Jazz this week: Grégoire Maret & Alicia Olatuja, Peter Evans Septet, Steve Tyrell, Liberation Music Collective, and more

It's a busy week for jazz and creative music in St. Louis, with an eclectic selection of visiting performers offering something for listeners with tastes ranging from vintage jazz to mainstream to experimental.

Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, April 12
Harmonica player Grégoire Maret, with singer and St. Louis native Alicia Olatuja as his featured guest, opens a four-night engagement continuing through Saturday at Jazz at the Bistro.

One of a scant handful of headlining jazz performers on his chosen instrument, Maret (pictured, top left), may be making his St. Louis debut as a bandleader, but he already has quite a thriving career, having played with Pat Metheny, Herbie Hancock, Marcus Miller and many other well-known musicians before releasing his first album as a leader in 2012. You can find out more about him and see and hear some samples of his virtuoso technique in this post from last Saturday.

Thursday, April 13
In a relatively last-minute addition to their previously announced season schedule, New Music Circle will present trumpeter Peter Evans' new electro-acoustic septet at the new performance space and "arts incubator" .ZACK (aka the Cadillac Building, recently the site of the nightclub Plush).

This band is an expanded version of Evans' long-running quintet, described as "a 21st century chamber ensemble dedicated to a broad range of creativity, drawing on dense notated scores, free improvisation, novel combinations of acoustic and electronic sounds, the seamless incorporation of electronic instruments into live improvised textures, and a performance energy channeling both intensity and sincerity."

The event also will feature music from DJ Jeff Michael and a video and art installation created by Elizabeth Moore, Chad Eivins, Kevin Harris, Matthew Kelly Debbaudt, Jeremy Kannapell, and Stan Chisholm

Also on Thursday, singer Steve Tyrell (pictured, center left) will offer his jazz- and funk-tinged interpretations of standards and pop favorites at the Sheldon Concert Hall, and the New Orleans Suspects are back for another visit to the Broadway Oyster Bar.

Friday, April 14
The Oikos Ensemble offers a pre-Easter program called "Good Friday Blues" at the First Congregational Church of Webster Groves, and Nashville-based swing and jump blues band Eight O'Five Jive plays at BB's Jazz, Blues & Soups.

Also on Friday, Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes will perform at Thurman's in Shaw, and the Funky Butt Brass Band will make their monthly appearance at the Broadway Oyster Bar.

Saturday, April 15
The Liberation Music Collective returns to the Center for Social Empowerment in Ferguson.

Based in Bloomington, IN, Liberation Music Collective (pictured, bottom left) is a self-described "socially conscious big band" made up of past and present students at Indiana University's Jacobs School of Music who are "dedicated to performing original compositions about contemporary social issues." LMC's visit will include an afternoon workshop for young musicians, followed by an early evening "Jazz for Justice" concert.

Sunday, April 16
Miss Jubilee will perform for brunch at Evangeline's.

Monday, April 17
The Webster University Jazz Collective, made up of faculty members from the university's jazz program, will present their last concert of the semester at Winifred Moore Auditorium on the Webster campus.

Tuesday, April 18
The SIUE Concert and Alumni Jazz Bands will take the stage at Jazz at the Bistro, and the Handsome Devils Trio, in from New Orleans for a weeknight show without their lead singer Naomi, will perform for "NOLA Swing Night" at HandleBar in the Grove.

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: Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Evan Parker & Peter Evans, Ronnie Burrage's RoBu Big Band, and more

This week's schedule of jazz and creative music in St. Louis is jam-packed, with three notable big band performances, two shows benefiting an ailing elder statesman of the local jazz scene, an evening of free-form music from two intriguing improvisors, and much, much more.

Let's go to the highlights...

Wednesday, September 30
The eclectic acoustic ensemble The 442s perform for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro, and pianist Greg Mills plays free improv and contemporary compositions at the Tavern of Fine Arts.

Thursday, October 1
Guitarist Tom Byrne will lead a quartet in a free concert for the Jazz at Holmes series at Washington University, serving up "original compositions, some Pat Metheny tunes, some Jobim" and more.

Elsewhere on Thursday night, there are a couple of opportunities for some short-distance road-tripping for those so inclined. In DeSoto, MO, the fourth annual Mel Bay Jazz Festival begins with a show from guitarist Larry Bay and Sugar Moon at the Fountain City Grille on Main St.

The festival continues for two more nights with music from singer Joe Mancuso, guitarists Eric Slaughter and Dave Black, singer Lena Seikaly, and pianist Chris Grasso on Friday at the Fountain City Grille and on Saturday at The Arlington Inn event space, also on Main St.

At the same time across the river in Lebanon, IL, the Count Basie Orchestra will be performing for the first of two nights at McKendree College's Hettenhausen Center for the Arts. Friday's show is sold out, but some tickets apparently still remain available for Thursday's concert.

Friday, October 2
New Music Circle opens their 2015-16 season with  an evening of free improvisation from saxophonist Evan Parker and trumpeter Peter Evans (pictured, center left) at Joe’s Cafe, 6014 Kingsbury Ave.

For more about Parker and Evans, see this video post from last Saturday. (While they're here, both men also will take part in a free workshop and Q&A session on Saturday morning at Foam on South Jefferson.)

Also on Friday, the Italian pianist Roberto Magris will be in town to lead a quartet in a performance at Ozark Theatre; the New Orleans Suspects return to St. Louis to play at Broadway Oyster Bar; and Feyza Eren offers a "Tribute to Billie Holiday" at the Kranzberg Arts Center.

And as if all that weren't enough for one evening, Jazz St. Louis education director Phil Dunlap will bring his quintet to Jazz at the Bistro for the first of two nights showcasing material from his forthcoming album. Along with the leader on piano, Dunlap's group features trumpeter Danny Campbell, saxophonist Ben Reece, bassist Nathan Pence, and drummer Montez Coleman.

Saturday, October 3
The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, led by famed famed trumpeter Wynton Marsalis, return to serve as the featured performers at the "Friends of the Sheldon Benefit Gala" at Sheldon Concert Hall. (For availability of concert-only tickets, check with the Sheldon's box office.)

Marsalis and JaLCO (pictured, top left) have just released Live in Cuba, a two-disc set recorded earlier this year, and the first album on Jazz at Lincoln Center's new in-house imprint Blue Engine Records.

Also on Saturday, drummer/multi-instrumentalist and U City native Ronnie Burrage will be back home from his current residence in Pennsylvania to reactivate his RoBu Big Band (pictured, lower left) for the first of two performances at Voce, 212 S. Tucker.

The group will include Burrage and fellow St. Louis expat, guitarist Kelvyn Bell, plus saxophonists Jeff Anderson, Stanley Coleman, Chad Evans, and Jerome "JDubz" Williams; trumpeter Khamali Cuffie-Moore; bassist Darrell Mixon; pianist Ptah Williams; percussionist Henry Claude; and vocalist Charisse Swan.

The RoBu Big Band also will play a matinee on Sunday afternoon, and both gigs will be recorded on video for what promo material for the shows describes as "a larger film documentary initiative to explore the rich cultural history of St. Louis and to tell the stories of numerous artists that have come from the region." You can read more about that at the GoFundMe page that Burrage has set up for the film project.

Sunday, October 4
Tom Byrne and friends will present a "Tribute/Benefit Event for Willie Akins" at BB's Jazz, Blues & Soups, raising funds for the veteran St. Louis saxophonist who's now ailing from heart disease and unable to work.

Along with Byrne on guitar, the list of prospective performers includes drummers Montez Coleman and Kyle Honeycutt, bassists Bob DeBoo, Ben Wheeler, and Willem von Hombracht; trumpeters Danny Campbell and Randy Holmes, saxophonist Paul DeMarinis, guitarist Eric Slaughter, singer Erika Johnson, and, crossing over from Ronnie Burrage's matinee gig, Jeffrey Anderson, plus sit-ins and/or special guests TBA.

Also on Sunday, the Dave Dickey Big Band returns for their monthly show at Jazz at the Bistro, with the Ft. Zumwalt North HS Jazz Band performing during intermission.

Monday, October 5
Dizzy Atmosphere plays Gypsy jazz and swing at The Shaved Duck.

Tuesday, October 6
In another fund-raiser for the saxophonist, singers Wendy Gordon, Jeanne Trevor and friends will offer "Music for Willie Akins"at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

In addition to Gordon and Trevor, the announced list of performers includes singers Marty Abdullah, Elaine Donahoe, Marsha Evans, Chuck Flowers, Linda Kennedy, Joe Mancuso, Diane Vaughn, and Ron Wilkinson, along with keyboardists Arthur Toney and Pauline Stark, bassists Jimmy Hinds and Willem Von Hombracht, saxophonist Kendrick Smith, trumpeter Adrian Bowers, guitarist Eric Slaughter, and drummer Alfred Barnes.

Also on Tuesday, the Spiritual Revolution Ensemble plays free jazz at Tavern of Fine Arts; and the First Tuesday Composers Club will have their monthly meeting 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.)

StLJN Saturday Video Showcase: Evan Parker and Peter Evans

Today, let's spend a few minutes with saxophonist Evan Parker and trumpeter Peter Evans, who will give a duo performance to kick off New Music Circle's 2015-16 season next Friday, October 2 at Joe's Cafe. (Both men also will take part in a free workshop/Q&A at 11 a.m. the next day (Saturday, October 3) at Foam.)

Parker is a 71-year-old Englishman who began his career in the 1960s, at first briefly emulating the cool stylings of Paul Desmond and Lee Konitz, then totally revamping his sound to reflect the influence of John Coltrane, Albert Ayler, Pharoah Sanders, and other practitioners of "the new thing." He has collaborated with many well-known British and European improvising musicians, including saxophonist Peter Brötzmann, drummers Tony Oxley and John Stevens, guitarist Derek Bailey, and pianist Alexander von Schlippenbach, as well with Americans such as bassist William Parker, pianist Cecil Taylor, and saxophonist Anthony Braxton, and many more.

Evans, who's in his mid-30s, graduated from Oberlin Consevatory of Music and has been based in NYC since 2003. He leads his own quartet and also is a member of bands including Mostly Other People Do the Killing, Carnival Skin, and Pulverize the Sound. As a soloist, Evans has worked in various other contexts with free-improvising musicians such as Mary Halvorson, Perry Robinson, Fred Frith, Ned Rothenberg, Okkyung Lee, Chris Speed, Weasel Walter, and numerous others.

While Parker and Evans have a long-standing musical relationship - Parker's label even released a solo recording from Evans back in 2006 - there doesn't seem to be any video of them online playing as a duo. So instead, today we've got clips of a couple of performances featuring both men in a group setting, and a couple of solo performances from each.

In the first clip up above, you can see Parker, Evans, and baritone saxophonist Charles Evans in an excerpt from a show last September at the Stone in NYC. After the jump, there's another clip from a couple of nights later at the Stone, featuring Parker, Evans, keyboardist Craig Taborn, and electronic musician Sam Pluta, performing as the collective Rocket Science.

Below that, there are two clips from 2012 featuring Evans playing solo, at the Center for Advanced Musical Studies at Chosen Vale in Hampshire, and at the Invisible Dog Gallery in Brooklyn, NYC.

After that, you can see two solo performances from Parker. The first was recorded in April, 2001 at the First Existentialist Congregation in Atlanta, GA, while the second is from 2012 at the Unlimited 26 music festival in Wels, Austria.

Last but not least, there's a brief interview that Parker did in 2014 with Subradar, a website that covers improvisation and experimental music.

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