to build a performance stage at the station's new headquarters in Grand Center. The facility would seat 125 in a "listening room" atmosphere. Premiums for the campaign range from various KDHX branded items on up to a "Golden Ticket" good for admission to any show there, ever.

There's a little less than week left until the fund-raising effort ends at 12:00 p.m. CDT on Friday, July 26, and the station has $15,305 as of this writing.

* Guitarist and singer Tommy Halloran is in the final days of an Indiegogo campaign to raise $3,500 to record, master and duplicate a CD by his band Guerilla Swing. With the campaign scheduled to end at midnight this Saturday, July 20, Halloran has raised $2,622 to date.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* The Frontenac Grill, which frequently featured live jazz on Wednesday evenings and Saturday afternoons, has closed.

* Quartette Humaine, the new album from saxophonist David Sanborn and pianist Bob James, was reviewed by Mike Joyce of Jazz Times and Curt Davenport of Curt's Jazz Cafe.

Meanwhile, C. Andrew Hovan of AllAboutJazz.com reviewed Sanborn & James' set last month at the San Francisco Jazz Festival.

* Oliver Lake was in Oakland last week for four gigs featuring four different lineups of musicians. His evening of duets with Roscoe Mitchell was reviewed by Richard Scheinin of the San Jose Mercury News, while Lake's show with saxophonist Philip Greenlief and guitarist Ross Hammond was the subject of a post, with photos, by blogger Mark Pino of Disaster Amnesiac.

* The Post-Dispatch's Sarah Bryan Miller looked at the impact of Terence Blanchard's Champion on the recently concluded season of Opera Theater of St. Louis.

* Saxophonist and one-time Webster University student John Zorn is celebrating his 60th birthday this year with a variety of concerts and recordings, as chronicled in recent feature stories from the New York Times and Jewish Week. This weekend, Zorn is performing with guests including Mike Patton, Marc Ribot and Trevor Dunn at the Barbican in London.

* KDHX (88.1 FM) has launched a Kickstarter campaign raising funds to build a stage at the station's new headquarters in Grand Center, just a few doors down from Jazz at the Bistro. The live performance space will seat 125 people for what's being called "an intimate listening room experience."

Premiums for contributions to the campaign include everything from a t-shirt (pictured) on up to private parties at the venue and even naming rights for the green rooms. The goal is to raise $50,000 by July 26; as of this writing, the campaign has attracted 79 backers who have pledged $3,762. 

* Continuing with our radio update, this Saturday's edition of Calvin Wilson's "Somethin' Else", will feature the latest music from guitarists Bill Frisell, Pat Metheny and John Scofield. Right after that, Jason Church's "The Jazz Collective" will showcase tracks from trumpeter Dawn Weber's new project, plus music from Christian McBride, Peet Project, Spyro Gyra, David Sanborn and Ramsey Lewis.

Wilson's show is broadcast at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays and Church's at 9:00 p.m. on Radio Arts Foundation - St. Louis via 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2 and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

Lindy Hop St. Louis launches Kickstarter campaign to fund Cherokee St. Jazz Crawl

Lindy Hop St. Louis has launched a Kickstarter campaign to help fund some additional public programming for this year's Nevermore Jazz Ball & St. Louis Swing Dance Festival

Scheduled for Thursday, November 1 through Sunday, November 4, the Nevermore Jazz Ball will include music and swing dancing events held over four days at several different local venues. The Kickstarter campaign is raising money specifically to pay musicians for the Cherokee Street Jazz Crawl, a new addition to this year's Ball that will feature "at least five jazz and swing bands in various venues up and down Cherokee Street" during the lunch/brunch hour on Saturday, November 3.

The Jazz Crawl "will be a free and open-to-the-public event, and that is why we have needed to fund this aspect in other ways," said Christian Frommelt, president of Lindy Hop St. Louis, in an email to StLJN. Though the specific line-up of bands and venues for the Jazz Crawl is officially TBA, at least two local bands that we've seen - Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes and Wack-A-Doo - have posted information online suggesting that they'll be participating. Frommelt also said he's spoken to the St. Louis Jazz Club about having them sponsor a traditional jazz band, though there's been no agreement reached as of this writing.

The campaign's goal is to raise $1,800 by Saturday, October 6. Rewards for pledging include free CDs from St. Louis swing bands; various items of Lindy Hop St. Louis merchandise; and passes for free swing dance classes and for the entire Nevermore Jazz Ball series of events. For more information or to make a pledge, see the event's Kickstarter page.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Pianist Vijay Iyer (pictured), who will be in St. Louis next week to play Wednesday, March 14 through Saturday, March 17 at Jazz at the Bistro, had a few words this week with the Post-Dispatch's Calvin Wilson.

* Last Sunday's St. Louis Record Collector and CD Show was the subject of a post by Thomas Crone for St. Louis magazine's Look/Listen blog.

* Saxophonist Tom Braxton will be singer Denise Thimes' featured guest at her annual Mother's Day concert, which is set for 5:30 p.m., Sunday, May 13 at the Sheldon Concert Hall. Tickets are $30 and $40 via MetroTix; there's also an option for dinner before the show, which costs an additional $35 and will take place from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. in the Spiering Room on the Sheldon's third floor.

* Here's a video excerpt from last Sunday's concert featuring the Funky Butt Brass Band teaming up with the Meramec Community College Symphonic Band for large-scale renditions of some New Orleans and Mardi Gras favorites.

* Saxophonist Michael Ferrante, a senior at Fort Zumwalt West Senior High School in O’Fallon, MO, has been selected for the 2012 Jazz Band of America. The group is a national ensemble presented by Music for All and sponsored by the Jazz Education Network. They will rehearse and perform under the direction of bassist/composer John Clayton for a concert next Friday, March 16 at Butler University in Indianapolis. Ferrante also is a member of the Missouri All-State Jazz Band and the Jazz St. Louis All-Stars.

* In recent months, StLJN has made several mentions of Kickstarter, the website that helps musicians, artists and others fund various types of creative projects. For example, saxophonist and St. Louis native Eric Person used it to fund an upcoming album project, and a rep from Kickstarter will be in St. Louis on Monday, March 19 to present a workshop on how to use the site most effectively.

Now, jazz fans have a chance to use Kickstarter to come to the aid of a seminal figure of 1960s free jazz, saxophonist Giuseppe Logan. Logan, best known for his 1964 ESP-Disk release The Giuseppe Logan Quartet, has had some hard times in the ensuing decades, at one point disappearing from public view for more than 30 years.

Some friends and fellow musicians, including bassist Larry Roland, pianist Cooper Moore and electric violinist Tracy Silverman, recently recorded music for a limited-edition vinyl album, with the proceeds intended to pay for repairs to Logan's horn and provide additional assistance to him. Although the recording already is completed, they're now trying to raise funds through Kickstarter for mastering and pressing. You can read more about the project, which is accepting pledges of support through April 30, here.

Kickstarter rep to present "crowd funding" workshop on Monday, March 19 at RAC

A representative from Kickstarter, the website that bills itself as "the world’s largest funding platform for creative projects," is coming to St. Louis to headline a workshop on "crowd funding" for artists.

Stephanie Pereira, Kickstarter's director of art programs, will be the featured presenter at the event, which will take place at 7:00 p.m., Monday March 19 at the offices of the Regional Arts Commission (RAC), 6128 Delmar (across from the Pageant).

Founded in 2009, Kickstarter says they've helped launch more than 13,000 creative projects so far. For example, saxophonist and St. Louis native Eric Person recently used the site to raise money for his next recording project.

Pereira's presentation will include information on how to structure a project, what kind of rewards to offer supporters, and "other helpful tips and valuable stats." She'll be followed by a panel of three local artists who previously have used Kickstarter for their own projects.

The event is presented by RAC, Contemporary Museum St. Louis and St. Louis Volunteer Lawyers and Accountants for the Arts, and is free and open to the public.

(Edited after posting to add a link.)

Seeking funds for his next project via Kickstarter, Eric Person joins growing crowd of creative types

Saxophonist Eric Person is down to the last week of his Kickstarter campaign to fund his proposed next album Thoughts on God-Project of Hope.

The 48-year-old St. Louis native, who has performed with jazz luminaries including McCoy Tyner, Dave Holland, Chico Hamilton, and the World Saxophone Quartet, so far has attracted 110 backers who have pledged $10,597 toward his $20,580 Kickstarter goal. That figure represents the amount Person will need to produce the CD, including recording studio time, mixing, mastering, and manufacturing, as well as rehearsal and recording fees for a dozen musicians.

He first conceived the project way back in 1987, and decided to try to make it a reality now after seeing other jazz musicians successfully fund recording projects through Kickstarter, a website that calls itself "the world's largest funding platform for creative projects."

Under the Kickstarter model, "a project must reach its funding goal before time runs out or no money changes hands....Creators aren’t expected to develop their project without necessary funds, and it allows anyone to test concepts without risk." Each creator determines what funders will receive, and depending on the project and amount pledged, the backer's rewards may range from an autographed copy of the finished product to a public credit in the liner notes to more elaborate customized thanks, like a private live performance.

Person, who previously has recorded eight CDs as a leader, has not only written the music but also already has a cast of players in mind, including himself and Craig Bailey on alto saxophones; Patience Higgins and Sylvester Scott on tenor saxophones; James Zollar and Duane Eubanks on trumpets; and Curtis Hasselbring on trombone, with a rhythm section including Brian Carrott (vibraphone), Adam Klipple (keyboards), Corcoran Holt (bass) and Shinnosuke Takahashi (drums). You can see and hear Person speak about Thoughts on God-Project of Hope in the video in the embedded window below.

Although Person is using Kickstarter as a vehicle for a personal pet project of long standing, he's just one of a number of well-known musicians, artists, technologists and other creative individuals turning to the site as a way to raise money for all sorts of endeavors.

For example, pianist Matthew Shipp, who performed in St. Louis in October, is working with multimedia artist and filmmaker Barbara Januszkiewicz on funding an independent film called The Composer through Kickstarter. Saxophonist Azar Lawrence, who's played with major artists such as McCoy Tyner, Freddie Hubbard and Miles Davis, is seeking funding for a live CD of his original music to be recorded at the Jazz Standard in NYC. And the producers of Mingus on Mingus, a documentary on the legendary bassist and composer Charles Mingus to be directed by his grandson Kevin Ellington Mingus, also currently are trying to raise money via Kickstarter.

It'll be interesting to see what role Kickstarter and other novel funding ideas can play going forward in the creation and dissemination of new music. In the meantime, it provides a way for even those of modest means to support projects of interest without much risk. Here's hoping Person makes his goal, and perhaps StLJN's always-perspicacious readers will show a little hometown love to help him get there...