AUGUST 2021—ISSUE 232

YOUR FREE GUIDE TO THE NYC JAZZ SCENENYCJAZZRECORD.COM

RENEE
ROSNES

GIFT OF TIMEJOHNPIZZARELLICAMILLETHURMANTODDCOCHRANLOWELLDAVIDSONManaging Editor:
Laurence Donohue-Greene
Editorial Director &Production Manager:
Andrey Henkin
To Contact:
The New York City Jazz Record
66 Mt. Airy Road East
Croton-on-Hudson, NY 10520
United States
Phone/Fax: 212-568-9628

AUGUST 2021—ISSUE 232
NEW YORK@NIGHT

Laurence Donohue-Greene:ldgreene@nycjazzrecord.com

INTERVIEW : JOHN PIZZARELLIAndrey Henkin:ahenkin@nycjazzrecord.com

ARTIST FEATURE : CAMILLE THURMAN
ON THE COVER : RENEE ROSNES

Advertising:advertising@nycjazzrecord.com
Calendar:calendar@nycjazzrecord.com
VOXNews:
voxnews@nycjazzrecord.com

ENCORE : TODD COCHRANLEST WE FORGET : LOWELL DAVIDSONLABEL SPOTLIGHT : AUT

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Staff Writers
Duck Baker, Stuart Broomer,
Robert Bush, Kevin Canfield,
Marco Cangiano, Thomas Conrad,
Pierre Crépon, Ken Dryden,
Donald Elfman, Phil Freeman,
Kurt Gottschalk, Tom Greenland,
George Grella, Anders Griffen, Tyran Grillo,Alex Henderson, Robert Iannapollo,
Mark Keresman, Marilyn Lester,
Suzanne Lorge, Marc Medwin,
Jim Motavalli, Russ Musto,
John Pietaro, Joel Roberts,
John Sharpe, Elliott Simon,
Anna Steegmann, Scott Yanow
Contributing Writers
Dan Bilawsky, Brian Charette,
Jordannah Elizabeth, Pierre Giroux,
Kira Grunenberg, George Kanzler,
Steven Loewy, Kyle Oleksiuk, Akira Saito
Contributing Photographers
Scott Friedlander, Jessica Molaskey,
Sherry Rubel, Robert I. Sutherland-Cohen,
Jennifer Taylor
Fact-checker
Nate Dorward

nycjazzrecord.com

VOXNEWS
OBITUARIESALBUM REVIEWSEVENT CALENDARMISCELLANY

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by kyle oleksiukby jordannah elizabeth
by ken dryden
by jim motavalli
by alex henderson
by george grellaby suzanne lorge
by andrey henkinby andrey henkin

Earlier this summer, a real brouhaha erupted when anti-vaxxer protesters picketed the
newly reopened Springsteen on Broadway, making false and, frankly, disgustingly
ignorant and privileged equivalence between the show’s requirement of proof of
vaccination and separate facilities for different races in the U.S. or the yellow stars Jews
were forced to wear under the Nazis. While we are all desperate for art and live experience
after so many months, it is just as desperate that those whose selfishness prevent themfrom engagement with society are not allowed to bring us back to the lockdowns andisolation that seemed never-ending just a few months ago. One would have hoped thatthe rare experience of fear and loss and disorientation that crossed all societal andnational lines since early 2020 would have brought humanity closer, setting aside
differences for a larger good yet, apparently, there is much work still to be done.
For the vaccinated, NYC is reopening at a dizzying rate: pianist Renee Rosnes (On The
Cover) will be at Blue Note with Ron Carter’s Foursight; guitarist John Pizzarelli(Interview) will also be there, presenting his recent project of solo Pat Methenyinterpretations; and saxophonist/vocalist Camille Thurman (Artist Feature) is all overtown this month at Central Park Great Hill, Bryant Park and Drom. And our CD
Review section features others offering performances indoors and out. Plus, we introduce
a new section for the many who may have fled the five boroughs during the pandemic:“100 Miles Out”, a selection of shows (found at the end of the Event Calendar) outside
the city limits since, we have come to learn, there is life outside of 10001-10314.

On The Cover: Renee Rosnes (photo courtesy of DL Media)
All rights reserved. Reproduction without permission strictly prohibited. All material copyrights property of the authors.

2 AUGUST 2021 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORDAUGUST
2021 CALENDAR

jazzmobile.org
THANK YOU TO OUR SUPPORTERS

SPECIAL THANKS TO: Mayor Bill de Blasio, NY City Council Speaker Corey Johnson; Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer; State Senator Brian Benjamin, State Assembly Member Inez E. Dickens,
New York City Council Member William Bill Perkins (M) , New York City Council Member Kevin Riley (Bx.), New York City Council Member I. Daneek Miller, (Q), NY City Council Member Debi Rose, (SI)NEW YORK @ NIGHT
N ew Yorkers know that summers in the city provide A stripped-down Jazz in July at 92nd Street Y (Jul.

TODD COCHRAN TC3
THEN AND AGAIN, HERE & NOW
TODD COCHRAN piano
JOHN LEFTWICH bass
MICHAEL CARVIN drums

To assist him in his efforts, Cochran enlistedbassist John Leftwich and drummer Michael
Carvin. Leftwich has been an important voicein the West Coast’s vibrant music scene for
decades and was introduced to Cochrantwenty years ago via Freddie Hubbard. The
legendary drummer became a part of the
pianist’s world even earlier through collaborations with Bobby Hutcherson. Together the
Todd Cochran TC3 is a tremendously vibrantand cerebral ensemble that breathes life into
any piece they endeavor to touch.

www.sunnysiderecords.com© SCOTT FRIEDLANDER

Pianist Todd Cochran emphaticallymarks his acoustic reincarnation
after nearly Half Century solo
recording hiatus
Cochran’s musical interests have always been
vast in their outlook, from the avant-garde tofusions of jazz and rock. As Bayeté, his soundcan be heard on albums that push the boundsof genre, from Santana and Automatic Man’s
arena filling rock sounds to the explosively
spiritual world of his own records. The element that has never escaped Cochran’s work
has been the blues esthetic tied to jazz’s legacy, which he re-embraces on his new recording, Then and Again, Here & Now.

20th) put the spotlight squarely on vocalist Kurt Elling,in “Standard Time”, an intimate program of jazzchestnuts, which could successfully transfer to any
given cabaret room. Elling, intellectual by nature andsometimes overly serious on stage, was in a particularlycelebratory, animated mood, his concise and precise
narrative threaded with wit and dollops of humor. Jazzin July Artistic Director/pianist Bill Charlap yielded
hosting duties to the singer, assuming the function ofaccompanist, venturing into a percussive territory
attuned to Elling’s creative phrasing, including
glissandi and bebop riffs. Two highly accomplishedsidemen, bassist David Wong and drummer Carl Allen,with guest Steve Wilson on both alto and sopranosaxophones, offered solid support throughout.
A virtuosic performer and accomplished storyteller,
Elling is a master of vocal stylings, most notably
vocalese, which seems even to inform his clipped wayof speaking. He’s also a purveyor of exceptionallyskilled scat, on display in “September in the Rain”,
which began with a slow intro, with emphasis on the
lyric, before moving into a swing tempo. A sloweddown “More Than You Know” was voiced as if a
45 rpm record was spinning at 33 rpm. Encore“Somewhere” was a paragon of arranging, Wong,
Allen and Wilson threading through a soulful deliveryof piano and voice, Elling effortlessly demonstrating
his wide range and creativity.
—Marilyn Lester

R.I. SUTHERLAND-COHEN / JAZZEXPRESSIONS.ORG

a plethora of free, high-caliber jazz performances…if
you know where to find them. One place is the “Piano
in Bryant Park” series, running weekday afternoons,
May through September. A cool, overcast but rainlessday, proved the perfect setting to imbibe pianist Joel
Forrester’s delectable solo style, a mingle-mangle ofboogie, stride, swing and otherwise, all served with
infectious humor. On the second of a five-day run (Jul.
13th), the 75-year-old pianist (now living in France
after almost four decades in the city) seemed glad to beback in town, using his swing-marching “Soldiers in
the Army” as an opener, accompanying the parade ofpassersby as if they were actors on a silent screen.
Introducing numbers with wry commentary andcurious anecdotes, he ragged “In the Ring”, boogied“School Blues”, caressed the Thelonious Monkinspired “Your Little Dog” and cover of Monk’s“Pannonica”, tangoed “I Wonder”, closing the first set
with minimalist “Second Nature” (in 11/4), halfwaltzing “Skirmish” (in 5/4) and hard-striding“Hope”. To test the audience’s mettle, Forrester opened
the second set with “Industrial Arts”, an extended
minimalistic piece modulating from 7/4 to 6/8 to fast
7/8, an exercise in morphing textures. An ad hoc blues(with guest singer Daphne Gale), rolling “Staggered
Joel” (based on “Stagger Lee”) and “Piano in the Park”(a commissioned piece) rounded out the eclectic yetcohesive, seriocomic concert.
—Tom Greenland

Joel Forrester @ Bryant Park

Kurt Elling @ 92nd Street Y’s Jazz in July

There’s a special ‘neighborhoody’ feeling you get at A full house at Birdland was never more exciting,the free outdoor summer JazzMobile concerts, now
back in full force after two troubled seasons. The
feeling probably stems from the fact that most events
are held in Harlem’s Marcus Garvey Park andMorningside Heights’ Grant’s Tomb, so that the coregroup of locals who have regularly attended since theearly ‘70s have little trouble bringing folding chairs
and picnic dinners (some even bring their dancing
shoes) to the shows. On the wide entry steps of Grant’s
Tomb (Jul. 15th) vibraphonist Jay Hoggard,a program veteran, led his superb quintet—reedplayer
Don Byron, keyboard player James Weidman, bassist
Belden Bullock and drummer Alvester Garnett—
through an increasingly inspired 90+-minuteperformance of original tunes and a cover of JazzMobile
founder Billy Taylor ’s “I Wish I Knew How It Would
Feel to Be Free”. After warming the crowd with “Swing‘Em Gates” and “Soular Power”, the music seemed toplumb a deeper level somewhere during Byron’sbaritone saxophone solo on “Harlem Jazzbirds
Swingin’ and Swayin’”, maintaining this intensity over“Let Me Make It Clear” (with a fine solo by Hoggard),
the gospel-tinged Taylor cover (which opened as avibraphone/piano duet) and romping “God Will
Guide”. As the twilight darkened, Hoggard was able tosqueeze in two more: an up-swinging “Sonic
Hieroglyph” and the calypso “I Am Free”, both stirring
pairs of dancing ‘jazzbirds’ into action.
(TG)

4 AUGUST 2021 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD

with the pandemic lockdown over and all present
elated at the return of live music. Tuba player David
Ostwald’s Louis Armstrong Eternity Band, resuming
a 20th-year run of weekly gigs at the club (Jul. 14th)
exuded an extra measure of rhythmic glee, each player
rolling into the pocket with consummate ease. Leader
and quip-master Ostwald had for this outing (thelineup rotates from week to week) top-shelf musicians
to syncopate and swing: Adrian Cunningham (clarinet,saxophone), Joe Boga (trumpet), Jim Fryer (trombone),
Arnt Arntzen (plectrum banjo, guitar) and Alex
Raderman (drums). Bonus points were added for abounty of vocals from Cunningham, Arntzen andFryer, including, respectively, a notable “Mack theKnife”, torchy “When Your Lover Has Gone” and, intrue Jack Teagarden mode, “A Hundred Years fromToday”. Duke Ellington was liberally represented,
including the bebop anticipator “Cottontail” and a toolittle heard tune written for Louis Armstrong, “Azalea”,
also vocalized by Arntzen. A showstopper, “Diga Diga
Doo”,
was
a
high-energy
toe-tapper,with
Cunningham’s clarinet high-noting, Boga wailing and
Ostwald delivering his only solo of the set. Boga, inparticular, is so attuned to his instrument, he makes
trumpet playing seem breathtakingly effortless.
Closing was a full-speed-ahead “Swing That Music”,
complete with round-robin vocals, proving musicalriches had returned to Birdland. 		
(ML)A steamy summer night (Jul. 16th) brought throngs F rom the balcony of The Cutting Room (Jul. 17th),

immersed within art nouveau-turning-deco interior,
the atmosphere onstage with Louis Prima, Jr. and The
Witnesses seemed incendiary. True believers andyoung converts roared as “Sing, Sing, Sing”, composed
in 1936 by Prima, Sr., began. Like his father, Prima, Jr.
is a talented entertainer whose jocular vocals led muchof the action. If this was a tribute, however, it catapulted
the sound into the present and these stunning
Witnesses enjoyed numerous featured spots as vocalists
and instrumentalists. Tireless doesn’t begin to describe
each perspiration-filled moment as the band not only
played blistering ensemble (i.e., New Orleans) sections
and spotlight solos, but smoothly incorporated bits of
comedy and dance. Drummer A.D. Adams, bassist A.J.
Dicharry, keyboard player Tris Duncan and guitarist
Tony Italiano were unstoppable forces, as were baritone
saxophonist Garrett Wingfield, trumpeter Steve Sharp
and trombonist Philip Clevinger. Featured tenor
saxophonist Marco Palos, the Sam Butera of this band,and Prima’s trumpet powerfully shared the front withKate Curran, who captured Keely Smith’s soulfulness
but truly shined when unleashed, wrapping long tones
around her own R&B core. Hits “Buona Sera” and“Jump, Jive and Wail” sizzled and “That Old Black
Magic” utterly throbbed, but jazz-rock like “25 or 6 to 4”
and “Vehicle” and Ike and Tina Turner ’s “ProudMary”, among other unexpected encores, proved theband to be wonderfully relentless.
—John Pietaro

Spanish Harlem Orchestra @ Bryant ParkThe 2022 NEA Jazz Masters class has been announced:
bassist Stanley Clarke, drummer Billy Hart, vocalist Cassandra
Wilson and saxophonist Donald Harrison, Jr., the latterrecipient of the A.B. Spellman NEA Jazz Masters Fellowship
for Jazz Advocacy. The recipients will be honored in March2022 at SFJAZZ. For more information, visit arts.gov.
The Summer Virtual Term of Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Swing
University takes place Aug. 1st-Sep. 8th. The focus will beon saxophonists, including Sonny Rollins, Sidney Bechet,
Benny Carter, Vi Redd, great saxophonists of the ‘50s, World
Saxophone Quartet and more. For more information, visit
2021.jazz.org/swing-u.
Philadelphia’s Clef Club of Jazz & Performing Arts will
present a series of Master Classes in the Fall of 2021:
Bernard Purdie (Oct. 16th), Michele Rosewoman (Nov. 20th)and Oliver Lake (Dec. 18th). For more information, visit
clefclubofjazz.org/pcc-events.
The United States Post Office has released a set of fivestamps celebrating tap dancing, including ones featuring
Michela Marino Lerman and Max Pollak.
The New Jersey Performing Arts Center has announced
its Fall 2021 schedule, which will begin in September with
Gregory Porter (Sep. 24th) and “Salsa Meets Jazz” with Tito
Nieves, Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra andEddie Palmieri Salsa Orchestra (Sep. 25th). For more
information, visit njpac.org.

Idris Ackamoor and Cultural Odyssey has received a$400,000 grant from the Mayor’s Office of San Francisco insupport ofAfricanAmerican TheaterAlliance for Independence.

Louis Prima, Jr. and The Witnesses @ The Cutting Room

Arturo O’Farrill’s Latin Jazz Ensemble renewed its As The Fringe celebrates its golden anniversary, its
two-and-a-half-decade Sunday Birdland residency(Jul. 4th) despite the absence of its leader. Saxophonist
Ivan Renta served as the musical director of an octet
culled from O’Farrill’s Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra:
trumpeter Jim Seeley and trombonist Rafi Malkiel
joining him in the frontline and Andrew Andros in
O’Farrill’s piano chair in the rhythm section withbassist Bam Bam Rodriguez, drummer Vince Cherico,
conguero Keisel Jimenez and bongocero Carlos
Maldonado. The band kicked off its sold-out set witha page out of the Spanish Harlem Orchestra repertoire:a fiery version of Oscar Hernandez’ “Rumba Urbana”.
Seeley’s “The Joker”, a soulful outing with a funkyelectric bassline underpinning bluesy solos by thecomposer, Renta and a climactic conga and bongo
dialogue, was up next. After that the group reachedback into the Cuban classics songbook with a renditionof Ernesto Lecuona’s “Siboney”, which began tenderly,
then erupted into explosive solos by Seeley, Malkiel
and Cherico, which had the house cheering. AnotherSeeley piece, “The Little General”, superbly blended
bebopping and AfroCuban rhythms while the take on
Chico O’Farrill’s arrangement of “Almendra” oozed
Middle Eastern-flavored exoticism. The set ended with
two Arturo O’Farrill compositions: “Llorona”, adramatic outing from his Despertidas Suite written for
the Malpaso Dance Company, and the boldly grooving“Blue State Blues”. 			
(RM)

W H AT ’ S N E W S

The Alternative Guitar Summit Camp 2021 with JulianLage, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Gilad Hekselman, Jerome Harris,
Tim Miller, Joel Harrison and guests John Scofield andSheryl Bailey will take place Aug. 23rd-27th at Full Moon
Resort in Big Indian, NY. For more information, visit
alternativeguitarsummitcamp.com.

PHOTO BY SHERRY RUBELJENNIFER TAYLOR / COURTESY OF CARNEGIE HALL

out to Bryant Park for the Carnegie Hall Citywide
Series “picnic performance” by the Spanish Harlem
Orchestra. The 13-strong, 3-time Grammy Award
Winning ensemble led by pianist Oscar Hernandez got
things started presenting itself to the audience withits “Orquestra Del Barrio”, during which Hernandez
introduced the group’s three singers, five-man rhythm
section and five-horn players. The band then blasted
off into a blistering “La Fiesta Empezo”, Carlos
Cascante singing the lead vocal, urging listeners tobailar y gozar. Marco Bermudez sang the lead on “EchaPa’Lante”, which had trumpeter Alex Norris steppingout for a lyrical solo over the churning percussion of
Luisito Quintero, George Delgado and Jorge Gonzalez.
“Yo Te Prometo” featured Jeremy Bosch singing theamorous lyric and Doug Beavers soloing warmly on
trombone. The singers joined forces on the cha-cha “PaGoza” before taking a break while the band stretchedout on Hernandez’ “Fort Apache”, then returning tosing together on “Esa Nena”, a rousing romp witha Colombian cumbia interlude. Bosch played flute on
the classically-tinged “Como Te Quise” and with
Hernandez on his “Goza El Ritmo”. The band put
its salsa-styled stamp on popular Mexican song
“La Media Vuelta”, also evident on set closers“La Banda Llego”, a feature for Mitch Forman’sbaritone saxophone, and “La Salsa Dura”, which got
the crowd up on its feet dancing.
—Russ Mustoset at Bar Bayeux (Jul. 7th) left the room buzzing withfest and fervor. Though visitors to NYC, saxophonist
George Garzone and bassist John Lockwood standwith our finest Downtown ensembles. Co-founded by
Garzone, a Berklee faculty member in 1971 Boston, its
lineup has been amazingly stable; Lockwood joined in
1985, marking the only shift until the sad passing of
drummer Bob Gullotti last year. It took time to deal
with the loss, but the addition of Francisco Mela,a regular sub for 17 years, was natural. Adjusting theligature on his saxophone, Garzone gave the slightest
nod to Mela who caressed a banshee wail from his lone
cymbal. As the rhythm section percolated, Garzone’s
motifs poured most fluidly, reminiscent of John
Coltrane’s pious tenor. Mournful in tone, though notlacking in energy, the piece (a Gullotti lament?) roared
once in tempo. Lockwood’s blurring pizzicato turned
his instrument into a second horn with constant drive.
And Mela was a phenom of perpetual motion, layering
cascades of Latin rhythms with deft shading, explosions
and Spanish-language vocals shouted up over his kit.
During three lengthy but gripping improvisations, The
Fringe coursed emotions from ballad to utter fire, with
Garzone threading hints of standards into the whirl of
free jazz, excitedly filling the house of 20-somethings.
Decades of Monday nights up north earned The Fringe
legendary status in Boston. The crime is that we New
Yorkers can’t see them each Saturday.
(JP)

Brooklyn Conservatory of Music has named Jordyn
Davis and Charenée Wade as recipients of the inaugural
Jazz Leaders Fellowship. Both will receive $12,500 andhave a year-long opportunity to work closely with BKCM
students and faculty. For more information, visit bkcm.org/jlf.
Composer Michael Yezerski and trumpeter Ambrose
Akinmusire will score the upcoming Starz original series
Blindspotting.
The inaugural Magos Herrera Young Woman ImmigrantMusician Award, presented by International Human Rights
Arts Festival, has been announced. The award is created “tosupport an outstanding young female immigrant musician
based in USA trying to make a difference and to develop a
musical career.” The submissions deadline is Aug. 15th. For
more information, visit ihraf.org/magos-herrera-award.
The DC Jazz Festival has announced the 2021 DCJazzPrix
Finalists: Giveton Gelin Quintet; Camilla George; andDayramir Gonzalez & Habana enTRANCé. The finalists willtake part in the 17th Annual DC JazzFest on Sep. 5th. For
more information, visit dcjazzfest.org.
The corner of Broad and William Streets in Newark, NJ
across from Newark City Hall has been named Woody
Shaw, Jr. Plaza, through the efforts of the late trumpeter’sson Woody Shaw III.
Pianist Andy Milne has won the 2021 JUNO Award in theBest Group Jazz Album category for his recent album, The
reMission (Sunnyside).
Submit news to ahenkin@nycjazzrecord.com

THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD | AUGUST 2021 5

JESSICA MOLASKEY / COURTESY OF THE ARTISTINTERVIEWJOHNPIZZARELLI
by kyle oleksiuk

O ver the course of his nearly 40-year-long career, prolificjazz guitarist, singer and composer John Pizzarelli has
become one of the most celebrated modern interpreters of theGreat American Songbook (GAS), a love for which heacquired from his father, the also-celebrated guitarist Bucky
Pizzarelli. Pizzarelli’s eminence as a player of GAS tunes
needs little introduction: it should suffice to say that hefeatures prominently throughout Paul McCarthy’s 2012
album of GAS songs, Kisses on the Bottom. While most of
Pizzarelli’s recordings are within the GAS tradition, overthe course of the COVID-19 pandemic he recorded an album
of songs from a very different songbook: that of guitarist
Pat Metheny. That album, the occasion for this interview, isBetter Days Ahead (Solo Guitar Takes on Pat Metheny),
released in April by Ghostlight Records. This interview was
conducted over the phone while Pizzarelli and his wife,
singer Jessica Molaskey, drove out of New York towards
their cabin upstate.
The New York City Jazz Record: What’s the story
behind the new album?
John Pizzarelli: I had wanted to make a solo guitar
record, but none of it was planned. [My wife and I] had
escaped from New York City on Mar. 13th, 2020 andmade our way up to where we’re going now—a little
cabin that we have—because we’re older people andwe didn’t want to get sick. So the first thing that I
started doing was just playing standards for a while.
But then I started playing Pat Metheny tunes, because
I could practice all day and the phone wasn’t going toring saying, “Hey, we need you next Friday at a gig”
because there weren’t going to be any gigs.
So I started playing these Pat Metheny tunes andI posted a couple of them on Instagram. And my buddy,
Rick Haydon, the co-producer of the record, saw them.
And he said, “no more posting of the Pat Methenysongs...we’re going to record this record and I’ll talkyou through it on your iPad, don’t just give it away.
You’ve got the beginnings of something really good.”
In the meantime, my parents passed away, myfather on Apr. 1st [2020, of complications from COVID19]and my mother on Apr. 8th and Pat Metheny wrote
me a couple of beautiful condolence notes. And
I started talking to him about music and things andguitar and told him I was playing some of his tunes.
And eventually he sent me lead sheets, so I didn’t haveto slow down the records anymore to figure them out.
I actually had the music from the guy and that wasa big deal.
So everything fell into place and recording it was
fun. I’d wake up and go into this little room, it was mydaughter ’s bedroom, but she’s older now. I had theiPad on the bed and that’s what we did. It was a funprocess and it really got my mind off everything thatwas going on that was driving me crazy, so it really
was, what’s the word? Cathartic.
TNYCJR: Why Pat Metheny songs?

JP: I’ve been a fan of Pat’s forever. I love melodies andI think that’s what attracted me to Pat Metheny’s
music. There’s always beautiful harmonic things thatgo on within the chords, but the melodies are somemorable and well written. It’s not a vamp, it’s notlike two chords and he fakes it. He’s always got somegreat ideas and little tricks that he throws at you, soevery day was a brainteaser. It really was a revelation
to me to put those things together and just play guitar
solo. It was fun to practice and I’m excited to play[these tunes] live, which I haven’t done yet.
TNYCJR: Did you attempt any other new musicalventures this year while everything was shut down?
JP: I also started doing these little concerts every
Thursday night at 6 pm on my Facebook page. Once
I finally figured it out, I realized it was fun to go on
Facebook on Monday and say, “I’m going to do aconcert on Thursday. What do you want to hear?” Andpeople would start to request songs. And then they got
to hear their name announced and we put together
a setlist and it became something really interesting.
People from Brazil and Portugal and Spain and New
Zealand were listening and people around the States,
who were all home by themselves.
It was just me sitting on my couch and then mywife Jessica would sing with me at the end of all the
programs. I would do requests and then a little bossa
nova section and then I would sing “You’ve Got To Be
Carefully Taught” from Rodgers and Hammerstein
and then Jessica would close it out and sing a coupleof numbers at the end. It’s usually about an hour to 75
minutes each week. It’s a fun little bit of business andI’m still doing them. I go back to work on Aug. 1st, butwhenever I’m off the road, I think that I might continue
to do them because they’re really fun to do.
TNYCJR: How did you first get interested in Swingand the Great American Songbook?
JP: My father was a jazz guitarist. He played with
Benny Goodman and all those people. So that waswhere I came from, I came from that school of thought.
I grew up with my father playing with people like Zoot
Sims and Les Paul and Clark Terry and Slam Stewart
and Hank Jones, so there was always music and greatmusicians around the house. I started to play that kindof music because I heard it played. And if you played
it well they would pay attention to you, so that you
just kept striving to do better and better.
TNYCJR: Are there any records or musicians you goback to over and over?
JP: I listen to Nat King Cole a lot. I love Oscar Peterson
and his trio. I like listening to different guitar players,
so if it’s not Pat Metheny it might be George Van Eps,
who invented the seven-string guitar, or Oscar Moore

6 AUGUST 2021 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD

or George Barnes. Sometimes Toninho Horta, who is agreat Brazilian jazz guitar player, and João Gilberto.
I really love a lot of bossa nova, so any Jobim music isalways fun to listen to. There’s always something you
hear different each time you hear those records.
TNYCJR: Did you ever consider an instrument otherthan the guitar?
JP: No. I played the trumpet from fourth grade tocollege and I had a really good college trumpet teacher
and when he really leaned on me to play the instrument
I fell in love with it but I realized it’s too hard to play
the trumpet. The trumpet goes with your cup of coffee
every morning. You’ve got to play your long tones andyou’ve got to work on all that stuff, whereas the guitar
forgives you. If you don’t play it, you miss a day, theguitar forgives you. The trumpet doesn’t.
TNYCJR: You’ve recorded a lot over the course of yourlife. Have you noticed any major changes in the studioprocess? Any developments, good or bad?
JP: There’s a couple of things. Obviously it’s a digitalworld now, so there is no tape per se and everything
gets recorded onto a hard drive and punching in andpunching out and editing and all that is a much easierprocess now.
I think the real problem is that we’re giving ourmusic away constantly on Spotify. You know, people
think that you’re supposed to give your music away
for free, like you’re not trying to make a living or
anything. So there is that element of making a record
where you do all that work and then people just listen
to it for free, like it’s no big deal, after you sweat and				
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 13)

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ARTISTARTIST FEATU RECAMILLETHURMANFor more information, visit camillethurmanmusic.com.
Thurman is at Central Park Great Hill Aug. 7th, Bryant
Park Aug. 14th and Drom Aug. 19th. See Calendar.
Recommended Listening:• Camille Thurman—Origins (Hot Tone Music, 2011/2013)• Shirazette Tinnin—Humility: Purity of My Soul
(Hot Tone Music, 2013)• Camille Thurman—Inside The Moment (Chesky, 2017)• Camille Thurman—Waiting for the Sunrise(Chesky, 2017)• Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra—Rock Chalk Suite(Blue Engine, 2019)• Jerome Jennings—Solidarity (Iola, 2019)by jordannah elizabeth
N ew York City native Camille Thurman has been

making an impact on the jazz world for the past decadeas both as a tenor saxophonist/flutist and vocalist. She
is the first female member of the Jazz at Lincoln Center
Orchestra (JLCO) and is ascending into jazz stardom
with infinite grace and creativity. Thurman can beheard on her own recordings for Hot Tone Music andChesky as well on albums by the JLCO, Dianne Reeves,Mimi Jones, Rachel Eckroth, Jerome Jennings,
Shirazette Tinnin and Michael Olatuja. Among thehonors she has received are runner-up in the 2013
Sarah Vaughan International Vocal Competition,
ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composers Award,
Fulbright Scholars Cultural Ambassador Grant andChamber Music of America Performance Plus Grant
from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.
As with all the other musicians working to readjust
and bounce back from the isolation of the pandemic, thepast year-plus has not been easy or linear for Thurman.
“The toughest thing that I had to overcome was being
still,” said Thurman. “As musicians we’re always
moving, we’re always working on projects, especially as
freelance artists, we’re always creating, figuring out
how to make it work and how to present and where topresent it. The pandemic kind of put everything to ahalt and made all of us try to figure out what was really
important, but also made us think about what we’reactually doing and reevaluating the things we do thatkeep us busy and the meaning behind it.”
Matters became more triggering as the pandemic
was layered with social justice issues, spawninginternational unrest, leaving Thurman and her musician
husband feeling a bit helpless and unable to serve theircommunity in ways that were hands-on andcollaborative. “We found a way to speak out bycomposing music and getting out the emotions and thethoughts that we were processing during the time ofbeing in quarantine. It became an outlet and a way tobring discussion to those issues. We’ve known for many
years artists like Max Roach, Abbey Lincoln and Nina
Simone used music as a conduit for expression but also
conversation on those things that hit home. I foundmyself diving into that and focused on a few pieces that
dealt with what was happening with Breonna Taylor
and people who were senselessly killed.”
Thurman has ways to combat the hardships of theworld when day-to-day life becomes tense. “I lovenature. I majored in geological science, so I always feelat home going out into nature because there’s
something honest about it. Despite everything we havegoing on in life, when you go out in nature, there’s
nothing else but that to deal with. You can’t help but tobe in awe of the wonder and beauty around you andbeing able to take time and inhale the fresh air andseeing the interaction between the animals and sounds.
It transports you out of the hustle and bustle into aworld of peace.” Thurman continues, “In nature there’s
music all the time whether it’s the rain falling or the
rumbling of the earth or even that still eerie feelingyou get when in nature, but at the same time, it’s at thebrink of creating something new. The weather system
is so dynamic. You can see how beautiful this world isand music is that way too. It’s dynamic and it’s
beautiful to see things change.”
Thurman has had to come to terms with her earlyexperiences as a jazz student in high school, where she
experienced sexism, causing her to take another routein college before delving deeply into a conscious
pursuit of jazz. “Part of the reason why I didn’t go right
into pursuing music was because of an experience I had
in high school that discouraged me from wanting toplay, which was sexism. For me, it took having to get
out of that environment and finding a safe space to learn
where I could get the encouragement and support that
I needed. For a lot of young women in their teens, those
years are so critical as they try to find their confidence
and figure out who they are. Sometimes, it can be
intimidating being in an environment where you’re theonly one or they might encounter people who are very
extroverted and confident in their expressions.”
Thurman reflects on her own experience as a young
musician: “In my situation, I was dealing with outrightsexism. It was verbal and exclusionary. There were
instances where a few of us girls had to wait to play. We
had to take turns playing in the saxophone section
because there were only five spots in the big band andwe had seven players. There are times when me andanother young lady would find ourselves waiting toplay for 45 minutes just to play one tune and that was if
the guy who was playing in the chair decided to let us
play. This was way before #MeToo so the administration
wouldn’t do anything. Because we weren’t being
assaulted there was no problem.”
It is fortunate that Thurman found a community ofmusicians and teachers who nurtured her. Without the
serendipitous experience of meeting scientists who
were also immersed in the world of music, she may
have missed the chance to become a thoughtful andsuccessful artist who deserves respectful treatment as
all women and femme beings in jazz do. “It wasn’t
until I left high school where I met great mentors andwas able to find my musical family that helped give me
the confidence I needed. They were helpful in
helping me to find my strength. In order to move
forward in that you need people in your life that are
willing to invest the time to give you the tools. I
unfortunately found that much later, after high school,
but it was just in time to be able to encourage me toactually pursue it.”With live performances returning, Thurman is
keeping busy and moving forward with her work.
“Right now, I’m working on a few things, I’m working
on a project I’m looking forward to and I guess you
could say testing the waters a bit. It’s the music of Burt
Bacharach. It’s called Burt Bacharach Revisited where
I take a few pieces that I like and reintroduce the musicin a different way, an interpretation of the popularsongs that a lot of people recognize, love and enjoy.” v

THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD | AUGUST 2021 7

ON THE COVER

RENEE ROSNES
Renee Rosnes exudes self-assurance and totalcommand of her instrument, whether as a bandleader,soloist or part of another ’s group. Since the gifted
pianist arrived on the New York jazz scene in the mid‘80s, she has built a formidable discography with Joe
Henderson, J.J. Johnson, Slide Hampton, Gerald Wilson
and Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band and leader dates
for Blue Note, Smoke Sessions and Japanese labels.
The Canada native began classical piano lessons atthree and violin at five, encouraged by her musicloving parents. Bob Rebagliati, her high school banddirector, introduced her to jazz. Rosnes explained, “He
led a first-class band program and was a big influenceon many of his students who went on to pursue
successful jazz careers, including Darcy James Argue,
bassist Brandi Disterheft and singer/pianist Laila Biali.
After high school, I attended the University of Toronto
as a classical performance piano major. There was no
jazz degree program but I was in a big band. I knew
then that my passion lay in improvised music.”
Western Canada had an active jazz scene in theearly ‘80s: “There were concerts in large theaters andseveral clubs regularly presenting American jazz stars.
One venue had two-week engagements featuringlegends like Sarah Vaughan, Dizzy Gillespie, Ella
Fitzgerald, Joe Williams, Oscar Peterson and others.
I remember meeting Wynton Marsalis, who had
recently left Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers andwas just beginning his meteoric solo career. I was so
enthralled hearing him with the great Kenny Kirkland,
Branford Marsalis, Jeff “Tain” Watts and the late bassist
Charles Fambrough. Hearing such great art at that clubon a regular basis was an education in itself.”
There were a number of musicians who helped
shape Rosnes’ development. “Vancouver guitarist
Oliver Gannon taught me a great deal through his
playing. Bassist Wyatt ‘Bull’ Ruther was from
Pittsburgh. He’d played with giants like Erroll Garnerand Gerry Mulligan. He took me under his wing andoften hired me to play duets with him. Clarinetist andcomposer Phil Nimmons, whom I first met when
I attended the Jazz Summer Workshop at the Banff
School of the Fine Arts, was instrumental inencouraging me to move east to attend the U of T.”
The opportunities to hear American jazz stars
increased her desire to pursue a career. Rosnes recalled,“While still in Vancouver, I remember hearing Woody
Shaw’s band with an incredible young pianist named
Mulgrew Miller, then there was Freddie Hubbard’s
band with the brilliant Billy Childs, Betty Carter withJohn Hicks or one of my all-time heroes Cedar Waltonwith Milt Jackson, Ray Brown and Mickey Roker. I wasjust beginning to work with American artists when
they came through town, including two separate stints
with the great saxophonists Joe Farrell and Dave
Liebman. By then, I was eager to experience livingin the mecca of jazz, New York City. In the mid ‘80s,
I was awarded a Canada Council of the Arts grant,
which enabled me to move to the city to live and study
for one year.”
After arriving in New York City, Rosnes immersed

herself in the thriving jazz environment “I attended
the master classes of Barry Harris at the Jazz Cultural
Theater and met for lessons with several pianists, all
who inspired me by their own examples of greatness:
Mulgrew Miller, James Williams, Joanne Brackeen,
Cedar Walton and Jim McNeely, who also shared anddiscussed his compositional process with me. I was
excited to hear other musicians and often mesmerizedby how fantastic they sounded. I thought that I would
soon be returning to Canada and never imagined that
I would end up making New York my home.”
Within a few months an invitation by trumpeter
Ted Curson to join the rhythm section for the late-night
jam sessions at the Blue Note led to increased exposure
and opportunities for Rosnes. “As I met and playedwith more musicians of like-mind and age, I realized it
was going to be harder to pull myself away from thecity, then I began to work more substantially. My first‘break-out’ gigs were with the Blue Note labelorganized band Out of the Blue and soon after Joe
Henderson called to ask me about joining his quartet
for a European tour. Subsequently, I was a member ofthe bands of James Moody, J.J. Johnson, Wayne Shorter,
Buster Williams and Bobby Hutcherson. Each of thesemasters had characteristics in common: definitive,
identifiable sounds with personalized approaches tophrasing, harmony and rhythm and an amazingly highlevel of consistency from night to night. Each could
also be described as almost childlike in nature
regarding their art, in the sense of maintaining anunrestrained creativity, being curious, perpetually
expanding their knowledge and also desiring to remain
open to new ideas. I learned that playing for any one ofthese magnificent bandleaders meant that theymusically trusted me and in doing so encouraged me
to fully explore all the musical possibilities. That wasan extraordinary gift that I carry with me still.”
Rosnes first played with bassist Ron Carter at
Rudy Van Gelder ’s studio for her first record date as aleader for Blue Note. “I was in my late 20s and thrilled
to be recording with one of my heroes. Throughout theyears, I’d played with him in various contexts, but
I was delighted when he invited me about 10 years ago
to join his Foursight Quartet. His living contribution to
the history of jazz cannot be overstated and I learnsomething every time we play.”
While the pandemic eliminated everyone’s
opportunities, Rosnes took advantage of the downtime. “Having an unusual amount of quietude to work
kept me creatively motivated. The world was turned
upside down and there was anxiety and stress, but
I tried to look at it as a gift of time. The knowledge that
I would soon be recording a new album was inspiringand I composed every track for Kinds of Love [which
will be released in September on Smoke Sessions].
It features dear friends Chris Potter, Christian McBride,
Carl Allen and Rogério Boccato. It was a reunion ofsorts for myself, Christian and Chris, who werefeatured on my 1997 Blue Note release As We Are Now.
Now, almost 25 years later, the musical conversation
continues. I’ve worked with Carl numerous times over

8 AUGUST 2021 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD

COURTESY OF DL MEDIA

GIFT OF TIME
by ken dryden

the years in various contexts. Rogério is a newer friend
whom I first met through working with the wonderful
Jimmy Greene. It was thrilling to experience thehumanity of making music again in the moment withsuch enlightened spirits.”
In addition to her own bands, Rosnes is enthusiastic
about the allstar female supergroup ARTEMIS: “Thegenesis of ARTEMIS was in 2016, when a European
promoter asked if I would assist him in assembling an
all-woman band to perform two concerts, in Paris andLuxembourg, in celebration of International Women’sDay. Both engagements were very successful and there
was the suggestion of perhaps doing more together.
The next summer, under the heading of ‘Woman To
Woman’, the band made a 14-city tour of the European
jazz festivals. Then we decided to make the group
official, naming it ARTEMIS. After appearing at the2018 Newport Jazz Festival, Blue Note President Don
Was invited us to be on the label. Our first album wasreleased last September and we played to a full Stern
Auditorium at Carnegie Hall in December 2019. We
were set to do a lot of touring in support of the newalbum, but shortly after that, the pandemic hit andeverything was cancelled. We’re excited to be together
again, having just performed up at the Saratoga Jazz
Festival to a sparsely attended but enthusiastic crowd!
With Ingrid Jensen, Anat Cohen, Nicole Glover [thenewest member], Noriko Ueda and Allison Miller,
we’re really looking forward to getting back out on theroad and recording another album soon.”
Rosnes also plays piano duets with her husband,
Bill Charlap. Their 2009 Blue Note CD Double Portrait
drew rave reviews, as did their duets on Tony Bennett’s
The Silver Lining. She shared, “I’m sure that Bill andI will eventually record another album together. Our
next live performance as a duo will be in Chautauqua,
New York and later this year in Boise, Idaho.” Charlap
is effusive in his praise for his wife: “Renee Rosnes is
a master musician, a virtuoso pianist with a seemingly
effortless flow of ideas. She is a true composer,a dazzling improviser, her time is brilliant and she is
the best listener there is. Like Bird and Brahms, Renee
is what I call a perfect musician. She is also my bestfriend and the love of my life.” v
For more information, visit reneerosnes.com. Rosnes is atBlue Note Aug. 4th-8th with Ron Carter. See Calendar.
Recommended Listening:• Renee Rosnes—For the Moment(Somethin’ Else-Blue Note, 1990)• Niels-Henning Ørsted Pederson Trio (featuring
Renee Rosnes)—Friends Forever (In Memory of
Kenny Drew) (Milestone, 1995)• Renee Rosnes—Renee Rosnes with the Danish RadioBig Band (Blue Note, 2001)• Bobby Hutcherson—For Sentimental Reasons(Kind of Blue, 2006)• Bill Charlap/Renee Rosnes—Double Portrait(Blue Note, 2009)• ARTEMIS—Eponymous (Blue Note, 2019)

THE SOUND OF SMOKE

www.SmokeSessionsRecords.com
www.Facebook.com/smokesessionsrecords© 2021 Smoke Sessions Records

ENCORETODD
COCHRANby jim motavalli
Todd Thomas Cochran, born in 1951, got an early startin music, beginning piano lessons at just three years
old. From a cultured family, he was immersed in theclassics of music and literature almost from birth. “Allof my teachers were immigrants,” Cochran said. “Mrs.
Gilbertson was Polish and a great coffee drinker.
I associate her with coffee and taking the streetcar. My
other teachers were both French-Canadian concert
pianists and I was lucky to have them.”
He learned the classical repertoire but then—apivotal moment—a cousin turned him on to jazz. He
remembers hearing Willie Bobo, Wes Montgomery andGabor Szabo. “There was a strong emotional language,”he said. “After I heard jazz, I went to the piano and sat
down, and had to figure out how to get those sounds
out of the instrument. What I heard was infused withthe poetics of the blues, and it transported art toanother dimension. There is a deep truth to that musicalexpression. The true, unfiltered history of America isembedded in jazz.”
The San Francisco native has vivid memories of arich cultural milieu, which included the counterculture and arts institutions like the American
Conservatory Theater. “I’m a product of that period,”
he says. “My parents met at a music lecture in Chicago;
they worked very hard to give me a middle-classupbringing. They had fortitude. I was a big reader andbecame an accidental activist, always culturally keyedin and involved. There was always that thread.”
Cochran was just 21 in 1972 when his album Worlds
Around The Sun, featuring vibraphonist Bobby
Hutcherson and tenor saxophonist Hadley Caliman,
was released on Prestige. He offers a shout-out toproducer/mentor Saul Zaentz, then at the label:“He was a serious seeker, a cultural maven and married
to Charles Mingus’ ex-wife Celia,” Cochran said. By
then, the keyboard player was already a veteran jazzmusician, having joined Hutcherson’s band (andcomposing much of the music for the vibraphonist’s
1971 Blue Note album Head On), and, starting at 17,
gigging regularly with saxophonist John Handy, whobecame a mentor. “He was very disciplined, a championof nuance,” Cochran said. “I wrote a suite for him thatwas played at the Concord Jazz Festival.”
Cochran has always been a seeker. In his earlyyears, he was known as Bayeté (a traditional Zulu royalsalute). “I felt that something lost or hidden needed tobe discovered within,” he said. Worlds Around The Sun
is far from a traditional jazz album. The composer
plays electric keyboards and the music is infused withfunk and in many ways prefigures what Herbie
Hancock did on Headhunters a couple of years later.
Santana covered the album’s “Free Angela” and hiphoppers like De La Soul and Damu the Fudgemunk
and Raw Poetic have sampled it.
Cochran sees a difference between “recreative”
and “creative” music and he’s firmly in the latter class.
“With creative music, you clear your reference points
in the most open way, then go and deliver what comesto you in the moment,” he said. Obviously, his ears
were wide open at a young age.
While still a teenager, he befriended pianist Mike
Nock, a New Zealander breaking barriers with his
fusion band The Fourth Way. Filling in for Nock on a
Fourth Way gig at the Fillmore West raised his profilein the jazz community. He wrote music for and playedon Caliman’s Mainstream album Iapetus and worked
with tenor saxophonist John Klemmer. In 1974, heworked on another groundbreaking fusion album,
trombonist Julian Priester ’s Love, Love (ECM).
Cochran’s career soared in the ‘70s-80s. He
recorded with everyone from Aretha Franklin andPeter Gabriel to Stanleys Clarke and Turrentine. He
made a wide turn into art rock, joining Santana
drummer Michael Shrieve in Automatic Man and—during a sojourn in England—recorded with Bill
Bruford (ex-King Crimson) and the Phil Collins fusion
band Brand X. He was also a member of PM with

Emerson, Lake and Palmer drummer Carl Palmer.
“The rockers love jazz, man,” Cochran said. “You haveno idea how deep it goes. [Elton John composer] Bernie
Taupin is a jazz scholar.”
Cochran’s strong abilities as a composer led him
into film work, beginning with a collaboration with
Herbie Hancock on The Spook Who Sat by the Door
(1973). His film credits are extensive, including workon dozens of movies and TV shows. “I became
comfortable arranging any worthy composer ’s music,”
he said. “The interplay of the music and the storytelling
was very attractive to me.”In 2012, Cochran’s life changed. He found himself
the sole caregiver of his son, now 20, and becamea full-time father after his wife died. “I had to step
away,” he said. “I couldn’t have a career and give him
what was required. He’s turned into a fine youngman.” A well-schooled clarinet player, the young
Cochran looks to be headed for a music career too.
Cochran has reemerged with a new trio, TC3, withdrummer Michael Carvin (the two go way back) andbassist John Leftwich. There’s also a fine new album on
Sunnyside, Then and Again, Here and Now, with Cochranon piano playing standards, his own compositions andeven some classical (J.S. Bach) supported by Leftwich
and Carvin.
“It’s a concept album, about performing,” Cochransaid. “We rehearse constantly as a trio, taking on a verystrong personality. They’re wonderful musicians andthere’s tremendous chemistry. I formed a band because
I wanted to be in one.” v

at Harvard University. But the scholarship waswithdrawn when the time Davidson was spending
playing with alto saxophonist Ornette Coleman in
New York detracted from his studies. Without thosescholarship funds, Davidson could no longer afford
Harvard and had to drop out. But his involvementwith avant garde jazz continued and the ‘60s found
him playing drums in an early lineup of the New YorkArt Quartet. It was Coleman who brought Davidson to
the attention of ESP-Disk’. Davidson’s eponymous
leader debut was recorded for the label in 1965, a set offive Lowell compositions. Accompanying the pianist
were bassist Gary Peacock during his period with
Albert Ayler and drummer Milford Graves who had
recently worked with Paul Bley, both of whom were allover ESP-Disk’ LPs of the era.
Guitarist Joe Morris, who played with Davidson
for eight years, says of the late explorer, “I think he
was on par with Ornette as a completely original andbrilliant thinker. I was together with them once andtheir dialogue was abstruse, but casual and easy forthem, as if it was easier for them to be ‘out there’
together than not. I believe that Ornette understoodthat Lowell was a unique and brilliant musician justlike him. Lowell admired Ornette for the same reason.
They both just played their idea of what music shouldbe. In practical ways, Ornette arranged for him torecord his one trio record on ESP. His connection with
Ornette during OC’s ‘retirement’ connected him withother musicians in New York.”
Although Davidson, much to the regret of his
admirers, was only recorded on rare occasions, his
excellence as an improviser is evident in documentswith Morris and Boston-based pianist/vibraphonist
Richard Poole.
Davidson is featured on bass and drums on Morris’
Graffiti in Two Parts (RogueArt), a live recording from1985. “Lowell never mentioned a particular pianist as
an influence in the eight years that I knew him andplayed with him,” Morris explains. “He studied piano
technique with Madame Chaloff, who was a notedclassical teacher. The bassist John Voigt, who knew him
longer than I did, has said that his early compositions
showed that he may have been influenced by Herbie
Nichols. I always figured that Paul Bley may have had
an impact on Lowell. The bassist Buell Neidlinger used
to play with Lowell in Boston; he called me once to talkabout Lowell and spoke with great respect for his skill
and artistry on piano, but made a point to say that he
was an original.”
Poole recorded with Davidson in 1988—a sessionthat came about thanks to Bley but wasn’t released
until 2014. “I became acquainted with Lowell throughmy friend Paul Bley, who mentioned Lowell might bewilling to record with me,” Poole recalls. “I had heard
Lowell play in Somerville at Ball Square with a trio. He
looked conservative with a sport jacket and glasses.
					(CONTINUED ON PAGE 13)

For more information, visit toddcochran.com
Recommended Listening:• Bobby Hutcherson—Head On (Blue Note, 1971)• Bayeté (Todd Cochran)—Worlds Around The Sun(Prestige, 1972)• Bayeté Umbra Zindiko—Seeking Other Beauty(Prestige, 1972)• Arthur Blythe—Put Sunshine In It (CBS, 1984)• Todd Cochran—TODD (Vital, 1990)• Todd Cochran TC3—Then and Again, Here and Now(Sunnyside, 2020)

LEST WE FORGETLOWELLDAVIDSONby alex henderson
31 years have passed since jazz pianist and organ

player Lowell Davidson died on Jul. 30th, 1990 at only
48. The native Bostonian was not as well known assome of the pianists who influenced him directly or
indirectly—a list that includes, among others, Cecil
Taylor, Paul Bley, Herbie Nichols, Sun Ra and
Thelonious Monk—and he only recorded sporadicallybut musicians who are familiar with Davidson’s work
remember him as an adventurous, broad-mindedplayer capable of both intensity and nuance.
Davidson was born on Nov. 20th, 1941 in Boston’s
Roxbury section, where he began playing organ at theZion Temple Fire Baptized Holiness Church of God
when he was 12. And even after he reached adulthoodand became involved in the avant garde jazz scenes in
Boston and New York City, Davidson continued toplay at Zion (where his parents were pastors).
In the late ‘50s, Davidson (who also played drums
and bass) received a scholarship to study biochemistry

10 AUGUST 2021 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD

L ABEL SPOTLIGHT

AUT
by george grella
The first impression of AUT Records is that it’s anotherone of the numerous small, truly independent
European jazz labels. Just into its second decade, AUT
has built a catalogue of 80 releases, well beyond any
fledgling stage. But there are two details that
distinguish the label, one of which is its businessmodel, the other the intriguing balance between freemusic and releases that fall into a more formal
mainstream of modern jazz.
But there are further quirks to each of thesefeatures. As Davide Lorenzon, a saxophonist andclarinetist who founded and runs the label, explained
from his home in northeast Italy during a conversation
through Skype in early July, how the label describes
itself is less important than the idiosyncrasies it hasestablished. The label’s website states: “AUT Records
is a not-for-profit, cooperative record label dedicatedto experimental and research music.” In real life, things
are a little more interesting.
“Non-profit, I actually don’t know if it’s the exact
word but I think is a way of saying that our aim isa collective enterprise,” he explains.
“We went through different phases, the labor went
through different phases. And so in the beginning, I
started alone. And then after moving to Berlin, thisproject became more collaborative and then in
constant transformation. But at the base of it, there
was...I think that it will be always shared between

S/T
WE3

Kora
Giacomo Zanus

artists and me as a producer, or as art director, if you
want, and the graphic designer, and so on,”
Lorenzon continues. “So it clearly never was a projectto make money for this reason. I want to stress thesethings.” Like an official, American non-profit, themusicians are paid and Lorenzon himself is paid
(it’s in no way a living), but as a business, AUT is out
to distribute music and survive, not to turn a profit
for any C-suite. “It’s not a profit in that sense,” andin the usual sense too—the label gets by, like prettymuch all of jazz.
Free playing is so prominent in the 21st century
that it’s no surprise to see it as the focus for any label.
AUT is true to that in both its catalogue and the spirit
behind it all, which Lorenzon describes as the classic“DIY approach, because we wanted to release an album
for the group that I was in at that time,” which was in2010. “I wanted to self-produce this album. And so,
without too many thoughts about it, I decided to put
it inside a larger concept. I wanted to release it not only
as a production for [my] career,” which meaning
musically, but a product of a complete view of thelabor of making a record, including graphics,
packaging, etc. That album, AUT 001, Bootstrap Paradox,
credited to the combo Kongrosian (with Lorenzon
playing alto and tenor saxophone), and clarinetist
Oreste Sabatin, became AUT.
The label’s unusual name works on several levels.
It’s a Latin word that means “or” but for Lorenzon the
feeling is one of opposition, of being outside somethingelse. Pronounced almost exactly like “out”, the namepegs both the aesthetic vision and contents of the label.
“It was a do-it-yourself attitude, mixed with a littlenaïveté,” Lorenzon adds. “I was not so clever in theSpecial Adaptations, Volume 1
Alex Levine

beginning, then I started to understand how thebusiness was working.” He points out that “there isa little bit of these attitudes that is still alive. I, forexample, don’t ask musicians to sign a contract. It’s
more about how people are contacting me, because of
the trust that I gain in the scene, it’s informal.”That scene is contemporary improvised, jazzbased music, an approach that has become a specifically
European strain of jazz descended from the legacy of
ECM Records and the impression that free players
from America have made as they have toured thecontinent through the years. Examples of AUT’s
heavily improvisatory releases include Live at Kühlspot
from the Heisenberg Quartet, Materia by the BlueRing
Improvisers
Orchestra
andDoublethinkbyMountweazel. It’s not all free though: there is a newrelease by Giacomo Zanus, Kora, with formal pieces
that follow from Pat Metheny and Bill Frisell, and thefunk rock rave-ups of Casino di terra’s Cosa potrebbe
accadere. Lorenzon points out that, though he himself
comes out of free playing, his own approach has been
opening up and he’s grown more interested instructured musical ideas, for himself and the label.
That variety comes from the basic idea of “or”; AUT
has free music, or, maybe something else?
It also comes from the way Lorenzon builds thecatalogue, which is largely through collaboration andword of mouth.
He gets recordings and works “as a filter of what
arrives to me.” Musicians send in “demos…masters…
I can also discuss with them about the music or what
I think about, maybe I think that something could bechanged or something like that. But always the last				
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 13)

PhylumNazareno Caputo

CratereCircles 44

VOXNEWS

THE RIGHT MIXTURA
by suzanne lorge

Let’s say you like swing more than salsa, or vice versa,

or both equally. To accommodate, singer Rubén Blades
offers three different editions of his newest album, apulsating, horn-driven release with his frequentcollaborators, Panama City-based bandleader Robert
Delgado and his Orquesta. The first edition, called
SALSWING!, contains the record’s full gamut of swing
and salsa numbers interspersed. The second, SALSA
PLUS!, offers up just the salsa tracks with a smattering of
the swing. And the third, SWING!, features just theswing tunes with a couple of the salsa numbers thrown
in. This genre-on-demand approach to curation—
implemented through Blades’ self-titled record
company—isn’t a gimmick so much as a statement:
Blades, not the marketplace, defines his artistry. Blades
the artist escapes easy categorization, which is why heintrigues. Known primarily as a salsero, or salsa
musician, when he first started singing and composing
in the ‘70s, by the ‘80s he was performing popular musicwith the likes of Elvis Costello, Lou Reed and Sting;playing Broadway in Paul Simon’s The Capeman; andwinning his first Grammy Awards for Latin music. In
1983, he launched what would become an impressive

acting career, going on to appear in such notable films as
Robert Redford’s The Milagro Beanfield War, Spike Lee’s
Mo’ Better Blues and HBO’s The Josephine Baker Story.
Somewhere in the midst of all this productivity, he foundtime to earn degrees in political science and law from the
University of Panama and Harvard. (Three honorary
doctorates would come later.) With such an expansive
resumé, it’s easy to see why Blades would balk at any
whiff of stereotypical limitations. “Perhaps the mostimportant point is to exemplify that, as artists, weaddress our music to the world, not just to a specificsegment of its population,” he said in the new album’s
press release. What he exemplifies on SALSWING! is across-cultural deftness that he calls “mixtura”, anamalgam, in this case, of related but discrete musicalstyles. With Blades’ crisp vocals in the foreground,
Delgado’s big band provides rhythmic heat that smooths
any jarring dissimilarities in the singer’s musicalstatements. Thus the ferocious percussiveness of “Paula
C.” complements the infectious sway of “Do I Hear
Four?”, both of which appear in all three editions, whiletunes like the adrenalized “Contrabando” and crooning“The Way You Look Tonight” land on opposite ends ofthe salsa-to-swing spectrum. The required sonic leap isnothing short of thrilling.
Though best known for her tongue-in-cheek pop hit“Midnight at the Oasis” from the ‘70s, multi-awardwinning vocalist Maria Muldaur has spent much of her
career singing American roots music: early blues, jazz,

jug band, bluegrass and Appalachian folk. You can hear
all of these influences on Let’s Get Happy Together (Stony
Plain), a 12-song retrospective of traditional music fromthe ‘20s-30s. Backed by the New Orleans band Tuba
Skinny, Muldaur soars on the syncopated ebullience ofthe title cut, digs into a gritty blues on “Got the South in
My Soul” and gives a winking turn on the upbeat “BigCity Blues”. Her vocal timbre, darker after four decades,
suits these earthy songs, wrapping them in just the rightamount of smoke and shine.
Every August, the Vermont Jazz Center offers aweeklong workshop that gives singers an opportunity
to absorb “bebop to free bop” wisdom directly fromjazz legends Sheila Jordan and Jay Clayton. This year,
too, Camille Thurman, a rising star vocalist in her own
right, joins the faculty to teach saxophone and flute.
With this lineup, it’s a pity to miss both the in-person
teaching with these vocal masters and the final concert
they’d present. But you can still catch all three on stage
elsewhere: Clayton plays Maureen’s Jazz Cellar in
Nyack (Aug. 7th); Thurman will be at Central Park
Great Hill (Aug. 7th), Bryant Park (Aug. 14th) andDrom (Aug. 19th); and Jordan headlines at Jazz in thePark at the Peekskill Riverfront (Aug. 22nd).
Other jazz mainstays in and out of town: pianist/
singer Champian Fulton will grace Birdland (Aug.
12th-14th); Paul Jost performs at Soapbox Gallery (Aug.
10th) and then Pangea (Aug. 25th); and Samara Joy
sings at Jazz Forum Arts in Tarrytown (Aug. 6th-7th). v

THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD | AUGUST 2021 11

IN MEMORIAM

BURTONGREENEby andrey henkin

Burton Greene, pianist on the forefront of avant garde

jazz on two continents, first in New York and then his
adopted home of Amsterdam, died Jun. 28th at 84.
Greene was born Jun. 14th, 1937 in Chicago andstudied piano as a child, returning to it in his teens. As
he told Clifford Allen for this gazette in 2004, “I justfelt the immediacy of improvising music from thistime. Of course that brought me to jazz; I first heard
what was available then. Unfortunately, I grew up way
on the North Side of Chicago and everything was
happening on the South Side.”
After a brief post-college sojourn to San Francisco,Greene moved to New York in 1962, eager to be part ofthe burgeoning New Thing, first living with an aunt in
Queens. “I used to stare across the street at these
fantastic elm or oak trees, there would be a storm andthey would be all over the place. I’d be listening toVaughan Williams and I loved the polyphony andpolymodality in those pieces and I got all kinds ofcrazy ideas...I said I could get it from the trunk, that’s
like A minor. I love A minor, so that trunk, those roots
are A minor. And you get the branches going out
everywhere, that’s like B going against A; you canmodulate in different keys out of A and still come backto it. I developed a thing called the tree system of
tonality.” Soon he met bassist Alan Silva and with him
helped found the Free Form Improvisation Ensemble,
one of New York’s earliest free jazz groups.
In 1966, Greene put out his first record, a quartet
date for ESP-Disk’, which was followed by a live album
for same (and including his “Tree Theme” based on the
aforementioned modality system) and then an unlikely
major label release for Columbia in 1968. Soon,
however, he was one of the many musicians leaving forEurope, first to Paris, then eventually Holland. The
move was a beneficial one. He recorded with Gong,
Peter van der Locht/Boy Raaymakers, Lol Coxhill,
Archie Shepp and Jacques Coursil and steadily released
his own albums for Futura, Button-Nose, Circle, Horo,
All Life, Kharma, Fore, Nimbus West, Cadence Jazz,
CIMP, Drimala, Tzadik, Porter, NoBusiness, Long
Song, Improvising Beings and Astral Spirits well into
the new millennium. Additionally, he reconnectedwith his Jewish musical heritage, exploring the nexusof Klezmer and the avant garde with his projects KlezThetics, Klez-Edge and Klezmokum.
Greene summed up his philosophy: “The discovery I
made not just intellectually but soulfully is that whatevercomes and goes on the outside—this gig or that gig, thisgirlfriend or that girlfriend, no girlfriend, money or nomoney—there’s a tremendous wellspring of resources
within your own interior or your own soul. If you comefrom the wellspring within, or you understand yourself,
you really get down into the depths of what it’s all aboutfrom within yourself and you let go and dive in.”FRANÇOIS GRILLOT (Mar. 23rd, 1955
- Jun. 5th, 2021) The bassist started out
playing fusion in his native France but,after relocating to New York in 1980,
moved into avant garde jazz, recordingwith Earth People, Matt Lavelle, Steve
Swell, Chris Kelsey, Ras Moshe, Dom
Minasi, Michael Marcus, Giuseppi Logan, Jason Kao
Hwang and others alongside his own and/or
collaborative albums on 56Kitchen, Clockwork
Mercury Press and Glitch. Grillot died Jun. 5th at 66.
NOBUO HARA (Nov. 19th, 1926 - Jun.
21st, 2021) The tenor saxophonist was
one of the first jazz bandleaders in his
native Japan (Sharps & Flats, whose
notable members were Koji Suzuki,
Shuzo Morikawa, Takao Naoi, Teruyuki
Fukushima, Toshihiko Ogawa andYoshio Nakamura), releasing dozens of albums on
King, CBS, Takt, Columbia, Victor, Liberty, Toshiba,
Three Blind Mice and other labels, including meetings
with Hōzan Yamamoto, Sadao Watanabe and Oliver
Nelson. Hara died Jun. 21st at 94.
JON HASSELL (Mar. 22nd, 1937 - Jun.
26th, 2021) The trumpeter and composer
worked in his self-created Fourth World
aesthetic on albums since the late ‘70s
with players like Nana Vasconcelos,
William Winant, Miroslav Vitous, Adam
Rudolph, Eivind Aarset, Jacky Terrasson
and Kenny Garrett. Hassell died Jun. 26th at 84.
WOJCIECH KAROLAK (May 28th,
1939 - Jun. 23rd, 2021) The Polishpianist/keyboard player got his start in
the early ‘60s with Andrzej Kurylewicz,
Jan Ptaszyn Wróblewski and Wanda
Warska and led his own bands from1962 on with over a dozen albums on
Polskie Nagrania, PolJazz, Helicon, GOWI, Polskie
Radio and JSR, plus numerous sideman credits with
Don Ellis, Michał Urbaniak, Jarek Śmietana, Zbigniew
Namysłowski, Tomasz Szukalski and others. Karolak
died Jun. 23rd at 82.
FREDERIC RZEWSKI (Apr. 13th, 1938
- Jun. 26th, 2021) The pianist andcomposer, a founding member ofMusicaElettronica
Viva,
the
groundbreaking ensemble with albums
on Polydor, BYG, Mainstream, Horo,
IRML, Matchless and Victo, had his
own releases on Opus One, Finnadar, Vanguard,
Nonesuch, New Albion, hatART, Music & Arts,
Otoroku and other labels, plus collaborations with
Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza,
Instant Composers Pool, Garrett List, Anthony Braxton,
Steve Lacy, Laboratorio Della Quercia and Irène Aebi.
Rzewski died Jun. 26th at 83.
BOB SANDS (1966 - Jun. 29th, 2021) The
Madrid-based saxophonist worked with
Carlos Barretto, Bernardo Sassetti,
Miguel Blanco, Monkfish and Paquito
D’Rivera and released two albums on
FreshSound-New
Talentand
SteepleChase. Sands died Jun. 29th at 55.
CHRISTIAN SCHEUBER (Nov. 11th,
1960 - Jun. 20th, 2021) The German
drummer had a 2011 CD for Double
Moon, collaborative dates with Andrei
Kondakov and Richie Beirach andmembership in the City West Quartet,
Extreme Trio and 3 Im Roten Kreis.
Scheuber died Jun. 20th at 60.

12 AUGUST 2021 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD

ALEX SCORIER (Jun. 6th, 1931 - Jun.
12th, 2021) The Belgian saxophonist/
flutist had ‘70s albums on Polydor,
Epic and Phillips to go with credits
since the ‘50s under Johnny Kay, Fred
Bunge, Johnny Dover, Hazy Osterwald
and others plus membership in Placebo,
Belgian Big Band and BRT Big Band. Scorier died Jun.
12th at 90.
RAOUL DE SOUZA (Aug. 23rd, 1934 Jun. 13th, 2021) The Brazilian trombonist
had albums since the ‘60s on RCA
Victor, Milestone, Capitol, RGE, Mix
House, Tratore, Biscoito Fino, PAO, Selo
SESC, Gramofone and other labels andsideman credits under Luiz Henrique,
Sérgio Mendes, Flora Purim, Sonny Rollins, Azar
Lawrence, Airto Moreira, Milton Nascimento, George
Duke, Hermeto Pascoal, Toninho Horta, Egberto
Gismonti, João Donato and Eumir Deodato. De Souza
died Jun. 13th at 86.
MABI THOBEJANE (1947 - Jun. 3rd,2021) The South African percussionist
and traditional music champion was amember of Phillip Tabane’s Malombo as
well as Sahkile and Juno Reactor andworked with Duke Makasi, Sipho
Gumede, Robert Doc Mthalane andothers. Thobejane died Jun. 3rd at 74.
HIDEFUMI TOKI (Feb. 1st, 1950 - Jun.
26th, 2021) The Japanese saxophonist
had early work with Toshiyuki
Miyama’s New Herd and Terumasa
Hino, going on to make records for
Three Blind Mice, Frasco, RCA (a duowith percussionist Warren Smith),
Baystate, Discomate (his AfroCuban band Pacific Jam),
Columbia, Meldac (all with his funk-jazz band
ChickenShack), Fun House, Ragmania, Vivid Soundand Sound of Delight to complement credits with
Kazumi Watanabe, Naoya Matsuoka, Joe Chambers,
Toots Thielemans, Hiromi Nakamura, Horii Katsumi,
Motohiko Hino, Masahiko Satoh and many more.
Toki died Jun. 26th at 71.
GABOR WINAND (1964 - Jun. 15th,2021) The Hungarian saxophonist/
singer had several albums in the newmillennium
on
BMC
Records,
membership in ESP Group and Quartet
and credits with Gyárfás István, Jazz
Consort, Hárs Viktor and Elsa Valle.
Winand died Jun. 15th at 57. v

(INTERVIEW CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6)
you try to get all that stuff right and then everybody
says, “Hey, I heard a little piece of your record.”
Whereas when I was younger, much younger than I am
today, we used to go wait for the records to come out of
the record store and it was a big deal. You know, whensomebody made a new record, like Jackson Browne or
Bruce Springsteen or The Allman Brothers, you always
got excited over those kinds of things. What the hot
new record was. So it’s sort of not like that anymore.
TNYCJR: So what is your plan now that you’re goingback on the road?
JP: I have a gig Aug. 1st in Rockport, Massachusetts,and then the next night I’m out on the Cape. Those are
two solo concerts and then I’m also doing a solo
concert at the Blue Note Aug. 13th-15th and then on
the 16th I go to the West Coast, where I’ll play in
Oakland, Seattle, Los Angeles, Newport Beach andPhoenix. I’ll be home by the end of August and thena lot of local gigs. So it’s starting to hopefully pickup and remain picked up for a while. I’ll keep myfingers crossed.
TNYCJR: Are you going to be playing the music fromthis album over the coming weeks and months ofyour performances? Or have you been performing iton the streams?
JP: Yeah, a little bit on the streams, but mostly theconcerts in the first days. The Rockport and the Capeand the three Blue Notes are primarily the Pat Methenymaterial, with some other things mixed in, but yes,
I will be. And then once I get to the West Coast, it’s
a combination of Nat Cole stuff that I was supposed to
do last year there and the Metheny. So maybe I’ll play
it in a 75-minute set somewhere in the middle of it. I’ll
play four or five Metheny numbers and then take itfrom there, you know, and then bring the band back,just the trio.
TNYCJR: Did you ever consider an art form otherthan music?
JP: To make a living? Not that I can say. I thought
I could be a teacher of some sort, but I sort of do that alittle bit now. I’m much more generous with myteaching now, getting to be 60 years old and people
wanting to learn what it is that I do, whether it’s
rhythm guitar or single-note-playing or chordmelody stuff. I probably thought maybe 20 years ago,
well, why should I give away all the stuff that I worked
on? And now it’s sort of like, why not let people in on
it and teach them what it is? But I think being anentertainer, a musician, the guy who goes out on theroad, is basically what I’ve been bred to do.
TNYCJR: What’s your process when it comes tocomposing?
JP: You know, it’s funny, I don’t write as much as
I used to write years and years ago, but I do find that
I’m starting to write titles down a little more and it’smore in spurts, you know. Like I wrote a tune
a couple of weeks ago and I was like, you know, this iscool. So it’s good to write things down. I think thatprocess, it takes a little more time, you know, writing,thinking about songs but I’m starting to realize thatpeople sort of like original songs and what you have tosay in them and that’s sort of been a fun part of what
we do is putting up our original music out there forpeople to hear and it’s been received well. It’s
something we should do a little more, I think (laughs).
TNYCJR: Is there any question that you wish someone
would ask you that you’ve never been asked? Is there

anything you find yourself talking to yourself about inthe middle of the day but you have nobody to say it to?
JP: No, not really. I do talk to myself, but I never ask
myself any questions. [His wife: How did I get such abeautiful wife?] How did I get that? Very goodquestion. v
For more information, visit johnpizzarelli.com. Pizzarelli’s
solo Pa Metheny project is at Blue Note Aug. 13th-15th.
See Calendar.
Recommended Listening:• John Pizzarelli—I’m Hip (Please Don’t Tell My Father)(Stash, 1983)• John Pizzarelli—My Blue Heaven (Chesky, 1990)• John Pizzarelli—All Of Me (RCA Novus, 1992)• John Pizzarelli Trio—Live at Birdland (Telarc, 2002)• Bucky and John Pizzarelli—Family Fugue(Arbors, 2010)• John Pizzarelli—Better Days Ahead (Solo Guitar Takes
on Pat Metheny) (Ghostlight, 2020)(LEST WE FORGET CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10)
I invited him to record with me at a studio that had anice grand piano. I played vibraphone. Shortly after
we began recording, I realized he was multidimensional. The singing was something I did not
expect. Also, he talked constantly and shortly took
over the session. He had an unusual aura; a cloud of
white sparks traveled with him as he walked aroundthe studio talking to himself. I was planning on
recording two days, but Lowell was more than a
handful. Lowell made Sun Ra look normal.”Pianist Eric Zinman, a veteran of the Boston jazzscene, remembers that him and Davidson had many
mutual acquaintances in that city: “Everybody I
worked with played with Lowell. He had a trio formany years with John Voigt and [drummer] Laurence
Cook. They schooled me about Lowell… I only met
Lowell a few times. I talked with him in the street
about piano... When I saw Lowell play, the amount of
nuance and control he had on the instrument was rare
and advanced. What he could do with triads was freshand original and he hit hard like Monk and Bud Powell.
But like the greats, he could be very pretty with thepedal but never light. His touch was amazing.”
Lowell suffered from mental illness and at one
point during the ‘80s was hospitalized in Boston City
Hospital’s psychiatric unit. When Lowell died in 1991,
Coleman was among the musicians who attended
his funeral.
Morris recalls, “My general memory of him is that
he was one of the most unusual and brilliant people I
have ever met. He was troubled, afflicted with mental
illness. He could be incredibly recondite inconversation, hilariously funny, kind and scary becauseof his psychosis. He was the most interesting musician
I have ever known. And that is really saying something
because I know everyone. Lowell was an incrediblemix who could only be described as a genius, ascientific, artistic, musical and psychedelic visionary.
And he was hard to deal with sometimes, but usually
sweet, kind and considerate.” v(LABEL CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11)
word on the music is from the musician side. I comefrom that free improvisation, radical improvisation,”
he says, “And then I think, at the same time, my ideas
on music, my style, my approach opened up andwanted to be with other kinds of more structured
music. And I think that also the scene around me
a little bit shifted to these ideas.” He adds, “from the
beginning, there was the idea of not focusing on
a particular style but the opposite way”—the “or”—“we wanted to find and promote music that is going
beyond the strict definitions, the strict boundaries. You
zig-zag and so on.”The most recent zig, or zag, is that Lorenzon wants“to have more experimental electronic music in the
catalog,” and even music with a “prog-rock” point ofview. He himself has been part of that, putting out
albums from his own Echo Chamber trio like Antinodal,
with drummer Chris Hill and the synthesizers andelectronics of Michele Pedrazzi. There also newreleases like S/T from WE3, which mixes winds, violin,
drums and electronics, the heavy signal processing of
Raw Volumes by ASTMA/MEANZA and Phase Duo’s
album, also titled S/T, with Eloisa Manera’s violin andStefano Greco playing a monochord and working withelectronics. These albums bring AUT full circle, withimprovisation mixing with experimental electronics
and not a few beats.
For Lorenzon, it follows his interest in “New media
and new ways of producing music on one side and not
the other. I think that the more electronic-oriented
musicians are really on another scene,” and with AUT,
he wants to bring that “or” together with jazz.
For more information, visit autrecords.com

For more information, visit espdisk.com/1012.html
Recommended Listening:• Lowell Davidson—Lowell Davidson Trio
(ESP-Disk’, 1965)• Joe Morris Quartet—Graffiti in Two Parts(RogueArt, 1985)• Lowell Davidson/Richard Poole—Rediscovered
Session of 1988 (Music Artist Company, 1988)

THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD | AUGUST 2021 13

ALBUM REVIEWS

Reincarnated (Special Guest Al Di Meola)
Hazar (IAN Productions)by George Kanzler

A master of the saz, a three-stringed lute of Turkish-

Arabic provenance, by his early 20s (Ulas) Hazar washailed for playing music on saz that had been
considered beyond the instrument’s range andlimitations, from Paganini to bebop. When in his 30s(he’s 44 now), Hazar heeded a suggestion by John
McLaughlin, taking up and eventually switching to theacoustic guitar. This is his first album on that
instrument.
Hazar owes a lot to the gypsy jazz guitar traditionof Django Reinhardt; five of the nine tracks here arefrom that oeuvre while such others as Chick Corea’s“Spain” reference it. Hazar brings a formidablecommand and massive technique to his acoustic guitar
in this program, flawlessly executing intricate figuresand extended runs with precise articulation and anever-wavering, clarion tone. His command of acoustic
guitar, like his former mastery of the saz, is exemplary,bordering on phenomenal.
Al DiMeola is listed on the album cover as afeatured guest artist, but the American guitarist only
appears on one track, “Spain”, a duet, prominent asmuch on cajón (the box-like percussion instrument) as
guitar. Nonetheless, it is an exhilarating rendition of a
now iconic piece. Another iconic theme, Luiz Bonfá’s“Black Orpheus”, evokes some of Hazar ’s mostintensely lyrical playing; his guitar is framed by Mike
Roelos’ piano, beginning obliquely in a rubato solo,
and the hand percussion of Mehmet Katay.
The same trio dominates the gypsy jazz tunes,
foremost guitarist Dorado Schmitt’s “Bossa Dorado”,
full of sparkling interplay, and a Hazar solo intricately
pitting treble against bass lines. On George Gershwin’s“Summertime” Hazar ’s rendering of the theme isshadowed by obbligati from bass clarinetist Piotr
Torunski on the only quartet track. The album ends
with an engaging solo excursion on the traditional“La Vieux Tzigane” (“The Old Gypsy”) conjuring up
memories of Reinhardt.
For more information, visit hazar.de. Al Di Meola is at Blue
Note through Aug. 1st. See Calendar.

among flute, trumpet, clarinet and any number ofsaxophones). Carter has always been a serial
collaborator, seeking new situations in which to share
his creative voice. Two recent albums showcase more
surprising shades of his creative voice.
Together with his longtime friend Matt Lavelle,
the duo produced Heart Sounds: The Piano Album, an
unusual context, both for Carter to be performing duowith piano and for Lavelle exclusively on piano rather
than his customary bass clarinet and trumpet. The
latter ’s approach is profoundly evocative, often
surprisingly fluid: textures move into and out of
tonality almost imperceptibly. The same is so often
true for Carter and this makes their duo work here
especially cohesive. Also critical to the success is bothmusicians’ nuanced sense of timing and phrasing.
Their work ebbs and flows in near unison, with
continuous undulating density. “Enter The Heart” isa flute feature suggesting what could have happened if
Jimmy Giuffre had brought the instrument into his trio
work with Paul Bley. The folk hues of “Enter The
Ocean” shift tonalities in extremely subtle ways and,again, Carter ’s delicate pacing and use of silence iscaptivating. “Enter The Woods” finds him on clarinet
and again the seamless transitions between loose
phrasing and strong pulse reveal a partnership borneof deeply shared affinities.
577 Records has celebrated Daniel Carter ’s workfor years now. New York United is a quartet of 577
co-founders Carter and drummer Federico Ughi,
joined by electronic producer Tobias Wilner and bassist
Djibril Toure (a frequent contributor to music from
Wu-Tang Clan). Its second release demonstrates
Carter ’s remarkable ability to adapt his improvisational
vocabulary to unusual situations. Wilner ’s lush
electronic soundscapes on such tracks as opening“New York Flower” or “Day Dream” provide an
expansive, cinematic network of layered textures, bothpractical and electronic. The overtones of electronic
dance music provided by Wilner and Toure create alush ambient soundscape, with drums and wind
instruments shining through a luminous veil. “TheGrind” suggests another dynamic entirely, as though
Lifetime-era Tony Williams had joined the Philip Glass
Ensemble. Carter ’s clarinet here is subtle, as one would
associate with Miles Davis’ approach on In A Silent
Way. Tracks like “The Corner” or closing “Sunrise at
Browner Park” place Carter and Ughi’s vocabularies asimprovisers in a more ambient context and what
emerges is a clear sense of how compelling a pairing it
can be to blend the aesthetics of improvised andambient electronic musics.
For more information, visit mattlavelle.bandcamp.com and577records.com. Carter is at Bushwick Public House Aug.
2nd with Ayumi Ishito and Aug. 9th and Oliver Coffee Aug.
7th. See Calendar.

guitarist/bassist Jake Strauss and synth player-cumvocalist Theo Woodward. Together, they gazeheavenward and create a spacious milieu giving these
improvisations structure.
Ishito uses her saxophone as a colorizer, similar toa drummer, and through effects blurs lines and eschews
the familiar world of head-solo-head. What is moststriking about this project though is the group dynamic
informing these pieces. People into her earlier work
may balk at the openness of the session but after
repeated listening, especially with headphones or in an
immersive sound environment, the journeys areenjoyed individually and for their relationship to thewhole. The band creates unique sonic settings, as on
opener “Looking Through Ice”, which floats into an
Eastern-informed galaxy where chanting, synth andtheremin evoke an ancient religiosity.
Theremin, percussion and synth fashion anotherworldly sense on “Hum Infinite”, which Strauss
tames with an earthy bass solo. At the end there is ataste of John Coltrane but such jazz signifiers andacquaintances are few. Trumpet sounds on “Misspoke”
morph into saxophone set adrift for brief tentative
encounters with other sonic chameleons while “Folly to
the Fullest” presents rhythms and instrumental
characters that allow Ishito to showcase her gorgeous
tone. After further sonic explorations, “Night Chant”
introduces funkier environs more fully realized on
closer “Constellation Ceiling”.
Ishito introduces space music to cosmic jazz and in
the process shapes a musical region where Sun Ra andMartin Denny enjoy each other’s company.
For more information, visit 577records.com. Ishito is at
Bushwick Public House Aug. 2nd and 30th and Funkadelic
Studios Aug. 8th. See Calendar.

R (Cacophonous Revival)
Allen—Queen City (Savant)e •• JD
Sylvie Courvoiser/Ned Rothenberg/
Julian Sartorius—Lockdown (Clean Feed)c • Satoko
Fujii Tokyo Trio—
Moon on the Lake (Libra)o • Mark
Masters Ensemble (featuringm Art Baronand Tim Hagans)—Masters &
Baron
Meet
Blanton & Webster (Capri)m • André Matos—Estelar(Robalo Music)
Mumin’s Cosmic Force—Sketches ofe • Yusuf
Invisible (A Tribute to Albert Ayler)n the(Phillips Enterprise)
Pavone—Blue Verticald • Mario(Out Of Your Head)
Perry—Happy Destiny (SteepleChase)e •• Rich
Amanda Whiting—After Dark (Jazzman)d Laurence Donohue-Greene, Managing Editor• Jessica Ackerley—Morning/mourning

Baker—Confabulations (ESP-Disk’)n •• Duck
Dahveed Behroozi—Echos (Sunnyside)e • Jaimie Branch—FLY or DIE LIVE
(International Anthem)w • Lol
Coxhill—Coxhill ‘85 (SLAM)Heart Sounds (The Piano Album)
Daniel Carter/Matt Lavelle (s/r)
New York United, Volume 2
Daniel Carter, Tobias Wilner, Djibril Toure,
Federico Ughi (577 Records)
by James Ilgenfritz

Multi-instrumentalist

Daniel Carter has beenubiquitous in New York’s improvised music community
for decades. From Gunter Hampel and Bob Moses inthe ‘70s to more recent work with Yo La Tengo, David
Grubbs and his own groups TEST and Other Dimensions
in Music, Carter changes context as frequently as hechanges instruments (few performers bring as many
instruments to the gig and Carter frequently moves

Vol. 1
Ayumi Ishito & The Spacemen (577 Records)
by Elliott Simon

The last offering from tenor saxophonist Ayumi Ishito

was the single “Ocean Park Café” (2020), a beautiful
piece of exotica that used a side-trip to the cosmos asa mood changer. With her new band, The Spacemen,that earlier junket expands into a full-fledged astral
excursion. On board with Ishito are Nebula and the
Velvet Queen on theremin, drummer Steven Bartishev,

14 AUGUST 2021 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD

r
e
l
e
a
s
e
s

• Thomas Heberer/Joe Fonda/
Joe Hertenstein—Remedy(Słuchaj Fundacja!)• Il Sogno—Graduation (Auand)• João Madeira/Hernâni Faustino—
db Duet (FMR)• Roscoe Mitchell/Mike Reed—
The Ritual and The Dance (Astral Spirits)• Yusuf Mumin’s Cosmic Force—Sketches of
the Invisible (A Tribute to Albert Ayler)(Phillips Enterprise)• Iain Sinclair and London Experimental
Ensemble—Dark Before Dark (577 Reords)
Andrey Henkin, Editorial Director

Queen City | Toys/Die Dreaming
JD Allen (Savant)by George Grella

JD Allen is a classicist. That in no way makes him any

less contemporary in terms of his formal sense, aesthetics
and expression. On his records, one hears a tenor
saxophonist in touch with the joys and rages of daily life
in a country that is fighting a cold civil war between
American democracy and racist authoritarianism;a man who relishes the jazz tradition and seeks toexpand it; and a musician who pushes into harmonic
and timbral freedom when expressive needs demand it.
He is also a master of jazz language and this is theclassicism that comes through on his new solo CD,
Queen City. All the elements that form the vocabulary,syntax and grammar of jazz are there in his playing:articulation; the way he punches into phrases andswings them; the postbop turns and grace notes;
the meaty tone that can be blunt one moment andvelvety the next. Through a concise sequence (recordedin January of this year) of standards and originals,
Allen sounds like he is rediscovering his pleasures in
the language of the music.
There are parts, like “Gem And Eye”, which soundlike he is exploring the techniques of soloing (as inplaying jazz in order to create a solo statement),
improvising variations out of thematic material, but
most of this album is much simpler in aim. This is a solo
album but it is not about soloing; it is about playing thehorn and making jazz alone, what Allen points out in
his liner notes is the original state of jazz musicians,
playing on their own to prepare for group situations
and even to please themselves with the sound of jazz.
This is also a pandemic album, coming out ofAllen questioning the point of making music when one
is alone. Queen City seems to answer the point is jazz isa wonderful genre and playing it and hearing it played
is a fulfilling and touching experience. The lack of a
big concept—other than just play—makes this adeceptively modest, rewardingly deep, pleasure.
Toys/Die Dreaming (released in 2020) is another in aseries of trio albums from Allen, all of them strong, withplenty of staying power. As good as Allen sounds solo,
this format brings out the best in him. There is extra
punch as he plays with and against the rhythms ofbassist Ian Kenselaar and drummer Nic Cacioppo andmore edge to his sound, which is a deeply evocative mixof John Coltrane’s keening reach and Dexter Gordon’s

sensual masculinity. Allen is brawny and brainy, equally.
Rhythm is a great reward from this trio, the rollingbeats and pulses from Kenselaar and Cacioppo, Allen
dropping notes in between, delaying an entrance here,
stretching a note there, the tension adding to thebeauty of the playing. The fervor, power and hints ofdarkness in the opening, intense take on Jay GorneySidney Clare’s “You’re My Thrill” (highly abstracted inmood if not manner from the original) puts the listenerin the same place that “The Night Has a Thousand
Eyes” on Coltrane’s Sound does. The company isappropriate, because while Coltrane and Gordon
expanded jazz language, they bore the tradition withthem and played with a pleasure in the sound of jazz.
And so does Allen.
For more information, visit jazzdepot.com. Allen is at Bar
Bayeux Aug. 4th. See Calendar.

Impressions, Improvisations and Compositions
Kari Ikonen (Ozella)by Marco Cangiano

K ari Ikonen is quite an original in today’s jazz

panorama. A recipient of the 2013 Yrjö Award as theFinnish Jazz Musician of the Year, he is currently active
as solo pianist, with his own trio, in duo with Louis
Sclavis and with other groups like Orchestra Nazionaledella Luna and quartet Ajaton. His approach is quite
unique, blending postbop mainstream, spacey Nordic
landscapes, contemporary classical and Middle East
influences into a very personal style.
This is Ikonen’s first solo outing. According to him,
it is inspired by Wassily Kandinsky’s opus, which can bedivided in three categories: impressions, or spontaneous
expressions of internal moods; improvisations dictatedby external influences, such as nature; and compositions
or expressions of inner visions, but more consciously
designed. The overall sense is one of fragmentation, notwithout a certain rawness, which makes the recording
all the more appealing, original and ultimately very
rewarding: a naked artist with his instrument in a rare
portrait of honesty.
The album features prominently the “maquiano”,
Ikonen’s own micro-tuning device, which enables the
pianist to play Arabic scales or maqam and other microintervals. The sounds, scales and overall approach on
such a modified piano is reminiscent of Anouar
Brahem: compositions like the brief opening“Imprologue”, “Maqtu’ah on Maqam Rast”, “Taqsim
on Maqam Saba” and “Trance Oriental” are variations
on Middle Eastern scales where the maquiano mimics
traditional instruments like the oud and saz.
But there is much more, in spite of relative brevity(40 minutes). “Koto” is a rhapsodic episode in which
strummed strings introduce and close dramaticconfigurations. Ikonen’s use of the full range of the
instrument, as in “Rausch”, is very much an element of
the composition and never left to self-serving soundexperimentation. “Oppressive” recalls contemporaryclassical music while Ikonen’s Nordic roots emerge in“Blue”, an almost minimalistic impression, and closing
epilogue “The Evergreen Earth”. His interpretations ofa jazz standard, Wayne Shorter’s “Pinocchio”, pepperedwith traces of Chick Corea, is exquisite and yetinnovative. A successful recording, with much to absorb.
For more information, visit ozellamusic.com. This project
live-streams Aug. 6th at porgy.at/en/events/10514.

UNEARTHED GEM

Leverkusen ‘97
Allan Holdsworth (Manifesto)
by Brian Charette

The late ‘90s were a very productive period for

British guitarist Allan Holdsworth, who was living
in California at the time and would have turned 75
this month (he died in 2017). This CD/DVD, thefourth in Manifesto’s Holdsworth live CD/DVD
series, was made with an incredible trio featuring a
fresh-faced drummer, Chad Wackerman. The latterhas an informative interview on the DVD where welearn that Leverkusen is the home of a German
pharmaceutical company Bayer and that it was very
uncommon for Holdsworth to allow himself to bevideotaped. Wackerman speaks lovingly about
Holdsworth, the chemistry of the group and thehigh quality of the production staff at the
Leverkusen Forum. He also gives interesting insight
into the tunes, with helpful tips on how to count thechanging time signatures. The music is recorded
and filmed very well with lots of great camera
angles and closeups.
On opener “The Sixteen Men of Tain”,
Holdsworth rips effortlessly as Wackerman and sixstring electric bassist Dave Carpenter swing under
his flying distorted runs. The sound is open with nocomping aside from occasional chord pops from
Carpenter. Holdsworth dips in and out of theharmony with exotic scales as Wackerman answers
with great technique and control. Holdsworth isalways very relaxed in his fret hand, which is often
fanned to reach his uncommon chord shapes. His
sound is distorted but creamy and soulful, often
mixed with synth sounds for even more textures.
The beat of the rhythm section is relentless andalways driving the leader.
“Above and Below” gets a washy volume swell
intro with spacey augmented chords and meditative
chorused playing suggesting an FM synthesizer.
Brushes stir as lovely chords percolate over bass
sliding up and down under lush sonorities.
Carpenter answers in the cracks with a subtle triplet.
The rhythm section gets to stretch out in “Water on
the Brain”: fast off-beat hits stab as the bridge
melody floats over a hemiola; Carpenter plays greatlines, Jaco Pastorius’ harmonics and vibrato mixed
into his own lyrical system; Wackerman plugs as
Holdsworth peppers with voicing jabs. A cool coda
segues to Wackerman’s solo with deep snare work.
“Letters of Marque” has a memorable melody
with high altered notes sitting on top of unsuspecting
chords. Holdsworth mixes a little synth in with hissearing tone, which morphs smoothly from chorused
chords to synth axe shredding. “Texas” feigns rockbut quickly settles into plucky Lydian fingerstyle,which uses string skips and sweep-picking balancedwith well-placed lyricism and a surprising vocoder
sound on the tag.
This great live set captures Holdsworth in his
prime playing some of his most loved compositions
with an amazing trio. The rarity of high-quality live
Holdsworth makes this package even more valuable.
For more information, visit manifesto.com

THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD | AUGUST 2021 15

FireflyAlexa Tarantino (Posi-Tone)
by Dan Bilawsky

There’s a lingering luminescence in alto saxophonist

Alexa Tarantino’s third date for Posi-Tone. It could beeasy to chalk that up to elevated levels of warmth andwonder carried through her horns, the presence ofBehn Gillece’s argent vibraphone and the contributionsof a trio of familiars—pianist Art Hirahara, bassist Boris
Kozlov and drummer Rudy Royston—helping to carrythings aloft. There’s truth to that thinking, without
a doubt, but there’s also something deeper at work.
Simply put, Tarantino projects a light of understanding.
With serious knowledge, purpose and passion behind
everything she creates, this shining star consistently
finds new ways to illuminate her surroundings.
Opening with Hirahara’s “Spider ’s Dance”,
Tarantino plays to the arachnoid allusion in her
surname in entrancing fashion. Then she picks up her
alto flute for Gillece’s aptly named “Mindful
Moments”, absorbs and refracts energy on Royston’s
lively “Move of the Spirit” and delivers a spellbinding
take on Wayne Shorter ’s “Iris”, which positively rejects
the weight of the world with its floating form. Thatsequence of selections makes for an incredibly inviting
opening and, despite having written none of thosepieces, Tarantino owns all four.
The aforementioned first act, given completely
unto the music of others, stands in contrast to thelengthier second, which introduces Tarantino’s“A Moment in Time” suite. Detailing a day in the life ofan artist, this collection of music highlights thedifferences between perception and reality, the natureof discovery and the ups and downs that come with itall. “Daybreak” delivers on morning’s potential with
understated soul. Kozlov’s “Surge Fughetta”—a fugue
for alto flute, vibraphone and bass—introduces theleader’s “Surge Capacity”, a driven number
representing the fire(s) of inspiration. “La Donna Nel
Giardino” brings a lighthearted and playful nature to
the fore. And the electrified “Rootless Ruthlessness”
explores the role(s) that self-consciousness and anxiety
play in the creative process. A bewitching stroll throughShorter’s “Lady Day” serves as a brief step outside of
the suite, but Tarantino quickly returns to the theme
and brings everything home on the bossa-based “Violet
Sky”, leaning toward a sun-setting state of rejuvenation,and “The Firefly Code”, a closer glimmering with all
the hope and possibility the song and album title imply.
For more information, visit posi-tone.com. Tarantino is at
Bryant Park Aug. 14th with Young Stars of Jazz. See Calendar.

in Europe), using French guitarist Django Reinhardt astheir musical role model, Stephane Wrembel has foundhis own way within the idiom. His Django Experimenthas been documented not just on six CDs thus far but
also on Live In Rochester and a unique set of 17 ofReinhardt’s solo pieces, Django l’Ímpressionniste (thelatter also the subject of a book of transcriptions doneby Wrembel).
While Wrembel can very closely duplicate
Reinhardt’s solos and style, he has always felt free toexpand on the guitarist’s legacy, whether exploring his
late ‘40s electric guitar pieces or bringing Reinhardt’s
music into more modern jazz. On The Django Experiment
VI, Wrembel performs five Reinhardt originals, threestandards, a traditional number and Henri Texier ’smore recent “Laguna Laita”.
Wrembel is joined on various selections by Nick
Driscoll (alto/tenor/soprano saxophones, clarinet,bass clarinet), violinist Daisy Castro, rhythm guitarist
Thor Jensen, bassist Ari Folman-Cohen and drummer
Nick Anderson. The opening selection, “Naguine”, is arelatively brief unaccompanied solo and Edward P.
Moran-Jimmie Lunceford-Sy Oliver ’s “Dream Of You”
has the quartet (without violin) playing the ‘30s piece
as Reinhardt would have.
Reinhardt’s “Impromptu” is a bit different, taken
at a blazing tempo and given a much more modern
treatment with Driscoll on soprano and Wrembel
creating impressive solos. “Nuages”, Reinhardt’s most
famous original, is slightly faster than usual but verymuch in the Reinhardt style with Castro recalling
Stephane Grappelli.
The next few numbers are among the highpoints:“Swing de Paris” is given a rollicking treatment;“St. James Infirmary” is interpreted as a dirge with ahighly expressive violin solo; and “La Valse desNiglos” is a charming uptempo waltz. While the drone
piece “Laguna Laita” is a bit dreary, Cole Porter ’s“What Is This Thing Called Love” is happily exuberant.
The program concludes with a second version of“Naguine”, this time played as a medium-tempo bluesby Wrembel and the rhythm section.
While not the most adventurous set in the series,
The Django Experiment VI is filled with enjoyable musicand easily recommended to Django Reinhardt fans.
For more information, visit stephanewrembel.com. This
project is at Drom Aug. 22nd. See Calendar.

Bird Meets Wire
Susan Alcorn/Leila Bordreuil/Ingrid Laubrock(Relative Pitch)by Stuart Broomer

P edal steel guitarist Susan Alcorn, saxophonist Ingrid

The Django Experiment VI
Stephane Wrembel (Water Is Life)by Scott Yanow

W hile there are scores of brilliant acoustic guitarists

who are part of the gypsy jazz movement (particularly

Laubrock and cellist Leila Bordreuil range fromsustained collective improvisations to original
approaches to traditional material. They create musicof subtle delicacy and intriguing formal resilience, anunhurried unity of musical purpose in which voices
will rise and part, energy and calm contrast, butcoherence persists.
Opening “Area 41” is a work of continuous
evolution, Alcorn creating a sustained, resonating fieldof eerie, ambiguous pitches that sounds orchestral,almost choral, an ethereal, trance-like zone the groupseems to inhabit naturally, creating almost pietistic
improvisation. Bordreuil bows long tones or wispy
harmonics, combining with Alcorn in a wall of sound16 AUGUST 2021 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD

that can become a slow glissando moving incrementallyin pitch. Laubrock contributes similarly to this sonicfield before moving to free melodic extrapolation.
The acute listening and music building continues
with the title track, highlighted by Laubrock’s subtly
mimetic approach to her soprano, creating sounds thatare not only bird-like but also flute-like. In theshimmering “Fourth World”, pedal steel continuum
suggests bowing, its bright metallic sound firstcombining with the darker sound of bowed cello, latermatching the abstracted saxophone lines.
The sense of community that marks these
improvisations assumes explicit social dimension with
two tracks that take root in traditional materials.
“Cañones (El Pueblo Unido)” begins in quietly
abstracted sound, gradually assuming a tempo tobecome the Chilean populist anthem before passing
again into improvisation; the performance resonateswith the recently deceased Frederic Rzewski’s “ThePeople United Will Never Be Defeated”, a series of 36
variations for piano on the same theme.
The other traditional melody, “Indigo Blue
(Wayfarin’ Stranger)”, is halfway between ballad andhymn, again beginning in a confluence of sounds,
pedal steel sounding like bells whose pitches bendsorrowfully until tenor lightly abstracts the melody.
The ideal of free improvisation often reduces toa series of coded sub-genres, but this music avoids the
habitual, achieving a special state of simultaneousconvergence and divergence. Parts move at once
towards and apart from one another, continuously
creating new relationships among them, though attimes the notion of parts itself disappears.
For more information, visit relativepitchrecords.com.
Laubrock is at Scholes Street Studio Aug. 27th. See Calendar.

Impulso Tanguero
Pedro Giraudo Tango Quartet (Tiger Turn)by George Kanzler

There is something alluringly dramatic about tangomusic. Melodramatic even. Songs unfurl like chasescenes in a movie, ones full of stops and gos, sudden
turnarounds, speeds and brakes. Bassist Pedro Giraudo
is attuned to that drama, cognizant of the heightened
emotions, the conscious, theatrical art inherent intango. He has created a program of nine pieces—tangos, milongas (more smoothly rhythmic than
traditional tangos) and waltzes—for his traditional
Tango Quartet of violin (Nick Danielson), bandoneón(Rodolfo Zanetti) and piano (Ahmed Alom).
The quartet functions more like a chamber musicgroup than a traditional jazz quartet, although it moreclosely resembles such units as Gerry Mulligan and
Ornette Coleman’s early quartets or the late Ralph
Peterson’s Fo’tet. Instrumentally, it is highlyinteractive, leads constantly changing-alternating
among the trio of violin, bandoneón and piano, none
more so than on “Ávido”, a momentously barrelingmilonga that incorporates Brazilian samba rhythmic
accents as the trio dexterously exchanges leads like aconcentrated relay race. It is not the only piece where
Giraudo expands and toys with the tango tradition. In
fact, only one track, “Infidencias”, is what he admits is
a “traditional sounding tango, one that features manyof the key elements of tango.”
Among his tweaks and experiments are“Impetuoso”, a tango that borrows its A sections fromthe Astor Piazzolla tradition, but slows things down ina B section owing inspiration to French composer
Olivier Messiaen. Then there’s “Milonga Infausta”,
confounding expectations of a steady milonga rhythmby moving through multiple meter changes: 7/8, 5/8,
6/8, 2/4. “Con Creces”, another tango, jumps to a 6/8
chacarera rhythm in its middle section. And “La Poda”,
which features solos from all four musicians, morphs
from cadenza to tango to milonga, ending with a multicoda flourish. Against all the tempo shifts andaccelerations, decelerations and stops of the tangos andmilongas, the three waltzes come off as unabashedly
romantic, lyrical and enticingly danceable.
For more information, visit pedrogiraudo.com. This projectis at Terraza 7 Aug. 26th. See Calendar.

Rhapsody
Andy LaVerne (SteepleChase)
Spring Garden
Harold Danko (SteepleChase)
Ballad For A Rainy Afternoon
Mark Soskin (SteepleChase)by Ken Dryden

Andy LaVerne is one of SteepleChase’s most recorded

pianists, with over 30 CDs as a leader or co-leader, plus
many dates as a sideman. In addition to being a prolificcomposer, LaVerne has constantly varied his bands’
instrumentation, which can include both old friends
and new faces. Rhapsody marks his first recording withsuperb violinist Zach Brock while bassist Mike
Richmond is a frequent collaborator, the quartet

rounded out by drummer Jason Tiemann. Even though
LaVerne studied with the late Bill Evans and his
influence can appear in his playing, he has developed alyrical approach all his own. His intimate arrangementof Evans’ “Waltz For Debby” makes for a surprising
opener, given its laidback yet very swinging approach,never straying far from its theme, with a second violin
part overdubbed at its conclusion. The leader’s“Retroactive” is a rollicking reworking of the standard“Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise” and a showcase forBrock. One of the most refreshing interpretations is
LaVerne’s scoring of Jerome Kern -Oscar Hammerstein’s“All The Things You Are”. Instead of adding Dizzy
Gillespie’s popular introductory vamp, he alters thechord structure in his accompaniment, giving Brock
plenty of freedom. The chemistry is incredible
throughout the session and this is another strong
addition to LaVerne’s impressive discography.
Harold Danko needs little introduction, the pianist
an active professional for over a half-century, gaining
exposure with Woody Herman, Thad Jones/Mel Lewis
Orchestra, Gerry Mulligan, Lee Konitz and Chet Baker.
In recent times, he focused primarily on his own career,
though teaching at Eastman limited opportunities totour for extended periods during much of the year.
Danko writes new music and records frequently, withover two dozen sessions as a leader or co-leader for
SteepleChase alone since the mid ‘90s. One of his
biggest interests is in classical music, particularly Igor
Stravinsky’s groundbreaking early 20th Century ballet
The Rite of Spring. This music long inspired him andwhen he reassembled his ‘90s quartet of tenor
saxophonist Rich Perry, bassist Jay Anderson anddrummer Jeff Hirshfield for a tour of Argentina, hewrote sketches based on various themes from theballet, leaving plenty of room for improvisation.
Anyone who knows this Stravinsky work well will
rejoice in what Danko developed following the initialconcerts. Each excerpt on Spring Garden is expanded
into often unexpected directions, building upon thelate maestro’s genius, with Danko taking rhythmic andmelodic liberties, transforming this century-old music
into compelling jazz. One is tempted to alternate
between listening to the original ballet and Danko’s
compositions to appreciate fully what the pianist has
accomplished. It’s obvious that the band was fullycommitted to achieving Danko’s vision and one hopes
he will experiment with other classical favorites using
this outstanding quartet.
Mark Soskin has also spent several decades as aleader, in addition to an extended stint with Sonny
Rollins. Most of the pianist’s recordings have been for
European labels and Ballad For A Rainy Afternoon is his
fourth for SteepleChase. His quartet includes threelabel regulars: tenor saxophonist Rich Perry, bassist Jay
Anderson and drummer Matt Wilson, the latter two
having worked with Soskin on earlier projects. Most of
the session focuses on his strong originals, with two
exceptions. Late guitarist John Abercrombie, who wasa good friend and frequent musical partner, penned
the upbeat “Labour Day”, marked by a frequently
shifting melodic line and potent soloing. The inclusionof Ornette Coleman’s “Round Trip” provides a bit ofvariety with its more jagged twists, though the quartet
negotiates them effortlessly as they explore its freedom.
The rest of the album is just as enticing, starting withthe pastoral air of Soskin’s lush title track, which
unfolds slowly with deliberate, spacious solos,
complemented by Wilson’s whispering brushes.
Soskin revisits his piece “Lefty”, a robust postbop
anthem, which Perry dominates with his rapid-fire,
full-bodied tenor. The powerful ballad “One HopefulDay” has a bittersweet air, with Perry and Soskinsharing the soloing and flawless support by Anderson
and Wilson. Soskin remains a treasure awaiting
discovery by many jazz fans.

G LO B E U N I T YPlay The Music of Anthony Braxton
The Locals (Discus)
The Real You (A Bill Evans Tribute)
Enrico Pieranunzi/Thomas Fonnesbæk Duo (Stunt)
You Me & Cole
Shimpei Ogawa/Noa Levy (Belle)by Tom Greenland

Judy Garland’s dictum to “Always be a first-rateversion of yourself and not a second-rate version ofsomeone else” rings especially true in the context ofjazz tributes. How to honor another in one’s own style?
The best answers eschew imitation for innovation.
Anthony Braxton’s compositions, for all theirdetailed parameters, are more generative thanprescriptive: the result is always highly dependent
on the circumstances and assembled personalities.
But you generally don’t get a street-smart vibe within-the-pocket grooving, so Play the Music of Anthony
Braxton, recorded live in Austria in 2006, covering six
early compositions (6c, 6i, 23b, 23g, 40b and 115),
introduces a new wrinkle. Led by keyboard player
Pat Thomas, with clarinetist Alex Ward, guitarist
Evan Thomas, bassist Dominic Lash and drummer
Darren Hasson-Davis, the tracks (all arranged by theleader) usually begin open-endedly, colorful, voicelike clarinet conjoined with splatting keyboard chordclusters via impressionistic guitar tones. Soon,
however, the beat kicks in and just won’t quit,
whether it’s the funky 10/4 swing of “40B”, secondline groove of “115” or reggae/dub style of “6i”.
Italian pianist Enrico Pieranunzi and Danish
bassist Thomas Fonnesbæk’s tribute to Bill Evans,
The Real You, is closer in the style, if not spirit, to thelate pianist’s work, recalling Intuition, his 1975 duowith bassist Eddie Gomez. Fonnesbæk, like Scott
LaFaro and fellow Dane Niels-Henning Ørsted
Pedersen, has technique so fluent it makes you forgetthe considerable mechanical challenges of playing
the instrument, using it to develop highly interactive
counterpoint (à la LaFaro and Evans) with equally
fluent piano. Most of the tracks are well-crafted
originals and though Pieranunzi’s approach is morerefined and controlled he comes close to Evans’languid ecstasy on the minor ballad “Passing
Shadows” and sparky “Sno’ Peas” (by Phil
Markowitz). “Bill and Bach”, a co-penned original
mixing bop and baroque, shows the pair’s facility incrossing genre and meter with graceful cohesion.
Japanese bassist Shimpei Ogawa and Israeli
vocalist Noa Levy’s tribute to Cole Porter is the mostconventional, closely adhering to composer original
song forms, though keys are transposed to fit Levy’s
range. The pair began playing together at Berkeley’s
California Jazz Conservatory, sharing a fondness forPorter’s immaculately clever wedding of words andmusical phrases. Ogawa fills out the sparse vocal/
bass texture in ingenious ways: creating a raking
guiro effect on the tango-inspired “My Heart Belongs
to Daddy”; toggling between half-time and walking
swing feels in the middle of song sections; holding apedal tone against moving harmony; and/or creating
Baroque counterpoint (most notable on “In the Stillof the Night” and “So In Love”.) Levy’s strongest,
most original statements are on “Just One of ThoseThings”, “Too Darn Hot” and “Love for Sale”, where
she merges jazz with Sephardic and pop sensibilities.
For more information, visit
sundance.dk and noalevylive.com

discus-music.co.uk,

For more information, visit steeplechase.dk

THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD | AUGUST 2021 17

The Mighty Alpacas
Jason Candler/Jesse Dulman (Guarsh)
by Kira Grunenberg

The Mighty Alpacas is the the duo debut of saxophonist

Jason Candler and tuba player Jesse Dulman. The pair
have assembled a record showing cognizance withregard to the sometimes intimidating and/or confusing
bar of entry for experimental and free jazz. Everything
about the album—including its plain but bright colorblock cover and warm live audio recording—ispresented in a straightforward but friendly manner.
Amusing imagery-specific song titles are descriptive
and foster curiosity (e.g., “Indifferent Vegetables”,“Gumshoe Melodrama”). The question remaining,
however, is to what degree and in what fashion do
the 11 tracks offer musical accessibility? Candler andDulman respond with compositions showcasing
melodic creativity and conceptual cohesion.
The album unveils its experimental qualities at theoutset of “Tortoise Sunrise” with an opening phrase
built on long-held notes, first from tuba and then alto
saxophone. The former ’s are particularly noticeable,
given the way Dulman slides from one to another,
openly embracing the microtonal transformations inthe sustained pitches. Furthermore, a slight fluttering
delivery adds to the music’s slow-moving, tremulous
sensation, which fits with the idea of a tortoise at
sunrise: two things gradual to arrive at theirdestinations. This initial artistic statement then carries
The Mighty Alpacas, as every track invariably beckons
listeners to find out if and how Candler and Dulman
will embody the next titular offering.
How the duo nod to composer Gustav Mahler in“Mahler ’s Revenge” is especially intriguing: tuba’s
low pitched and wide-toned notes play a central role inacknowledging Mahler ’s reputation for dynamicallyintense and timbre-heavy orchestral symphonies.
Conversely, “Strolling with the Ducks” applies highpitched squeaking saxophone notes as a stand-in forthe horn-like quacks of its namesake animal, utilizing
a melodic approach that seems to channel composer
Camille Saint-Saëns’ iconic suite Carnival of the Animals.
Considering the sheer skill that enables
Candler and Dulman to use so few instruments tosymbolize so many forms, sounds, moods and settings,
The Mighty Alpacas remains an impressively seamless
listening experience.
For more information, visit jasoncandler.bandcamp.com

Antiseptic Release
Matt Mottel, Kevin Shea & The Clean Associates (s/r)
by Akira Saito

A ntiseptic Release is a conceptual album in the age of

the COVID-19 pandemic. New Yorkers Matt Mottel
and Kevin Shea stayed in Germany as Improvisers-inResidence of the Moers Festival in 2021, inviting artists.
The pair have made many collaborative works as the

duo Talibam! but this time found a good chance to stepaway from the brand, so this album may be a starting
point to explore new horizons, even after COVID-19.
For the first tune, Japanese vocal improviser Ayako
Kanda performed 10 1-minute tracks—unaccompanied
and without audience—listening to Shea and Mottel
through headphones. Later, those isolated tracks werecombined in order. Within Ayako’s performance many
anonymous narratives appear and each has its uniquematière or life story, although specific languages are notused at all, reminiscent of a shaman who summons
various emotions (there are traditions of this kind of
spiritual lady in Japan). Shea’s drums provides energy
like boiling water and the cosmic sounds of Mottel’s
keytar (a portmanteau of keyboard and guitar) enlarges
the sonic space. Martín Escalante also offers mysterious
sounds for the second tune, using a strange adaptationof his saxophone, the neck removed and mouthpiece
attached directly to the body. He doesn’t stop blowing
no matter what happens and, with his father Oscar ’s
contribution of “sounds”, it makes for a muddy andchaotic stream of 10 minutes, into which Mottel andShea throw energy without hesitation.
For the third and fourth tunes, respectively, Sana
Nagano (violin) and Fritz Welch (voice, percussion)joined the fray. Nagano, born in Tokyo and based in
NYC, is raptor-like, plowing through a heavy andchaotic sea of noise from Shea and Mottel, becoming
increasingly ferocious. In contrast, the collaboration
with Welch scatters many cracks open to sound space.
From some loud or suppressed laughter emerge.
This digital album, whose physical release is a
hand-sanitizer packet, is an ongoing project with
updates to come and more guests invited.

Ballet”, led by Silbert’s sprightly clarinet, and states
the melody, it becomes readily recognizable by the
lyric featured in the movie: “New York, New York, ahelluva town. The Bronx is up but The Battery’s down.”
The band continues in this carefree and cheerful frame
as they brightly execute the delightful arrangement by
Silbert, showcasing confident solos from Williams (altosaxophone), Hernandez (tenor) and Eby.
The other two numbers, “Great Lover” and“Lonely Town”, were in the musical but did not makeit to the film. The former, arranged by Mike Tomaro,
frolics along in an uptempo vein with the horn sections
showing their flexibility as they acknowledge andaugment one another, pushed along by the rhythm
section. Solos by Silbert and Mulligan (alto) show
a striking fluency. The last of this trio of songs isa charming number in which arranger Darryl Brenzel
gives trumpeter Williams the spotlight and captures
the evocative longing that the song title implies.
“Morning Sun”, from Bernstein’s one-act opera
Trouble in Tahiti, is a delightful bauble as arranged by
Silbert with a stellar clarinet intervention by him alongwith an agile interlude from Nalker. The centerpiece of
this release is “Symphonic Suite”, which was used bydirector Elia Kazan in the Academy Award-winning
movie On The Waterfront. The arrangement by Silbert isfilled with all the drama one would expect from thegrimy setting and story that the film portrays, the band
exploring the four corners of this score with panache.
The solo space is kept to a minimum, but Hernandez andtrumpeter Williams make the most of their opportunity.
This music was originally commissioned forBernstein’s centenary celebration in 2018 and is awonderful addition to the genre.

For more information, visit talibam.bandcamp.com/album/
antiseptic-release

For more information, visit mcgjazz.org

Bernstein ReimaginedSmithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra (MCG Jazz)
by Pierre Giroux

The Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra (SJMO)

was created by the U.S. Congress in 1990 to recognize
the importance of jazz to American culture, presenting
concerts and recordings that help define the works ofthose individuals who contribute to the developmentof jazz in America. Although Leonard Bernstein, who
would have turned 103 this month, was primarily aclassical music composer and conductor, he did delve
into what could be called “jazz-centric” compositions
for musical theater and other media forms.
The orchestra is comprised of Artistic Director/
conductor/alto saxophonist Charles Young; Steve
Williams, Bill Mulligan, Scott Silbert, Luis Hernandez,
Leigh Pilzer (reeds); Liesl Whitaker, Tom Williams,
Tom Eby and Kenny Rittenhouse (trumpets); Jennifer
Krupa, Bill Holmes, Matt Neff and Jeff Cortazzo(trombones); and a rhythm section of Tony Nalker(piano), James King and Ian Ashby (basses), Marty
Ashby (guitar) and Ken Kimery (drums).
The compositions are pieces infrequently
performed as they relate to symphonic works, spiritual
music, operas and lesser-known musical theaternumbers. However this description may not necessarily
be applicable to three of the four initial tracks. They
originated in On The Town, a Broadway musical in 1944and very popular film of the same name released in1949. As the orchestra kicks off with “Times Square

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Grateful Deadication
Dave McMurray (Blue Note)by Andrey Henkin

This reviewer has heard derisive comments about The

Grateful Dead from jazz musicians on both sides of thestylistic divide for years. That ridicule is easily ignored
when one considers those who actually performed
alongside the band: Billy Cobham, Ornette Coleman,Hamza El Din, Zakir Hussain, Charles Lloyd, Branford
Marsalis, Airto Moreira, David Murray and Baba
Olatunji, among others. But the reason for it remains
elusive. If jazz is indeed music of the moment—
embracing improvisation and group interaction on awide array of original and source material and not justa sad sequence of tired bebop licks or noisy free jazztropes—then The Grateful Dead should be respected
for 30 years of spontaneity on a scale for which mostjazz musicians would kill. And, anyway, guitarist/band co-founder Jerry Garcia died far too young 26
years ago this month from a heroin addiction. What isjazzier than that?
This rant introduces a new tribute covering a wideswathe of the band’s oeuvre by tenor saxophonist DaveMcMurray, early veteran of groups as disparate as Was(Not Was) and Griot Galaxy. His core band is bassist
Ibrahim Jones, drummer Jeff Canady, guitarist Wayne
Gerard and keyboard player Maurice O’Neal but
others take part, including The Grateful Deadco-founding guitarist Bob Weir, McMurray’s former
boss/current Blue Note head Don Was (bass) andsinger Bettye LaVette.
That McMurray intends to challenge himself isevident from the first two numbers, “Fire on the
Mountain” and “Dark Star”. These simple tunes were
vehicles for some of The Grateful Dead’s most
expansive explorations. The former is celebratory andslick while the latter moves into a funky dreamscapeunderpinning McMurray’s long solo. He continues
with more of the group’s staples later in the album:
often-paired “Estimated Prophet” and “Eyes of theWorld”, both sticking close to the disco-fied versionsof the late ‘70s and featuring a soaring McMurray
exulting in the strong melodic content (opening up a
bit more on the latter), and closing with “Franklin’s
Tower”, played with the spinners in mind, and “TheMusic Never Stopped”, McMurray at his bluesiest.
The album also goes into vocal—both good andbad—territory. LaVette brings grit to “Loser”,
emphasizing the pathos of the tune, Weir adding his
unique guitar counterpoint. Herschel Boone’s vocals,
however, on “Touch of Grey”, as well as a cheesy
arrangement, turns an already problematic tune into
an ill-conceived neo-soul love-song. McMurray does
redeem it somewhat with a faithful two-minuteinstrumental version right after.
The bust-out comes with “The Eleven”, named for
its complex time signature and played only by The
Grateful Dead between 1967-70. McMurray pushes
himself, veering between menace and bright calypso,
the band at its most collaborative.
Yes, the album is somewhat overproduced; thesame could be said for most of The Grateful Dead’s
studio output. No matter, McMurray is to be laudedfor his openness and choice of material. As with theband he is fêting, it will be most interesting to see how
he presents this music onstage.
For more information, visit bluenote.com

THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD | AUGUST 2021 19

Soundscape 1979
Thomas Buckner/Roscoe Mitchell/Gerald Oshita(ScienSonic Laboratories)
by Alex Henderson

Reedplayer Roscoe Mitchell, who turns 81 this month,

has had an enormous influence on avant garde jazz.
His first album as a leader, Sound, which was producedby the recently departed Bob Koester for Delmark in
1966, did a lot to put Chicago’s Association for the
Advancement of Creative Musicians on the map. And
the AACM aesthetic is impossible to miss on Soundscape
1979, a previously unreleased live recording from thetitular Manhattan loft on Aug. 17th, 1979. Mitchell isfound alongside horn player Gerald Oshita (who diedin 1992) and vocalist Thomas Buckner, who himself
turns 80 this month.
Mitchell concentrates on the soprano and bass
saxophones while Oshita mostly plays the contrabass
sarrusophone. Although billed as a trio, Buckner isonly on two of the selections: “Textures for Trio” andopener “Marche”, both by Oshita. Buckner brings astrong classical influence to both performances, but indifferent ways. While “Marche” combines avant garde
jazz with elements of opera, the hypnotic “Textures forTrio” is more mindful of European church music.
The other tracks are improvisations featuring
Mitchell and/or Oshita, an Idaho native who moved to
the San Francisco Bay Area. Oshita clearly appreciatedthe AACM mindset that Mitchell brought to his
performances, an outlook alive and well on “OpenSide A” and “Solo Improvisation”, both making
maximum use of space to approach free-form jazz withsubtlety and nuance rather than ferocity. Even when
Oshita’s improvisations become somewhat abrasive on“Prelude” and “Composition 40Q”, it is something towhich he builds.
While Mitchell has built a huge catalogue over theyears, the same cannot be said about Oshita
unfortunately. ScienSonic Laboratories head Scott
Robinson has provided listeners with a valuable
document, which not only underscores Mitchell’s boldindividuality but is also a rare chance to hear theappealing but underexposed Oshita in a live setting.
For more information, visit sciensonic.net

Sketches of the Invisible: A Tribute to Albert Ayler
Yusuf Mumin (Phillips Enterprise)by Pierre Crépon

In the place and date fields of Albert Ayler ’s deathcertificate, the word “found” has been typed over theword “death”. The exact circumstances of thesaxophonist’s passing remain unknown and seem tocap the mystery that was ‘60s Cleveland free music.
Besides a hometown, saxophonist Yusuf Mumin—whoturns 77 this month—shares with Ayler an ability forotherworldly evocations through sound. Until now, it
had been on display only on two late ‘60s sessions:Black Unity Trio’s remarkable Al-Fatihah (recently
reissued) and Burn Baby Burn, taped with Ayler
collaborator/trumpeter Norman Howard. This new
digital release contains previously unheard music fromthe ‘80s gifted to Ayler ’s father as a tribute.
Mumin possesses a unique sound, with a dark
undertone strictly his, a somber quality imbuing someof the ‘sketches’ that make up this album, short pieces
clocking at around three minutes that seem extracted
from wider streams of music. Rather than attempt theobvious renditions of Ayler themes, Mumin at times
bends his saxophone sound to channel eerie flashes of
Ayler, demonstrating an understanding of its innermechanics. When Mumin left Cleveland for Los
Angeles in 1969, he performed on bass with musicianssuch as Charles Tyler and Horace Tapscott. This is thefirst extensive showcase of his work on the instrument.
Several others are added—piano, cello, small tuned
percussion—through unobtrusive overdubs. Tenor andbowed strings dominate the overall sound.
“I’d like to play something...that people can hum,”
Ayler famously said. The album’s lone sung piece,
sorrowful ballad “Sad Miss Holiday” with lyrics byHoward, belongs to this category. Other standouts
include strings piece “Counting the Tears” andgripping “Albert’s Cry in the Wilderness”. Mumin
expresses himself within the kind of highly personal
realm that lives lived outside of music’s commercial
circuits make possible.
This is homemade music, private for decades, andit should be heard as such. When the mystery of
Al-Fatihah had the power to challenge accepted
conceptions of ‘60s free music geography, Sketches of
the Invisible shows the depths of Mumin’s prolonged
creative work. As a tribute to Ayler, it goes beyond
literality to retrieve something of the elusive spirit of
one of jazz’ true greats, who, less famously, also said
“it’s late now for the world”.
For more information, visit yusufmuminscosmicforce.
bandcamp.com

Entendre
Nik Bärtsch (ECM)
by Phil Freeman

Swiss pianist Nik Bärtsch, who turns 50 this month,

hasn’t released a solo album in nearly two decades.
Instead, he has focused his creative efforts on small
groups, most notably his long-running minimalist
jazz-funk quartet Ronin and less-often-deployedensemble Mobile. But in November 2019, his longtime
label ECM celebrated itself with a 50th anniversary
concert at Jazz at Lincoln Center and one of thehighlights of the evening was a solo performance byBärtsch, which has apparently led to this studio
document. He’s always had a strong interest in ritual—he calls what he does with Ronin “ritual groovemusic” and prefers the word “Modul” for hiscompositions, giving them numbers rather than titles—and this album has a decidedly ceremonial feel.
Entendre begins with a medley of “Modul 58”, from
Ronin’s 2018 album Awase and “Modul 12”, from
Mobile’s 2016 album Continuum. “Modul 58” is alteredquite radically; on Awase, it was an 18-minute journey
for the quartet, moving for its first four minutes with
the implacable slowness of one of Miles Davis’ dubbier
early ’70s pieces like “Ife”. Here, Bärtsch jumps directly
to the speedier second phase, playing an arpeggiated20 AUGUST 2021 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD

keyboard figure that could remind some listeners ofPhilip Glass’ Solo Piano from 1989. “Modul 12”,meanwhile, barely had a melody at all on Continuum; it
was an atmospheric wash of cymbals and throbbing
bass, with the occasional single piano note, but here it
becomes romantic and even lush, tinkling like raindrops.
Entendre’s centerpiece, “Modul 26”, is the longest
track at 13:54 and also a piece recorded on Ronin’s REA
and Mobile’s AER, both released in 2004. Buried withina pulsing, cellular melody, Bärtsch strikes a single notewith metronomic regularity until it sounds like a sonar
ping and he does it for so long that when it shifts
slightly the listener could be forgiven for jumping. The
longer the piece goes on, the more it starts to feel like across between Glass and Isaac Hayes’ piano solo on
1969’s “Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic” (famously
sampled on Public Enemy’s “Black Steel In The Hour Of
Chaos” in 1988). Make jokes about Swiss timing if you
will, but when Bärtsch locks into a groove, it’ll take a
tow chain to get him out.
For more information, visit ecmrecords.com

Coming Yesterday: Live at Salle Gaveau 2019
Martial Solal (Challenge)
by Joel Roberts

Esteemed French pianist Martial Solal says he didn’tknow heading into this 2019 solo performance at theSalle Gaveau in Paris that it would be his final concert.
He only decided to retire from playing before live
audiences, at the age of 91, afterwards. As such, thisrecording is a valuable document that serves as apoignant valedictory for a career that spanned some 70
years and included important collaborations with jazz
giants from a broad range of styles, including Sidney
Bechet, Stephane Grappelli, Lee Konitz and Dave
Liebman, among many others.
A renowned composer who wrote the score forJean-Luc Godard’s Breathless in 1960, as well as fordozens of other movies, Solal sticks mainly to standards
here, using tunes as simple and familiar as Vincent
Youmans-Irving Caesar ’s “Tea for Two”, French
nursery rhyme “Frère Jacques” and even “Happy
Birthday” (infused with a hint of Charlie Parker ’s“Ornithology”) as a springboard for his elegant,
expansive, carefully crafted and decidedly modern
improvisations.
Despite his advanced years, Solal’s playing
remains remarkably adroit, technically and creatively,
as he spins new life into the well-worn repertoire,
digging deeply into a Duke Ellington medley of“Caravan” and “Sophisticated Lady” and providing an
emotionally charged reading of Richard RodgersLorenz Hart’s “My Funny Valentine”. Influences asdisparate as Thelonious Monk, Frédéric Chopin,
Maurice Ravel and Claude Debussy pop up at various
times, as Solal draws on his decades of experience andthe full range of the jazz piano vernacular.
There’s no indication over the course of theevening that Solal is performing for the last time. He
appears to have made the decision, after decades ofdedication to jazz, to go out on his own terms while his
faculties and his art are still sharp. As he states in theliner notes, matter of factly and without a hint ofsentiment, “When energy is no longer available, it isbetter to stop.”
For more information, visit challengerecords.com

Headin’ Home (Live at the University of Rhode Island)
Scott Sherwood Trio (Art Of Life)by George Kanzler

Guitarist Scott Sherwood had a tone and sound thatmany smooth jazz and new age guitarists would envy,
sinuous and undulating, evoking notes without
recognizable pick attack. But, like the guitarists headmired—John Abercrombie, Pat Metheny, Jim Hall—
he employed that sound to express substantial jazz
ideas, not simply ambient noodling. Sherwood, whodied of cancer 12 years ago this month at 46, grew up in
Texas and began his career there and in Milwaukee. He
moved to New York in 1996, where he formed a trio
with drummer Paul Hannah, a confederate from his
Austin, Texas days and electric bassist Mike Nunno,
whom Hannah met in New York. This is the band’s first
concert, a gig at the 1996 Rhode Island Jazz Festival.
There are seven tracks, all originals by Sherwood
that range from ballad to waltz, blues beats to bop
swing. The tunes tend toward simplicity, yet resonate
hypnotically, like the repeating line of the title track or
scale-climbing phrases of “Hymn to Her”. There’s evena playful take on the blues clavé of the Bo Diddley
beat: “Diddley Squat” opens with a Hannah solo,
Sherwood then floating over the insistent rhythm witha skein of elongated notes and slurs suggestive of the
Pat Metheny Group. “Night Waltz” features anotherfelicitous melody over delicate 3/4 rhythms, guitar
and bass both soloing lyrically.
The wonder though is what Hannah, in the notes,
calls “the magic from the get-go. It sounded as if one
musician was playing three instruments simultaneously.”
The rapport is extraordinary, especially considering that
this was the trio’s debut. It can be heard in the way
Hannah and Nunno shadow Sherwood’s lead on“Shadow Play”, a piece that alludes to meters like 3/4
and 6/8 while remaining a heartbeat ballad, and on“Green”, where Hannah’s syncopated hands and sticks
create a snappy rolling rhythm, Nunno rising out of therhythmic maelstrom, then countering and echoing
phrases behind Sherwood’s solo. The group feel
culminates in the closer, “Playthings”, a boppish unisonline from bass and guitar that cedes into a colloquytandem soli by all three as the tempo accelerates andrecedes (à la Mingus) like a giant beating heart.
For more information, visit artofliferecords.com

2020
Palladium (s/r)
by Scott Yanow

As a surprise for Wayne Shorter ’s 87th birthday (Aug.

25th, 2020), his social media manager and friend Jesse
Markowitz organized and produced a multi-artist
tribute featuring 21 pieces composed or made famousby Shorter with different musicians heard on eachselection. Since it was the pandemic era, none of thegroups are larger than a trio and the majority of thesongs were performed by one musician. The
compositions cover much of Shorter ’s career (stoppingat 1995), including his periods with Art Blakey’s Jazz
Messengers, Miles Davis and Weather Report.
A few performances sound like they are depicting
space travel, most notably lengthy opener “Meridianne”
by Sasha Berliner on vibraphone and electronics. Many
are thoughtful solo explorations, including features for
pianists Eric Reed (“Sydney”), Benny Green (a very
slow “Contemplation” on electric piano), Pablo Held(“Paraphernalia”) and Luther Allison (adventurous
wandering on “Iris”). Of the other piano numbers:
Sean Mason on “Pandora Awakened” starts out moody
but eventually gets funky à la Keith Jarrett; Emmet
Cohen‘s trio plays a straightforward “This Is For
Albert”; Dan Tepfer mixes together fluent right-handand percussive sounds made from a prepared piano on“Fall”; and Kevin Hays creates a conversational “ESP”,
at first sounding as if he is talking to himself before
ending up recalling Joe Zawinul with Weather Report.
There are also solo pieces from vibraphonists
Chien Chien Lu and Jason Marsalis, guitarist Gabe
Schnider, steel guitarist Michael Eckert and Mariel
Bildsten (overdubbing up to eight trombones on a brief“Sleeping Dancer Sleep On”), in addition to four shortduets (soprano saxophonist David Liebman anddrummer Willy Rodriguez get to play “Footprints”),
a trio jam led by tenor saxophonist Nicole Glover (“TheSummit”) and contrasting versions of “Midnight In
Carlotta’s Hair” by singer Candice Hoyes and guitarist
Mark Whitfield. Practically every performance is aballad or a thoughtful exploration with only a few
numbers (particularly the closing “Orbits” with
Morgan Guerin on soprano saxophone and keyboard
player Julius Rodriguez) generating much heat.
Despite its large roster of top artists, 2020 lacks muchvariety in mood, tempo or style, making this heartfelt
project much less memorable than one would expect.
For more information, visit 2020palladium.bandcamp.com

JID7João Donato (Jazz is Dead)by Tom GreenlandThis is the seventh installment of the L.A.-based

production team of Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed
Muhammad’s album series featuring guest appearancesby veteran jazz artists like Roy Ayers and Gary Bartz,
as well as Brazilian artists like Azymuth and Marcos
Valle. In paying homage to these musical forefathers—
whose work they’ve often sampled for their own
projects—they forefront the continued relevancy of“soul music”. This latest edition is a collaboration with
Brazilian icon João Donato, who turns 87 this monthand has recorded over two dozen albums as a leader in
his 70-plus-year career and whom another João(Gilberto) credited as the inspiration behind the bossa
nova beat. Muhammad too has been influential as onefourth of the iconic alternative rap group A Tribe
Called Quest, which raised the profile of jazz samplingin the hip-hop community, while Younge, equally
prolific, brings to the mix a strong penchant for analog
tape recording using vintage instruments.
The project is short, but dense, comprising a total
playing time of less than 27 minutes, each track
immediately fused to the next and, though each song is
co-credited to the trio, Donato’s role is regulated tosoft, silky arpeggios on Fender Rhodes piano, whichare, unfortunately, too often dominated by the thick,coarser layers of wah-wah/fuzz guitar, electric bass,
trap drums (played by Greg Paul), vocal cameos byLoren Oden (whose sound epitomizes Stax/Atlanticera soul) and a salmagundi of overdubbed instruments:
loud, slightly harsh clavé sticks, metal bells and otheridiophones; low-pitched flutes; old-school monophonicsynthesizer melodies; and Hammond B3 organ swirls,
all of which are played by Muhammad and/or Younge.
The end result is slightly unsatisfying, like a soupthat hasn’t simmered long enough, the potatoes andcarrots a little too crunchy, the stronger flavors
incompletely blended, the subtler ones barely tasted.
Perhaps this was the intent, conveying the message
that “soul music” is not so smooth as it used to be, thatthese are grittier, less savory times.
For more information, visit jazzisdead.co

John
Marc Copland (Innervoice Jazz)by Robert Bush

F or all the attention piled upon instrumental virtuosity

in the jazz world, not enough is given to the art oflistening but musicians know and that’s why Marc
Copland is such a treasure. He originally emerged as
an alto saxophonist in the ‘60s, often playing anelectrified version of the instrument. He became
frustrated by what he perceived as inherent limitationsof the instrument and in 1973 made the switch to pianoand became a favorite partner for dynamic players like
Jane Ira Bloom, Joe Lovano and James Moody.
He didn’t release his first album as a leader until
1983, but it was a stunning debut, My Foolish Heartfeatured icons who would become mainstays for the
next 40 years, especially guitarist John Abercrombie(who died four years ago this month) and bassist Gary
Peacock. Copland became the pianist for both and thatwas no accident; he’s a superb musician with hugeears. He recorded a solo piano tribute to thecompositions of Peacock in 2018 called Gary and now,
he’s back with a similar project, John. In both cases, one
can hear how close his relationship with (the departed)
players and their music became.
The album opens with Abercrombie’s modal
anthem for a generation: “Timeless”. Copland andAbercrombie recorded an almost heartbreaking duet of
this song on the former ’s 1996 Denon album Second
Look and this version can give the listener goosebumps.
“Flip Side” comes from the guitarist’s 2016 album
Up and Coming and the Copland version perfectly
captures the pensive lilt that would come to define theAbercrombie aesthetic. “Sad Song”, from Abercrombie’s
2008 album Wait Till You See Her, is sweet and rhapsodic
and reminiscent of Keith Jarrett at times. This wholedate sounds like Copland sitting alone at the keyboard
and literally channeling the spirit of his cherishedfriend. On “Sunday School”, the music breathes like a
deep meditation and captures Abercrombie’s greatest
gift: a profound sense of singular lyricism.
Copland didn’t become a charter member of the
Abercrombie and Peacock trios simply through his
piano skills, which are monstrous by the way. He got
those appointments because of his listening and on thisbeautiful tribute to a fallen friend, those skills remind
the listener of what a giant void Abercrombie left.
For more information, visit marccopland.com

THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD | AUGUST 2021 21

IN PRINT

The Complete Scores(Full Transcriptions From The Original Recordings)
Charlie Parker (Hal Leonard)
by John Pietaro

It would be an understatement to refer to this book oftranscriptions from Charlie Parker’s as simply“necessary”. In fully understanding the creative mindof a founding father of modern jazz, listening alone,even to Bird Flight each morning (all due respect to Phil
Schaap) is simply not enough. This collection ofensemble transcriptions, with a primary focus on the
two-horn frontline and groundbreaking improvisational
segments, is a compelling journey into the development
of bebop and vast challenge its progenitors faced insoloing over lengthy melodic statements of advanced
harmony. The reader can be overwhelmed by thestreams of notation, but the magic becomes evident
when reading along with the recordings. Faster works
such as “Ko Ko” come alive in newfound ways when
following the score from head to brief statements of
muted trumpet and alto saxophone, tandem soundingof the main theme riff and onto Bird’s historic solo in

August 2021

all its glory.
This reviewer, sliding his finger in tempo overeach measure, was able to follow and maintain, thoughracing at presto, this could be a challenge. But to watch
each note fly over the staves, crossing bar lines, turning
the beat around while listening to the 1945 recording isquite special. Somewhat disappointing is the sparsetranscription of Max Roach’s “Ko Ko” drum solo; theeditors included the accented rim shots but somehow
ignored the drags, ratamacues and other grace notes so
special to this artist. While the fidelity of these original
Savoy dates is often clouded, blurring much of Roach’s
shaping of the new language, enough of his bass drumbombs and fills are audible and should have been
included, but rarely are (though credit must be given
for indications of Roach switching from one ridecymbal to another, shading beneath soloists). Also
problematic throughout, the piano “transcriptions” arelargely relegated to chord chart status, notating a pianopart only in the intro or for a solo. Curley Russell’s
basslines do seem to be fully transcribed, however.
Still, this musical map brings the reader through thesong’s transition, back to the riff and onto the trumpet
solo. The latter is particularly noteworthy due to theconflict among jazz listeners as to exactly who played
trumpet on this record. Though credits usually list
Miles Davis, indicating that Dizzy Gillespie played
piano on this date, both have stated over the years that
it was indeed Gillespie; Davis had difficulty playing
over the rapid-fire changes, largely based on“Cherokee”. Let’s urge the jazzologists who are
authorities of bop trumpet lore to listen while reading
and the truth should soon materialize.
This book offers 40 titles over which to drool andmuse. Of note is the inclusion of both “Anthropology”

new releases CD - download - streaming

Complete catalogs: www.steeplechase.dk

Bud Powell piano

Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen bass
Jørn Elniff drums
Brew Moore tenor sax
Don Byas tenor sax
SCCD 36140

Burak Bedikyan
solo piano

SCCD 31917

Peter McEachern trombone

Noah Preminger tenor sax
Mario Pavone bass
Michael Sarin drums

SCCD 33144

US distribution:www.statesidemusic.com email: info@statesidemusic.com

22 AUGUST 2021 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD

and “Thriving on a Riff”, basically the same work, bothin G Major, identical harmonies, however in contrastingarrangements: the “Thriving on a Riff” recording
included a piano solo by Sadik Hakim and Parker’s
alto is tacit until the sounding of the melody toward
the end. Happily, the transcription of Hakim’s eventful
solo is featured in this collection.
“Relaxin’ at Camarillo”, recorded in Hollywood
1947 while Parker was still recovering from a
breakdown, tells a different story, one well beyond the
new West Coast band (Howard McGhee, Wardell Gray,
Dodo Marmarosa, Barney Kessel, Red Callender and
Don Lamond). The piece clearly points the way toward
the coming cool school with Bird living up to the title’s
aim of serenity. His solo is brief and, visible in thescore, less of a race about the changes than a responseto the treatment he’d just completed and perhaps
newfound creativity of making the most out of selectnotes. As before, each solo is notated authentically;otherwise this four-piece rhythm section’s transcription
is comprised of chord symbols and four slashes to thebar. On the other hand, looking over the map of “DonnaLee”, recorded four months later, Parker is found backon home turf with his working band (Davis, Roach,
Bud Powell, Tommy Potter) and it shows. His solo,
lengthy and with variations upon variations to show
for it, is quite epic. Following the full score from top to
close here is nothing short of thrilling. Reading overPowell’s masterful improvisation is in itself a necessary
sojourn, but the cumulative effect of Charlie Parker: The
Complete Scores is that of an unforgettable master class.
For more information, visit halleonard.com. Parker tributes
are at Birdland Aug. 12th-14th, 19th-21st and 26th-28th
and Marcus Garvey Park Aug. 27th-29th. See Calendar.

B OXED SE T

TrumpetWadada Leo Smith (TUM)
by Marc Medwin

W adada Leo Smith celebrates his 80th birthday atthe end of this year. To celebrate the milestone, TUM
is releasing a series of multi-disc sets encapsulating
his multivalent output. As its title suggests, Trumpet
is a series of solo compositions highlighting Smith’slong-nurtured relationship to his instrument and tothe vast histories—his own and others—it narrates
and embodies.
It is a trap of oversimplification to label Smith’smusic as a merging of opposites. Yes, he has blended
those superficially disparate categories since hebegan to explore and perfect his Ankhrasmation
symbol language in the late ‘60s, ultimately bringing
that gift of innovation to bear on an oratorio andother radically diverse suites for equally inclusive
ensembles, but the well is infinitely deeper. Allusion
and innovation intersect at points as pervasive as
they are unpredictable. For Smith, the solo has
defined radical moments of multivalent rhythmic

and sonic exchange since his first album as leader,
1971’s Creative Music – 1 and Trumpet continues theprotean journey. Listen to the opening phrase of “TheClosing”, the fifth movement of The Great Litany, oneof several multi-movement works on offer. Twosustains seem to dominate, but just revel in that richwarm vibrato. The semitone inflections tickle the ear,
yet the whole gels meditative but distant blues
reminiscences with the precision of motivic unity in a
structure equally dependent on articulation, timbre
and on the traditional rhetoric of note and sequence.
Concluding the set, the title piece vanguards anentirely different facet of Smith’s art. Mainly defying
those traditional boundaries only nudged in otherpieces, its windy trajectory exposes microtone,
overtone, Bubber Miley growl and the glaciallydelicate wisdom purveyed by air rushing throughthe instrument. If the former example conjures
shades of Clifford Brown’s luxurious tonal openness,the latter snips a page from Bill Dixon’s book, butboth pay homage to their attendant histories rather
than recreating them. Even the notion of homage,obviously reflected in the many and wide-ranging
dedications, falls short of elucidating Smith’s
accomplishments, as each moment can lead down
several reflective paths. “Malik el-Shabazz and thePeople of the Shahada” opens with three muted
pitches of varied length, but it’s the vibrato thatclaims attention, a vehicle for tempo in and of itself,slowing down and finally becoming a source of
oceanic inflection in microtonal miniature. The
resultant structures slowly expand, a magic carpet ofsound flowing outward even as each tone inches
inexorably toward another one of Smith’s defining
musical characteristics: silence of timelessness;

in-moment awareness; meditation in action.
That central silence is the deep and resonating
well above which every one of these malleable
compositions exists. No matter how rapid thegestures, how many notes are played and in what
register or reiterative configuration, there is a
palpable sense of calm, a sense in which motion is
captured in tableau rather than simply unleashedand ridden. This sort of witnessing manifests in thetitle of “Howard and Miles, a Photographic Image”,
whose alternating muting and unmuting also reflects
musical totality caught in mirrored and alternating
fragments. It’s a work of genius, a through-line amid
the personality shifts of its subjects as viewed, splitscreen, through the lens of a subsequent but
fundamentally related aesthetic vision.
Consideration of Smith’s titles exposes, in poetic
form, the sense of myriad approaches to tradition, notonly musical but personal and familial. The arc ofeach piece or suite, never really an arc at all,encompasses internality and externality with theassurance of wisdom in cultivation, each tone a nexus,
each nexus a point of departure, which may also beheard as a return. The gorgeous church acoustic in
which these cinematically intimate 2016 sessions werecaught is a single but decisive factor. Every dynamic
nuance and each minute transition are presented stark
against a backdrop of reverberant ambience thatsamples and holds just the right amount of detail.
Smith’s incisive explanatory notes, concluding witha moving expression of his instrument’s emotive andcosmic implications, crown a superb project befitting
such an important celebration.
For more information, visit tumrecords.com

ESP-DISK’NEW RELEASES
Ochs/Robinson Duo
A Civil Right
Wednesday, August 18, 2021

RAVI COLTRANE

BRIANNA THOMAS & JUKE JOINT JELIS
Thursday, Aug 19, 2021

CAMILLE THURMAN
CONRAD HERWIG
Friday, Aug 20, 2021

JOHNATHAN BLAKEEDMAR CASTANEDA & ARI HOENIG

Michael Bisio/Kirk
Knuffke/Fred Lonberg-Holm

The Art Spirit

East Axis
Cool With That

Saturday, August 21, 2021

RUSSELL MALONE

Sunday, August 22, 2021

STEPHANE WREMBEL’s

THE DJANGO EXPERIMENT

www.dromnyc.com
85 Avenue A New York City 212- 777 1157

Duck Baker
Confabulations
espdisk.bandcamp.com
THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD | AUGUST 2021 23

CALENDAR• Nate Radley, Jay Anderson, Adam Nussbaum		
55Bar 5:30 pm• Anything Mose!: John Chin with Richard Julian		
Bar Lunàtico 7, 8:30 pm $10êStephane Wrembel
Barbès 9 pm $20
êArturo O’Farrill and The Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble		Birdland 7 pm ¢99• Al Di MeolaBlue Note 8, 10:30 pm $65• Eric Frazier
Minton’s 8, 10 pm $30• Charles Owens Quintet with Ian Hendrickson-Smith, Jeremy Manasia, Alexander Claffy,Charles Ruggiero
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20• Winard Harper and Jeli Posse Snug Harbor Cultural Center 2 pm
• New Jazz Undergound
Woodlawn Cemetery 12, 2 pm $15

Monday, August 2• Sergei Avanesov Quartet with Jeff Miles, Ricky Rodriguez, Samvel Sarkisyan

		55Bar 6:30 pmêEddie Palmieri
Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $45• Victor Lin
Bryant Park 12:30 pm• Ayumi Ishito’s Open Question with Daniel Carter, Eric Plaks, Zach Swanson,
Jon Panikkar; Ben Stapp Ensemble; Stephen Gauci, Adam Lane, Colin Hinton;
Eli Wallace, Lester St. Louis, Drew Wesely; Pete Swanson, Sana Nagano, Kenji Herbert		Bushwick Public House 7 pm $10

Tuesday, August 3êAdam O’Farrill’s Stranger Days
55Bar 9:30 pmêAndy Statman Trio
Barbès 8 pm $20
êThe Cookers: Billy Harper, Donald Harrison, Eddie Henderson, David Weiss,George Cables, Cecil McBee, Billy Hart		Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $35• Victor Lin
Bryant Park 12:30 pm• Frank Senior Quartet with Marcus Persiani, Nick Russo, Donald Nicks,
Douglas Richardson
Co-op City Mobile Stage 7 pm
• JazzMobile: Claudia Hayden Tribute to Dizzy Gillespie
		Dizzy Gillespie Mural 7 pm
• Music From The SoleGantry Plaza State Park 7 pm
• Lucy Wijnands
Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20• Eric Alexander Trio
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20• Megumi Yonezawa, Ken Kobayashi, Evan Crane		
Soapbox Gallery 8 pm $25

Wednesday, August 4• Chase Kuesel

17 Frost Theater of the Arts 8 pm $25
êJD Allen Trio
Bar Bayeux 8, 9:30 pmêDavid Ostwald’s Louis Armstrong Eternity Band		
Birdland 7 pm ¢99êRon Carter Foursight with Jimmy Greene, Renee Rosnes, Payton Crossley		Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $45-65• Victor Lin
Bryant Park 12:30 pm• Dred Scott Trio with Matt Clohesy, Diego Voglino		Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20• Jonathan Dely
Minton’s 8, 10 pm $30• Daryl Sherman Trio with James Chirillo, Boots Maleson		Pangea 6 pm $25• Marc Mommaas Quartet with Nate Radley, Gary Versace, Jay Anderson				
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20
êMarcos Varela, Glenn Zaleski, Chris Smith		
Soapbox Gallery 8 pm $25

Thursday, August 5• Hannah Marks, Connor Parks, Theo Walentiny

		
17 Frost Theater of the Arts 8 pm $25• Billy Stritch Trio
Birdland 7, 9:30 pm $30
êRon Carter Foursight with Jimmy Greene, Renee Rosnes, Payton Crossley		Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $45-65• Luther S. Allison Trio
Broadway Plaza 6 pm
• Kirk Driscoll Trio with Steve Sandberg, Michael O’Brien		
Brooklyn Conservatory of Music 4:30 pm• Victor Lin
Bryant Park 12:30 pmêJazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with guest Branford Marsalis		
Damrosch Park at Lincoln Center 7:30 pm• Alex Claffy Trio; Chris Norton
The Django at Roxy Hotel 7, 9 pm
• Wayne Tucker and The Bad Mothas with Miles Tucker, David Linard, Addison Frei,
Tamir Shmerling, Diego Ramirez The Jazz Gallery 7:30, 9:30 pm $15-25• Bruce Barth, Vicente Archer, Montez Coleman		
Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20• Tony Davis Quartet with Taber Gable, Matt Dwonszyk, Curtis Nowosad				
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20• Kate Baker Juris Trio with Rachel Z, Jon Toscano		Soapbox Gallery 8 pm $25

Friday, August 6• Billy Stritch Trio

Birdland 8:30, 11 pm $30
êRon Carter Foursight with Jimmy Greene, Renee Rosnes, Payton Crossley		Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $45-65• Victor Lin
Bryant Park 12:30 pmêCarnegie Hall Presents: Terence Blanchard featuring The E-Collective withTurtle Island Quartet
Bryant Park 7 pm
• Ken Fowser Quintet
The Django at Roxy Hotel 10 pm• Ronnie Burrage
Greater Calvary Baptist Church 7 pm $20• Julius Rodriguez
The Jazz Gallery 7:30, 9:30 pm $25-35
êJazzmobile: Wycliffe Gordon Quartet		Marcus Garvey Park 7 pm
• Adi Myerson
Minton’s 8, 10 pm $30• Rodney Jones Trio with Kyle Koehler, McClenty Hunter		
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20
êGerry Eastman Ensemble with Greg Lewis, Taru Alexander		Williamsburg Music Center 9:30 pm $10

Saturday, August 7• Billy Stritch Trio

Birdland 8:30, 11 pm $30

		Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $45-65

êRon Carter Foursight with Jimmy Greene, Renee Rosnes, Payton CrossleyêCarnegie Hall Presents: Brandee Younger		
Brooklyn Museum of Art 5 pmêJazzMobile—Great Jazz on the Hill: Allan Harris Septet; Camille Thurman andDarrell Green Quartet; Dizzy Gillespie Big Band		
Central Park Great Hill 4 pm
• Keith Brown
The Django at Roxy Hotel 10 pm• Alfredo Colón’s Big Head with Kalia Vandever, Jacob Sacks, Steve Williams,
Connor Parks
The Jazz Gallery 7:30, 9:30 pm $15-25
êGerald Clayton
Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20• Grupo Jazzón
Minton’s 8, 10 pm $30
êJosh Sinton, Daniel Carter, Sam Newsome; Samantha Riott; Laura Cocks		
		Oliver Coffee 2 pm $10• Tomoko Omura with Jeff Miles, Glenn Zaleski, Pablo Menares, Jay Sawyer;
Tammy Scheffer Sextet with Jasper Dutz, Dan Pratt, Glenn Zaleski, Danny Weller,
Ronen Itzik
ShapeShifter Lab 7, 8:15 pm $15êEric Person Quartet
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20
êGerry Eastman Ensemble with Greg Lewis, Taru Alexander		Williamsburg Music Center 9:30 pm $10

Sunday, August 8• Madeleine Peyroux

Bar Lunàtico 7, 8:30 pm $10êStephane Wrembel
Barbès 9 pm $20
êArturo O’Farrill and The Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble		Birdland 7 pm ¢99êRon Carter Foursight with Jimmy Greene, Renee Rosnes, Payton Crossley		Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $45-65• Let music be your brunch!: Adam Lane, Tom Hamilton, Ayumi Ishito, Hans Tammen,
Sara Schoenbeck, Matthew Chilton, William Hooker
		Funkadelic Studios 12 pm
êGerald Clayton
Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20• Tony Glausi Quartet
Minton’s 8, 10 pm $30• Murray Wall Quartet
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20• Anthony Hervey Trio
Woodlawn Cemetery 12, 2 pm $15

Monday, August 9• Luiz Simas

Bryant Park 12:30 pmêPatrick Golden, Daniel Carter, Jim Clouse; Daniel Carter, Aron Namenwirth,Charley Sabatino, Eric Plaks, Colin Hinton, Stephen Gauci; Stephen Gauci, Adam Lane,
Colin Hinton; Adam Caine, Bob Lanzetti, Roberta Piket, Adam Lane, Billy Mintz;
Henry Mermer/Henry Fraser
Bushwick Public House 7 pm $10• Joe Farnsworth Quartet
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20

JAZZFESTARTSWESTCHESTER, THE CITY OF WHITE PLAINS & THE WHITE PLAINS BID

WHITE PLAINSSEPT 9-12, 2021

Presenting Sponsor:

JazzFest welcomes jazz
greats, as well as risingstars this September!
ARTISTS INCLUDE:• Emmet Cohen Trio • Theo Croker
Quartet • Erena Terakubo • Ray Blue
Quartet with special guest Samara Joy• Gabrielle Garo

Tuesday, August 10• Luiz Simas
Bryant Park 12:30 pm• Onaje Allan Gumbs New Vintage: Redux: Terri Davis, Dennis Collins, Sharp Radway,
Roger Bynum, Marcus McLaurine, Baba Neil Clarke, George Gray, Nana,
Gha’il Rhodes
Benjamin Co-op City Mobile Stage 7 pm
• Anäis Reno with Pete Malinverni Trio		The Cutting Room 7 pm $20-25• Ashley Pezzotti, Sean Mason, Alexander Claffy		Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20• Sonny Singh Group with Jonathan Goldberger, Ria Modak, Yuka Tadano,
Rohin Khemani
Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2 7 pm $10êSteve Nelson Quartet with Rick Germanson, Kiyoshi Kitagawa, Charles Goold				
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20• Paul Jost Quartet
Soapbox Gallery 8 pm $25

Wednesday, August 11• Or Bareket Quartet with Morgan Guerin, Jeremy Corren, Savannah Harris		Bar Bayeux 8, 9:30 pm• Scott Sharrard’s Green is Beautiful with Brian Charette, Kenny Brooks, Craig Dreyer,
Tony Mason
Bar Lunàtico 9 pm $10êDavid Ostwald’s Louis Armstrong Eternity Band		
Birdland 7 pm ¢99• Luiz Simas
Bryant Park 12:30 pm• Mariel Bildstein
Chelsea Table & Stage 9:30 pm $25• Tahira Clayton
The Django at Roxy Hotel 7 pm
• Jazzmobile—Tribute to Hugh Masekela: Sipho Kunene and Woza Masekela		Grant’s Tomb 7 pmêLakecia Benjamin and Soul Squad Little Island 9:30 pm• Micah Thomas, Dean Torrey, Kayvon Gordon
		Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20• Charles Turner III Quartet
Minton’s 8, 10 pm $30
êEddie Who: Michael Blake, Clark Gayton, Tony Scherr, Tony Mason; Aaron Comess and
The Air Conditioned Gypsies with Vernon Reid, Steven Bernstein, Leon Gruenbaum,
Jonathan Maron
Nublu 151 8, 11 pm $20• Ronny Whyte/Boots Maleson Pangea 6 pm $25
êBertha Hope 5tet
Pier 84 7 pmêBen Allison Quartet
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20• Neal Kirkwood solo
Soapbox Gallery 8 pm $25

Erena Terakubo

Sunday, August 1

Thursday, August 12• Arnt Arntzen Trio with Vince Giordano, Danny Tobias

		Barbès 10 pm $20
êCharlie Parker Centennial + 1 “Bird 101”: Champian Fulton Quartet
		Birdland 7, 9:30 pm $30• Willerm Delisfort Duo
Broadway Plaza 6 pm
• Luiz Simas
Bryant Park 12:30 pmêHarlem Stage Presents: Craig Harris’ Nocturnal Nubian Ball…A Tribute to Sun Ra withguest Marshall Allen
Bryant Park 7 pmêDavid Hazeltine Trio
The Django at Roxy Hotel 7 pm
• Mark de Clive-Lowe’s Motherland with guest Kaoru Watanabe		Hearst Plaza at Lincoln Center 7 pmêJohn Escreet Trio with Harish Ragahvan, Eric Harland
		
The Jazz Gallery 7:30, 9:30 pm $25-35• Spike Wilner, Tyler Mitchell, Anthony Pinciotti
		Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20• Ben Williams Group with Chelsea Baratz, Julius Rodriguez, David Rosenthal,
Jharis Yokley and guests
Nublu 151 8 pm $20• Bob Lanzetti, Zach Brock & Keita Ogawa, Mike “Maz” Maher		
Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2 9:30 pm $15• Mike Moreno Quartet with Taylor Eigsti, Matt Brewer, Obed Calvaire		
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20• Audrey Silver/Bruce BarthSoapbox Gallery 8 pm $25
êJazzMobile—Ed Kane Way Naming Ceremony: Patience Higgins
		E. 126th Street between Madison and Fifth Avenues 2 pm

24 AUGUST 2021 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD

artsw.org/jazzfest#WPJazzFest
Sponsors:

Friday, August 13
êCharlie Parker Centennial + 1 “Bird 101”: Champian Fulton Quartet

		Birdland 7, 9:30 pm $30
êJohn Pizzarelli
Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $45• Luiz Simas
Bryant Park 12:30 pm• Jazz at Lincoln Center Presents: Young Stars of Jazz with Anthony Hervey,
Alexa Tarantino, Julian Lee, Isaiah J. Thompson, Endea Owens, Kyle Poole		
Bryant Park 7 pm
• Kym Lawrence
Clove Lakes Park 6 pm
• Ken Fowser Quintet
The Django at Roxy Hotel 10 pm• Curtis Nowosad
Greater Calvary Baptist Church 7 pm $20
êRalph Alessi Baida Quartet with Craig Taborn, Drew Gress, Nasheet Waits		
The Jazz Gallery 7:30, 9:30 pm $25-35
êJazzMobile/Harlem Stage: Craig Harris’ Nocturnal Nubian Ball…A Tribute to Sun Ra
with guest Marshall Allen
Marcus Garvey Park 7 pm
• David “Happy” Williams
Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20• Isaiah Collier Quartet
Minton’s 8, 10 pm $30• Barry Stephenson Quintet with Sarah Hanahan, Nicole Glover, Sean Mason,
Kush Abadey
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20
êGerry Eastman Ensemble with Greg Lewis, Taru Alexander		Williamsburg Music Center 9:30 pm $10

Saturday, August 14• Amirtha Kidambi/Lea Bertucci; Charmaine Lee solo

		
The Archway 8 pmêCharlie Parker Centennial + 1 “Bird 101”: Champian Fulton Quartet
		Birdland 7, 9:30 pm $30
êJohn Pizzarelli
Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $45
êJazz at Lincoln Center Presents: Burt Bacharach Reimagined with Camille Thurman
and Darrell Green Quintet
Bryant Park 7 pm
• Joe Saylor Quartet; Joe Farnsworth		
The Django at Roxy Hotel 7, 10 pmêAdam Lane/Stephen Gauci; Stephen Gauci, Adam Lane, Joe Morris		Downtown Music Gallery 6:30, 8 pm
• Jokes and Jazz: Willerm Delisfort Trio and Erin Jackson, Michael Somerville				
Hearst Plaza at Lincoln Center 7 pm
• Kalia Vandever
The Jazz Gallery 7:30, 9:30 pm $15-25• Samora Pinderhughes
Little Island 7:30 pmêPeter Bernstein
Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20• Vuyo Sotashe Quartet
Minton’s 8, 10 pm $30
êJeremy Pelt Quartet with Bruce Barth, Gerald Cannon, Willie Jones III				
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20
êGerry Eastman Ensemble with Greg Lewis, Taru Alexander		Williamsburg Music Center 9:30 pm $10

Sunday, August 15• Tyler Blanton/Helio Alves Group Bar Lunàtico 7, 8:30 pm $10êStephane Wrembel
Barbès 9 pm $20
êArturo O’Farrill and The Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble		Birdland 7 pm ¢99êJohn Pizzarelli
Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $45• Stan Killian Trio
Industry City 2 pmêAmir ElSaffar Two Rivers with Tareq Abboushi, Carlo DeRosa, Amir ElSaffar,
Ole Mathisen, Zaafir Tawil, Nasheet Waits
		
Little Island 7:30 pm• Joe Magnarelli Quintet
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20

Monday, August 16

êEddie PalmieriêDanny Mixon

Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $45
Bryant Park 12:30 pm• Jared Radichel, James Mckain, Leo Suarez, Joey Sullivan; Santiago Leibson,
Ken Filiano, Juan Pablo Carletti; Stephen Gauci, Adam Lane, Colin Hinton;
Igor Lumpert Ensemble; Joey Sullivan, Kevin Eichenberger, Cosmo Gallaro				
Bushwick Public House 7 pm $10• Ari Hoenig Trio
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20

Tuesday, August 17êDanny MixonêYasser Tejeda

Bryant Park 12:30 pm
Gantry Plaza State Park 7 pm
• Gabrielle Stravelli, Michael Kanan, Pat O’Leary		
Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20• David Berkman solo
Soapbox Gallery 8 pm $25

Wednesday, August 18

êDan Weiss/Ari Hoenig
Bar Bayeux 8, 9:30 pmêDavid Ostwald’s Louis Armstrong Eternity Band		
Birdland 7 pm ¢99êDanny Mixon
Bryant Park 12:30 pmêHilary Gardner; Johnny O’Neal
The Django at Roxy Hotel 7, 10 pmêJuke Joint Jelis: Brianna Thomas, Greg Lewis, Marvin Sewell, Warren Grant;
Ravi Coltrane
Drom 7, 9 pm $40
êJazzmobile: Bill Saxton
Grant’s Tomb 7 pm
• Jim Ridl, Matthew Parrish, Donald Edwards
		Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20• Libby York Trio with Ed Cherry, Gary Wang
		
Pangea 6 pm $25• Art Hirahara Quartet with Nicole Glover, Boris Kozlov, Rudy Royston
		
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20

Thursday, August 19êCharlie Parker Centennial + 1 “Bird 101”: Donald Harrison Quartet

		Birdland 7, 9:30 pm $30• Nicholas Payton
Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $35• Sarah Hanahan Trio
Broadway Plaza 6 pmêDanny Mixon
Bryant Park 12:30 pm• Alvin “Wink” Flythe Quintet
Bushwick Inlet Park 6:30 pm• Svetlana and The New York Collective		Chelsea Table & Stage 7 pm $30
êIan Hendrickson-Smith
The Django at Roxy Hotel 9 pmêConrad Herwig Quintet with Abraham Burton, Bill O’Connell, Luques Curtis,
Victor Lewis; Camille Thurman with Darrell Green Trio		
Drom 7, 9 pm $30• Kevin Sun’s <3 Bird with Adam O’Farrill, Max Light, Christian Li, Walter Stinson,
Matt Honor
The Jazz Gallery 7:30, 9:30 pm $15-25• Tyshawn Sorey and International Contemporary Ensemble		Little Island 7:30 pm• Dana Lyn, Charlie Burnham, Marika Hughes		Little Island 8:15 pm• Mike LeDonne/Gerald Cannon Mezzrow 7:30, 10:30 pm $20
êOmer Avital
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20

Friday, August 20êCharlie Parker Centennial + 1 “Bird 101”: Donald Harrison Quartet

		Birdland 7, 9:30 pm $30• Nicholas Payton
Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $35
êDanny Mixon
Bryant Park 12:30 pm• Mike DiRubbo
The Django at Roxy Hotel 10 pmêEdmar Castaneda/Ari Hoenig; Johnathan Blake		Drom 7, 9 pm $30• Gino Sitson Trio
Flushing Town Hall 7 pm $12• Shirazette Tinnin
Greater Calvary Baptist Church 7 pm $20
êBill Frisell Trio
Industry City 7:30 pm $53
êImmanuel Wilkins/Jason Moran The Jazz Gallery 7:30, 9:30 pm $25-35• Conrad Tao/Charmaine Lee
Little Island 7:30 pm• Jazzmobile: Antoinette Montague Marcus Garvey Park 7 pm
• Vanessa Rubin
Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20
êMarshall Allen
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20• Hayes Greenfield/Dean Johnson Soapbox Gallery 8 pm $25
êGerry Eastman Ensemble with Greg Lewis, Taru Alexander		Williamsburg Music Center 9:30 pm $10

Cross-Cultural Connection, Inc.
3rd Annual Jazz Festival

Jazz
in the park

Saturday, August 21• Lucian Ban/Mat Maneri

Barbès 8 pm $20

êCharlie Parker Centennial + 1 “Bird 101”: Donald Harrison Quartet

		Birdland 7, 9:30 pm $30• Nicholas Payton
Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $35• Pete Malinverni Trio; Evan Sherman Quintet
		
The Django at Roxy Hotel 7, 10 pm• Elliott Sharp solo; Aron Namenwirth/Federico Balducci		
Downtown Music Gallery 6:30 pm• Russell Malone Quartet with Rick Germanson, Vincent Dupont, Neal Smith				Drom 8 pm $20
êImmanuel Wilkins/Jason Moran The Jazz Gallery 7:30, 9:30 pm $25-35
êMiguel Zenón’s Sonero; Cécile McLorin Salvant/Sullivan Fortner
		Little Island 7:30, 9:15 pm• Vanessa Rubin
Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20
êDuane Eubanks Quintet with Duane Eubanks, Abraham Burton, Anthony Wonsey,
Corcoran Holt, Chris Beck and guest Denise King		
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20
êGerry Eastman Ensemble with Greg Lewis, Taru Alexander		Williamsburg Music Center 9:30 pm $10

Sunday, August 22• Mike Neer Quartet with Tom Beckham, Matt Pavolka, Will Bernard

		Barbès 7 pm $20
êArturo O’Farrill and The Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble		Birdland 7 pm ¢99• Nicholas Payton
Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $35
êStephane Wrembel’s The Django Experiment with Thor Jensen, Daisy Castro,
Nick Driscoll, Ari Folman-Cohen, Nick Anderson
		Drom 7:30 pm $30
êBill Frisell Trio
Industry City 7:30 pm $53• Miki Hayama
Little Island 6:30 pm• Glenn Zaleski Quintet with Adam O’Farrill, Lucas Pino, Desmond White, Allan Mednard
		
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20

Monday, August 23êDan Weiss Trio with Jacob Sacks, Thomas Morgan		
Bar Lunàtico 9 pm $10• Frank Owens
Bryant Park 12:30 pm• James Paul Nadien, Cosmo Gallaro, Brendan Rey; Alex Weiss, Dan Blake,
Dmitry Ishenko, Yana Davydova, Vijay Anderson; Stephen Gauci, Adam Lane,
Colin Hinton; George McMullen, Ken Filiano, Billy Mintz; Kaelen Ghandhi Ensemble		Bushwick Public House 7 pm $10êJeremiah Cymerman solo; Brian Chase solo		
IRL 7 pm $20
êOrrin Evans
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20

Tuesday, August 24• Frank Owens

Bryant Park 12:30 pm
Mezzrow 7:30, 10:30 pm $20• Mike DiRubbo Quartet with Brian Charette, Ugonna Okegwo, Rudy Royston
		
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20
êSamara Joy

Wednesday, August 25êDavid Ostwald’s Louis Armstrong Eternity Band		
Birdland 7 pm ¢99• Frank Owens
Bryant Park 12:30 pmêVanisha Gould
The Django at Roxy Hotel 9 pm
• Jazzmobile: Bobby Sanabria Multi-Verse Big Band		
Grant’s Tomb 7 pm
• Matthew Whitaker
Little Island 6:30 pm• David Berkman
Mezzrow 7:30, 10:30 pm $20• Paul Jost Trio with Jim Ridl, Dean Johnson
		Pangea 6 pm $25• Abdou Mboup and Waakaw
Pier 84 7 pm
• Luther Allison
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20• Zach Brock/Mike Block
Soapbox Gallery 8 pm $25

Thursday, August 26

S
SATURDAY, AUGUST 21, 5-8PM
Peekskill Esther Place
BeanRunner Café
Jazz Forum All Stars
Houston Person Quartet
BeanRunner Café
201 S. Division Street, Peekskill, NY
banrunnercafe.com
Seating: 65 • Reservations: (914) 737-1701
No cover charge • Donations

SUNDAY, AUGUST 22, 12-7PM
Peekskill Riverfront Green
CCC Pro-Am Ensemble
Tony Jefferson 2 Guitar Quartet
Sheila Jordan
Ray Blue Quintet
Kenny Barron Trio
Master of Ceremonies:

Sharif Abdus-Salaam(WKCR-FM New York, Radio Kingston WKNY)Free concert
Bring your chairs and foodCovid-19 guidelines
Rainsite: Paramount Hudson Valley Theater
1008 Brown street, Peekskill, NYêCharlie Parker Centennial + 1 “Bird 101”: Birdland Allstar Quintet led by David DeJesus

		
Birdland 7, 9:30 pm $30
êZaccai Curtis Trio
Broadway Plaza 6 pm
• Frank Owens
Bryant Park 12:30 pmêJuliet Kurtzman/Pete Malinverni Candlelight Quartet
		Chelsea Table & Stage 7 pm $30• Sean Mason Trio; Mark Whitfield The Django at Roxy Hotel 7, 9 pmêDavid Schnitter Quintet
Hansborough Recreation Center 6 pm
• Riley Mulherkar Trio; Signatures in Brass: Keyon Harrold, Maurice Brown, Marquis Hill
		
Little Island 7:30, 9:15 pm• Spike Wilner
Mezzrow 7:30, 10:30 pm $20• Whitney Marchelle
Pier 84 7 pm
• Dario Acosta Teich Quintet with Julio Botti, Leo Genovese, Fernando Huergo,
Franco Pinna
Rockwood Music Hall Stage 3 7 pm $12• Erena Tarakubo
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20
êDavid Hazeltine, Nat Reeves, Al Foster		Socceroof 7:30 pm $35• Pedro Giraudo Quartet with Nick Danielson, Rodolfo Zanetti, Ahmed Alom				
Terraza 7 7 pm
• Mat Maneri, Tyshawn Sorey, Brandon Lopez
		
Zürcher Gallery 8:30 pm $15

cccjazz.org
Cross-Cultural Connection, Inc.
is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization.
Donations and gifts are tax-deductible.

Peekskill Parks
and Recreation

THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD | AUGUST 2021 25

Friday, August 27
êCharlie Parker Centennial + 1 “Bird 101”: Birdland Allstar Quintet led by David DeJesus

		
Birdland 7, 9:30 pm $30• Butcher Brown: Tennishu, Morgan Burrs, Corey Fonville, Andrew Randazzo,
DJ Harrison
Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $25• Frank Owens
Bryant Park 12:30 pm• Dan Aran Band; Robert Edwards Big Band		The Django at Roxy Hotel 7, 10:30 pm• Pedrito Martinez
Drom 8 pm $30
êWarren Smith
Greater Calvary Baptist Church 7 pm $20
êCharlie Parker Jazz Festival—Charlie Parker Centennial Celebration: Gary Bartz,
Vincent Herring, Bobby Watson with Dave Kikoski, Yasushi Nakamura, Carl Allen;
Antonio Hart Quartet
Marcus Garvey Park 7 pm
• Benny Green
Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20
êBrandon Lopez, Ingrid Laubrock, Tom Rainey		
Scholes Street Studio 8, 9:30 pm $15• Andy Farber
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20
êGerry Eastman Ensemble with Greg Lewis, Taru Alexander		Williamsburg Music Center 9:30 pm $10

Saturday, August 28êCharlie Parker Centennial + 1 “Bird 101”: Birdland Allstar Quintet led by David DeJesus

		
Birdland 7, 9:30 pm $30• Butcher Brown: Tennishu, Morgan Burrs, Corey Fonville, Andrew Randazzo,
DJ Harrison
Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $25• Mimi Jones
Bronx Music Hall 5 pm
• Lezlie Harrison
The Django at Roxy Hotel 10:30 pm• Chris Pattishall’s The Zodiac Suite Little Island 7:30 pmêCharlie Parker Jazz Festival—Charlie Parker with Strings: Donald Harrison Quartet and
The Harlem Symphony Orchestra; Shenel Johns		
Marcus Garvey Park 6 pm
• Benny Green
Mezzrow 7:30, 9 pm $20
êGeorge Garzone
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20• Aimée Allen/Tony Romano
Soapbox Gallery 8 pm $25
êGerry Eastman Ensemble with Greg Lewis, Taru Alexander		Williamsburg Music Center 9:30 pm $10

Sunday, August 29êStephane Wrembel
Barbès 9 pm $20
êArturo O’Farrill and The Afro Latin Jazz Ensemble		Birdland 7 pm ¢99• Butcher Brown: Tennishu, Morgan Burrs, Corey Fonville, Andrew Randazzo,
DJ Harrison
Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $25• The Westerlies
Little Island 7:30 pmêCharlie Parker Jazz Festival—Charlie Parker Centennial Celebration: Willie Jones III with
Sarah Hanahan, Godwin Louis, Justin Robinson; Erena Terakubo with Donald Vega,
Endea Owens; Samara Joy
Marcus Garvey Park 6 pm
• Chris Byars
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20

Monday, August 30• Steve Cardenas with Jon Cowherd, Ben Allison, Allan Mednard

		Bar Lunàtico 7, 8:30 pm $10êBlack Art Jazz Collective: Wayne Escoffery, Jeremy Pelt, James Burton III, Victor Gould,
Rashaan Carter, Mark Whitfield, Jr. Blue Note 8, 10:30 pm $25• Isaac ben Ayala
Bryant Park 12:30 pm• Juan Pablo Carletti’s Biggish with Yoni Kretzmer, Christof Knoche, Rick Parker,
Kenneth Jimenez; Nebula the Velvet Queen, Maria Nazarova, Ayumi Ishito,
Damien Olsen; Stephen Gauci, Sandy Ewen, Adam Lane, Colin Hinton; Cheryl Pyle,
Michael Eaton, Roberta Piket, Billy Mintz, Judi Silvano; Aaron Quinn, Alex Koi,
David Leon, Lesley Mok
Bushwick Public House 7 pm $10• Pedro Giraudo Big Band with Alejandro Aviles, Todd Bashore, Luke Batson,
Jeremy Powell, Carl Maraghi, Jonathan Powell, Tatum Greenblatt, Josh Deutsch,
Nicole Davis, Ryan Keberle, Mike Fahie, Mark Miller, Jennifer Wharton, Jess Jurkovic,
Franco Pinna
Terraza 7 7 pm

Tuesday, August 31êStrata East 50th Anniversary Celebration: Charles Tolliver Quintet with Billy Harper,

George Cables, Buster Williams, Lenny White		
Birdland 7, 9:30 pm $40• Isaac ben Ayala
Bryant Park 12:30 pm• Vanessa Perea
Mezzrow 7:30, 10:30 pm $20
êFrank Lacy
Smalls 7, 8:30 pm $20

THE BESTIN JAZZ &BRAZILIANMUSIC
FRIDAYS & SATURDAYS(7 & 9:30 PM SETS)

SUNDAYS(4 & 6 PM SETS)

SAMAR A JOY
AUG 6 & 7

1 DIXON LANE, TARRYTOWN NY 914-631-1000
WWW. JAZZFORUMARTS.ORG/TICKETS

CLU B DI RE CTORY• 17 Frost Theater of the Arts 17 Frost Street(646-389-2017) Subway: L to Bedford Avenue www.17frost.com• 55Bar 55 Christopher Street(212-929-9883) Subway: 1, 2 to Christopher Street - Sheridan Squarewww.55bar.com• The Archway Water Street Brooklyn
Subway: F to York Street www.dumbo.is• Bar Bayeux 1066 Nostrand Avenue(347-533-7845) Subway: 2, 5 to Sterling Street• Bar Lunàtico 486 Halsey Street(917-495-9473) Subway: C to Kingston-Throop Avenues
www.barlunatico.com• Barbès 376 9th Street at 6th Avenue, Brooklyn(718-965-9177) Subway: F to 7th Avenue www.barbesbrooklyn.com• Birdland and Birdland Theater 315 W. 44th Street(212-581-3080) Subway: A, C, E, to 42nd Street www.birdlandjazz.com• Blue Note 131 W. 3rd Street at 6th Avenue(212-475-8592) Subway: A, B, C, D, E, F, M to W. 4th Street
www.bluenotejazz.com• Broadway Plaza Broadway between 43rd and 44th Streets
Subway: 1, 2, 3, 7, A, C, E, S to 42nd Street /Times Square• Bronx Music Hall 438 E. 163rd Street (at Washington Avenue)(347-708-7591) Bus: Bx15 www.thisisbronxmusic.org• Brooklyn Conservatory of Music 58 Seventh Avenue
Subway: F to Seventh Avenue, N, R to Union Street www.bkcm.org• Brooklyn Museum of Art 200 Eastern Parkway(718-638-5000) Subway: 2, 3 to Eastern Parkway
www.brooklynmuseum.org• Bryant Park 5th and 6th Avenues between 40th and 42nd Streets		
Subway: 4, 5, 6 to 42nd Street www.bryantpark.org• Bushwick Inlet Park Kent Avenue between N. 7th and 12th Streets
Subway: L to Bedford Avenue• Bushwick Public House 1288 Myrtle Avenue(917-966-8500) Subway: G to Myrtle - Willoughby Avenue then B54
www.bushwickpublichouse.com• Central Park Great Hill 105th Street Subway: B, C to 103rd Street• Chelsea Table & Stage Hilton Fashion District Hotel, 152 W. 26th Street(212-434-0499) Subway: C, E to 23rd Street; R, W to 28th Street
www.chelseatableandstage.com• Clove Lakes Park 1150 Clove Road, Staten Island Bus: X12• Co-op City Mobile Stage Co-op City Boulevard and the Hutchinson Riverbetween Carver and Bellamy Loops Bus: BxM7
• The Cutting Room 44 E. 32nd Street(212-691-1900) Subway: 6 to 33rd Street www.thecuttingroomnyc.com• Damrosch Park at Lincoln Center Broadway and 62nd Street
Subway: 1 to 66th Street• Dizzy Gillespie Mural 229 W. 135th Street
Subway: 2, 3, A, B, C to 135th Street• The Django at The Roxy Hotel 2 Sixth Avenue (212-519-6600)
Subway: A, C, E to Canal Street; 1 to Franklin Street
www.thedjangonyc.com• Downtown Music Gallery 13 Monroe Street (212-473-0043)
Subway: F to East Broadway www.downtownmusicgallery.com• Drom 85 Avenue A(212-777-1157) Subway: F to Second Avenue www.dromnyc.com• East 126th Street between Madison and Fifth Avenues
Subway: 4, 5, 6 to 125th Street• Flushing Town Hall 137-35 Northern Boulevard(718-463-7700) Subway: 7 to Main Street www.flushingtownhall.org• Funkadelic Studios 209 W. 40th Street(212-696-2513) Subway: 1, 2, 3, 7, A, C, E, N, Q, R to 42nd Street-Times Squarewww.funkadelicstudios.com• Gantry Plaza State Park 49th Avenue and Center Boulevard
Subway: 7 to Vernon-Jackson Boulevard• Grant’s Tomb 122nd Street and Riverside Drive Subway: 1 to 125th Street• Greater Calvary Baptist Church 55 W. 124th Street(404-227-3748) Subway: 2, 3 to 125th Street• Hansborough Recreation Center 35. W. 134th Street(212-234-9603) Subway: 2, 3 to 135th Street www.nycgovparks.org• Hearst Plaza at Lincoln Center 66th Street and Broadway(212-875-51O8) Subway: 1 to 66th Street www.lincolncenter.org• Industry City 220 36th Street(718-965-6450) Subway: D, N, R to 36th Street www.industrycity.com• IRL 80 Franklin Street Subway: G to Greenpoint Avenue• The Jazz Gallery 1160 Broadway, 5th floor (212-242-1063)
Subway: N, R to 28th Street www.jazzgallery.org• Kismat 603 Fort Washington Avenue(212-795-8633) Subway: 1 to 191st Street www.kismatny.com• Little Island Pier 55 at Hudson River Park Greenway		
Subway: A, C, E, L to 14th Street www.littleisland.org• Marcus Garvey Park 122nd Street and Mt. Morris Park West		
Subway: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 to 125th Street• Mezzrow 163 W. 10th Street(646-476-4346) Subway: 1 to Christopher Street www.mezzrow.com• Minton’s 206 W. 118th Street (between St. Nicholas Avenue andAdam Clayton Powell Jr. Blvd) (212-243-2222)
Subway: B, C to 116th Street www.mintonsharlem.com• Nublu 151 151 Avenue C(212-979-9925) Subway: 6 to Astor Place www.nublu.net• Oliver Coffee 5 Oliver Street
Subway: F to East Broadway www.olivercoffee.com• Pangea 178 Second Avenue(212-995-0900) Subway: L to First Avenue www.pangeanyc.com• Pier 84 W. 44th Street and Hudson River				Subway: A, C, E, F, V to 42nd Street-Port Authority• Pioneer Works 159 Pioneer Street, Brooklyn(718-596-3001) Bus: B61 www.pioneerworks.org• Rockwood Music Hall 196 Allen Street (212-477-4155)
Subway: F, V to Second Avenue www.rockwoodmusichall.com• Scholes Street Studio 375 Lorimer Street(718-964-8763) Subway: L to Lorimer Street
www.scholesstreetstudio.com• ShapeShifter Lab 18 Whitwell Place(646-820-9452) Subway: R to Union Street www.shapeshifterlab.com• Smalls 183 W 10th Street at Seventh Avenue (212-252-5091)
Subway: 1 to Christopher Street www.smallsjazzclub.com• Snug Harbor Cultural Center 1000 Richmond Terrace, Staten Island(718-448-2500)• Soapbox Gallery 636 Dean Street
Subway: 2, 3 to Bergen Street www.soapboxgallery.org• Socceroof 14b 53rd Street, 3rd floor, Brooklyn(917-909-0114) Subway: R to 53rd Street www.socceroof.com• Terraza 7 40-19 Gleane Street(718-803-9602) Subway: 7 to 82nd Street www.terrazacafe.com• Williamsburg Music Center 367 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY(718-384-1654) Subway: L to Bedford Avenue www.wmcjazz.org• Woodlawn Cemetery 517 E. 233rd Street(718-920-0500) Subway: 2, 5 to 219th Street
www.thewoodlawncemetery.org• Zürcher Gallery 33 Bleecker Street(212-777-0790) Subway: 6 to Bleeker Street; B, D, F to Broadway-Lafayettewww.galeriezurcher.com

26 AUGUST 2021 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD

100 MILES OUT
8/1 (5&7 pm): Fred Hersch solo @ Maureen’s Jazz Cellar, Nyack, NY(www.maureensjazzcellar.com)
8/1 (7 pm): Sexmob!: Steven Bernstein, Briggan Krauss, Tony Scherr,
Kenny Wollesen @ The Falcon, Marlboro, NY (www.liveatthefalcon.com)
8/3,10,17,24 (6:30pm): Mark Morganelli&The Jazz Forum All-Stars withEddie Monteiro&Nanny Assis @ Horan’s Landing Park,
Sleepy Hollow, NY (www.jazzforumarts.org/summer-concerts)
8/5 (7:30 pm): “Jazz Under The Stars” with Eddie Allen Quartet@ Englewood Public Library, Englewood, NJ (www.englewoodlibrary.org)
8/5 (7 pm): Mark Gross Quartet @ Tavern on George, New Brunswick, NJ(www.nbjp.org)
8/6-7 (7&9:30 pm): Samara Joy with Pasquale Grasso Trio
@ Jazz Forum Arts, Tarrytown, NY (www.jazzforumarts.org)
8/6 (6:30 pm): Chien Chien Lu Quartet @ Pierson Park, Tarrytown, NY(www.jazzforumarts.org/summer-concerts)
8/7 (3:30 pm): Matt Parish @ Candlelight Lounge, Trenton, NJ(www.jazztrenton.com)
8/7 (1-9 pm) Ingrid Jensen; Kelly Green Trio; Lee Hogans’ Pursuance@ Lackawanna Plaza, Montclair, NJ (www.montclairjazzfestival.org/
lackawanna-block-parties)
8/7 (7 pm): Pete McCann Quartet @ Lydia’s Café, Stone Ridge, NY(www.lydias-cafe.com)
8/7 (7 pm): Preservation Hall Jazz Band @ Musikfest, Bethlehem, PA 		(www.musikfest.org)
8/8 (4&6 pm): Nelson Riveros Quintet @Jazz Forum Arts, Tarrytown, NY(www.jazzforumarts.org)
8/9 (6:30 pm): Vince Ector Quartet @ Henry Gourdine Park, Ossining, NY		(www.jazzforumarts.org/summer-concerts)
8/11 (7:30 pm): Julian Lage @ Katherine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center,
Old Saybrook, CT (www.katharinehepburntheater.org)
8/12 (6:30 pm): Jazzmobile’s Summerfest presents Jay Hoggard Quartet@ 11th Annual Sunset Jazz at Lyndhurst Concert Series, Tarrytown, NY(www.jazzforumarts.org/summer-concerts)
8/12 (7:30 pm): Chris Beck @ Englewood Public Library Englewood, NJ(www.englewoodlibrary.org)
8/12 (7:30 pm) Kat Edmonson @ Katherine Hepburn Cultural Arts
Center, Old Saybrook, CT (www.katharinehepburntheater.org)
8/13 (8&10 pm): Ben Williams Quintet @ Chris’ Jazz Café, Philadephia, PA(www.chrisjazzcafe.com)
8/13-14 (7&9:30pm): Roni Ben-Hur Quintet with Steve Wilson, Harvie S,
Donald Vega, Sylvia Cuenca @ Jazz Forum Arts, Tarrytown, NY(www.jazzforumarts.org)
8/14 (6 pm): Ray Blue @ Bean Runner Café, Peekskill, NY(www.beanrunnercafe.com)
8/14 (3:30 pm): Josh Lawrence @ Candlelight Lounge, Trenton, NJ(www.jazztrenton.com)
8/14 (1-6 pm) Irwin Hall Organ Trio; Lauren Sevian Quartet;@ Lackawanna Plaza, Montclair, NJ (www.montclairjazzfestival.org/
lackawanna-block-parties)
8/15 (4 pm): 15th Annual Hudson Jazzworks Concert with
Armen Donelian, Marc Mommaas and guest Rufus Reid
@ Hudson Hall, Hudson, NY (www.hudsonhall.org)
8/15 (12 pm): Javon Jackson, Lakecia Benjamin, Curtis Brothers,
Samara Joy, Julius Rodriguez @ Jazz in the Valley, Poughkeepsie, NY(www.jazzinthevalleyny.org)
8/15 (7 pm): Jeff Lederer’s Sunwatcher Quartet with Jamie Saft,
Chris Lightcap, Matt Wilson @ The Falcon, Marlboro, NY(www.liveatthefalcon.com)
8/19 (7:30 pm): Sharp Radway @ Englewood Public Library
Englewood, NJ (www.englewoodlibrary.org)
8/19 (6:30 pm): Scott Robinson Quartet @ 11th Annual Sunset Jazz at
Lyndhurst Concert Series, Tarrytown, NY(www.jazzforumarts.org/summer-concerts)
8/20 (7 pm): Ravi Coltrane Quartet @ Jazz Loft, Stony Brook, NY(www.thejazzloft.org)
8/20 (8 pm): Adam Nussbaum Trio with Jon Ballantyne, Gene Perla@ Maureen’s Jazz Cellar, Nyack, NY (www.maureensjazzcellar.com)
8/20-21 (7&9:30pm): Vincent Herring/Eric Alexander Quintet @Jazz Forum Arts, Tarrytown, NY (www.jazzforumarts.org)
8/21 (5 pm): Cross Cultural Connection Third Annual Jazz Festivalwith Mark Morganelli’s Jazz Forum All-Stars, Houston Person Quartet		@ Bean Runner Café, Peekskill, NY (www.beanrunnercafe.com)
8/21 (8&10 pm): Peter Bernstein Quartet with Jeremy Pelt, Alex Claffy,
Aaron Kimmel @ Chris’ Jazz Café, Philadephia, PA (www.chrisjazzcafe.com)
8/21 (7 pm): Quartette Oblique: Marc Copland, Drew Gress, Michael
Stephans, Greg Osby @ Deer Head Inn, Delaware Water Gap, PA(www.deerheadinn.com)
8/22 (12-7 pm): Cross Cultural Connection Third Annual Jazz Festival:
CCC Pro-Am Ensemble; Tony Jefferson 2 Guitar Quartet; Sheila Jordan;
Ray Blue Quintet; Kenny Barron Trio @ Peekskill Riverfront Green,
Peekskill NY (www.cccjazz.org)
8/26 (7:30 pm): Duane Eubanks @ Englewood Public Library
Englewood, NJ (www.englewoodlibrary.org)
8/27 (7 pm): Shenel Johns @ Caramoor Jazz, Katonah, NY(www.caramoor.org)
8/27 (5 pm): Dave Liebman Group with Matt Vashlishian, Bobby Avey,
Tony Marino, Alex Ritz @ Deer Head Inn, Delaware Water Gap, PA(www.deerheadinn.com)
8/27-28 (7&9:30pm): Julius Rodriguez Quintet @ Jazz Forum Arts,
Tarrytown, NY (www.jazzforumarts.org)
8/28 (6 pm): Richie Goods&The Goods Project @ Bean Runner Café,
Peekskill, NY (www.beanrunnercafe.com)
8/28 (3:30 pm): Todd Bashore @ Candlelight Lounge, Trenton, NJ(www.jazztrenton.com)
8/29 (5 pm): Bill Charlap solo @ Deer Head Inn, Delaware Water Gap, PA(www.deerheadinn.com)
8/29 (7:30 pm): Rebirth Brass Band @ MilkBoy, Philadelphia, PA(www.milkboy.tv/chestnut-street)MISCELLANY
ONbyTHISDAYAndrey Henkin

JuJu
Wayne Shorter (Blue Note)
August 3rd, 1964

In New York
Michel Sardaby (Disques Debs)
August 3rd, 1972

Frame Loop
Peter Zummo (Foom)
August 3rd, 1984

The Daniel Vitale Quartet
Daniel Vitale (s/r)
August 3rd, 1992

have equalled—and none
surpassed—the run of albums Wayne
Shorter made for Blue Note beginningwith Night Dreamer to Odyssey of Iska,
though, as was label’s wont, several
were released years after the fact
(plus one session postdating all yet tosee issue). This is the follow-up to/
reduction of the former date, the tenor
saxophonist now the only horn,backed by the same rhythm section of
McCoy Tyner(piano), Reggie
Workman (bass) and Elvin Jones(drums) for another program of six
Shorter songs.

Martinique-born, Paris-based pianist

Peter Zummo is a veteran of NYC’s

The name Daniel Vitale is probably

Takin’ It Easy
Wally Fawkes/Bruce Turner (Decca)
August 3rd, 1954

This two-volume set of 7” 45 rpm EPs

from when trad-jazz ruled London
was, according to the sleeve, made inemulation of the Jimmy Noone
Orchestra active in late ‘20s Chicago,much of whose output was releasedby U.K. label Vocalion. As such, theinstrumentation is duplicated—Bruce
Turner (alto), Wally Fawkes (clarinet),
Freddy Legon (guitar), Johnny Parker(piano), Micky Ashman (bass) and
Ron Bowden (drums), most from
Humphrey Lyttleton’s period band—as is some of the repertoire, plus twotakes of Fawkes’ “Fishmouth”.

Few

Michel Sardaby has been active as aleader since 1967 and many of hisalbums have been international
collaborations with the likes of Monty
Alexander and Ron Carter. Thissecond release puts him out front of a
one-time-only rhythm section: bassist
Richard Davis during a fruitful era asa leader; drummer Billy Cobham in
his Mahavishnu Orchestra period;and conguero Ray Barretto when he
was recording regularly for Fania.
Hardly cowed, Sardaby brings six
originals to the session.

Downtown scene of the ‘80s, working
with John Lurie, Peter Gordon and
Arthur Russell, making albums of his
experimental works and collaboratingwith choreographers. It is from thelatter sphere that this 2018 album
derives. These pieces, taken from his
Six Songs Suite, which was the basis
for his score to Trisha Brown’s Lateral
Pass, are previously unreleased andplayed live by Zummo (trombone,
euphonium),
Russell(amplified
cello), Bill Ruyle (marimba) and
Mustafa Ahmed (congas).

unfamiliar—the bassist apparently
only had one other recording credit,
with the slightly more known tenor
saxophonist Ned Otter—but his
companions for this sole leader dateare an illustrious lot: tenor saxophonist
J.R. Monterose, pianist Hank Jonesand drummer Keith Copeland. Theband plays a 10-tune program ofstandards, including “A Child Is
Born” by Hank’s brother Thad. This
also seems to be Monterose’s lastrecording session; he died about 14
months later at 66.

BIRTHDAYS
August 1†Luckey Roberts 1887-1968†Elmer Crumbley 1908-93

August 6†Norman Granz 1918-2001†Buddy Collette 1921-2010†Dorothy Ashby 1932-86
Joe Diorio b.1936†Charlie Haden 1937-2014†Baden Powell 1937-2000†Byard Lancaster 1942-2012
Joseph Daley b.1949
Victor Goines b.1961
Ramón López b.1961
Ravi Coltrane b.1965
Andrew Bemkey b.1974

August 2†Big Nick Nicholas 1922-97†Albert Stinson 1944-69†Naná Vasconcelos 1944-2016
David Binney b.1961
Billy Kilson b.1962
Zach Brock b.1974
August 3†Charlie Shavers 1917-71†Eddie Jefferson 1918-79†Dom Um Romao 1925-2005
Tony Bennett b.1926†Ray Draper 1940-82
Roscoe Mitchell b.1940
Hamid Drake b.1955
Tom Zlabinger b.1971

August 11†Peter King 1940-2020
Steve Nelson b.1954
Russ Gershon b.1959
Donny McCaslin b.1966
August 12†Bent Axen 1925-2010
Dave Lee b.1930
Pat Metheny b.1954
Phil Palombi b.1970

August 7†Idrees Sulieman 1923-2002†Rahsaan Roland Kirk 1936-77†Howard Johnson 1941-2021
Marcus Roberts b.1963
August 8†Lucky Millinder 1900-66†Benny Carter 1907-2003†Jimmy Witherspoon 1923-97†Urbie Green 1926-2018†Don Burrows 1928-2020†Vinnie Dean 1929-2010

August 4†Louis Armstrong 1901-71†Bill Coleman 1904-81†Herb Ellis 1921-2010†Sonny Simmons 1933-2021
Bobo Stenson b.1944
Terri Lyne Carrington b.1965
Eric Alexander b.1968
Michäel Attias b.1968

August 14†Eddie Costa 1930-62
Jimmy Wormworth b.1937
Tony Monaco b.1959
Walter Blanding b.1971
August 15†Oscar Peterson 1925-2007†Bill Dowdy 1933-2017
Stix Hooper b.1938
Art Lillard b.1950
Dennis Gonzalez b.1954
Stefan Zeniuk b.1980

August 9
Jack DeJohnette b.1942
August 10†Arnett Cobb 1918-89
Chuck Israels b.1936
Denny Zeitlin b.1938
Mike Mantler b.1943†Fred Ho 1957-2014
Akiko Pavolka b.1965
Cyrille Aimée b.1984

August 5†Terry Pollard 1931-2009
Sigi Schwab b.1940†Lenny Breau 1941-84
Airto Moreira b.1941
Phil Wachsmann b.1944
Jemeel Moondoc b.1951

August 13†Stuff Smith 1909-67†George Shearing 1919-2011†Benny Bailey 1925-2005†Joe Puma 1927-2000†Mulgrew Miller 1955-2013

August 16†Mal Waldron 1926-2002†Bill Evans 1929-80
Alvin Queen b.1950
Cecil Brooks III b.1959
Ellery Eskelin b.1959

August 17†Ike Quebec 1918-63†George Duvivier 1920-85†Derek Smith 1931-2016†Duke Pearson 1932-80
François Houle b.1961
Peter Martin b.1970
Jeb Patton b.1974
August 18†Eddie Durham 1906-87†Don Lamond 1920-2003
Adam Makowicz b.1940
John Escreet b.1984
August 19†Jimmy Rowles 1918-96
Danny Mixon b.1949
Tim Hagans b.1954
Marc Ducret b.1957

August 22†Malachi Favors 1937-2004
Warren Daly b.1943
Vernon Reid b.1958
Aruán Ortiz b.1973
August 23
Martial Solal b.1927†Gil Coggins 1928-2004†Danny Barcelona 1929-2007
Terje Rypdal b.1947
Bobby Watson b.1953
Brad Mehldau b.1970
August 24†Al Philburn 1902-72†Buster Smith 1904-91†Alphonso Trent 1905-59

August 20†Jack Teagarden 1905-64†Frank Rosolino 1926-78†Jimmy Raney 1927-95
Enrico Rava b.1939†Milford Graves 1941-2021
Jiggs Whigham b.1943
Terry Clarke b.1944
John Clayton b.1952
Reto Weber b.1953

August 25†Bob Crosby 1913-93†Leonard Gaskin 1920-2009†Rune Gustafsson 1933-2012
Wayne Shorter b.1933†Carrie Smith 1941-2012
Günter “Baby” Sommer b.1943
Pat Martino b.1944†Keith Tippett 1947-2020
Michael Marcus b.1952
Karriem Riggins b.1975
Michael Dease b.1982

August 21†Count Basie 1904-84†Art Farmer 1928-99†Malachi Thompson 1949-2006
Peter Apfelbaum b.1960
Oscar Perez b.1974
Chris Dingman b.1980

August 26†Jimmy Rushing 1903-72†Francis Wayne 1924-78†Peter Appleyard 1928-2013†Clifford Jarvis 1941-99
Andrew Lamb b.1958
Branford Marsalis b.1960

August 27†Lester Young 1909-59†Tony Crombie 1925-99†Rudolf Dašek 1933-2013†Alice Coltrane 1937-2007†Sonny Sharrock 1940-94
Edward Perez b.1978
August 28†Phil Seaman 1926-72†Kenny Drew 1928-93
John Marshall b.1941
Stephen Gauci b.1966
Christoph Pepe Auer b.1981
Robin Verheyen b.1983
August 29†Charlie Parker 1920-55†Dinah Washington 1924-63
Jerry Dodgion b.1932
Bennie Maupin b.1940
Florian Hoefner b.1982
August 30†Kenny Dorham 1924-72
John Surman b.1944
Bronislaw Suchanek b.1948
Anthony Coleman b.1955
Rodney Jones b.1956
August 31†Edgar Sampson 1907-73†Herman Riley 1933-2007
Gunter Hampel b.1937†Wilton Felder 1940-2015
Bengt Berger b.1942
Stefano Battaglia b.1965
Evan Christopher b.1969
Tineka Postma b.1978

JOHN MARSHALL

August 28th, 1941

Not to be confused with the
drummer who worked withPaul Winter or the trumpeterin ‘70s Buddy Rich and Mel
Lewis bands, this is British
drummer John Marshall, who
has been active since the late
‘60s. He came up with
Graham Collier, working
with Michael Garrick, John
Mayer, Mike Westbrook,
Mike Gibbs and Don Rendell/Ian Carr through the end ofthat decade. Marshall would
be in Nucleus and Centipede,make albums with Jack Bruceand join Soft Machine for its
fifth release, being part of theband in its various iterations
to the present day. He also
recorded
withCharlie
Mariano, Eberhard Weber,Volker Kriegel, John Surman/
John Warren, Arild Andersen
and many others to go alongwith several albums as aleader or co-leader.
(AH)

CROSSWORD
1

2

3

7

9

4

5

ACROSS

6

8

10

11

13

12

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

23

24

27

25

22

26

28

29

30

31

By Andrey Henkin 			32

1. DC bassist Michael Bowie band Siné ____ Non
4. Treme airer
7. 1986 Michael Manring Windham Hill album____ Weather
9. Cellist with a photographer dad
13. Composer Inserto
14. Latin percussionist Frankie or Tito
15. Italian label ____ Trade, releasing albums by Carol
Sudhalter, Cedar Walton, Dave Burrell and others
16. DVD format
17. At the heart of late Swiss bassist Léon?
19. Deg. program that could include jazz history
20. Erstwhile bassist/current electronicist Curtis
21. ISO of ICP
23. Swedish bassist Georg
26. With 22 Down, singer Bridgewater
27. Issuer of Maria Schneider’s Pulitzer-nominated album
Data Lords
30. Follow up to a 1980 Ray Brown/Jimmy Rowles
Concord album?
31. British composer/producer Brian who worked with
Herbie Hancock, Jon Hassell and others
32. Sylvester Kyner’s favorite color?

DOWN
1. Vice-Prez
2. 1975 François Jeanneau Palm album ____ Bien
Curieuse Planète
3. You’ll need this curr. to attend the Bell Awards
4. Hazel Scott testified before this Congressional org.
in 1950
5. Fruit on the cover of ICP 006
6. Like many a jazz cover
8. John Scofield Gramavision ballad compilation album____ Sco
9. Dolphy-ian cry?
10. Cheap European tour option
11. ’60s German clarinetist Gerhard
12. 1992 Shannon Jackson DIW album Raven ____
18. 1983 L. Subramaniam Milestone album ____ Express
20. 1979 Abdullah Ibrahim The Sun album ____ Joe
From Kilimanjaro
22. See 26 Across
24. This gas company once sponsored an Australian
jazz festival
25. Horace Tapscott composition
28. Like Roland Hanna or Charles Thompson
29. 1987 Tribal Tech Passport Jazz album Dr. ____

visit nycjazzrecord.com for answers

THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD | AUGUST 2021 27

HAZAR feat. AL DI MEOLAREINCARNATED

HAZAR can only becompared to his
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Jazz reincarnated:
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