Jazz this week: Sean Jones Quartet, Delfeayo Marsalis & the Uptown Jazz Orchestra, Nutria, a new weekly jam session, and more

This week's calendar of live jazz and creative music in St. Louis features some top talent on trumpet and trombone, the local debut of an up-and-coming band from New Orleans, a new weekly jam session, and more. Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, February 28
Trumpeter Sean Jones returns with his quartet for the first of four nights at Jazz at the Bistro.

Jones (pictured, top left)  has been a frequent visitor to St. Louis in recent years, turning up on the Bistro's schedule almost annually, and he even recorded his most recent album for Mack Avenue Records live at the venue a couple of years ago.

In addition to his popularity as a performer, Jones over the years also has participated in a number of educational activities for Jazz St. Louis, so advance reservations are suggested in anticipation of a good turnout from former students as well as fans.

Also on Wednesday, guitarist Brian Vaccaro's trio performs at Evangeline's; the Washington University Jazz Band plays a free concert at the 560 Music Center's Pillsbury Theater; and the "Grand Center Jazz Crawl" will feature the Jazz Troubadours at The Stage at KDHX, the weekly jam session led by bassist Bob DeBoo at the Kranzberg Arts Center, and trumpeter Kasimu Taylor 's band at The Dark Room.

Thursday, March 1
Pianist Kara Baldus-Mehrmann will lead her trio in a free concert for the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University; saxophonist Arthur White brings his trio to The Dark Room; and singer Cherilyn Evans and CEEJazzSoul will perform in Chase Park Plaza's Chase Club.

Friday, March 2
Guitarist Dave Black's latest project, a trio called In Touch, performs at the house concert venue The Judson House in Grand Center, and pianist and singer Jesse Gannon and his band return to The Dark Room.

Saturday, March 3
Trombonist Delfeayo Marsalis and the Uptown Jazz Orchestra will play at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

Delfeayo, the second-youngest of the four musical Marsalis brothers, assembled the UJO a decade ago to showcase the musical traditions of New Orleans, but it wasn't until last year that the group released its first album, the pointedly titled Make America Great Again. You can find out more about Marsalis (pictured, bottom left) and the UJO and see them on video performing some of the music from that album and more in this post from last Saturday.

Also on Saturday, there's another New Orleans act in town for the night, as the group Nutria makes their St. Louis debut at Evangeline's.

Drummer Shawn Myers, bassist Trey Boudreaux and tenor saxophonist and clarinetist Byron Asher play original modern jazz compositions, exploring "traditional music of the African diaspora & Eastern Europe as well as the avant-garde," and they're playing ten Midwestern cities in March in support of their just-released new album Call To The Air.

Elsewhere around town, there's an eclectic bill of experimental and electronic music featuring Kyle Landstra, Oxherding, JoAnn McNeil and the Vernacular String Trio at the Cherokee Street art gallery Flood Plain.

Sunday, March 4
The St. Louis Record Collector and CD Show will present their spring event at the American Czech Educational Center; singer Anita Jackson performs for brunch at The Dark Room; and the Friends of Scott Joplin present their monthly "Ragtime Rendezvous" at the Scott Joplin House State Historic Site's Rosebud Cafe.

Monday, March 5
Jim Manley plays for diners at Momo's Greek Restaurant.

Tuesday, March 6
Drummer Montez Coleman and guitarist Eric Slaughter are teaming up to host "The Tuesday Night Hit," a new weekly jam session at The Dark Room.

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: A tribute to Art Blakey, TAP Dynamics, Route 66 Jazz Orchestra, and more

This week's calendar of live jazz and creative music events in St. Louis features a little cabaret, a little tap-dancing, a tribute to one of the most influential drummers and bandleaders in jazz, and more. Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, September 27
Singer and actor Kyle Dean Massey, a Missouri State University graduate who's appeared on Broadway and in ABC-TV's show Nashville, performs a cabaret-style show for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro.

Also on Wednesday, violinist Alex Cunningham performs music from his latest release atop a bill of experimental and improvisational musicians at Foam.

Thursday, September 28
Drummer Montez Coleman and guitarist Eric Slaughter will co-lead a quartet in a free concert for the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University; bassist Willem von Hombracht heads up a trio with guest saxophonist Freddie Washington at The Pat Connolly Tavern; and trumpeter Keith Moyer's quintet returns to The Dark Room.

Friday, September 29
Montez Coleman, saxophonist Ben Reece,  trumpeter Danny Campbell, bassist Bob DeBoo and pianist Adam Maness will join forces at Jazz at the Bistro for the first of two nights of "The Art of Blakey,"  paying tribute to the hard bop sound of the legendary drummer/bandleader and his Jazz Messengers.

Also on Friday, singer Tony Viviano and guitarist Dave Black will perform at Magpie's in St. Charles; Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes return to Evangeline's in the Central West End; and guitarist Tom Byrne leads a trio at Cigar Inn in Belleville.

Saturday, September 30
Dance St. Louis kicks off its 2017-18 season with the first of two performances of "TAP Dynamics" at the Grandel Theatre.  The show features dancers Jason Samuels Smith, Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards, and Derick K. Grant performing with a live jazz trio - music director and drummer Allison Miller (pictured, top left), pianist Carmen Staaf and bassist Noah Garabedian - playing original music and "favorite selections from Miles Davis." The program repeats on Sunday afternoon.

Also on Saturday, pianist Carolbeth True and Two Times True with saxophonist Larry Johnson return to the Parkside Grill, and Tropical Mood plays salsa, Latin jazz, and more at the Webster Groves Concert Hall

Sunday, October 1
Trumpeter Jim Manley and pianist Dave Venn play their monthly brunch gig at Scarlett's Wine Bar; saxophonist Tim Cunningham is back for one more matinee at Mount Pleasant Winery; and the Friends of Scott Joplin will present their monthly "Ragtime Rendezvous" at the Scott Joplin House State Historic Site's Rosebud Cafe.

Monday, October 2 
Singer Debby Lennon performs with the Jeremy Pfeffer Trio in a concert at Webster University's  Winifred Moore Auditorium.

Tuesday, October 3
The Route 66 Jazz Orchestra (pictured, bottom left) plays a show for the "Notes From Home" series at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

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 St. Louis adds shows to Bistro schedule

Jazz St. Louis has announced nine more events for the 2017-18 season at Jazz at the Bistro, filling in some gaps in the previously-announced schedule for the fall and adding one more headliner in the spring.

Three of the shows are co-productions with Cabaret Project of St. Louis, as the two organizations will team up to present singer and actor Kyle Dean Massey on Wednesday, September 27 and Thursday, September 28; actor, singer and Bellevile native Lea DeLaria (pictured), who will make her debut at the Bistro with shows on Wednesday, December 27 and Thursday, December 28; and Marilyn Maye, the 89-year-old known as the "grand dame of cabaret," on Wednesday, March 7 and Thursday, March 8.

Three other newly-scheduled events will pay tribute to jazz greats.

Drummer Montez Coleman will helm "The Art of Blakey," a celebration of the iconic drummer and his Jazz Messengers, on Friday, September 9 and Saturday, September 10, joined by saxophonist Ben Reece, trumpeter Danny Campbell, bassist Bob DeBoo, and pianist Adam Maness.

Coleman, DeBoo and Maness then will return the following month for a "Thelonious Monk Centennial" tribute on Friday, October 25 and Saturday, October 26.

Then on Wednesday, November 5, a free event titled "Duke Ellington and Film" will examine Ellington's music for film and his onscreen appearances via a talk by John Edward Hasse, curator of American music at the Smithsonian Institute, and a performance from the Jazz St. Louis Big Band.

Also added to the fall schedule are a performance by the JazzU Big Band student ensemble on Sunday, October 29, and return dates for the 1970s jazz-fusion tribute Weather Forever on Friday, November 10 and Saturday, November 11, and trumpeter Jim Manley's holiday show "A Very Manley Christmas" on Friday, December 22 and Saturday, December 23 .

Tickets for all these shows are available now via the Jazz St. Louis website.

Jazz at Holmes announces Fall 2017 schedule

The Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University has announced their schedule of free concerts for the Fall 2017 semester.

The series will begin on Thursday, September 14 with British bassist Tony Grey (pictured), who's probably best known as a member of pianist Hiromi's working band.

Grey will be accompanied by Jay Oliver on keyboards; Wash U faculty member and Jazz at Holmes series director William Lenihan on guitar; and Roger Guth on drums.

In addition to Grey and various shows featuring a selection of St. Louis performers, the Fall 2017 series also will include themed programs exploring Italian film music; the intersection of experimental jazz and contemporary classical; and folk and protest songs of the 1960s.

Here's the entire schedule in chronological order:

Thursday, September 14; Tony Grey
Thursday, September 21: Freddie Washington Quartet
Thursday, September 28: Montez Coleman/Eric Slaughter Quartet

Thursday, October 5: Kim Fuller
Thursday, October 19: "From Torino - Music of Italian Film Composers: Morricone, Gaslini, Rota, Umiliani, Giordano" with Filippo Cosentino, William Lenihan, and the Sogni D'Alba String Trio.
Thursday, October 26: "Streams of Extremity II" with Ptah Williams, William Lenihan, Steve Davis, Amy Greenhalgh, and Marcia Mann

Thursday, November 2: "Voices of Freedom, Songs of Social Justice" with R. Scott Bryan, Rick Schuler, and band.
Thursday, November 9: Joe Mancuso Organ Trio
Thursday, November 16: Arc of Light Ensemble with Paul DeMarinis, Randy Holmes, Wayne Coniglio, William Lenihan, and band
Thursday, November 30 - Vincent Varvel Quartet

Thursday, December 7: Holiday concert featuring Wash U singers & musicians TBA.

All concerts are free and open to the public. Concerts begin at 8:00 p.m. and are presented in Holmes Lounge, Ridgley Hall, which is located on Washington University’s campus at the west end of the Brookings Quadrangle, near the intersection of Brookings and Hoyt drives.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Drummer Montez Coleman (pictured) was interviewed by St. Louis magazine's Erin Williams in advance of his performances tonight and Saturday night at Jazz at the Bistro.

* Saxophonist Karl Denson talked with the Post-Dispatch's Kevin Johnson for a brief feature story. Denson and his band Tiny Universe perform tonight at the Atomic Cowboy Pavilion.

* Drummer and St. Louis native Emanuel Harrold, who's been part of singer Gregory Porter's band for the past few years, is set to release his first recording as a leader this fall, and is getting advance promotion from TheUrbanMusicScene.com and Afropunk.com for his song "Luv Hurt" and from SoulTracks.com for "Special Time."

* The website Sound of StL has a review with photos of The People's Key's recent performance at The Stage at KDHX.

* Euclid Records is looking to hire a "tech savvy music fan" who is "familiar with the workings of Excel, web design, E-Commerce as well as eBay, Amazon and Discogs." They're accepting resumes dropped off at the store or by email at store@euclidrecords.com.

* Pianist Peter Martin has a new post up at Medium.com, advising aspiring keyboard players on "The One Scale You Should Be Practicing Every Day."

* Trumpeter and Webster Groves native Ally Hany, who recently completed a master's degree at the Manhattan School of Music, announced in a post on Facebook that she's joining the Air Force Band of the Golden West. After completing basic training, Hany will be stationed at Travis Air Force Base in the San Francisco Bay area.

* The musical instrument and accessories manufacturer D'Addario has announced a free support program for instrumental music teachers called the D’Addario Education Collective, offering discounts on products, access to educational resources, and more. You can get details and sign up here.

Jazz this week: Samora Pinderhughes, Karl Denson's Tiny Universe, and more

This week's calendar of live jazz and creative music in St. Louis features the local debut of a much-talked-about young pianist and composer, the return of one of the jam-band circuit's funk-jazz favorites, and more.

Let's go to the highlights....

Wednesday, July 19
Drummer Kevin Bowers will reconvene the large cast of his Brazilian-influenced, imaginary-movie-soundtrack project NOVA in a free concert for the Missouri Botanical Garden's Whitaker Music Festival. 

Elsewhere around town, though the Curtain Call Lounge has withdrawn from the "Grand Center Jazz Crawl," - apparently permanently, according to StLJN's source - the event goes on as usual, with live jazz and no cover charge at three locations in the district. 

This week, you can hear guitarist Tom Byrne and keyboardist Nathan Jatcko this week at KDHX's Magnolia Cafe; the jam session with bassist Bob DeBoo and friends at Kranzberg Arts Center; and two separate shows at The Dark Room at the Grandel Theatre, with saxophonist Lew Winer playing from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. and trumpeter Kasimu Taylor from 9:00 p.m. to midnight.

Thursday July 20
Pianist and composer Samora Pinderhughes (pictured, top left) with special guest trumpeter Christian Scott will perform at the Pulitzer Arts Foundation.

NPR devoted an episode of "Jazz Night in America" earlier this year to Pinderhughes' debut recording The Transformations Suite, and this will be his first St. Louis gig as a bandleader, playing music "inspired by" the soundtrack he wrote for the documentary film Whose Streets?. For more about Pinderhughes, and his socially-conscious brand of jazz, plus the complete Transformations Suite and some other performances on video, see this post from last Saturday. 

Also in the Grand Center district, Cabaret Project St. Louis presents their monthly "Broadway Open Mic," temporarily relocated to The Stage at KDHX; and saxophonist Ben Reece’s Unity Quartet will perform at The Dark Room.

Elsewhere around town, the Funky Butt Brass Band will play a free show outside the St. Louis Public Library downtown, and drummer Maurice Carnes leads a group featuring Dallas pianist Myles Tate in a free concert for the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University.

Friday, July 21
Saxophonist Karl Denson's Tiny Universe returns for an early-evening outdoor show at the Atomic Cowboy Pavilion. Though the heat is expected to be stifling, expect a big audience of young fans ready to party with Denson's crowd-friendly grooves.

For a look at what Denson and Tiny Universe (pictured, bottom left) have been up to since they were in St. Louis a year ago, check out this post from a couple of Saturdays ago.

Also on Friday, drummer Montez Coleman celebrates his birthday with the first of two nights of shows at Jazz at the Bistro. He'll be joined by a band including Adaron Pops Jackson (organ), Adam Maness (piano), Eric Slaughter (guitar), Jason Swagler (alto sax), and Ben Wheeler (bass), with Anita Jackson singing on Friday night and Brian Owens on Saturday.

Elsewhere around town, guitarist and singer Tommy Halloran will play a free show at Ritz Park on South Grand; singer Joe Mancuso and guitarist Dave Black return to The Wolf in Ballwin; and Wack-A-Doo will play swing, vintage jazz and Americana at Evangeline's.

Saturday, July 22
Dizzy Atmosphere returns to Missouri Botanical Garden for another "Garden of Glass" event; The WirePilots will have multi-instrumentalist Sandy Weltman as their special guest for a performance at the Webster Groves Concert Hall; and Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes return to the Venice Cafe.

Sunday, July 23
The St. Louis Jazz Club presents the St. Louis Stompers in a matinee performance at the Moolah Shrine Center, and Community Women Against Hardship's summer benefit at Ferring Jazz Bistro will feature Detroit-based saxophonist Yancyy with an ensemble including singer Anita Jackson, pianist Tony Suggs, bassist Jeff Anderson, and drummer Montez Coleman.

Monday, July 24
Trumpeter Jim Manley will play for diners and drinkers at Momo's Greek Restaurant.

Tuesday, July 25
Pianist Pat Joyce returns to Evangeline's, and saxophonist "Blind" Willie Dineen and the Broadway Collective will be back for their monthly gig at BB's Jazz, Blues & Soups.

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: A tribute to 1970s fusion, trad jazz from Red Lehr, and more

With summer winding down and the fall presenting season yet to begin, it's not a particularly busy week for jazz and creative music in St. Louis, but there still are some performances worth noting that are happening over the next few days.

Let's go to the highlights....

Thursday, August 25
Dizzy Atmosphere will play swing and Gypsy jazz as part of the "Sensational Summer Nights" series at Missouri Botanical Garden; and the Bruxism experimental music series continues at the Schlafly Tap Room, this month featuring Wiggpaw, Brett Williams, and UFO vs USA. 

Friday, August 26
An ad hoc quintet of St. Louis musicians will join forces to present "Weather Forever: The Music of Weather Report & Return to Forever," featuring music from two of the most popular jazz-fusion groups of the 1970s, for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro.

The ensemble attempting to bridge the disparate styles of these two iconic bands will include bassist Zeb Briskovich, drummer Montez Coleman (pictured, top left), keyboarist Adaron “Pops” Jackson, guitarist Eric Slaughter, and saxophonist Jason Swagler.

Also on Friday, singer Joe Mancuso brings a quartet to Nathalie's, and the Midwest Jazz-tette will play cool jazz in the West Coast style at Cigar Inn

Saturday, August 27 
Pianist Phil Dunlap's trio will play an early evening show at The Dark Room; trumpeter Danny Campbell returns with his Jazz Collective to Troy's Jazz Gallery; and Franglais will perform at Evangeline's

Sunday, August 28
The St. Louis Jazz Club presents sousaphonist Red Lehr's Powerhouse Five (pictured, lower left) playing traditional jazz and swing at the Doubletree Hotel St. Louis at Westport.

Monday, August 29
Trumpeter Jim Manley continues his Monday night residency at Momo's Greek Restaurant.

Tuesday, August 30
The Sidemen return to Evangeline's, and saxophonist Joe Bayer has a new weekly duo gig at Scarlett's Wine Bar in the Central West End, teaming up this week with bassist Glen Smith.

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: St. Louis Cabaret Festival, Houston Person & Montez Coleman, New Orleans Jazz Vipers, and more

As yr. humble StLJN editor this week has been both swamped with paying-gig-type work and plagued by various equipment malfunctions, and this post is already late, this intro will be both mercifully brief and without embellishment.

Here are some of the more noteworthy jazz and creative music performances happening in and around St. Louis over the next few days: 

Wednesday, July 20
Saxophonist and East St. Louis native Andre Delano, now based on the West Coast, is back in town for a visit and will perform with Good 4 The Soul at The Lux.

Also tonight, the St. Louis Cabaret Festival gets underway with Broadway star Faith Prince and actor/singer Jason Graae performing at the Sheldon Concert Hall. For more about the festival and video samples of the headling performers, see this Saturday video post from a couple of weeks ago.

Elsewhere around town, singer Erin Bode will perform a free concert (weather permitting) for the Whitaker Music Festival at the Missouri Botanical Garden; the Liberation Organ Trio plays at Evangeline's; and the New Orleans Jazz Vipers, featuring former St. Louisans Charlie Halloran on trombone and Chloe Feoranzo on clarinet will perform on a double-bill with Feoranzo's old band, the Sidney Street Shakers, at Foam.

The Vipers' gig is the first of four this week in St. Louis for the band, with shows to follow on Thursday at Joe's Cafe, Friday at Focal Point, and Saturday afternoon at the Blues City Deli. For more about that, see Terry Perkins' article about Halloran, Feorenzo and the band posted yesterday on the website of Alive! magazine.

Thursday, July 21
The St. Louis Cabaret Festival continues with singer Marilyn Maye (pictured, top left), her special guest Ann Hampton Callaway, and pianists Billy Stritch and Tedd Firth at the Sheldon Concert Hall. For more on  what the four of them have planned, listen to Maye and Callaway's interview from yesterday on St. Louis Public Radio.

Also on Thursday, trumpeter Danny Campbell leads a quartet in a free "Jazz in July" show for the Jazz at Holmes series at the Tisch Commons of Danforth University Center on the Washington University campus; and guitarist Brian Vaccaro and his trio will play at The Pat Connolly Tavern.

Friday, July 22
The St. Louis Cabaret Festival continues with pianist and singer Tony DeSare at the Sheldon, while over on the other side of Grand Ave, the veteran tenor saxophonist Houston Person (pictured, lower left) will be in town as a special guest soloist with drummer Montez Coleman's band as they undertake two nights of performances at Jazz at the Bistro. You can find out more about Coleman's shows in a preview story written by the Post-Dispatch's Calvin Wilson

Also on Friday, Second Generation Swing will play for dancers at the Casa Loma Ballroom; and trumpeter and singer Dawn Weber performs in a free outdoor concert as part of the summer series at 370 Lakeside Park in St. Peters.

Saturday, July 23
Singer Joe Mancuso and guitarist Dave Black will celebrate the release of their new duo CD with a performance at the Kranzberg Arts Center; bassist Bob DeBoo brings his trio to The Dark Room; saxophonist Tim Cunningham will be playing soul jazz and R&B at @Nesby's; and Miss Jubilee will offer up danceable swing, jump blues and more at the Casa Loma Ballroom.

Sunday, July 24
The Coleman Hughes Project will play an early evening show at The Rustic Goat; the Ambassadors of Swing return to Kirkwood Station Brewing Company; and the St. Louis Cabaret Festival wraps up with a final celebration and showcase of students from the coterminous St. Louis Cabaret Conference at the Ferring Jazz Bistro.

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: Cyrus Chestnut, Tortoise, Denise Thimes' Mothers Day show, and more

This week's calendar of jazz and creative music in St. Louis features sounds ranging from straight-ahead jazz to "post-rock," with plenty of other styles in the mix, too. Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, May 4
Drummer Montez Coleman plays the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro, with a bit of help from pianist Adam Maness, bassist Bob DeBoo and singer Anita Jackson.

Elsewhere in Grand Center, saxophonist Dave Stone takes over Bob DeBoo's hosting duties for the weekly jam session at the Kranzberg Arts Center; cornetist TJ Muller of the Gaslight Squares will play at The Stage at KDHX, and trumpeter Kasimu Taylor will do his weekly set at The Dark Room.

Thursday, May 5
Latin/jazz band Clave Sol will be celebrating Cinco de Mayo starting in the afternoon and continuing through evening at Rosalita's Cantina downtown; Miss Jubilee plays an early evening show at Blues City Deli; and singer Ralph Williams returns to Troy's Jazz Gallery.

Friday, May 6
Singer Brian Owens performs for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro; the Midwest Jazz-tette brings the sound of West Coast cool jazz to Evangeline's; and Tom Byrne switches to bass for a night, ceding the guitar duties to Eric Slaughter for a show by what Byrne's calling the Bassic Instinct Trio at Cigar Inn.

Also on Friday, singer/actor Ben Nordstrom performs for the first of two nights in the cabaret room at The Monocle; and singer Joe Mancuso and bassist Willem von Hombracht will duet at Tavern of Fine Arts.

Saturday, May 7
Pianist Cyrus Chestnut returns with his trio to offer some "African Reflections" at Sheldon Concert Hall. You can read more about Chestnut (pictured, top left) and see some videos of him performing in this post from last Saturday. Note also that The Sheldon is offering a discount on remaining tickets to online buyers, cutting the price to $25.

Also on Saturday, trumpeter Jim Manley and guitarist Randy Bahr lead their All-Star Band at Nathalie's.

Sunday, May 8
Singer Denise Thimes will present her annual Mothers Day extravaganza this year at a new venue, the Touhill Performing Arts Center, with help from guest stars including pianist Tamir Hendelman, saxophonist Tom Braxton, and comedian Monique Marvez.

Monday, May 9
The "post-rock" band Tortoise, who mix up a half-dozen genres or more in their mostly instrumental music, will play at the The Ready Room. The Chicago-based group (pictured, bottom left) is touring in support of their first new album in seven years, The Catastrophist, that was released in January.

Also on Monday, saxophonist Doug Webb, a veteran of many movie and TV soundtrack sessions in Los Angeles studios who's also enjoyed a long association with trumpeter Doc Severinsen, will present a free performance and workshop at Saxquest.

Tuesday, May 10
Doug Webb will perform again with Saxquest's Little Big Band at the Tavern of Fine Arts, and pianist "Ragtime" Jack Radcliffe, a Massachusetts-based performer specializing in stride, pre-WWII blues, and yes, ragtime, will play at a one-nighter at 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.)

Jazz at Holmes series announces winter/spring 2016 concert schedule

The Jazz at Holmes series of concerts at Washington University has announced their schedule for the winter/spring semester of 2016.

The ten concerts will include three performances featuring visiting musicians, perhaps most notably drummer Thurman Barker, a longtime member of Chicago's Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) and veteran of the 1960s free jazz scene, who will bring a trio to St. Louis to perform on Thursday, April 7.

A professor at Bard College in New York since 1993, Barker (pictured) spends most of his time these days teaching and composing, but his extensive resume includes past performances and recordings with many important free jazz musicians, including Joseph Jarman, Muhal Richard Abrams, Pheeroan akLaff, Anthony Braxton, Billy Bang, Henry Threadgill, Kalaparusha Maurice McIntyre, Sam Rivers, and others.

The Jazz at Holmes schedule also including return dates for bassist Gary Peacock and pianist Marc Copland, who did an off-campus concert sponsored by the series in 2013 at 560 Music Center; and for German-born, Zurich-based saxophonist Nicole Johänntgen, who played a Jazz at Holmes show back in 2010.

Here's the complete schedule for the semester:

Thursday, February 4: Ken Kehner, Elsie Parker and the Poor People of Paris
Thursday, February 11: STL Free Jazz Collective
Thursday, February 18: Paul DeMarinis Group
Thursday, February 25: Jay Oliver, William Lenihan, and Steve Davis

Thursday, March 3: Gary Peacock, Marc Copland, and Mark Ferber
Thursday, March 10: Mosaic Whispers & Java Jived
Thursday, March 24: Montez Coleman Quartet

Thursday, April 7: Thurman Barker Trio
Thursday, April 14: Nicole Johänntgen with William Lenihan, Jay Oliver & Steve Davis
Thursday, April 21: Kasimu Taylor Quartet

While most Jazz at Holmes concerts are free and open to the public, the Marc Copland/Gary Peacock and Thurman Barker performances will be ticketed events, priced at $25 and $10 respectively. Concerts begin at 8:00 p.m. in Holmes Lounge, Ridgley Hall, located on Washington University’s campus at the west end of the Brookings Quadrangle, near the intersection of Brookings and Hoyt drives.

Edited after posting.

Victor Goines to perform benefit concert Sunday, December 6 at The Sheldon

Saxophonist and clarinetist Victor Goines is returning to St. Louis for a performance benefiting the North County Big Band at 7:00 p.m. Sunday, December 6 at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

Goines, a member of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra since 1993, also directs the jazz studies program at Northwestern University and is active as a solo artist, performing and recording with his own quartet as well as with Wynton Marsalis, Marcus Roberts, Diana Krall, Dianne Reeves, and more. He's played here in St. Louis several times over the past decade, both as a member of JaLCO and as a headliner at the Sheldon and Jazz at the Bistro.

For this performance, Goines (pictured) will accompanied by a rhythm section of St. Louis musicians including Adam Maness on piano, Jahmal Nichols on bass, and Montez Coleman on drums.

The North County Big Band, which will play an opening set before Goines, is made up of students from several St. Louis area high schools, including Riverview Gardens, Normandy, Hazelwood Central, Central Visual and Performing Arts, and University City. The group is led by saxophonist Harvey Lockhart, band director for Riverview Gardens HS, and has performed several times at the Sheldon and at community events since its inception earlier this year.

Tickets are $35 for general admission orchestra seats, $30 general admission balcony, and $15 for students, and are on sale now via MetroTix at 314-534-1111 and online.

Jazz this week: Kat Edmondson, Houston Person, Dave Dickey Big Band, and more

While goblins, ghosts, vampires, werewolves, and zombies may rule the upcoming Halloween weekend, there's also plenty of live jazz and creative music to be found in and around St. Louis over the next few days.

Here's a brief look at some of the most noteworthy shows...

Wednesday, October 28
Multi-instrumentalist Lamar Harris and singer Anita Jackson will team up for the first of two nights of what's billed as a tribute to Nina Simone at Jazz at the Bistro.

Thursday, October 29
The Gaslight Cabaret Festival resumes with singer Kat Edmonson performing music from her new album The Big Picture for the first of two nights at the Gaslight Theater. (While Friday's show is sold out, as of this writing some tickets remain for Thursday.) For more about Edmondson (pictured, top left), check out this interview she did to promote her new release last month with NPR.

Also on Thursday, Stephen Koch, a writer and musician from Little Rock, Ar who penned a biography of saxophonist Louis Jordan, will present "Roll, Jordan, Roll: The Legacy of Louis Jordan, Father of R&B" at The Stage at KDHX;  and the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University presents "Bernstein and Sondheim: Musical Theatre and the Jazz Vernacular," a free concert featuring vocalist Katie Greenberg, pianist Kara Baldus, guitarist William Lenihan, drummer Steve Davis, and a string section.

Friday, October 30
Saxophonist Houston Person (pictured, bottom left) returns for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro. The veteran tenor man, who excels equally at blues, bop and ballads, will be backed by a rhythm section of St. Louis musicians including pianist Adaron "Pops" Jackson, bassist Jahmal Nichols and drummer Montez Coleman.

Also on Friday, Miss Jubilee will play a Halloween-themed swing dance at the Casa Loma Ballroom; saxophonist Tim Cunningham is back at Troy's Jazz Gallery; and singer Erika Johnson and guitarist Tom Byrne will perform at Montrey's Cigar Lounge.


Saturday, October 31
Dizzy Atmosphere will play Gypsy jazz as part of SIUE's "International Night" at the Meridian Ballroom in Morris University Center on the SIUE campus; and Elsie Parker & the Poor People of Paris will perform at Nathalie's.

Sunday, November 1
The Dave Dickey Big Band will play their monthly gig at Jazz at the Bistro, with an intermission performance from the Lindbergh HS Jazz Ensemble directed by David Wyss; and drummer Montez Coleman will lead his trio plus guest vocalist Brian Owens in a concert at the Kranzberg Arts Center.

Monday, November 2
Pianist Greg Mills and friends will play improvised music at the Tavern of Fine Arts; and some of Webster University's student jazz combos will show off what they've learned so far this semester in a performance at Webster'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.)

Jazz this week: Tony Bennett, Old Webster Jazz & Blues Festival, Two Times True, Montez Coleman, "3 Nights in September," and more

As St. Louis prepares to mark the turn of seasons into autumn, the jazz and creative music presenting season is starting to roll, with offerings this week ranging from the return of one of the foremost interpreters of the "Great American Songbook" to a three-day gathering of local improvisors and experimentalists. Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, September 16
Pianist Carolbeth True and Two Times True with guest saxophonist Larry Johnson (pictured, top left) return to Jazz at the Bistro for the first night of a two-night engagement; Cabaret Project St. Louis presents their monthly "Open Mic Night" at the Tavern of Fine Arts; and Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes duo will play at The Feasting Fox.

Thursday, September 17
Trumpeter Danny Campbell and band will perform in a free concert for the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University; and guitarist Dave Black and friends, featuring singer Feyza Eren, will return to Nathalie’s.

Also on Thursday, New Music Circle will anticipate the beginning of their 57th season with a "welcome/fundraiser" event at the Tick Tock Tavern, 3459 Magnolia Ave. The event is free to attend, and will feature "drinks, live DJs (Josh Weinstein and Jeremy Kannapell), and raffle prizes such as vinyl LPs, CDs, and tickets to NMC concerts." Bar proceeds from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. will go into NMC's coffers to help fund their concert season and associated programs.

Friday, September 18
Drummer Montez Coleman will lead a quintet for a one-night stand at Jazz at the Bistro that originally was billed as a date to be co-led by saxophonist Willie Akins.

Instead, the evening has been re-purposed as a tribute to Akins, whose recently worsening health issues have left him unable to perform. With the veteran saxophonist unavailable, Coleman (pictured, center left) has enlisted two up-and-coming alumni of Jazz St. Louis' all-star student ensemble, trumpeter Brady Lewis and saxophonist Carlos Brown Jr, with guitarist Eric Slaughter and bassist Bob DeBoo completing the ensemble. 

Also on Friday, the Air Force Band of Mid-America's "Shades of Blue" jazz combo will perform in concert at Alton's Jacoby Arts Center; the 4.5 Smooth Groove Band will play smooth jazz, R&B and fusion at the Ozark Theatre; and the Ambassadors of Swing play for dancers at the Casa Loma Ballroom.

Saturday, September 19
Beginning at mid-day and continuing until well past dark, the annual Old Webster Jazz and Blues Festival will feature two stages of music in the area around the intersection of Lockwood and Gore Avenues in Webster Groves' Old Webster Business District.

Performers at the free event will include saxophonist Eric Marienthal, guesting with St. Louis' Bach to the Future; the Webster University faculty jazz ensemble; Miss Jubilee; blues guitarist and singer Marquise Knox, and more. For more about the OWJBF, check out this interview that festival music director Terry Perkins did with St. Louis magazine.

Then on Saturday evening, legendary singer Tony Bennett (pictured, center right) will make his first appearance in the St. Louis area since 2011, performing at the J. Scheidegger Center For The Arts on the Lindenwood University campus in St. Charles.

If you don't have tickets already, though, you may be out of luck, as the Scheidegger Center's website currently shows the concert as a sellout. You can find out about potential returns, cancellations, and/or any other last-minute availabilities by calling the box office at (636) 949-4433.

Also on Saturday evening, the Jim Manley/Randy Bahr All-Star Group will return to Nathalie's.

Monday, September 21
The Webster University jazz faculty ensemble will pay tribute to one of the key jazz record labels of the 1960s and '70s with "On Impulse - A Celebration of Impulse Records" at Winifred Moore Auditorium on the Webster campus.

The ensemble, featuring Keith Moyer (trumpet), Paul DeMarinis (flute, alto and tenor saxophones), Steve Schenkel (guitar), Kim Portnoy (piano), Willem von Hombracht (bass), Kevin Gianino (drums), and Debby Lennon (vocals), will perform St. Louis native Oliver Nelson's "Stolen Moments" from Nelson's classic Impulse album Blues and the Abstract Truth, plus eight more selections recorded for Impulse by John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Keith Jarrett and others.

Also on Monday, "Blind" Willie Dineen and the Broadway Collective return to BB's Jazz, Blues & Soups.

Tuesday, September 22
It's the first of "3 Nights in September," a mid-week festival of improvised and experimental music organized by cellist Tracy Andreotti at the Tavern of Fine Arts. Tuesday's program will include performances from Brain Transplant, NNN Cook, Michael Williams, and the Hess/Cunningham Duo (pictured, bottom left).

The festival then continues on Wednesday and Thursday with two more completely different lineups of bands and musicians; see the event's Facebook page for the latest details.

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: All That Tap XXIV, "Swinging for the Fences," Good 4 The Soul, and more

It's another sultry mid-summer week in St. Louis, and though there are no major touring headliners in town this week, there's plenty of activity involving local jazz and creative musicians, offering sounds ranging from nostalgic to experimental. Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, July 29
Tonight, the Spiritual Revolution Ensemble will make their official debut at the Tavern of Fine Arts. Formed after a jam session in May at ToFA, the group of free improvisors features a core band of saxophonists Jerome “J-Dubz” Williams, Aaron Parker, and Rahtu Johnson, pianist David Parker and percussionist Glenn "Papa" Wright, augmented for this performance by guests including guitarist Kendra Mahr, poets Pacia Anderson and Jana Thomas, and pianist Greg Mills.

Also tonight, Tommy Halloran's Guerrilla Swing will play a free outdoor concert for the Missouri Botanical Garden's Whitaker Music Festival; and guitarist Vincent Varvel leads a trio at Nathalie's.

Thursday, July 30
Jazz St. Louis continues their series of events looking at the relationship between jazz and baseball with "Jazz & the Negro Leagues", a free lecture by author and Washington University professor Gerald Early, followed by a reception at Jazz at the Bistro.

Also on Thursday, drummer Montez Coleman leads a quartet in a free concert wrapping up the summer edition of the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University; and the St. Louis Big Band and singer Joe Scalzitti will open the second weekend of performances of their tribute show "Sinatra at 100" at the Kranzberg Arts Center.

Elsewhere around town, Miss Jubilee will make up for a rainout earlier this summer with a free concert at Ellisville's Bluebird Park, and singer Erin Bode returns to Nathalie's.

Friday, July 31
Good 4 The Soul (pictured, upper left) returns to Jazz at the Bistro for the first of two evenings, with guitarist Shaun Robinson, bassist John King and drummer James Jackson joined for the weekend by keyboardist Pete Ruthenberg, subbing for Adaron "Pops" Jackson.

Also on Friday, singer Tony Viviano will serenade diners at Fortel's, guitarist Eric Slaughter and bassist Glen Smith will take the stage at Thurman Grill; and Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes will be swinging at the Venice Cafe.

Saturday, August 1
The annual St. Louis Tap Festival culminates with All That Tap XXIV, an evening of tap dance performances and music at the Grand Center Arts Academy's Sun Theatre.

This year's event serves as a tribute to Tap Festival founder Robert L. Reed, who died earlier this month in Oklahoma City, and will feature Reed's daughter Robin Reed (pictured, lower left) performing in his stead.

Pianist Carolbeth True's trio once again will provide the music for a lineup of featured dancers including Charon Aldredge, Christopher Broughton, Omar Edwards, Anthony LoCascio, Avi Miller & Ofer Ben, Jason Samuels Smith, and Dorneshia Sumbry-Edwards. You can read a brief preview of the performance from St. Louis magazine here.

Also on Saturday, percussionist Joe Pastor and the St. Louis Legacy Ensemble will play a free outdoor concert at Lafayette Park

Sunday, August 2
The Friends of Scott Joplin will present their monthly "Ragtime Rendezvous," a free event at the Scott Joplin House State Historic Site.

Also on Sunday, Jazz St. Louis wraps up their "Swinging for the Fences" series with a "Town Picnic" at Lafayette Park. The free event is open to the public and will feature a "vintage" baseball game played with period uniforms and rules, followed by Lindy Hop dance lessons and a concert of traditional jazz and swing by the Spats 'n' Flapper Speakeasy Orchestra, who are from Clear Lake, IA.  

Monday, August 3
Singer Erika Johnson and guitarist Tom Byrne will return to BB's Jazz, Blues & Soups.

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: Harry Connick Jr., St. Louis Cabaret Festival, Russell Gunn with Montez Coleman, and more

It's looking like a good week to get out and hear some live jazz and creative music in St. Louis, particularly for fans of vocalists.

With three headliners performing for the St. Louis Cabaret Festival, plus the opening of a locally produced show paying tribute to a legendary singer, plus the much-anticipated return of one of today's most popular crossover performers, and more, there are plenty of options from which to choose. Let's go to the highlights....

Wednesday, July 22
Marilyn Maye (pictured, top left), considered by many to be the grande dame of cabaret singers, begins the concert portion of the St. Louis Cabaret Festival with a performance of her show "Sinatra Her Way" at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

Produced by Cabaret Project of St. Louis, the festival is the performance portion of their annual St. Louis Cabaret Conference, and continues through Saturday night. You can find out more and see videos of Maye and the festival's other headliners in this post from last Saturday.

Also tonight, guitarist and singer Tommy Halloran's Guerrilla Swing will perform for the World Chess Hall of Fame's music series, and Dizzy Atmosphere returns to The Shaved Duck.

Thursday, July 23
The St. Louis Cabaret Festival continues with a performance by singer, songwriter and pianist Jason Robert Brown at the Sheldon, while a couple of blocks away at Jazz at the Bistro, Jazz St. Louis will be presenting "Swingin’ for the Fences: Big Bands & Baseball," the first in a series of three free events over the next two weeks highlighting the connections between jazz and baseball. 

Also in the Grand Center district, the tribute show "Sinatra at 100" with singer Joe Scalzitti and the St. Louis Big Band begins a three-week run at the Kranzberg Arts Center.

Elsewhere around town, the Wire Pilots will play a free concert for the Jazz at Holmes summer series at Washington University; Franglais returns to Howard's in Soulard; and singer Erin Bode will perform in a free outdoor concert at  Kirkwood Station Plaza in downtown Kirkwood.

Friday, July 24
It's an East St. Louis reunion in Grand Center, as trumpeter Russell Gunn (pictured, center left) comes back from his current home in Atlanta to join drummer and fellow Lincoln HS alum Montez Coleman and his group for a weekend of shows at Jazz at the Bistro.

While Gunn's recent album Electric Butterfly showed a heavy rock influence, with songs built on distorted, riffing guitars, the musical menu for this weekend's collaboration with Coleman remains undisclosed, as Jazz St. Louis' promo for the show has been light on specifics. But regardless of whether they're playing Gunn's funk and rock-oriented material, swinging jazz, or a mix, the gig definitely should be worth hearing.

Also on Friday, the Cabaret Festivial continues with a performance by Christine Ebersole at the Sheldon Concert Hall, and pianist Carolbeth True, her band Two Times True and singer Christi John Bye will play a concert at St. Peter's United Church of Christ in Ferguson.

Elsewhere around town, singer Joe Mancuso leads a quartet at Nathalie's; Wack-A-Doo will play swing, hot jazz and Americana at Thurman Grill; and the Original Knights of Swing perform for dancers at the Casa Loma Ballroom

Saturday, July 25
The St. Louis Cabaret Festival wraps up with a showcase for Cabaret Conference participants at the Kranzberg Arts Center; Miss Jubilee plays for dancers at Casa Loma Ballroom; and saxophonist Tim Cunningham will be at Troy's Jazz Gallery.

Sunday, July 26
Gaslight Square veterans Trio Trés Bien emerge for a rare public live performance, joined by singer Danita Mumphard for a free outdoor concert at Ivory Perry Park, 800 N. Belt.

Monday, July 27
"Blind" Willie Dineen and the Broadway Collective are back for their regular monthly gig at BB's Jazz, Blues & Soups.

Tuesday, July 28
Singer and pianist Harry Connick Jr. returns to St. Louis to perform at the Peabody Opera House. The New Orleans native (pictured, lower left), who has enjoyed wide attention the past couple of years as a celebrity judge on TV's American Idol, released his most recent album Every Man Should Know back in 2013.

He last performed here in March 2014 as headliner for Variety's "Dinner With The Stars," also at the Peabody, and though that gig was well-received by all accounts, no doubt fans will be looking forward this time to the full-length version of his touring show.

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.)