Oikos Ensemble's "Follow That Star: A Jazz Nativity" to be performed on Saturday, December 8 and Sunday, December 9

Though it's still a couple of weeks before Halloween, early harbingers of the Christmas season already are in the air, including the first announcement of a holiday-themed performance to hit StLJN's inbox this fall:  The Oikos Ensemble, featuring saxophonist Rev. Cliff Aerie (pictured) and his daughter, vocalist Arianna Aerie, will be returning to St. Louis again this year to team with local musicians for performances of the Christmas show “Follow That Star: A Jazz Nativity.”

This is the second year the Aeries have brought the production to St. Louis. (You can see some video highlights from last year's edition here.) This year's performances of "Follow That Star: A Jazz Nativity" will take place at 3:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. Saturday, December 8 and 3:00 p.m. Sunday, December 9, at First Congregational Church United Church of Christ, 10 W. Lockwood in Webster Groves.

Cliff Aerie, an ordained United Church of Christ minister, leads the Oikos Ensemble as a national jazz ministry. He and Arianna Aerie will be joined in St. Louis by singer Kim Massie, trumpeter Danny Campbell, pianist Carolbeth True, bassist Dave Troncoso, and drummer Kevin Gianino, with former KTVI and KDNL news presenter Gina Kurre as MC. 

"Follow That Star: A Jazz Nativity" is free and open to the public, no reservations are required, and parking is available on the lot next to the church and nearby.

Donations will be accepted to benefit the St. Louis Back Stoppers Inc. and Joplin Relief Tornado Fund. Concertgoers also are encouraged to bring nonperishable food items for the Webster‐Rock Hill Ministries Food Pantry and canned or bagged pet food for the Bi‐State Pet Food Pantry.  The performances are sponsored by The Missouri Mid‐South Conference United Church of Christ with underwriting support by the Deaconess Foundation.

Jazz this week: Joe McPhee, Old Webster Jazz & Blues Festival, St. Louis Jazz Club's annual picnic, and more

There's a touch of fall in the air here in St. Louis, and along with cooler weather, this weekend also will feature plenty of noteworthy jazz and creative music performances. Let's go the highlights:

Tonight, guitarist Daryl Darden, back home from the West Coast for an extended visit, plays a free concert for the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University, and saxophonist Jim Stevens has the early evening slot at BB's Jazz, Blues and Soups.

On Friday, singer Kim Massie returns to Jazz at the Bistro for the first evening of a two-night stand. If you're planning on heading down, don't forget that the Bistro's new set times of 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. are now in effect for all shows.

Also on Friday, a group billed as the Pleasant Tones Trio, with pianist Dave Becherer, drummer Gary Sykes and bassist Daryl Mixon, will be at Robbie's House of Jazz, and guitarist Dave Black's trio plays at the Cigar Inn in Belleville.

On Saturday, there's a variety of musical choices, starting with this year's edition of the annual Old Webster Jazz and Blues Festival in downtown Webster Groves. The free, all-day outdoor event begins at noon and will feature performances from young blues singer/guitarist Marquise Knox, singer-songwriter Javier Mendoza's "Latin jazz" ensemble, the Funky Butt Brass Band, Webster University's jazz faculty ensemble, the Webster Groves High School jazz band, Alvin Jett and Phat Noiz, Jim Stevens, guitarist Tom Byrne's Pat Metheny tribute Have U Heard? and more.

That evening, the free-improvising multi-instrumentalist Joe McPhee (pictured) and his group Survival Unit III, with cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm and percussionist Michael Zerang, will perform at Kranzberg Arts Center in a concert sponsored by New Music Circle. For much more about McPhee and a selection of videos featuring him, see this post.

Also on Saturday evening, singer Denise Thimes performs at the Grand Opera House in St. Charles in a benefit for the United Way; guitarist Matthew Von Doran plays with his trio at Music Folk; and saxophonist Michael Fitzgerald returns to the Halls Ferry Inn Jazz Cafe.

On Sunday afternoon, the St. Louis Jazz Club will have its annual picnic at the Concord Farmers Club, 10140 Concord School Rd, featuring music by the New Orleans R&B cover band Gumbohead, Time and Place, and Banjos & Brass.

Also on Sunday afternoon, Matthew Von Doran will present a guitar clinic at Music Folk, and that evening, pianist Phil Gomez and his Latin jazz band Clave Sol will play at BB's.

Looking beyond the weekend, on Monday bassist Willem von Hombrecht will lead a quartet in a concert at Webster University's Winifred Moore Auditorium , and drummer Joe Pastor's trio will perform at BB's.

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 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, Steve Ross, and more

Thanksgiving isn't usually a big weekend for jazz concerts here in St. Louis, but there are a couple of noteworthy headliners visiting town over the next few days, as well as the customary assortment of local gigs for your listening enjoyment.

Most notably, trumpeter, singer and University City native Jeremy Davenport (pictured) will continue what's become a Thanksgiving weekend tradition over the last few years, returning home from his current base in New Orleans to play Friday and Saturday at Jazz at the Bistro. For more about Davenport and some video clips of him in action, see this post.

Also, just around the corner from the Bistro, singer and pianist Steve Ross will be previewing his new cabaret show "Rhythm and Romance" on Friday and Saturday at the Kranzberg Arts Center. Ross will take the show to NYC's famed Algonquin Hotel in January, but was cajoled by our town's Presenters Dolan into giving St. Louis audiences a sneak peek.

Elsewhere around town, Robbie's House of Jazz will feature singer Kim Massie on Wednesday evening, and then will be closed for the rest of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend; and The Sands will present Banjos and Brass on Friday night, trumpeter Joe Bozzi and his band on Saturday afternoon, and pianist Bob Row's trio on Sunday.

Other regular gigs that should be happening around town this weekend include include saxophonist Dave Stone's at Mangia Italiano on Friday; Willie Akins' matinee at Spruill's on Saturday; Jim Manley for Sunday brunch at Jimmy's On The Park; and the Voodoo Blues Band's Sunday afternoon jam at Hammerstone's. Looking beyond the weekend, on Monday, CertainBeat WorldBop returns to BB's Jazz Blues and Soups, and on Tuesday, Robbie's will feature their weekly jazz jam.

StLJN will be on a holiday posting schedule for the next couple of days, but 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 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.)

St. Louis musicians join forces for two upcoming concerts

Catching up with our email inbox, StLJN recently received word of two upcoming shows featuring collaborative efforts from St. Louis musicians:

* Saxophonists Michael Anthony Fitzgerald and Readus Miller (pictured), keyboardist Jeremiah Allen and singer Anita Jackson will join forces for a concert at 7:00 p.m. this coming Sunday, October 3 at the Starlight Room, inside Lights On Broadway at 8350 N. Broadway.

The idea of putting several featured performers together in a package show seems to work well for many touring artists mining the same smooth jazz/R&B territory as these four St. Louisans, and hearing about this show makes one wonder why more local musicians haven't tried the same idea. Tickets for the Fitzgerald/Miller/Allen/Jackson "Jazz Cabaret on Broadway" are available online and at the Fox Theatre box office and all Metrotix locations, or for more information call 314-616-9418.

* Meanwhile, singer and philanthropist Mae Wheeler, ably abetted by longtime production manager AJ Dickerson, will present "Unforgettable Legends" at 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, October 31 at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

Appropriately for Halloween, the show will feature St. Louis performers paying tribute to musical legends including Louis Armstrong, Elvis Presley, Mongo Santamaria, Michael Jackson, Lena Horne, and many more, with a talent roster including Oliver Johnson, Kim Massie, Steve Davis, Wendy Gordon, Carmen Emborski and plenty of others. Proceeds will benefit Wheeler's scholarship fund for C-average students, and tickets are on sale now via Metrotix.

O'Fallon Park concert series to begin Wednesday, July 7

The City of St. Louis and 21st Ward Alderman Antonio French have announced the schedule for a free series of summer concerts featuring local performers that will begin Wednesday, July 7 at O'Fallon Park

Booked with an assist from the Sheldon Concert Hall, it's billed as a jazz series, but that's something of a misnomer, as the lineup actually includes more blues, soul and R&B performers than jazz acts. But category error notwithstanding, it's a talented group of performers that should make for entertaining listening, and of course, it's free, so further carping seems pointless. Here's the schedule:

July 7: Mardra and Reggie Thomas Quartet
July 14: Kim Massie
July 21: Jonathan Whiting Trio
July 28: Rich McDonough and Rough Grooves
August 4: Coco Soul
August 11: Bosman Twins
August 18: Denise Thimes (pictured)
August 25: Brian Owens

O'Fallon Park is located just south of I-70 in North St. Louis at the intersection of W. Florissant and E. Harris avenues. All concerts will begin at 6:00 p.m. and are free and open to the public. Concertgoers are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and/or blankets.

Jazz this week: Michael Buble, Kim Massie, Brave Combo, and more

St. Louis may be without a major jazz festival this June, but fortunately there's enough other activity this weekend that many fans of jazz and creative music can probably find something to their liking.

It looks like the busiest night of the next few is Friday; that's when singer Michael Buble (pictured), who's arguably a jazz-influenced pop singer rather than a jazz singer per se, brings his current tour to the Scottrade Center, and singer Kim Massie opens a two-night engagement at Jazz at the Bistro

That same evening, pianist Carolbeth True performs at the Foundry Arts Centre in St Charles, and the Funky Butt Brass Band will be at the St. Louis Art Museum for a free "Art After 5" concert. (You can see some video of the FBBB in action here.)

Also of interest on Friday is the return to St. Louis of perennial favorites Brave Combo, who will be playing at The Gramophone. While they're not really a jazz group either, the band's eclectic mix of "salsa, meringue, rock, cumbia, conjunto, polka, zydeco, classical, cha cha, the blues and more" usually makes for interesting listening as well as providing fun, danceable beats.

Elsewhere this weekend Robbie's House of Jazz will feature house band the Robert Edwards Ensemble on Friday, with the Christopher Braig Caribbean Trio taking the stage on Saturday.

Also on Saturday: the Presenters Dolan will feature singer Christy Simmons performing her cabaret show "'Cause I'm A Woman" at the Kranzberg Arts Center, backed by pianist Joe Dreyer, bassist Dave Troncoso and drummer Clancy Newell; and, for the more cacophonously inclined, Open Lot offers "an invasion of synths, violins, and incredible noise from the north" with Stare Case, Dog Lady, Steve Kenney and Maths Balance Volumes.

BB's Jazz Blues and Soups also has a couple of jazz-related acts coming up, with Good 4 The Soul playing the early set on Sunday, and bassist David Certain's CertainBeat WorldBop, featuring saxophonists James Warfield Jr. and Willie Dineen and drummer Stan Hale, on Monday.

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 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.)

Steve Schankman launching new concert series at the JCC starting Friday, May 21

When St. Louis music mogul Steve Schankman and partners closed Finale Music and Dining at the end of 2007, Schankman said he'd look for a location to re-open the club, which seemed to be doing good business but lost its lease when the building it was in was sold.

It's taken a couple of years, but Schankman will be back presenting some of the same acts that were favorites at Finale later this month via "ENCORE! Stars Shine at the J," a new performance series starting Friday, May 21 at the Jewish Community Center (JCC), 1138 North Warson Road.

The press release issued today by Schankman's Contemporary Productions says the series is a collaboration between Schankman and Michael Staenberg, JCC Board Chair and President of THF Realty, which also has been a corporate sponsor for Jazz St. Louis for a number of years.

Contemporary's Kelly McMahon tells StLJN that the initial series of shows will be staged in JCC's Carl & Helene Mirowitz Performing Arts Center, which seats about 200 people when set up cabaret style. McMahon said they're also looking at the possibility of presenting some future shows in the JCC's Marvin & Harlene Wool Studio Theater, which seats about 125 in a fixed, theater-style configuration. Both spaces are located in the JCC's new Arts & Education Building, which opened in March of this year.

The Encore series will kick off on Friday, May 21 with The Sinatra Songbook featuring Tom Heitman and Schankman's own Orchestra, followed on Saturday, May 22 by Schankman's other personal musical project, the Fabulous Motown Review. Other bookings so far include singer/actor/impressionist Dean Christopher's "Rat Pack & More" (pictured, Friday, June 11); an Earth, Wind & Fire tribute by Arvell & Co. (Friday, June 18); and singers Kim Massie (Saturday, July 17) and Erin Bode (Saturday, July 24).

Show time will be 7:30 p.m., and ticket prices range from $20 to $40 depending on the artist and type of seating. Tickets for the "ENCORE!" Series are now on sale online at Ticketmaster.com, by phone at 800-745-3000 and at all Ticketmaster outlets. For more information, see the JCC's website at www.jccstl.com or Contemporary Productions' website at www.contemporaryproductions.com.

The news release also said that more show announcements would be coming soon. Here's hoping that, in addition to vocalists, Schankman and Staenberg also will be presenting some instrumentalists and jazz players of the same caliber as those who appeared at Finale, which offered some fairly big names, including guitarist Stanley Jordan and organist Brian Auger, as well as local and regional jazz performers.

Schankman may be best known as a shrewd businessman, but he's also a musician - trumpet is his instrument - and a philanthropically inclined jazz lover who in 2008 gave $50,000 to support jazz education at the University of Missouri St. Louis, so there's some reason for optimism. Watch this space for news of further developments...

(Edited after posting to fix a typo and clarify a garbled sentence.)

Jazz St. Louis announces summer schedule for Jazz at the Bistro

Jazz St. Louis has announce the summer 2010 schedule for Jazz at the Bistro, and it's a lineup filled with return appearances and weighted toward singers, with vocalists filling four of the nine summer weekends the Bistro will be open.

There also will be a couple of less-familiar faces, as smooth jazz saxophonist Tim Cunningham will play the club in June for the first time in recent memory, and the up-and-coming trumpeter Keyon Harrold (pictured) will make his Bistro debut as a leader with a CD release event in July.

Here's the schedule:

Friday, June 4 & Saturday, June 5: Brian Owens
Friday, June 11 Saturday, June 12: Denise Thimes
Friday, June 18 & Saturday, June 19: Tim Cunningham
Friday, June 25 & Saturday, June 26: Kim Massie
Thursday, July 1 - Saturday, July 3: Erin Bode CD release event
Friday, July 9 & Saturday, July 10: Good 4 the Soul
Friday, July 16 & Saturday, July 17: Reggie Thomas Trio
Friday, July 23 & Saturday, July 24: Legacy Jazz Quintet
Friday, July 30 & Saturday, July 31: Keyon Harrold Quartet CD release event

In addition to the CD release events for Bode and Harrold, two other shows will have themes, with Reggie Thomas playing the music of Duke Ellington and the Legacy Jazz Quintet playing "the music of the Harlem Renaissance," which I guess could mean just about any jazz recorded in New York during the 1920s and 1930s.

Tickets will be priced at $15 for Tim Cunningham and for the Legacy Jazz Quartet, and $20 for all the other performances. Tickets go on sale at 10:00 a.m. Tuesday, May 11, and can be purchased via Metrotix or by calling the Jazz St. Louis box office at 314-289-4030.

(Edited after posting to fix a typo.)

Two spring/summer concert series announce schedules

The schedules have been announced for the Missouri History Museum's spring Twilight Tuesdays and for the fourth annual Whitaker Urban Evenings series, and while neither has much in the way of straight-ahead jazz, both will offer some concerts of potential interest to jazz fans in the St. Louis area.

The Twilight Tuesdays series starts next Tuesday, April 27 with R&B vocal group L.L.C., and will include shows from the Latin band El Caribe Tropical (May 4), singer Anita Rosamond (May 18, pictured), and the Sinatra Songbook featuring the Steve Schankman Orchestra (May 25). The free concerts take place starting at 6:30 p.m. each Tuesday through June 8 on the front lawn of the History Museum in Forest Park. For more information and a complete schedule, visit the History Museum's website.

Meanwhile, the Whitaker Urban Evening Series, which happens at St. Louis Place Park, Rauschenbach Avenue and St. Louis Avenue, has a lineup that will include singer Kim Massie (June 10), Brazilian music group Samba Bom (June 17) and the Funky Butt Brass Band (July 8). Performances will begin at 7:00 p.m. Thursdays starting with Massie's June 10 show and continuing through July 15. Admission is free; for more information and a complete schedule, visit the website of series co-sponsors Grace Hill.

St. Louis Musicians for Haiti concert telecast re-running this month on HEC-TV

HEC-TV has scheduled reruns of the telecast of last month's St. Louis Musicians for Haiti benefit concert for 5:00 p.m. every Saturday night in March. HEC-TV can be found on Channel 26 of cable systems in the St. Louis area and on AT&T U-Verse's channel 99.

The event at the Sheldon Concert Hall raised more than $20,000 for Doctors Without Borders' efforts to provide relief in the earthquake-stricken Caribbean nation. It was hosted by author and former TV newsman Julius Hunter and featured performances from Brian Owens, Mayor Taylor, the Bottoms Up Blues Gang, Peter Martin, Mardra and Reggie Thomas, Kim Massie, Christine Brewer and Peter Henderson.

You can see a promo for the HEC production on the channel's website.

Benefit at Sheldon Concert Hall raises more than $20,000 for Haitian relief

A news release issued today says that last Tuesday's benefit at the Sheldon Concert Hall raised more than $20,000 for Doctors Without Borders’ relief efforts in Haiti.

The “St. Louis Musicians for Haiti” concert was hosted by longtime St. Louis broadcaster Julius Hunter and featured performances from singer Brian Owens, folk group Mayor Taylor, the Bottoms Up Blues Gang, pianist Peter Martin, singer Mardra Thomas and pianist Reggie Thomas, singer Kim Massie, pianist Peter Henderson and singer Christine Brewer. Dozens of St. Louis visual artists also donated works which were sold to raise money for the cause.

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international medical humanitarian organization working in more than 60 countries to assist people whose survival is threatened by violence, neglect, or catastrophe.

The concert was aired live on local cable and the Web by HEC-TV, and you can see a recap of it at http://www.hectv.org/#.

Haiti relief benefit to be shown on HEC-TV

Tickets for the St. Louis Musicians for Haiti benefit at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, February 9 at the Sheldon Concert Hall are sold out, but the event will be televised on HEC-TV (Channel 26/AT&T U-Verse Channel 99) and shown online at www.hectv.org.

Hosted by author and former TV newscaster Julius Hunter and featuring singer Brian Owens, folk group Mayor Taylor, the Bottoms Up Blues Gang, pianist Peter Martin, Mardra and Reggie Thomas, singer Kim Massie, singer Christine Brewer and pianist Peter Henderson, the event will raise money for the Haitian earthquake relief efforts of Doctors Without Borders.

Sheldon Concert Hall to present Haitian relief benefit on Tuesday, February 9

A diverse group of St. Louis musicians will take the stage of the Sheldon Concert Hall at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, February 9 to raise money for Doctors Without Borders’ Haitian earthquake relief efforts.

“St. Louis Musicians for Haiti” will feature jazz, blues, soul, folk, classical and more, from a lineup that 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.

Tickets are $15 for general admission, and will go on sale at 10:00 a.m. Saturday, January 16. You can purchase tickets via metrotix.com or by calling 314-534-1111. For more information, call The Sheldon at 314-533-9900 during normal weekday business hours, which are 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Jazz this week: Bob Borgestede memorial concert, Kim Massie, McMoore Movement, Mardra and Reggie Thomas, and more

With at least a momentary break from the winter deep freeze, it should be a good weekend in St. Louis to get out and hear some music. And while there are no major touring headliners in town this week, there are some noteworthy performances featuring local and regional musicians, so let's go to the highlights:

Tonight, singer Erin Bode and her band return to Brandt's. Bode worked frequently at the Delmar Loop nightspot when she first began her career, and the overall vibe of Brandt's still seems like a good fit for her music, although her fan base has grown to the point of likely overwhelming such an intimate venue. If you hope to get a good seat, I'd suggest getting there early.

On Friday, there's a memorial concert honoring the late guitarist Bob Borgestede at the Rialto Ballroom, 3547 Olive St., just east of Grand. A well-liked and seemingly always busy performer and teacher, Borgestede passed away in 2007, leaving a wife and young son. His friends and colleagues will celebrate his life (and, it is hoped, raise a little money) with sounds from the Funky Butt Brass Band (pictured), the pop/soul cover band Arvell & Co., and faculty members from SIUE, UMSL and Southwestern Illinois College, where Borgestede studied and/or taught music.

Also on Friday, singer Kim Massie begins a two-night stand at Jazz at the Bistro, where her renditions of blues, soul and pop songs, plus the occasional unexpected cover like Gretchen Wilson's "Redneck Woman," are always a good draw.

That same night, Robbies House of Jazz will feature the St. Louis debut of the McMoore Movement, a group of young musicians who met while studying in saxophonist Ronald Carter's jazz program at Northern Illinois University. The group plays a mix of straight-ahead and groove-oriented tunes, and features alto saxophonist Chris McBride, trumpeter John Moore, Jr., keyboardist Willerm Delisfort, guitarist Larry Brown, Jr., and drummer Bernard Long, Jr. The club's house band, the Robert Edwards Ensemble, will hold forth on Saturday night.

On Sunday, singer Mardra Thomas and pianist Reggie Thomas will perform a free concert at Second Baptist Church kicking off the second half of the St. Louis Jazz and Blues Vespers season.

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.)

Jazz St. Louis announces more bookings for Jazz at the Bistro

Jazz St. Louis has announced the lineup of local bands and musicians who will round out the schedule for Jazz at the Bistro during the first part of 2010.

Note that all of these bookings are in addition to the season schedule of touring artists previously announced.

Here's what's on tap for the new year:

Friday, January 15 & Saturday, January 16:
Kim Massie

Friday, January 29 & Saturday, January 30:
Brian Owens

Friday, February 12 - Sunday, February 14:
Mardra & Reggie Thomas

Friday, February 26 & Saturday, February 27:
The Bosman Twins (pictured)

Friday, March 12 & Saturday, March 13:
Funky Butt Brass Band

Friday, March 26 & Saturday, March 27:
Musica Slesa

Friday, April 23 & Saturday, April 24:
Erin Bode

Friday, May 7 & Saturday, May 8:
Jazz St. Louis All-Stars

Friday, May 21 & Saturday, May 22:
Legacy Jazz Quintet plays the music of Miles Davis

Show times at 8:30 p.m. and 10:15 p.m., except for Sunday, February 14, when there will be only one show at 8:30 p.m. Tickets for all events go on sale at 10:00 a.m. Tuesday, December 8 via Metrotix or through the Jazz St. Louis box office at 314-289-4030.

(Edited after posting to fix a formatting problem.)

Fundraising events to combine jazz, visual art

Two St. Louis not-for-profit presenters have announced upcoming fundraising events involving jazz and the visual arts.

Jazz St. Louis will present a meet-and-greet and art sale with artist Russell Kraus on Friday, August 28 at Jazz at the Bistro, 3536 Washington Ave. The 91-year-old Kraus is a St. Louisan who's known both as a graphic designer - he created the famous red and white logo for Budweiser - and for his work in posters, jewelry, mosaics, and paintings.

Kraus will be showing and selling about 30 of his works at the event, which begins with a private reception at 7:00 p.m. and opens to the public at 8:00 p.m. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Jazz St. Louis' education programs. To RSVP, call Melissa Jones at 314-289-4037 or send email to melissa@jazzstl.

Meanwhile, the Sheldon has scheduled "ArtSounds: Blues & Bling," described as "an exciting interactive music and art event" for 7:00 p.m. Thursday, November 19 at the Sheldon Art Galleries.

The event will feature the premiere of "a new blues-based composition by Sheldon Executive Director and composer Paul Reuter, performed by acclaimed jazz and blues singer Kim Massie," as well as cocktails, hors d’ouevres and dessert. Upper level patrons also will receive a commemorative limited-edition signed bottle of wine with label design by Berlin artist Jessika Miekeley.

Tickets for the Sheldon's "ArtSounds" event range in price from $75 to $500, and can be purchased by calling Lauren Schwartz at 314-533-9900, ext. 17. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Sheldon Art Galleries' educational programs.

(Edited 8/25/09 to fix typos.)

Jazz St. Louis benefit scheduled for Thursday, June 25 at SOL Lounge

A benefit event for Jazz St. Louis will be held from 6:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. on Thursday, June 25 at SOL Lounge, 4241 Lindell Blvd in west St. Louis. "Dr. Matt German’s SOLful Evening of Jazz" will feature drinks made with Stoli vodka; appetizers from Bar Italia, Bryan Young, and Agave; a silent auction; and live music from the Jazz St. Louis All-Stars, Gene Dobbs Bradford and the Blues Inquisition, and Kim Massie.

Tickets are $25 in advance, $35 at the door, and proceeds will benefit the programs of Jazz St. Louis. For more information or to purchase tickets, call 314-289-4037 or send an email to melissa@jazzstl.org.

Jazz this week: Glendale Jazz Festival, Kim Massie, Matthew Von Doran, and more

With Memorial Day weekend coming up, it's a relatively light few days in the offing for live jazz and creative music in St. Louis. Moreover, with StLJN HQ still in recovery mode after a computer crash Tuesday night, yr. humble editor has his hands full right now with software re-installs, restoring files from backup, and similar fun-inducing tasks. Still, there are a few noteworthy shows on tap this weekend, so here's a brief look:

The tenth annual Glendale Jazz Festival is this Friday night at the city hall complex in Glendale. This year's event will feature music from the St. Louis Stompers, singer Denise Thimes, and Terry Thompson's band Swing Alive with vocalist Dean Christopher, plus jazz radio personality Don Wolff as MC. It's free and open to the public.

On Friday and Saturday, singer Kim Massie is at Jazz at the Bistro, while the St. Louis Jazz Cafe this weekend will feature saxophonist Readus Miller on Thursday, the Sky West Trio on Friday, and 3 Central on Saturday.

Singer Erin Bode has a busy weekend planned, with a gig at Cyrano's in Webster Groves tonight, a free show on Saturday afternoon at the Crestwood Court mall, another show that same night at Peppertini's in Chesterfield, and a Sunday afternoon performance at the Blumenhof Winery in Dutzow.

Looking beyond the weekend, on Tuesday night, guitarist Matthew Von Doran (pictured) will do a free show at The Gramophone.

For 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.)

Riverfront Times announces 2009 Music Award nominees

The Riverfront Times has announced the slate of nominees for its 2009 Music Awards. The nominees this year in the "Best Jazz" category are tenor/soprano saxophonist Willie Akins, baritone saxophonist Hamiet Bluiett, singer Erin Bode, tenor saxophonist/multi-reedman Dave Stone, and singer Jeanne Trevor.

Some names familiar to StLJN readers popped up in other categories, too - both the Funky Butt Brass Band (pictured) and trombonist, producer and "low brass" man Lamar Harris were nominated in the "Best R&B" category, and singer Kim Massie is up for the "Lifetime Achivement" award.

The winners of the RFT Music Awards are determined by reader votes, and if past patterns hold true again this year, ballots should available in the print edition of the paper starting this week, and online soon after that.

The annual Music Awards Showcase, which features live performances from many of the nominees, is scheduled for Sunday, June 7 at various sites in and around the Delmar Loop neighborhood. Voting concludes that day, and the winners should be announced the following week. For the complete list of nominees in all categories, go here, and for an FAQ that explains, among other things, how nominees were selected, go here.

(Disclosure: Like all the freelance contributing writers for the Riverfront Times, yr. humble StLJN editor was asked to offer ideas on potential nominees to music editor Annie Zaleski, who was in charge of the final winnowing. I submitted a bunch of names in several categories; as usually happens, some were nominated, and some were not. )

History Museum to host Kind of Blue tribute, "Jazz Cavalcade" with Kirk Whalum

The Missouri History Museum and Jazz St. Louis are teaming up to present a 50th anniversary tribute to Miles Davis' classic album Kind of Blue at 6:00 p.m., Thursday, May 7 in the Museum's MacDermott Grand Hall. The tribute concert will feature JSL director of education Phil Dunlap and the Legacy Jazz Quintet performing and discussing selections from Kind of Blue. Admission is free and open to the public.

The History Museum's just-announced Twilight Tuesdays series of free outdoor concerts also has some shows of interest to jazz fans, most notably the "Jazz Cavalcade" on Tuesday, June 2. This concert will feature saxophonist Kirk Whalum; his uncle, the veteran pianist, saxophonist and singer Hugh "Peanuts" Whalum; and a group of St. Louis musicians including Jeff Anderson, Marty Morrison, Danny Campbell, Eric Slaughter and Reggie Thomas. (Fans of Kirk Whalum also should note that he'll be back in the St. Louis area in July with fellow saxophonist Gerald Albright when their "Sax for Stax" tour plays the Bottleneck Blues Bar in St. Charles.)

Other noteworthy dates in the Twilight Tuesdays series include a show on May 5 by Friendz, featuring singer Cheryl Brown, keyboardist/singer Jeremiah Allen and saxophonist Amos Brewer; and a May 12 concert by singer Kim Massie. The Twilight Tuesdays shows are free and open to the public, and begin at 6:30 p.m. on the front lawn of the History Museum, Lindell & DeBaliviere in Forest Park. For more details and a complete schedule of the spring 2009 Twilight Tuesdays concerts, go here, or call 314-454-3199 or 800-916-8212 for more information.