Seattle Jazz Scene

from The Seattle Times:

About six months ago, Mack Waldron had the contract in his hand. Sign it and the club he had owned for 15 years, Tula’s, would belong to someone else. All he had to do was sign his name.

His lease was ending. His rent was going up. He was 67. His knees and his feet ached (that was the gout and the arthritis). Still, he’d always told himself he could do any of the jobs in his club if he had to, the cooking, the cleaning, the serving.

He decided to tear up the contract.

“I just couldn’t go through with it,” Waldron said. “I couldn’t part with it.”

And so Waldron continued for at least another three years what has become both his love and his burden.

The static popularity of jazz, the economics of hosting live music, the current recession — all have taken their toll on places like Tula’s, and in particular, on the open jam, a timeless ritual of jazz. Starting in February, Tula’s will have only two open jams per month instead of one every week. Once upon a time, Tula’s hosted two a week.

Continue reading at The Seattle Times.

JAZZ ALLEY: Frank Vignola featuring Gary Mazzaroppi and Vinny Raniolo

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: MusicWorks Big Band

NEW ORLEANS: Holotradband

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Jump Ensemble, with Gregg Robinson (piano), Marty Hasegawa (bass) and Mark Filler (drums)
9pm – Rainy City Jazz, with Annie Eastwood (vocals,percussion), Mike Fernandez (drums), Ken Mingeaud (bass), Kimball Conant (guitar), Dave Fischer (sax), Tom Buffington (sax) and Eric Kehoe (trombone)

OWN ‘N THISTLE: Jam Session

MARTIN’S ON MADISON: Karin Kajita

MIX: Don Mock, Steve Kim & Charlie Nordstrom

DEXTER AND HAYES: Tim Kennedy Trio

from The Seattle Times:

The stage in Benaroya Hall was an ocean, vast and endless, the 16-piece New Orleans Jazz Orchestra an island. To encourage intimacy and interaction among the musicians, the men faced one another in a shape that resembled a horseshoe, the way a choir might arrange itself.

Early in Thursday night’s performance, the first of five through Sunday afternoon at Benaroya, trumpeter and bandleader Irvin Mayfield announced they were going to turn the symphony hall into their own little jazz club.

“The first thing we’re going to do is put two bars on stage,” he joked.

The booze never materialized, but the effect he promised did. It was no easy feat in the cavernous hall. But the group overcame the room’s scale by playing with oversized emotion, one that shifted frequently from joy to anguish and all the subtle attitudes in between — sarcasm, surprise, solemnity and wistfulness.

The NOJO is a real, New Orleans band, with real New Orleans musicians and all that comes with that musical breeding: an innate connection to the blues and to the Christian church; a love of the beat; engagement of the audience; and true respect for the notion that the music is just an extension for how you live. You cry, you laugh, you dance, you mourn. That is life and that is the music.

Without taking an intermission, the band moved through seven songs, all of them fiercely traditional, in that they were firmly rooted in the blues, or gospel, or Cuban son. Strong, disciplined arrangements allowed individual musicians to solo, seemingly without tether. It made for moments of beautiful chaos, which also helped to transport the audience a bit from the austere setting of the symphony hall.

Continue reading at The Seattle Times.

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Bill Anschell / Chuck Deardorf / Dean Hodges

JAZZ ALLEY: Najee

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Andrew Oliver Kora Ensemble, with Andrew Oliver (piano/keyboard), Kane Mathis (kora/guitar), Jim Knodle (trumpet), Brady Millard-Kish (bass) and Mark DiFlorio (drums)
9pm – Katy Bourne Quartet, with Randy Halberstadt (piano), Doug Miller (bass) and Steve Korn (drums)
11pm – Hejira – Don Baragiano and George Sadak (dumbek player extraordinaire) will be performing as Hejira & bringing their original brand of World Music Alchemy to Egans. Katrina and the “Skin Deep Dance Troupe” will be performing with us & Cosmo Damian will be on 6 string bass. We’re coming to shake you guys up!

TRIPLE DOOR MUSICIQUARIUM:
5:30pm: Leif Totusek
9:00pm: How Now Brown Cow

LATONA PUB: Phil Sparks Trio

LOCAL COLOR: Sue Bell

GALLERY 1412: Sunship

NORTH CITY WINE BISTRO: Doug Reid
1520 NE 177th, Shoreline 206-365-4447

EL GAUCHO BELLEVUE: Trish Hadley
555 110th Ave NE, Bellevue, 425-455-2734

PAMPAS ROOM: Brian Nova Quartet

MIX: Reptet
6006 12th Ave South, Seattle, WA 98108, 206-767-0280

SATURDAY, JAN 24 – BAKE’S PLACE
Sandy Cressman with the Jovino Santos Neto Quarteto: A musical tribute to Antonio Carlos Jobim

from The Seattle Times:

The insinuating rhythms and alluring melodies of Brazil have seduced many a jazz musician, but few have fallen as deeply as vocalist Sandy Cressman.

Born in the Bronx but raised from childhood in the San Francisco Bay Area, she spent years working as a jazz singer before fully succumbing to the ravishing charms of musica popular brasileira, or MPB. These days Cressman’s repertoire features a treasure trove of tunes by Brazil’s best contemporary composers, from Milton Nascimento and Djavan to Gilberto Gil and Ivan Lins.

“Sandy has really studied Brazilian music and created something unique, a sound that’s not like other Brazilian singers or American singers,” said the Seattle-based pianist and composer Jovino Santos Neto, who accompanies Cressman at Bake’s Place on Saturday with bassist Chuck Deardorf and drummer Jeff Busch.

“There are a lot of singers out there who approach Brazilian music as a variation of jazz or pop music,” Santos Neto continued. “I’m not saying that’s bad. You can get good results. But very few can look at it as its own language and understand the basics and essence. It’s not just singing in Portuguese, which Sandy does beautifully — it’s really knowing the music inside and out.”

For Cressman, the transition from straight-ahead jazz to the Brazilian songbook didn’t entail just a change of styles, it meant an entirely different approach to the music. “The art of jazz singing is about turning a song inside out,” Cressman said from her home in San Francisco, where she lives with her husband, Jeff Cressman, a sound engineer and trombonist with Santana, and their two teenage daughters. “These compositions are so rich in their original nature. Why change a beautiful melody by Ivan Lins?”

Friday, January 23rd
Tula’s Jazz Club
2214 2nd Ave, Seattle,
206-443-4221
8:00 – midnight, $15 cover

Bill Anschell/Chuck Deardorf/Dean Hodges Trio

Pianist Bill Anschell is joined by Chuck Deardorf and Dean Hodges, the storied team that was Jazz Alley’s house rhythm section for many years; together, they backed some of the world’s greatest touring jazz pianists and horn players.

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Third Hemisphere w/ Cynthia Mullis (saxophones), Ben Verdier (piano), Dean Schmidt (bass) and Steve Korn (drums). Performing Brazilian, Afro-Cuban and North American jazz in a unique exploration of music from the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Greta Matassa presents Katie Voss & Jennier Adams  

JAZZ ALLEY: Najee

NEW ORLEANS: The Ham Carson Quintet

THAIKU: Jon Alberts, Jeff Johnson, Tad Britton

CHAPEL PERFORMANCE SPACE: Is that Jazz? w/ Triptet & Elliot Sharp

MAY: Hans Teuber Trio

John Bishop and Matt Jorgensen just finished attending the 2009 MIDEM show in Cannes, France. The annual convention consists of over 9,000 music industry professionals gathering for meetings, showcases and lectures.

Origin Records spent three days meeting with foreign distributors from Asia and Europe. “For our first trip to MIDEM I think things couldn’t have gone better,” said Bishop. “It was great to see all the international interest in Seattle musicians and we’re looking forward to finalizing a few of these deals.”

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Andre Thomas and Quiet Fire

JAZZ ALLEY: Janiva Magness

NEW ORLEANS: The Legend Band w/ Clarence Acox

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Mattress Tag Police, with Charlie Philips (alto sax), Emmett Akeley (guitar), Ellie Lightfoot (drums) and Andrew Nguyen (bass)
9pm – Vocal Jam with Fathia Atallah and the Bruce Barnard Trio

THAIKU: Ron Weinstein Trio

MARTIN’S ON MADISON: Bonnie Birch

WHISKEY BAR: Ronnie Pierce Jam Session

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Roadside Attraction

JAZZ ALLEY: Janiva Magness

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Inauguration Jam! Celebrate this “defining moment” at Egan’s! Musicians welcome to stop by and jam…We’ll be cruising the web for the inaugural festivities and projecting in the background (NO cover)
9pm – Carrie Wicks, with Bill Anschell (piano), Jeff Johnson (bass) and Byron Vannoy (drums)

NEW ORLEANS: Holotradband

DEXTER AND HAYES: Tim Kennedy Trio

MARTIN’S ON MADISON: Karin Kajita

MIX: Don Mock, Steve Kim & Charlie Nordstrom

from The Seattle Times:

The three-week experimental jazz series “Is That Jazz?” concludes Thursday night with headliner Elliott Sharp. The New York guitarist will perform solo on a shared bill with the trio Triptet, featuring saxophonist Michael Monhart, percussionist Greg Campbell and guitarist Tom Baker, the festival organizer.

In a recent interview, Sharp said he likes the experimental format because he’s always been drawn to “sonic extremes,” be it Jimi Hendrix or Jeff Beck. In his set on Thursday, he’ll play an acoustic guitar with an internal microphone, and manipulate the sound with an electronic bow and a laptop computer.

Intrigued? Give it a listen at 8 p.m. Thursday at the Chapel Performance Space, Good Shepherd Center, 4649 Sunnyside Ave. N., Seattle; suggested donation $15, all ages (206-234-5667 or www.isthatjazz.org).

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: JAZZ JAM with the Bill Anschell Trio

TRIPLE DOOR MAINSTAGE: BELLEVUE COMMUNITY COLLEGE BIG BAND JAZZ w/ special guests THE ECKSTEIN MIDDLE SCHOOL JAZZ BAND directed by HAL SHERMAN

LA SPIGA: Greta Matassa Duo

NEW ORLEANS: The New Orleans Quintet

FAIRE GALLERY CAFE: Brendan ODonnell Trio
1351 E Olive Way, Seattle, 206-652-0781

TOST: Michael Shrieve’s Spellbinder

Chuck Deardorf, Marc Seales, D’Vonne Lewis at SAM
(photo by Jim Wilke)

The Marc Seales Trio played the January Art of Jazz Concert at The Seattle Art Museum and highlights from the concert will air on Jazz Northwest Sunday January 18 at 1 PM (Pacific) on 88.5 KPLU. Marc Seales has spent recent Summers in Paris and has composed a suite of music reflecting Paris neighborhoods which will be the focus of his next CD to be issued shortly. Three pieces from the suite are included in this concert.

Pianist Marc Seales is a Professor of Jazz Studies at The University of Washington, bassist Chuck Deardorf heads the Jazz Department at Cornish College, and D’Vonne Lewis is a fast rising jazz star and one of the most in-demand jazz drummers in Seattle.

Jazz Northwest is recorded and produced by Jim Wilke exclusively for 88-5 KPLU. The program airs Sundays at 1 PM (Pacific) and is simultaneously streamed to the internet. It is also available as a podcast following the airdate.

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Gabriel Alegria Afro-Peruvian Sextet
1st show 8pm, 2nd show 10pm, $20 each show

JAZZ ALLEY: David Grisman Quintet

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Identity Crisis, “Mosaic” CD release party, with Jean Mishler (vocals), Charlie Hiestand (piano), Sura Charlier (woodwinds/vocals), Nate Parker (bass) and Jamael Nance (drums), with special guest artist Bob De Dea (vocals)
9pm – Tim Lerch Trio, with Tim Lerch (guitars/vocals), Patrick McDanel (bass) and Frank Heye (drums)
11pm – Blues To Do Jam, post TV-show performance, hosted by the Gunnar Roads Band from Vancouver, WA.

SERAFINA: Kiko de Freitas

HIROSHI’S JAZZ AND SUSHI: Carolyn Graye & Karen Shivers

LATONA PUB: Phil Sparks Trio

GRAZIE: Michael Powers Group

LOCAL COLOR: Leah Stillwell

PAMPAS ROOM: Brian Nova Quartet

TRIPLE DOOR MUSICQUARIUM: Hardcoretet

from The Seattle Times:

The young, jazz trumpet player Irvin Mayfield has loaned his tutelage to colleges, major orchestras and arts organizations. He founded the Institute of Jazz Culture at Dillard University in his hometown of New Orleans. For six years, he’s been his city’s official “Cultural Ambassador,” an appointment made by Louisiana’s governing bodies.

An accomplished composer, band leader and academician, Mayfield turned out to be a far better teacher than student. Getting into school was never a problem. Staying there was the challenge. Juilliard offered him a scholarship, which he turned down to attend the University of New Orleans, whose jazz- studies program was led by Ellis Marsalis. After about a year, Mayfield dropped out.

“I’d go to class and the instructors wouldn’t be there,” said Mayfield, 31, who performs next week in Seattle. “They’d be on the road, touring. I thought, ‘OK, that’s an interesting concept.’

“A degree is an asset, but it doesn’t mean anything by itself. It’s just another asset. So is being persuasive, having good personality, being smart.”

Mostly, Mayfield just played, forming an Afro-Cuban jazz group when he was 21. He listened and learned. Recording contracts came along. And eventually, people figured they could learn something from him. He has worked for years to make “the academy and the workplace meet each other,” he said. To that end, he formed the 16-member New Orleans Jazz Orchestra when he was 25.

Continue reading at The Seattle Times.

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Smith-Staelens Big Band CD Release

JAZZ ALLEY: David Grisman Quintet

NEW ORLEANS: The Ham Carson Quintet

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Jacob Stickney Quartet, with Jacob Stickney (tenor sax), Mack Grout (piano), Devin Lowe (bass) and Adam Kessler (drums)
9pm – Jovino Santos Neto and Paul Meyers. NY Guitarist Paul Meyers pays a rare visit to Seattle to play some Brazilian standards with JSN (piano), Chuck Deardorf (bass) and Mark Ivester (drums)

THAIKU: Jon Alberts, Jeff Johnson, Tad Britton

AMA AMA: Ron Wienstein, Reade Whitwell, Thomas Marriott
4752 Califonia Avenue SW, West Seattle

MAY: Hans Teuber Trio

LO-FI: The Teaching

THE SORRENTO: Katy Bourne w/ Nick Moore & Doug Miller

THE CHAPEL: Is that Jazz? w/ Krispen Hartung & Radiosonde

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Hal Sherman and the BCC Jazz Orchestra

JAZZ ALLEY: Kenny Garrett Quartet

NEW ORLEANS: The Legend Band w/ Clarence Acox

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Beckley/O’Donnell Quartet, with Brendan O’Donnell (guitar), Ryan Beckley (guitar), Devin Lowe (bass) and Adam Kessler (drums)
9pm – Vocal Jam with Katie King

TUTTA BELLA: Djangomatics

COMET TAVERN: OWCHARUK 5
922 E Pike, Seattle, 8pm

THAIKU: Ron Weinstein Trio

WHISKEY BAR: Ronnie Pierce

Saxophonist Jacob Stickney debuts a new group this Thursday at Egan’s Ballard Jam House featuring Mack Grout on piano, Devin Lowe on bass and Adam Kessler at the drums.

The show starts at 7:00pm and it is an all ages show.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 15, 7:00pm
EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE
1707 NW Market Street
Seattle, WA 98107
(206) 789-1621
http://www.ballardjamhouse.com
[email protected]

Just a quick note from us … This morning we just published our 900th post on seattlejazzscene.com. Thank you for continued support and for supporting live music in Seattle.

EASTSIDE JAZZ CLUB: Brent Jensen Quartet
1000 Bellevue Way NE, Bellevue, WA 98004, (425) 274-0633. 7:30pm

JAZZ ALLEY: Kenny Garrett Quartet

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Emerald City Jazz Orchestra

NEW ORLEANS: Holotradband

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – MJ Bishop and Steve Mason
9pm – ThorNton Creek

DEXTER AND HAYES: Tim Kennedy Trio

MARTIN’S ON MADISON: Karin Kajita

MIX: Don Mock, Steve Kim & Charlie Nordstrom