What live music are you going to see tonight?

[BFrank]

11 hours ago, duaneiac said:

I would say it was an enjoyable evening rather than a great evening of music.  Because there were so many performers involved, they each had to do their number or two and move right along to the next musician.  In addition to the music, though, each of the pianists spoke of their respect for McCoy Tyner and of the influence his music has had on their own music and lives.  It was nice to hear these heartfelt sentiments expressed by these artists in honor of an artist we probably all respect & admire. 

I have to admit, I was quite surprised by Mr. Tyner's appearance these days.  It's been years since I last saw him perform, but if I had passed him on the street yesterday, I never would have recognized him.  He has changed considerably from the man I first started seeing "live" some 20 years ago when he would have those 2 week long residencies at Yoshi's.  I hope his health has stabilized.  His playing on his solo number was strong, so he must still be practicing to keep his chops up.  His website shows some concert appearances scheduled for Sept. - Dec., but I really am not sure if that is for this year or perhaps left over from last year.  I'm a bit dubious if he would still have the stamina to do a full concert, based upon what I saw last night.

It was not the greatest concert I've ever been to musically (although it certainly had its fine moments), but it was a very special event and I'm glad I was able to attend.

I was wondering about his health. He has looked pretty frail in the the pictures I've seen of him over the past few years. I'm glad that SFJAZZ was able to put on such a star-studded tribute for him.

[A Lark Ascending]

Rokia Traore (Howard Assembly Rooms, Leeds)

Non-stop two hours of wonderfully rhythmic music. Accompanied by guitar/bass/drums/ngoni/violin/extra singer. Songs of unity and cooperation. Highly ironic!  

[kh1958]

Marvin Stamm at the Kitchen Cafe. Some pretty fine trumpet and flugelhorn playing was on display this evening. And the venue was excellent--very good sound.

[BillF]

5 hours ago, kh1958 said:

Marvin Stamm at the Kitchen Cafe. Some pretty fine trumpet and flugelhorn playing was on display this evening. And the venue was excellent--very good sound.

A name from my albums of many years ago. Wikipedia tells me he's 6 months older than me, making him 77. But I'm not playing trumpet!

[sidewinder]

1 hour ago, BillF said:

A name from my albums of many years ago. Wikipedia tells me he's 6 months older than me, making him 77. But I'm not playing trumpet!

Great that he's still playing and playing so well. Ubiquitous on Quincy Jones, Oliver Nelson and Blue Note big band lineups of the 60s and 70s of course. Have been spinning his 'Machinations' a few times recently. The fact that he is playing so well at that age is a sign of tremendous technique I guess.

I might have seen him about 20 years ago in a local quartet gig in North America but I'm not sure..

Edited June 26, 2016 by sidewinder

[BillF]

1 hour ago, sidewinder said:

Great that he's still playing and playing so well. Ubiquitous on Quincy Jones, Oliver Nelson and Blue Note big band lineups of the 60s and 70s of course. Have been spinning his 'Machinations' a few times recently. The fact that he is playing so well at that age is a sign of tremendous technique I guess.

I might have seen him about 20 years ago in a local quartet gig in North America but I'm not sure..

Now listening to this one that includes Marvin Stamm:

 

Edited June 26, 2016 by BillF

[sidewinder]

Racking my brain about that possible Stamm gig. Might have been with Canadian vocalist Judi Singh but still not sure. Wish I'd kept notes !

[kh1958]

5 hours ago, BillF said:

A name from my albums of many years ago. Wikipedia tells me he's 6 months older than me, making him 77. But I'm not playing trumpet!

Marvin Stamm's playing was pretty much flawless, and as this was a quartet, was present in ample proportions. His tone on flugelhorn was especially gorgeous. He was backed by a local group, including the excellent drummer Andrew Griffin, The program was all standards. Definitely an unusual treat on a Saturday night in North Dallas.

[BillF]

1 hour ago, kh1958 said:

Marvin Stamm's playing was pretty much flawless, and as this was a quartet, was present in ample proportions. His tone on flugelhorn was especially gorgeous. He was backed by a local group, including the excellent drummer Andrew Griffin, The program was all standards. Definitely an unusual treat on a Saturday night in North Dallas.

Sounds like you had a great night! 

[Utevsky]

Just completed the first weekend of the Vancouver International Jazz Festival.  Two of the highlights were performances by the great Evan Parker, one with pianist Georg Graewe and bassist Torsten Muller; the other with Muller, violinist Meredith Bates and cellist Peggy Lee.  The next night, Peggy Lee led a ten-piece group with new compositions, including "Echo Painting," a work commissioned for the festival.  There was a blistering set by The Thing and an uplifting one by the Marcin Wasilewski Trio.  Vancouver guitarist Tom Wherrett led two impressive groups, a trio called Evil Three and a quintet called ElkHorn.  From Montreal, the festival pulled in the Andre Leroux Quartet and the Litania Project, led by the trumpeter Jacques Kuba Seguin.  Organist Chris Gestrin led a funky ensemble called Greasy G and the Poole Party.  Guitarist Tony Wilson brought his group Longhand.  Another highlight was the Norwegian quartet Cortex. 

Like other major festivals, Vancouver incorporates a lot of non-jazz artists, especially in the big-ticket venues.  But there is plenty of jazz to go around, and many of the most compelling gigs are free.  There are not too many places where you can spend the day in the sun, choosing from multiple stages and imbibing jazz for free.  And there is still another week to go....

[Leeway]

On June 27, 2016 at 2:15 AM, Utevsky said:

Just completed the first weekend of the Vancouver International Jazz Festival.  Two of the highlights were performances by the great Evan Parker, one with pianist Georg Graewe and bassist Torsten Muller; the other with Muller, violinist Meredith Bates and cellist Peggy Lee.  The next night, Peggy Lee led a ten-piece group with new compositions, including "Echo Painting," a work commissioned for the festival.  There was a blistering set by The Thing and an uplifting one by the Marcin Wasilewski Trio.  Vancouver guitarist Tom Wherrett led two impressive groups, a trio called Evil Three and a quintet called ElkHorn.  From Montreal, the festival pulled in the Andre Leroux Quartet and the Litania Project, led by the trumpeter Jacques Kuba Seguin.  Organist Chris Gestrin led a funky ensemble called Greasy G and the Poole Party.  Guitarist Tony Wilson brought his group Longhand.  Another highlight was the Norwegian quartet Cortex. 

Like other major festivals, Vancouver incorporates a lot of non-jazz artists, especially in the big-ticket venues.  But there is plenty of jazz to go around, and many of the most compelling gigs are free.  There are not too many places where you can spend the day in the sun, choosing from multiple stages and imbibing jazz for free.  And there is still another week to go....

A very impressive few days of jazz; glad to see that free jazz and modern improvisation are being offered. 

[ejp626]

I'm not doing too much at the Toronto International Jazz Fest.  However, I did go see the Avishai Cohen Trio, who were quite good.  (This is the more famous bass playing Cohen -- apparently there is also a trumpet player by the same name...) 

They are playing Montreal tomorrow (or Sat.) if I am not mistaken.

I guess I'm just a bit cranky at the moment, but these two now have a lot of recordings and they get all jumbled up.  Would it really have been too much to ask the newer artist on the scene (the trumpet player) to come up with a different name or use an initial or something?  It doesn't serve anyone's purpose to not be able to tell the two apart -- especially on digital downloads where the instruments aren't listed!  Out of principle, I am going to ignore the trumpet player and his recordings.

Edited July 1, 2016 by ejp626

[Larry Kart]

Avashi the trumpet player is Anat Cohen's brother. There is another brother in the family, Yuval, who plays soprano. I heard Avashi a year or more ago with Mark Turner; perhaps he was unduly restricted by Turner's constipated compositional frameworks, but the results were as undifferentiated as an asphalt sidewalk.

[relyles]

13 hours ago, ejp626 said:

I guess I'm just a bit cranky at the moment, but these two now have a lot of recordings and they get all jumbled up.  Would it really have been too much to ask the newer artist on the scene (the trumpet player) to come up with a different name or use an initial or something?  It doesn't serve anyone's purpose to not be able to tell the two apart -- especially on digital downloads where the instruments aren't listed!  Out of principle, I am going to ignore the trumpet player and his recordings.

Seems like a slightly harsh principle to punish someone for using his name, but I appreciate that the confusion can be frustrating.

[JSngry]

It's common practice elsewhere to add an initial as a performance name.

[ejp626]

3 hours ago, relyles said:

Seems like a slightly harsh principle to punish someone for using his name, but I appreciate that the confusion can be frustrating.

It's an absurd and totally avoidable situation, and the trumpet player has made no effort to resolve it (and he did come to the scene second), so I really don't have any sympathy for him.  This doesn't really matter for session players, though it can still lead to confusion, but I don't think it is right for two headliners to be using the same name.

[jlhoots]

59 minutes ago, ejp626 said:

It's an absurd and totally avoidable situation, and the trumpet player has made no effort to resolve it (and he did come to the scene second), so I really don't have any sympathy for him.  This doesn't really matter for session players, though it can still lead to confusion, but I don't think it is right for two headliners to be using the same name.

Even if they have the same name? 

[ejp626]

54 minutes ago, jlhoots said:

Even if they have the same name? 

No, one of them has to do something to distinguish himself (or herself) from the other.  This is one area where I strongly agree with SAG -- you can't have two performers using the same name.

[jlhoots]

56 minutes ago, ejp626 said:

No, one of them has to do something to distinguish himself (or herself) from the other.  This is one area where I strongly agree with SAG -- you can't have two performers using the same name.

What would you suggest? I'm just curious.

[ejp626]

1 hour ago, jlhoots said:

What would you suggest? I'm just curious.

I don't know his middle name, but A.X. Cohen or something along those lines. 

One of the Simpsons/Futurama writers has to go by David X. Cohen, because there already was a David S. Cohen in the Writers' Guild!  David S. would have used his actual name.

 

[Steve Reynolds]

Tom Rainey Trio with Ingrid Laubrock & Mary Halvorsen @ Cornelia Street Cafe (aka bowling alley room - thanks to Larry Kart for that!!) 

the room is skinny, wait staff attitude and competence varies. Music is usually great. Tom, Ingrid & Mary fit nicely on the little stage/bandstsnd(sic) and I wouldn't have it any other way?

[Chuck Nessa]

Cruising to Cologne at the moment - meeting with guitarist/composer Scott Fields in the afternoon and he is taking us to an event - I'm sure it will be interesting.

[Steve Reynolds]

Fwiw, wait staff was pleasant, room still skinny, music was astounding!

nice to see and chat with Clifford and his friend - also again I'm very humbled to be sitting within a few feet of one of the greatest guitarists I've ever heard one more time. The experience continues to be priceless to me. I'm not denigrating the fine playing/muscianship of Rainey & Laubrock, but Mary Halvorson, for me, is creating music on some other alternate universe level. 

And the sound itself - continues to wow me. The whole organic approach of the single note runs, rhythm playing and the use of the pedals, a bit of slide playing in one of the three second set pieces, and the power chord inventions - all add up to the whole package. I left last night extremely refreshed and inspired. Not sure this trio is better each time - not sure different - I'm just sure it is wonderous and of it's own sound and space. Very nice when a band is unlike anything else.

For those interested, Hotel Grief (Intakt) was recorded on 12/30/14 @ Cornelia Street - and this is one live recording that *does* give a decent approximation of what the band sounds like live. 

[clifford_thornton]

Hotel Grief is good. I had a lot of fun at the gig for sure... and yeah, that was my fiancée!

[Utevsky]

The last seven days at the Vancouver International Jazz Festival have been delightfully busy.  Let me tick off some of the better performances I heard.  One standout was the Alexander Hawkins Trio, featuring the brilliant young English pianist (who also posts on Organissimo).  George Graewe, who was heard earlier with Evan Parker, played in another trio with two Vancouver musicians, drummer Dylan van der Schyff and saxophonist John Paton.  The very young Paton is someone to watch in the coming years.  Then Graewe showed up a third time for a solo performance.

Perhaps the quirkiest group I heard is Donkey Monkey, from France.  Eve Risser was on piano, Yuko Ishima on drums, and both contributed vocals.  I also enjoyed a fiery set by the Polish trumpeter Piotr Damasiewicz and his quintet.  Benoit Delbecq came in from France and played with Vancouver stalwarts Francois Houle on clarinet and Gordon Grdina on guitar and oud.  Mats Eilertson, the Norwegian bassist, had Harmen Fraanje, a Dutch pianist, in his trio.

The Israeli pianist Anat Fort performed in two duos, one with the sweetly innovative vocalist Ayelet Rose Gottlieb, and one with Gianluigi Trovesi on clarinets.  As is often the case, I found Fort more impressive in person than on her records.  (Of course, after hearing someone live, I go back to their records and find I like them more than before.)

Rachel Thierren, a trumpet player from Montreal who is now based in New York, was also very impressive with her quintet.  Francois Houle returned in a duo with pianist Mattias Risberg from Sweden.  Vinny Golia jammed with Dylan van der Schyff and Vancouver bassist Clyde Reed.  Endangered Blood (Oscar Noriega, Chris Speed, Trevor Dunn & Jim Black) provided one of the most energetic performances of the festival.  Noriega and Speed were also joined by their Brooklyn brothers in the Mexican brass band Banda de los Muertos.

Matthew Halsall & the Gondwana Orchestra, a sextet from Manchester, played "spiritual jazz," which I guess means largely modal pieces with a harp.  Terell Stafford joined the Cory Weeds Quintet for a hard bop set emphasizing Lee Morgan tunes.

Tomeka Reid came in to direct the "TD Intensive" workshops with an elite assembly of high school students and then directed them in a free outdoor concert.  This was not your typical high school band.  They played original compositions and others by MIsha Mengelberg, Nicole Mitchell and MIchael Moore.  This serves as another reminder that the jazz can be expected to thrive for years to come.  Then Tomeka Reid was heard with her outstanding quartet (Mary Halvorson, Tomas Fujiwara & Jason Roebke).  After her turn with Reid, Halvorson played a very successful improvised set with trumpeter JP Carter and drummer Skye Brooks, plus the former Vancouver bass player Tommy Babin (now living in San Diego).

Vancouver has more than its share of good jazz musicians, and of course many of them were featured in the festival.  Among them were the Malleus Trio, with saxophonist Dominic Conway, and a quintet led by Geoff Claridge on reeds.  Pianist Tyson Naylor put together a quartet tribute to Paul Bley.  Guitarist Andre Lachance (who doubles on bass) had a fine quartet with Brad Turner (primarily, I think, a trumpeter) on keyboards, Chris Gestrin on Moog, and Joe Poole on drums.  The Boys of BenRiach (named after a favorite Scotch whisky) were led by the trumpeter Kevin Elaschuk.  (That was the first time I've seen a trumpet player clip a CD to the bell of his horn in lieu of a mute.)  Guitarist Ron Samworth led a special project, "Dogs Do Dream," in tunes that sought to reproduce the stuff of canine dreams.

In a non-festival event in a shitty, sweaty little club in Chinatown, Gordon Grdina (guitar and oud) played a blistering duo set with Jim Black on drums, and another set with his trio, augmented by Oscar Noriega.  Saxophonist Mike Allen and his quartet led nightly jam sessions at a more elegant club called Frankie's.

All this, and I still managed to miss some quality acts, like the Arild Andersen Trio and Gordon Grdina's Middle Eastern jazz band Haram.  The Vancouver festival, now in its 31st year, has to be one of the best in the world.  The city itself is a great place to visit, especially in the summer.  So if you haven't been to Vancouver, consider putting it on your bucket list