Seattle Times: Kat Parra, a voice with personality and soul
FRI – SAT, Nov 14-15 – Kat Parra Quartet
BAKE’S PLACE
4135 Providence Point Dr. SE
Issaquah, WA 98029
phone: 425-391-3335
http://bakesplace.org
from The Seattle Times:
by Andrew Gilbert
Special to The Seattle Times
At first listen, Kat Parra’s recent CD “Azucar de Amor” seems like a typical well-played session of Latin jazz. A veteran of the Bay Area salsa scene, Parra knows her way around clave, the fundamental pulse of Afro-Cuban music. The album’s title track, for instance, puts a mambo spin on “Sugar,” a funky jazz hit for Stanley Turrentine.
But Parra isn’t content with tried-and-true formulas. Since the release of her impressive 2006 debut “Birds In Flight,” the Oakland-based singer has created an ambitious repertoire based on a treasure trove of Ladino songs written when Sephardic Jews lived in Muslim-dominated Spain more than five centuries ago. The rhythmically expansive arrangements give a whole new meaning to Latin jazz.
“When I started digging deeper into the Golden Age of Spain, when Jews and Muslims lived closely together and shared innovations, I was blown away and fascinated by the period,” says Parra, who performs Friday and Saturday at Bake’s Place as part of the Visiting Songbirds Series; she brings her superlative working band featuring bassist Peter Barshay, drummer Paul van Wageningen and pianist Murray Low, who’s responsible for many of the charts.
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I didn’t think I’d be able to attend much of the 2009 Earshot Jazz Festival as I’ve been completely tied up with The Drowsy Chaperone at The 5th Avenue, but with my Monday night free, and my brother in the band, I decided to check out Wayne Horvitz and NY Composers Orchestra West at The Triple Door. While I did bring my camera, I sadly didn’t bring anything for note taking, so I missed getting the titles, but to be honest, it’s not important. What was important about this concert was the music of composer and keyboardist Wayne Horvitz. I used to go see his band Zony Mash at the OK Hotel and revelled in the groove, but always remembered seeing a similar incarnation of tonight’s band around ten years ago. My tastes have certainly broadened since then, and with a focus on Wayne’s writing this time, I was even more taken with it. 
Woodstick 2008
Town Hall, 8pm