So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Singer and bassist Janet Evra will provide the musical entertainment for “Wine and Jazz Under the Stars,” a benefit for Classic 107.3 (Radio Arts Foundation) to be held starting at 5:00 p.m. Sunday, September 12 at The Public School House in St. Charles.

The ticket price of $95 per person also includes appetizers by Russo’s Catering, wines from A. Bommarito Wines, free on-site parking, and the chance to participate in a silent auction of items including Cardinals baseball tickets, a wine-tasting package, gift certificates, and more. For details or to reserve a spot, go to https://classic1073.org/wine-and-jazz/.

* In an effort to "ensure the future of the music economy is sustainable, profitable, and inclusive," the Regional Arts Commission is conducting a survey of the St. Louis music scene, inviting participation from musicians, venues, festivals and fans. If you're in one of those categories, you're encouraged to complete the online survey form before October 10 at https://racstl.org/music-strategy/.

* More St. Louis venues are setting admission policies regarding COVID vaccinations and testing, as the new Chesterfield concert club The Factory and the Hollywood Casino Amphtheatre (aka Riverport) this week announced that patrons will be required to show proof of vaccination or a recent negative test to be admitted.

* Saxophonist Lisella Martin (pictured) was profiled in a feature story on Bloomington, IL's WGLT radio.

* Trumpeter and Webster Groves native Ally Hany Albrecht will transfer from the Air Force to the U.S. Navy and relocate from California to Washington DC to join the United States Navy Band Commodores, the premier jazz band of the Navy.

Albrecht, a graduate of North Texas State University and the Manhattan School of Music, has spent the past four years with the USAF Band of the Golden West at Travis Air Force Base, California.

* DownBeat magazine is conducting their annual readers poll, with voting continuing through Tuesday, September 14. If you're a subscriber to the print magazine, digital edition, or free email newsletter, you can cast a vote at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DownBeatReadersPoll.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra's newly released recording of Wynton Marsalis' "Swing Symphony" (pictured), also featuring the trumpeter and composer and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, was the subject of a short feature story by the Post-Dispatch's Sarah Bryan Miller.

* Speaking of new releases, singer and keyboardist Katarra Parson, one of the Kranzberg Arts Foundation's 2019-20 music artists-in-residence, spoke with writer Thomas Crone for a St. Louis magazine article about her upcoming album Cocoa Voyage, which comes out in October.

* The Radio Arts Foundation (aka Classic 107.3) will raise funds next month with "Wine and Jazz Under the Stars," an event set for Friday, September 20 at the Columbia Foundation for the Arts. Tickets are $95 per person, which includes wine, appetizers, and music from Elsie Parker and the Poor People of Paris. For more details or to make a reservation, visit the station's website.

* Singer and multi-instrumentalist Tonina Saputo announced this week via Twitter that she has signed a contract with Empire, a San Francisco-based label that releases hip-hop, R&B and more from a roster than includes rap veteran Snoop Dogg as well as many younger artists.

* To promote the theatrical release of the new documentary Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool, the film's producers have released another clip from the movie, with the first look at the excerpt appearing on the website of Billboard magazine.

* With this month being the 60th anniversary of Miles Davis' Kind of Blue, there's been a flurry of related items showing up in the news, including historic overviews of the album and its significance from OpenCulture.com, Albumism.com and Counterpunch.

* In addition, drummer Jimmy Cobb, who at 90 years old is the only musician still living who played on Kind of Blue, was interviewed about the sessions by Billboard and the Associated Press.

* In related news, NPR asked bassist Christian McBride to take a look back at Davis' album Bitches Brew, which is 50 years old this summer.

* Lastly, Davis' nephew Vince Wilburn Jr. and his son Erin Davis were interviewed by CBC Canada about Kind of Blue, Bitches Brew, and the trumpeter's musical legacy.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Due to the state's ongoing budget crisis, radio station WSIE has lost all funding from the state of Illinois, and is seeking donations from individuals as well as underwriting support from local businesses.

New general manager Jason Church tells StLJN that additional fund-raising efforts are in the works, but anyone who'd like to make a contribution right now can do so here.

* Speaking of raising money, Radio Arts Foundation will present a fundraising event called "An Evening of Wine and Jazz Under The Stars," featuring live music from Miss Jubilee, on Friday, September 14 at the Sophia M. Sachs Butterfly House in Faust Park in Chesterfield.

* Trumpeter Keyon Harrold is the featured guest on the latest episode of WBGO's "The Checkout," which also airs on various NPR affiliates around the country.

* On a related note, Harrold's "Wayfaring Traveler," from his most recent album The Mugician, was Jazziz magazine's "Song of the Day" on Wednesday.

* Jazz Times has put online the cover story from their August issue about guitarist and St. Louis native Grant Green.

* Veteran St. Louis trumpeter and arranger Frank Goessler Jr. has died. He was 63 years old and lived in St. Charles. Goessler was a long-time member of the Bob Kuban Band who taught music at several local schools, most recently Academy of Sacred Heart and St. Monica School.

A graduate of what's now known as Berklee College of Music, Goessler also performed with and wrote charts for the Sessions Big Band, St. Louis Jazz Orchestra (aka Jim Widner Big Band), the Dave Dickey Big Band, and others. Visitation will be from noon to 4:00 p.m. this Sunday, August 5 at Baue Funeral and Memorial Center in St. Charles, with a funeral service scheduled at 4:00 p.m. Sunday in the Baue chapel.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* The Tavern of Fine Arts (pictured), the Central West End restaurant and bar that has presented numerous jazz, free improv, cabaret, and classical music performances over the past five years, will close permanently at the end of service next Saturday, June 25.

In a message posted on the venue's website, proprietors Aaron Johnson and Matt Daniels wrote, "While the performances have often attracted large audiences, and we have always paid the bills, the business is not profitable." Next week's performances will go on as scheduled, but the closing means the cancellation of a CD release party planned by local free improvisors for next month, as well the loss of the venue for recurring events including poetry readings, a monthly free improv jam session, and Cabaret Project St. Louis' monthly "open mic."

* KDHX has posted online photo albums from Genesis Jazz Project's concert last Thursday at Chesterfield Amphitheater; the New Orleans Suspects' show on Friday at the Broadway Oyster Bar; and Saturday's "Summer Gras" at Old Rock House.

* Bjorn Rannheim of The 442s was interviewed about the band's new release RELAY on Radio Arts Foundation - St. Louis.

* Saxophonist Christopher Braig has started a podcast called, fittingly enough, Sax St. Louis Podcast, offering "an eclectic mix of music, jazz, saxophone history, interviews, performing and educational topics relating to the greater St. Louis music community." Episode 1 is online now, with a second installment promised soon.

* The culinary offerings at The Dark Room were the subject of features this past week in the Ladue News and on the morning newscast at KTVI/Fox 2.

* In a new entry on his blog Devil at the Confluence, author, historian, and illustrator Kevin Belford takes a deep dive into the question of how Jelly Roll Morton got credit for a recording of the song "Soap Suds" that actually was made by the St. Louis Levee Band.

* Belford also posted to Vimeo a 30-second clip from Blues for Charlie O'Brien, a "doc in progress" about the former St. Louis police detective who in the 1950s helped revive interest in the city's early blues and jazz performers.

* A new entry on Marc Myers' blog Jazzwax looks into the connection between guitarist Grant Green's 1965 album I Want to Hold Your Hand and the line of "Little LPs" produced for stereo jukeboxes by Blue Note records.

* Drummer Kimberly Thompson was honored for her work on NBC's Late Night with Seth Meyers at the SESAC Film & Television Composers Awards Dinner held on June 1 in Santa Monica, CA. The performing rights organization presented more than 100 awards to music composers in the categories of network TV, local TV, cable TV, film composing, jingles, and streaming media.

* Bassist and St. Louis native Dan Loomis will debut "Job's Trial's - Our Trials," a new jazz oratorio he composed for bass, guitar, drums, voices, and a narrator, in a performance next Friday, June 24 at IBeam Brooklyn in NYC.

* The website Boiler Room has posted online a video of trumpeter and St. Louis native Keyon Harrold's performance at Revive Music's 10th anniversary event last month in NYC.

* Saxophonist Eric Person and his band Meta-Four are booked to perform at the 2016 Hudson Valley Jazz Festival, which takes place August 11-14 in Peekskill, NY.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

On the first day of the new year, here's a wrap-up of assorted links and short news items of local interest from the final week of the old year:

* Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis has made Calvin Wilson's Saturday night jazz program "Somethin' Else" available as part of their app for smart phones and tablets. The program airs at 8:00 p.m. Central time on Saturdays.

* Saxophonist David Sanborn has posted to Facebook some photos from his recent gig at the Blue Note Tokyo.

* Keyboardist Timothy "T.C." Chandler of the Coleman Hughes Project and singer Dennis Edwards' Temptations Review was profiled in the Belleville News Democrat.

* Singer/guitarist Tommy Halloran has made his latest album State Streets available to stream in its entirety on YouTube.

* The Funky Butt Brass Band has posted a number of videos from their 2015 "Holiday Brasstravaganza" to their YouTube channel.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Trumpeter Keyon Harrold, currently touring with R&B singer D'Angelo, was interviewed on video by Demencha Magazine.

* Singer, actor, comedian, and Belleville native Lea DeLaria was interviewed by Slate about her new album of jazz covers of David Bowie songs.

* Saxophonist Eric Person is taking part this week in the Jazz Composers Orchestra Institute's summer intensive at the Herb Alpert School of Music at UCLA. The week-long program "brings together jazz composers at various stages in their careers chosen from a national pool of applicants, to explore the challenges of writing for the symphony orchestra."

* The Bosman Twins were profiled in an article on the website Something Else.

* Beverly Hacker, longtime executive director at KDHX, has been placed on administrative leave by the community radio station's board of directors, and wrote about it in a "letter to the community" published by the Riverfront Times.

* Saxophonist Oliver Lake will participating in NYC's Charlie Parker Jazz Festival later this month, engaging in a conversation with fellow saxophonist Rudresh Mahanthappa on Thursday, August 20 at The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, and leading his big band in a performance Friday, April 21 at Marcus Garvey Park.

* The Goldenrod Showboat, once home to performances of traditional jazz and ragtime from the 1960s to the 1970s while moored on the St. Louis riverfront, is finally headed for the scrapyard. Attempts to resurrect the boat (pictured) have been abandoned after a recent attempt to move it from a remote spot along the Illinois River near Kampsville, IL to a safer location resulted in major structural damage.

The Historic Riverboat Preservation Association, the volunteer group that’s been working to preserve the boat, announced Wednesday morning that it will salvage what it can from the boat’s interior for a proposed riverboat museum.

* Jazz radio update: This Saturday on Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis, “Somethin’ Else” host Calvin Wilson will showcase the music of fast-rising bassist and singer Esperanza Spalding. The program begins at 8:00 p.m. and can be heard over the air on 107.3 FM, on HD radio at 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Guitarist and singer John Pizzarelli, in town to play a benefit for the family of the late pianist Ray Kennedy on Saturday at the Sheldon, was interviewed about the performance on KWMU's "CityScape" program.

* DownBeat magazine's 80th annual Reader's Poll is open for voting, and you can cast your ballot here.

* Drummer Dave Weckl (pictured) has recorded a new demo video for Sabian's "HHX Evolution Performance Cymbal Pack," which can be seen online here.

* The Funky Butt Brass Band took a road trip this past weekend to play a gig in Boyne City, MI, and they've posted on Facebook a photo album of the journey

* Also on Facebook, an album of pictures from Sound Unlimited pianist John Pyatt's birthday celebration last Sunday at Candicci's.

* StLJN sends condolences to bassist Willem von Hombracht, whose wife Ira passed away earlier this month. A memorial celebration of Ira von Hombracht's life is planned for Sunday, August 2 upstairs at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

* Applications for Regional Arts Commission's 2016 Artists' Fellowships are due on Friday, August 7.

* Jazz radio update: This Saturday on Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis' “Somethin’ Else,” host Calvin Wilson will feature the music of pianist Robert Glasper, including tracks from his new trio album, Covered. You can listen over the air on 107.3 FM, on HD radio at 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

Then on Sunday, and a bit to the left on your radio dial, bassist Darrell Mixon will be the featured guest this week on WSIE's "Jazz Talk". The program can be heard from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Sundays over the air on 88.7 FM and online.

Sunday night on KWMU/St. Louis Public Radio, Dennis Owsley's "Jazz Unlimited" program will feature music recorded for labels run by the late jazz impresario Norman Granz. Starting in 1957, Granz founded labels including Clef, Norgran, Down Home, Verve and Pablo, and recorded important jazz musicians including Oscar Peterson, Ben Webster, Ella Fitzgerald, Count Basie, Jazz at the Philharmonic, Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz, Kenny Barron, Charlie Parker, Charlie Haden’s Liberation Music Orchestra, Clark Terry, and more. The program can be heard from 9:00 p.m. to midnight Sundays over the air at 90.7 FM and online at http://www.stlpublicradio.org/listen.php

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Saxophonist Greg Osby's latest blog post wonders if NYC is now suffering from a "talent overload" of young musicians.

* In advance of her gig this weekend at Jazz at the Bistro, singer Denise Thimes did a brief interview with St. Louis magazine's Sarah Kloepple.

* Bassist John King (pictured), who plays with Good 4 The Soul, saxophonist Jim Stevens, and various other local acts, has more reasons than most to dislike the rainy weather we've had recently in St. Louis, as both his car and his bass amp were washed away last week in a flood. If you'd like to kick in a few bucks to help replace them, you can do it at this GoFundMe page.

* Dr. Aurelia Hartenberger, who recently donated her multi-million dollar collection of unusual and historic musical instruments to the Sheldon Concert Hall and Art Galleries, will speak about the instruments of Africa, Asia and Latin America in a gallery talk at 6:00 p.m. this coming Tuesday, July 14 at the Sheldon.

Presented in conjunction with the exhibit "A World of Music: Africa, Asia and Latin America ~ Instruments from the Hartenberger World Music Collection," the talk is free and open to the public, but seating is limited so you must reserve a place in advance by emailing ssheppard@thesheldon.org or calling 314-533-9900, extension 37. 

* Jazz radio update: This Saturday on Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis, Calvin Wilson's program “Somethin’ Else” will feature music from throughout the career of the late saxophonist and musical innovator Ornette Coleman. You can tune in at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

The next evening on KWMU/St. Louis Public Radio, Dennis Owsley's "Jazz Unlimited" program will present alternate takes of famous tracks by musicians including Louis Armstrong, Charlie Christian, Art Tatum, Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, Ahmad Jamal, Art Blakey, Count Basie, Woody Herman, Herbie Hancock, and others. The program can be heard from 9:00 p.m. to midnight Sundays over the air at 90.7 FM and online at http://www.stlpublicradio.org/listen.php

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Guitarist and singer John Pizzarelli chatted with KMOX's Charlie Brennan about the concert next month paying tribute to and raising money for the family of the late St. Louis pianist Ray Kennedy.

* While in town to perform at Jazz at the Bistro, trumpeter Terence Blanchard on Thursday also visited bassist Jim Widner's jazz camp at UMSL to teach and perform for the students there.

* In Denmark, a 2-CD set issued last year featuring the late saxophonist and former St. Louisan Luther Thomas (pictured) performing with various Danish musicians, was reviewed by AllAboutJazz.com's Jakob Baekgaard.

* Multi-instrumentalist and St. Louis expat J.D. Parran recently played on a new recording with Marshall Allen and Danny Thompson of the Sun Ra Arkestra, celebrating the 50th anniversary of Sun Ra's Heliocentric Worlds, Volume 2 using same instrumentation, and even the exact same bass marimba, and recording at the same studio used at Ra's session a half-century ago.

* The Friends of Scott Joplin now have a YouTube channel, featuring clips of ragtime performances from a variety of pianists.

* The latest episode of HEC-TV's I Love Jazz features singer Feyza Eren and her quartet, plus a segment on host Don Wolff's recent "Jazz Hero" award from the Jazz Journalists Association, and more. Unfortunately, the newly redesigned HEC website makes it very difficult to find out when the show airs, so you'll have to consult your TV provider's program guide for airdates and times, or just watch online here.

* LaVerne Holliday, a former on-air personality for radio station WSIE in the 1990s and early 2000s, has died of complications from breast cancer. She was 60.

* Jazz radio update: This Saturday on Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis, Calvin Wilson's program “Somethin’ Else” features the jazz-influenced works of composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein, as interpreted by Linda Oh, Jason Moran, Paula West, and more.

Immediately following on "The Jazz Collective," host Jason Church will spin tracks from George Benson, Junior Walker and the All Stars, Simply Red, Nathan East, Soul Ballet, John Coltrane, Common Time, the Bosman Twins, Jesse Gannon, Beth Bombara, and more.

"Somethin' Else" airs at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays, followed by "The Jazz Collective" at 9:00 p.m., on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

Then on Sunday, Dennis Owsley's "Jazz Unlimited" program on St. Louis Public Radio will present the second part of a special devoted to the "cool school" of West Coast jazz. Tune in from 9:00 pm to midnight Sundays on KWMU (90.7 FM) or listen online at http://www.news.stlpublicradio.org.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Bassist Nathan Pence, a senior at Bishop DuBourg High School in St. Louis, received the inaugural Rich McDonnell Scholarship in a presentation last Sunday during the concert at Jazz at the Bistro dedicated to McDonnell's memory.

Pence (pictured, with Jazz St. Louis executive director Gene Dobbs Bradford) will attend the University of Missouri-Kansas City in the fall, majoring in jazz performance.

"Rich was always extremely supportive of our JazzU students, so a scholarship in his name was a perfect fit," said Jazz St. Louis' Devin Rodino in an email to StLJN. "We haven’t finalized all of the guidelines for the scholarship, but do plan to continue to put dollars in and grow it into a sizable fund that can really make an impact each year for one or more students. We will be hashing out full details before next year’s award is given."

* In other news from Jazz St. Louis, Rodino and his pastry-loving colleagues at JSL will host a public celebration of "National Donut Day" from 7:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. next Friday, June 5 at the organization's HQ in Grand Center. The event is free and open to all, and participants can enjoy a sampling of donuts from 15 local bakeries, plus milk and/or coffee.

Students from the Jazz U program will provide live music, and there will be various activities including a donut taste-test competition "with celebrity judges," a donut-themed photo booth, a raffle for tickets to Jazz at the Bistro, and more.

* And in today's last bit of news from Jazz St. Louis, their 2015-16 season brochure now can be viewed online at http://issuu.com/jazzstl/docs/jsl_2015-16_season.

* Grand Center has announced "Music at The Intersection,"  a free concert series that will bring live music to eight venues within the arts district on three Friday evenings this summer.  The first event on Friday, July 17 will spotlight jazz and blues performers including Marquise Knox, Mo Egeston, Dave Black, Bob DeBoo Trio, Lamar Harris, Big Mike Aguirre, Tom "Papa" Ray, Jesse Gannon, Phil Dunlap Quintet, The People's Key, and the Bottlesnakes.

Venues for the series, which will continue on August 14 and September 11 with events featuring other musical genres, include Strauss Park, The Dark Room, Vito's Sicilian Pizzeria & Ristorante, Lucha, Dooley's Beef N Brew House, Jazz at the Bistro, Kranzberg Arts Center, and The Stage at KDHX.

* As part of his effort to establish the St. Louis Black Radio Hall of Fame, veteran broadcaster and author Bernie Hayes has launched a GoFundMe campaign with a goal of raising $15,000. The money will used to finance a benefit concert in August, rent temporary space for a physical museum, and develop a "virtual" radio and media hall of fame.You can read more about the campaign and donate here.

* Jazz radio update:  This Saturday on Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis, Calvin Willson's program “Somethin’ Else,” will focus on the music of composer Harry Warren ("Lullaby of Broadway, "At Last," "That's Amore") as performed by musicians including Sonny Rollins, Paul Motian, Diana Krall, and more. You can listen in at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.  

A few clicks to the left on your radio dial, Dennis Owsley's "Jazz Unlimited" program on St. Louis Public Radio this Sunday will present music from "jazz giants" including Bix Beiderbecke, Frank Trumbauer, Joe “King” Oliver, Fats Waller, Benny Goodman, Miles Davis, Shelly Manne, Freddie Redd, Betty Carter, Woody Herman, Eric Dolphy, Chick Corea, Bud Shank, Bill Holman, Betty Carter, and Sun Ra.  The program can be heard from 9:00 pm to midnight Sundays on KWMU (90.7 FM) and online at http://www.news.stlpublicradio.org.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* The New Music Circle concert earlier this month featuring saxophonist Tim Berne's Snakeoil was reviewed for DownBeat magazine by St. Louis freelance writer Terry Perkins.

* Guitarist Jeff Beck's show this past Tuesday night at the Fox Theatre was reviewed for the Post-Dispatch by freelancer Dan Durchholz.

* Saxophonist Oliver Lake's latest release (pictured), a duet album with bassist William Parker called To Roy, was reviewed by AllAboutJazz.com's John Sharpe.

* Drummer Kaleb Kirby and his band Animal Children are featured in the latest issue of St. Louis magazine.

* The Sheldon and Jazz St. Louis are among 11 St. Louis arts groups that will get funding next year from the PNC Arts Alive program.

* Hand drummers are congregating this weekend in St. Louis at the first ever Grandmaster Djembe Xplosion, a four-day event presented by Africa United Ballet at Better Family Life Cultural, Educational and Business Center. Instructors from Guinea, Mali, Ivory Coast, New York and Chicago are leading more than 20 workshops and demonstrations of drumming techniques, as well as discussions of African history and culture.

* Jazz radio update: On this Saturday's edition of Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis's program “Somethin’ Else,”  host Calvin Wilson will be puttin' the bass in your face, with a selection of music featuring bassist Ron Carter, both as a bandleader and as a sideman to Miles Davis, Joe Henderson, and others. The program can be heard at 8:00 p.m. on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen. 

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Saxophonist Oliver Lake (pictured) was interviewed by the website Revive Music in advance of his big band gig this Sunday at Aljira Gallery in Newark, NJ.

* Lake's recent duo album with bassist William Parker, To Roy, was reviewed by the website Music and More.

* A new article on the Blue Note Records website looks back at saxophonist Greg Osby's 2000 album The Invisible Hand.

* Pianist and former St. Louisan Tom McDermott, now a mainstay on the New Orleans music scene, has a new duo album, City of Timbres, with clarinetist, saxophonist and singer Aurora Nealand.

* The St. Louis Stompers are on the road this weekend playing the Bunny Berigan Jazz Jubilee in Fox Lake, WI.

* The Funky Butt Brass Band has posted to Facebook an album of photos from their performance in March at the World Chess Hall of Fame

* Jazz radio update: This Saturday on Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis, Calvin Wilson's program “Somethin’ Else” will feature music from young vocalists including Becca Stevens, Rebecca Martin and Gretchen Parlato. The program can be heard at 8:00 p.m. on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

Then, on Sunday's episode of "Jazz Unlimited" on St. Louis Public Radio, host Dennis Owsley will highlight the music of saxophonist Joe Lovano. The program can be heard from 9:00 p.m. to midnight over the air at 90.7 FM and online at http://www.stlpublicradio.org/listen.php.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* If you missed last Saturday's concert by drummer Gerald Cleaver (pictured) and his band Black Host (or just want to revisit it), you can see photo sets from the show on the KDHX website and on the Facebook page of presenters New Music Circle.

* One of last week's performances by the Robert Glasper Experience at Jazz at the Bistro was reviewed by Kenya Vaughn of the St. Louis American.

* After two years purveying smooth jazz, R&B and pop to local listeners, HD radio station Hip 96.3 finally has an official website of its own.

* Jazz St. Louis education director Phil Dunlap and student bassist Nathan Pence were interviewed about JSL's JazzU program on St. Louis Public Radio's "CityScape."

* Don Wolff talked about his work as a jazz broadcaster and his recent "Jazz Hero" award from the Jazz Journalists Association in an interview this week with KTRS' John Carney.

* Saxophonist and St. Louis native Eric Person's big band will be back in action this weekend in NYC, with a concert on Sunday, May 3 for First Presbyterian Church's ArtsWestchester series.

* Jazz radio update: On this Saturday's episode of his Radio Arts Foundation - St. Louis program  “Somethin’ Else,” Calvin Wilson will highlight the compositions of Burt Bacharach as interpreted by musicians such as Wallace ROney, Nellie McKay, and Mulgrew Miller.

Immediately following on "The Jazz Collective,"  Jason Church will feature new music from Boney James, Sun Soul Orchestra, and Rhonda Thomas, along with tracks from Ronnie Laws, Joe Sample, Pieces Of A Dream, Ramsey Lewis, Clave Sol, Tim Cunningham, The Bosman Twins, and Groovethang.

"Somethin' Else" can be heard at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays, followed by "The Jazz Collective" at 9:00 p.m. on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* The Bosman Twins and their new album When Lions Roar were the subjects of a feature story airing on the jointly produced local newscasts of both KPLR (Channel 11) and KTVI (Channel 2).

* KDHX has posted on their website a photo set from last Friday's New Music Circle concert by On Fillmore.

* The late trumpeter Clark Terry's 1958 album In Orbit is being reissued on vinyl by Original Jazz Classics on May 5. The album (pictured) is the only session originally recorded for the historic Riverside label to feature pianist Thelonious Monk as a sideman.

* Guitarist Vincent Varvel's song "The Plaza After Rain" from his album Third Person recently was featured on AllAboutJazz.com's "Download of the Day."

* Noting that he's the first Wash U student to headline a concert for the Jazz at Holmes series, Washington University's news service published online a brief profile of saxophonist Adam Schefkind.

* St. Louis Volunteer Lawyers and Accountants For The Arts' next "Business Edge" workshop, "Ask The Entertainment Lawyer," will take place at 7:00 p.m., Monday, April 20 at the Regional Arts Commission, 6128 Delmar. The presentation will feature a panel discussion with local entertainment attorneys Barbara Graham, Eric Kayira, Jeff Michelman and Gary Pierson. The cost is $10 in advance, $15 at the door, and you can register by email by sending your name and phone number to vlaa@stlrac.org.

* Calvin Wilson's latest article in the Post-Dispatch reviews new releases from pianist Myra Melford and Sound Prints, the quintet led by trumpeter Dave Douglas and saxophonist Joe Lovano that also features St. Louis native Lawrence Fields on piano. 

* Jazz radio update: And speaking of Lovano and Wilson, the music of the former will be featured by the latter this Saturday's episode of his program  “Somethin’ Else” on Radio Arts Foundation - St. Louis. Wilson will spin samples of Lovano's work as a bandleader and as a sideman for the likes of John Scofield and Paul Motian.

Following that, "The Jazz Collective" host Jason Church will play something from the new David Sanborn album, as well as music from Eric Darius, Byron Miller, Jonathan Butler, Boz Scaggs, Lee Ritenour, Grover Washington, Jr., David Benoit, Wilton Felder, Lettuce, Farshid Etniko, Jeanne Trevor, Al Hammerman, and the Funky Butt Brass Band.

"Somethin' Else" can be heard at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays, followed by "The Jazz Collective" at 9:00 p.m. on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

RAF-STL to begin live broadcast series Thursday, April 23 with Denise Thimes

Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis will inaugurate a new series of live broadcasts with a concert performance by singer Denise Thimes (pictured) on Thursday, April 23 at the Centene Auditorium, 7700 Forsyth (at Hanley) in Clayton.

Tickets for the concert and broadcast are $50 per person, and include a wine and cheese reception after the performance.

The doors will open at 6:00 p.m., with the concert starting at 6:30 p.m. and reception at 7:30 p.m. For more information, call RAF-STL's Debbie Robb at 314-881-3523 or send email to drobb at rafstl dot org.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* The Miles Davis Memorial Project has extended the deadline to Thursday, March 19 to purchase commemorative brick and blocks for paving the plaza around the statue of the trumpeter going up later this year in downtown Alton, IL.

Etched memorial bricks are available for $75, and there also are 23 remaining 12" x 12" granite blocks at $400 each. To order a brick or block, call Pride, Incorporated at 618-467-2375 or visit their website. Orders must be received no later than March 19 so that etching can be completed in time for site construction.

* The Miles Electric Band, assembled by Miles Davis' nephew Vince Wilburn, remembered the iconic trumpeter with a performance last week at Poland's Lotos Jazz Festival.

In addition to Wilburn on drums, the all-star ensemble (pictured) includes Davis alumnus Badal Roy on tabla, John Beasley and Robert Irving III on keyboards, guitarist Blackbyrd McKnight, percussionists Munyungo Jackson and Mino Cinelu, saxophonist Antoine Roney, bassist Richard Patterson, turntablist DJ Logic, trumpeter Christian Scott, and programmer/re-mixer Jeremy Ellis of The Roots. You can see photos from the gig here, along a synopsis of a review from the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita, which found in its entirety (in Polish) here.

* Saxophonist Oliver Lake's new duet album with bassist William Parker, To Roy, was reviewed by AllAboutJazz.com's Glenn Astarita. To Roy, which pays tribute to the late trumpeter Roy Campbell, and Lake's recent organ quartet release What I Heard also were reviewed by Russ Musto in this month's New York City Jazz Record.

* The Nine Network will present City of Music, a two-hour special broadcast exploring St. Louis' musical history and contributions to American music heritage, in two parts at 7:00 p.m on Monday, March 16 and Tuesday, March 17.  The program features performances by Peter Martin, Denise Thimes, Carolbeth True, Kim Massie, Billy Peek, and the St. Louis Ragtimers, as well as new music ensemble Alarm Will Sound playing three new works commissioned for the occasion by the Sinquefield Charitable Foundation, all recorded live last October at the Sheldon Concert Hall.

* The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) will present a five-hour retrospective of the music of John Zorn on Saturday, May 2. The program features ten different ensembles performing works composed by Zorn (who attended Webster University here in the mid-1970s).

* Jazz radio update:  This Saturday on Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis, Calvin Wilson will devote the episode of his program “Somethin’ Else” to the music of Rodgers and Hammerstein, as interpreted by Miles Davis, Cassandra Wilson, Paul Motian, and others.

Then on "The Jazz Collective,"  Jason Church will spin tracks from Nathan East, Cindy Bradley, Lack of Afro, Brother Strut, Eddie Henderson, Bobby Caldwell, Bill Evans, Hugh Masekela, Traffic, Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes, Jesse Gannon, Jim Manley and Vincent Varvel.

"Somethin' Else" can be heard at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays, followed by "The Jazz Collective" at 9:00 p.m., on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* The soundtrack album to Keep On Keepin’ On, the 2014 documentary about the friendship between the late Clark Terry and up-and-coming pianist Justin Kauflin, was released this week on the Varèse Sarabande label.

The soundtrack (pictured) features performances by Terry and Kauflin, with an original score by Kauflin and Dave Grusin. Kauflin also was interviewed this week about Terry and the film by Peter Hum of the Ottawa Citizen.

* KDHX has posted online a photo set from last Saturday's New Music Circle concert by Okkyung Lee and Lotte Anker.

* The Route 66 Jazz Orchestra has posted to Facebook a photo album from their most recent gig at Kirkwood Station Brewing Company.

* According to a story published yesterday by the Riverfront Times, smooth jazz guitarist Olufunsho Adeshina has been charged and now is wanted by federal authorities in a scheme involving tax fraud and identity theft. The Nigerian-born Adeshina hasn't performed much here locally, but reportedly has lived in St. Louis for the last several years, and has an active online presence.

* Saxophonist David Sanborn's upcoming album, which reunites him in the studio with bassist/producer Marcus Miller for the first time in many years, now has a title: Time and the River. The crowd-funded project has been mixed and mastered and is ready for pressing, with release date TBA.

* Saxophonist and St. Louis native Eric Person's quintet will be featured in a free "jazz vespers" concert on Saturday, March 7 at St. Albans Congregational Church in Queens, NYC.

* The Friends of Scott Joplin are holding their annual membership drive. Contributions to the all-volunteer organization are tax-deductible, and help support a concert series, monthly open-piano events, and a quarterly magazine, the Euphony Review.

Membership levels are $25 for Individual, $35 Couple, $50 Supporter, $100 Sponsor, and $200 Legacy. For more information or to pledge your support, visit the Friends of Scott Joplin website.

* The continuing effort to rescue and restore the historic Goldenrod Showboat is the subject of a feature story from St. Louis Public Radio. Supporters from the Historic Riverboat Preservation Association will hold a fundraiser on Saturday, March 21 at the Left Loft, 1817 Cherokee St.

* Jazz radio update: On this Saturday's edition of Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis' “Somethin’ Else,” host Calvin Wilson will be showcasing live tracks from the career of trumpeter Wynton Marsalis.

The program can be heard at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Wanda Kennedy Kuntz, author of Kennedy Music, will read from her book and sign copies at an event from 1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. this Saturday, February 21 at City Music, 9299 Watson Rd. in Crestwood.

Kennedy Kuntz, a pianist and music teacher, is the sister of jazz bassist Tom Kennedy and pianist Ray Kennedy. Her book (pictured), described as "an historical novel based on the Kennedy family," tells a fictionalized version of how her mother and father met and started the family's music store and school in Maplewood.

UPDATE - 4:25 p.m. Friday, 2/20: Just received an email from City Music saying that Wanda Kennedy Kuntz's book signing event has been postponed until Saturday, March 14.

* Euclid Records' head honcho Joe Schwab was featured on this week's episode of the A&E network's program Shipping Wars.

* Saxophonist and St. Louis native Greg Osby sat down with trumpeter Jason Palmer for a "bootleg blindfold test," listening to and commenting on unreleased recordings (hence the "bootleg" part), and Palmer blogged about it here.

* Saxophonist (and former Webster University student) John Zorn's recent run of shows at NYC's Village Vanguard was reviewed by Ben Ratliff of the New York Times.

* The National Center for Arts Research at Southern Methodist University in Dallas has ranked St. Louis as #17 among cities evaluated for their first-ever "Arts Vibrancy Index."

* Jazz radio update: This Saturday on Radio Arts Foundation-St. Louis, Calvin Wilson's program “Somethin’ Else” will feature the music of songwriter Jule Styne as interpreted by Joshua Redman, Abbey Lincoln, Wallace Roney, and others.

Then on The Jazz Collective, host Jason Church's playlist will include music from Down To The Bone, U-Nam, Nathan East, Melissa Manchester, Lack of Afro, Wes Montgomery, Grover Washington, Jr., Young-Holt Unlimited, Bobby Womack, Tim Cunningham, Funky Butt Brass Band, and more.

Wilson's program can be heard at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays, followed by Church at 9:00 p.m., on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Keep On Keepin' On, the documentary about trumpeter and St. Louis native Clark Terry, has won the Cinema Eye Honors' 2015 Audience Choice Award. The awards were presented this past Wednesday at a ceremony in Queens, NYC.

* Speaking of awards, singer Denise Thimes will be honored with an "Excellence in the Arts" award at the annual St. Louis Arts Awards dinner and ceremony, to be held Monday, January 19 at the Chase Park Plaza Hotel.

* St. Louis magazine's dining section has named the winners of their "Thumbnail Awards" for 2014, and the newly renovated Jazz at the Bistro was cited as the "Best Place to Brag About (on several levels)."

* Drummer and St. Charles native Dave Weckl (pictured) has posted on Facebook a video about "Circle of Rhythm," a piece of artwork from his new "rhythm-on-canvas" collection.

* What keeps you from going out to hear live music? St. Louis Public Radio's Public Insight Network is surveying local listeners, and you can respond here.

* StLJN offers our condolences to multi-instrumentalist and former St. Louisan Don Cunningham on the loss of his wife, singer and pianist Alicia Cunningham, who died December 23 in Las Vegas after a battle with cancer.

* Jazz radio update: This Saturday on Radio Arts Foundation - St. Louis' “Somethin’ Else,”  host , Calvin Wilson will feature the music of songwriter Hoagy Carmichael as interpreted by musicians such as Louis Armstrong, Jason Moran, Branford Marsalis, and more. The program can be heard at 8:00 p.m. Saturdays on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.

Then Sunday on KWMU's "Jazz Unlimited,"  host Dennis Owsley will present the second part of a four-part special on the music of George Gershwin, this week featuring "show, film and some classical music.” Listen in from 9:00 pm to midnight on 90.7 FM or online at http://www.news.stlpublicradio.org.

So What: Local News, Notes & Links

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

* Keep On Keepin' On, the recent documentary about trumpeter and St. Louis native Clark Terry, is one of the films eligible for the Cinema Eye Honors 2015 Audience Choice prize. You can cast your vote online here.

The movie also was mentioned favorably in a year-end article by the New York Times' Nate Chinen, who called it "a stirring portrait of perseverance, positivity and service."

* Saxophonist Greg Osby's recent trip to Mexico was documented in photos by saxophone makers P. Mauriat Music.

* Now that the holidays are over, touring musicians are hitting the road again, including drummer and St. Charles native Dave Weckl, who's headed out on tour starting January 13 with Chris Minh Doky & The Nomads featuring guitarist Dean Brown and keyboardist George Whitty. They'll play the Catalina Jazz Club in LA on January 20, 21, and 22.

* Meanwhile, drummer Marcus Baylor (pictured) and the Baylor Project will be part of NYC's Winter Jazz Fest, performing next Friday, January 9 at the Bitter End.

* The recently issued Miles Davis box set All of You: The Last Tour 1960 was reviewed by C. Michael Bailey of AllAboutJazz.com.

* New Music Circle has posted on Facebook a photo album from last month's concert by Roscoe Mitchell and Craig Taborn.

* Though The Gramophone has closed now for a month-plus to remodel from a concert club to a neighborhood bar and eatery, the venue's sound system will get a new life just down the street on Manchester when it's installed in a new venue, The Bootleg, in the space once occupied by Atomic Cowboy. The Post-Dispatch's Kevin Johnson has details in this story.

* And just in case to happen to be looking for some general jazz-related reading material over a long weekend, Down Beat magazine apparently has opened to the public their digital archives going back to 2008. (Thanks to StLJN reader and local Renaissance man Tony Renner for the heads-up.)

* Jazz radio update: This Saturday on Radio Arts Foundation - St. Louis, Calvin Wilson's “Somethin’ Else,” program will feature the music of saxophonist and composer Wayne Shorter, followed by "The Jazz Collective" with Jason Church counting down the top 22 tracks from 2014. Wilson can be heard at 8:00 p.m., followed by Church at 9:00 p.m., on 107.3 FM, 96.3 HD-2, and online at http://www.rafstl.org/listen.