Tonight – Ballard Jazz Walk

November 19, 2008 / / No Comments


Note: Today is the last day to buy discounted advance tickets.

Jazz will take over the streets of downtown Ballard again on Thursday, November 20th, beginning at 6:30pm as The Ballard Jazz returns featuring 15 groups in 11 venues for a single ticket ($18 advance / $25 day-of).

This edition of the jazz walk will feature performances by a stellar roster of Northwest jazz musicians including: Hadley Caliman, Greta Matassa, Thomas Marriott, Wayne Horvitz, Matt Jorgensen and Jay Thomas.

Cities from the north, south and east are represented by The Bridge Quartet (Portland), Cory Weeds (Vancouver), Brent Jensen (Boise) and Geof Bradfield (Chicago).

With a earlier start time than previous years – 7:00pm – this year’s Jazz Walk is the perfect after-work event.

Visit the Ballard Jazz Walk website for more information and to buy tickets.

BALLARD JAZZ WALK LINEUP:

Wayne Horvitz Quartet (8:00pm); Speak (11:00pm)
THE SUNSET TAVERN (21+)
5433 Ballard Avenue NW

Andy Clausen Group (6:30pm); The Bridge Quartet (8:00 – Midnight)
EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE (All Ages)
1707 NW Market Street

Todd Bishop’s Pop Art 4 (7:00 – 10:00pm)
SONIC BOOM RECORDS – BALLARD (All Ages)
2209 NW Market St.

Fu Kun Wu (8:00 – 11:00pm)
THAIKU (21+)
5410 Ballard Ave NW

Jay Thomas Quartet (7:30 – 11:30pm)
RESOLUTION AUDIO AND VIDEO (All Ages)
5459 Leary Avenue NW

Greta Matassa Quartet (8:00 – 11:00pm)
BAD ALBERT’S TAP & GRILL (21+)
5100 Ballard Ave NW

Hadley Caliman Quintet (8:00pm); Matt Jorgensen Quartet (9:30 – 12:00)
CONOR BYRNE PUB (21+)
5140 Ballard Ave NW

Cory Weeds with the Joe Doria Trio (8:00 – 12:00)
LOCK & KEEL TAVERN (21+)
5144 Ballard Ave NW

Ben Thomas Trio (7:00 – 10:00pm)
THE COLLECTIVE (All Ages)
5323 Ballard Ave NW

Brent Jensen Quartet (7:30pm); Geof Bradfield Quartet (9:00pm)
NEW YORK FASHION ACADEMY (All Ages)
5201 Ballard Ave NW

Chad McCullough Quartet (7:30 – 10:30)
BOP STREET RECORDS (All Ages)
5219 Ballard Ave NW

Wednesday Jazz

November 19, 2008 / / No Comments

JAZZ ALLEY: Tuck and Patti

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Kelley Johnson Showcase

NEW ORLEANS: The Legend Band w/ Clarence Acox

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – University Prep Combos
9pm – Egan’s Vocal Jam, hosted by Jennifer Derrick Adams, with the Bruce Barnard Trio

WHISKEY BAR: Ronnie Pierce

THAIKU: Ron Weinstein Trio

Tuesday Jazz

November 18, 2008 / / No Comments

JAZZ ALLEY: Tuck and Patti

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Roadside Attraction

NEW ORLEANS: Holotradband

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Jeni Wren (vocals), with Michael Owcharuk (piano), Nate Omdal (bass) and Adam Kessler (drums) ($6 cover)
9pm – Steve Treseler Trio, with Steve Treseler (tenor sax), Chris Symer (bass) and Steve Korn (drums)

DEXTER AND HAYES: Tim Kennedy Trio

MARTIN ON MADISON: Karin Kajita

MIX: Don Mock, Steve Kim & Charlie Nordstrom

Monday Jazz

November 17, 2008 / / No Comments

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

NEW ORLEANS: The New Orleans Quintet

LA SPIGA: Leif Totusek Duo

TOST: Michael Shrieve’s Spellbinder

SEATTLE DRUM SCHOOL: Cornish Jazz Composers Ensemble
from Earshot Jazz: Just about every jazz composer in Seattle has studied with, or worked with someone who has studied with, or lead bands with somebody who has studied with Jim Knapp. Knapp developed the revered jazz program at Cornish that releases bright doe-eyed young musicians into local clubs every year, and his signature chord structures and distinct harmonies are emulated throughout the Puget Sound. Tonight, Knapp brings his newest batch of young Monks, Minguses, and Ellingtons to the Seattle Drum School (North Seattle) to present their works. Featured performers include Courtney Cutchins, Clark Gibson, Gabriel Burbano, Jacob Stickney, Dick Valentine, Evan McPherson, Joshua Halbert and Joe Mascorella. Seattle Drum School (12510 15th Ave NE), 8:00 pm: $10.

The Ballard Jazz Walk: a tailor-made musical, sociable stroll

November 14, 2008 / / No Comments

from The Seattle Times:

As much a civic exercise as musical event, the Ballard Jazz Walk commences Thursday night on the streets of downtown Ballard, less than two weeks after the end of the city’s largest and longest jazz festival, Earshot.

If the timing seems curious, it might be helpful to remember that way back in the history of the event — as in five years ago — the jazz walk was part of the Earshot event and known as the Ballard Jazz Festival. Organizers presold only 28 tickets and waited anxiously, wondering if anyone would show up.

To their relief all the shows sold out. Five years later, the Ballard Jazz Walk has become its own event — the Ballard Jazz Festival was spun off into a five-day event in April — growing from five venues to 11, from five performers to 15. And it operates on its own without the aid of Earshot or the Ballard Chamber of Commerce, which initially helped sponsor the event.

The jazz walk is both a complement and antidote to Earshot. If the latter is a fine wine sipped slowly, the jazz walk is a raucous cocktail downed in a gulp. The local businesses welcome and try to capitalize on the increased foot traffic in a neighborhood already known for it.

“This could only happen in Ballard,” said co-artistic director and drummer Matt Jorgensen of the density of bars and restaurants. “It just works here.”

Already, the festival is routinely mentioned in the marketing materials of the many condominiums sprouting around Market Street.

Musicians (some of whom were also on the Earshot lineup) will play all night in pubs, lounges, record stores, even a furniture store and a Thai restaurant, all within walking distance of one another. One ticket covers admission to all shows, a mix of traditional and modern. Most of the artists live in the region, making the jazz walk a distinctly local event. Jorgensen admitted that can be a double-edged sword.

“Being a local musician can have a negative connotation,” he said, “like you’re somehow not as good. A lot of us play all over the country. We just happen to live here.”

From which comes the strength of the schedule. Many of the area’s top musicians will lead their own groups and share the stage with one another: Hadley Caliman, Greta Matassa, Jay Thomas, Mark Taylor, Thomas Marriott, Cuong Vu, Wayne Horvitz, John Hansen and Phil Sparks among others.

The jazz walk is in part a marketing tool, along with the spring jazz festival, of the independent jazz label Origin Records, started by Jorgensen and his former drum teacher John Bishop (both are also performing in the jazz walk) in the Ballard apartment building they both used to live in. Origin endeavors to do for jazz what Sub Pop did for rock in the 1980s and ’90s, cultivating local talent for universal consumption.

Seattle Times: Kat Parra, a voice with personality and soul

November 14, 2008 / / No Comments

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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Friday Jazz

November 14, 2008 / / No Comments

BAKE’S PLACE: Kat Parra Quartet

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Greta Matassa Quartet

JAZZ ALLEY: Rick Braun – Tribute to Chet Baker with Brian Bromberg, Philippe Saisse and Ricky Lawson

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Rockin Teenage Combo, with special guest Jessica Lurie
9pm – Katy Bourne Quartet
11pm – Blues To Do Jam Session! Featuring Blue 55

SERAFINA: The Djangomatics

GRAZIE: Trish, Hans and Phil

BRECHEMIN AUDITORIUM: Marc Seales w/ Lary Barileau, Steve Korn & Evan Flory-Barnes
University of Washington

THIRD PLACE BOOKS: Momentum Jazz Quartet

NORTH CITY BISTRO: May Palmer Duo
1520 NE 177th, Shoreline 206-365-4447

Hendrix drummer Mitch Mitchell found dead in Portland hotel room

November 14, 2008 / / No Comments

PORTLAND — Authorities say Mitch Mitchell, drummer for the legendary Jimi Hendrix Experience of the 1960s, has been found dead in his Portland hotel room.

Erin Patrick, a deputy medical examiner in Multnomah County, says Mitchell was found dead a little after 3 a.m. today in his room at the Benson Hotel in downtown Portland.

She says Mitchell apparently died of natural causes at 62. An autopsy is planned.

Mitchell was touring with the Experience Hendrix Tour, which performed Friday at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall in Portland. It was the last stop on the West Coast portion of the tour.

Mitchell performed with other tour members last Thursday at Seattle’s Paramount Theater. Seattle Times music critic Patrick MacDonald described Mitchell as looking frail but in good spirits.

Hendrix died in 1970, and Noel Redding, bassist for the trio, died in 2003.

Thursday Jazz

November 13, 2008 / / No Comments

JAZZ ALLEY: Rick Braun – Tribute to Chet Baker with Brian Bromberg, Philippe Saisse and Ricky Lawson

TRIPLE DOOR MUSICQUARIUM:
5:30pm: Monarch Duo
9:00pm: Motel 5

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Critical Mass Big Band

NEW ORLEANS: The Ham Carson Quintet

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Clave Gringa, with Ann-ita Reynolds (piano/vocals), Daniel Barry (trumpet/trombone/melodica), Dan O’Brien (bass), Marty Tuttle (drums), and Michelle McGowan (congas/percussion) ($8 cover)
9pm – Susan Harper Conspiracy, with Susan Harper (guitar/vocals), George Bullock (electric guitar), Sean Lahay (keyboard), Don Chappel (bass) and Frank Heye (drums)

LO-FI: The Teaching

MAY: Hans Teuber Trio

THAIKU: Jeff Alberts, Jeff Johnson & Tad Britton

MARTIN’S ON MADISON: Karin Kajita

GEORGE’S in Kirkland: Jake Bergevin with RJ Whitlow (bass) and Milo Petersen (guitar)

Wednesday Jazz

November 12, 2008 / / No Comments

JAZZ ALLEY: Choklate

THAIKU: Ron Weinstein Trio

TRIPLE DOOR MUSICQUARIUM: PGM Trio (5:30pm)

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Beth Winter Showcase

NEW ORLEANS: The Legend Band w/ Clarence Acox

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Patty Padden and Changkadank, with Steve Rice (piano) and Dan O’Brien (bass)
9pm – Egan’s Vocal Jam, with Penelope Donado and Victor Noriega

TUTTABELLA: Djangomatics

WHISKEY BAR: Ronnie Pierce

Bruce Forman at Cornish this Sunday

November 11, 2008 / / No Comments

Jazz Guitarist Bruce Forman
Presented by the Cornish Music Series

Sunday, Nov 16, 8pm

PONCHO Concert Hall
Kerry Hall
710 East Roy Street
map & directions

Los Angles-based guitarist Bruce Forman – this fall’s McKenna Jazz Artist Residency featured artist – is joined by fellow guitarist and Cornish faculty member Dave Peterson, along with Cornish faculty member and bassist Chuck Deardorf and drummer Gary Hobbs.

Tickets: $15 general, $7.50 students, alumni & seniors

Visit the Cornish College website for more information.

Tuesday Jazz

November 11, 2008 / / No Comments

JAZZ ALLEY: Choklate

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Emerald City Jazz Orchestra

NEW ORLEANS: Holotradband

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – The Parlourhoppers – Bluegrass and Oldtime music
9pm – JT Spangler and Isaac Johnson

DEXTER AND HAYES: Tim Kennedy Trio

MIX: Don Mock, Steve Kim & Charlie Nordstrom

MARTIN’S ON MADISON: Karin Kajita

This Sunday on Jazz NW

November 7, 2008 / / No Comments

It was a dream concert! NEA Jazz Master James Moody was saxophone soloist with The Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra which includes many of Seattle’s top jazz players, co-led by Clarence Acox and Michael Brockman. Moody was in brilliant form as always, pouring forth brilliant inspired solos as he has since he first drew attention when he joined Dizzy Gillespie’s big band in 1946 as they were ushering in the Bop era. Diz and Moody were life-long friends and musical compatriots, and Moody still performs with the Dizzy Gillespie All-Stars and alumni bands.

We recorded Moody and the SRJO before a cheering capacity audience at the Kirkland Performance Center and we’re pleased to have the opportunity to present excerpts from this unique concert on Jazz Northwest on Sunday, November 9 on 88-5, KPLU.

Jazz Northwest is recorded and produced by Jim Wilke exclusively for KPLU. It airs every Sunday at 1:00pm on KPLU 88.5fm and online at www.kplu.org.

Listen to an audio preview below …

Friday Jazz

November 7, 2008 / / No Comments

What a week! We are going to decompress by going to hear some live jazz tonight.

EARSHOT JAZZ FESTIVAL:

Triple Door, 7pm & 9:30pm
Cyro Baptista’s Banquet of the Spirits
Michael Shrieve’s Spellbinder
Baptista’s mastery of the percussion of his native Brazil has propelled him to world renown. His new quartet features keyboardist Brian Marsella, bassist and oud player Shanir Ezra Blumenkranz, and drummer Tim Keiper. Also on the bill: the searing sextet of Seattle-based drum legend, Michael Shrieve (Santana), in astonishing renditions of music from throughout Shrieve’s still-expanding musical quest. (Both bands perform both shows.)
CALL 206-838-4333 FOR TICKETS

Tonight and tomorrow!
PONCHO Concert Hall, Cornish College, 8pm
Space in the Heart: a jazzopera
Celebrated veteran composer/clarinet virtuoso Bill (William O.) Smith and librettist Peter Monaghan contribute to a rare art form. Their opera for three singers (Becca Friedman, Maria Mannisto, Jordan Peterson) and trio (Smith, clarinet & piano; Greg Campbell, drums & French horn; Brian Cobb, bass) is a torrid tale of love perturbed in outer and inner space. (Free noon open rehearsal, 11/7)
$18 general MORE INFO spaceintheheart.blogspot.com

Kirkland Performance Center, 8pm
Sara Gazarek
Steeped in the jazz tradition, this rising vocal star and Seattle native is nonetheless willing to engage with the music of her own generation. Presented by Kirkland Performance Center.

all the other stuff …

LATONA PUB: Phil Sparks Trio (5 – 7pm)

JAZZ ALLEY: The Manhattans with Gerald Alston and Blue Lovett

LUCA’S RISTORANTE: Reuel Lubag Trio
430 91st Ave NE, Lake Stevens, 425-334-2066, 8:30pm

TRIPLE DOOR MUSICQUARIUM:
5:30: Kiko Freitas
9:00: How Now Brown Cow

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Kelley Johnson Quartet

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Josh Rawlings Trio, with Josh Rawlings (piano), Nate Omdal (bass) and Adam Kessler (drums) … celebrating the release of “Climbing Stairs”!
9pm – Jennifer Derrick Adams (vocals) and Randy Halberstadt (piano)
11pm – Glenn Allen (guitar and vocals), with Kyle Knowlton (bass) and Aaron Barber (drums)

BAKE’S PLACE: Greta Matassa Trio

SERAFINA: Jazzukha

GRAZIE: Katy Bourne Trio

SORRENTO: Gail Pettis Trio

HIROSHI’S: Jazz and Sushi

Wednesday Jazz

November 5, 2008 / / No Comments

EARSHOT JAZZ FESTIVAL

King Cat Theater, 8pm
Steven Bernstein’s Millennial Territory Orchestra West MEETS LAUREL & HARDY
New York trumpeter Steven Bernstein’s all-star cast of Bay Area musicians explores the neglected music of the bluesy territory bands; here, they accompany three Laurel & Hardy silent-movie classics.

and the other events …

JAZZ ALLEY: The Two Martins Tour Featuring Martin Taylor and Martin Simpson

TRIPLE DOOR MUSICQUARIUM:
5:00: Eli Rosenblatt
9:00: Sue Bell

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Greta Matassa Jazz Workshop

NEW ORLEANS: The Legend Band w/ Clarence Acox

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE:
7pm – Brian Straub and Tom Humphreys – Two acoustic guitars and vocals. Originals in the singer-songwriter, country, rock vein
9pm – Egan’s Vocal Jam, with Dawson Taylor and the Dan Sales Trio

THAIKU: Ron Weinstein Trio

WHISKEY BAR: Ronnie Pierce

Leading Questions: Mark Taylor

November 4, 2008 / / No Comments

Interview and photo by Steve Korn

Someone once told me, “Nobody cares about your creativity or your original music”. Wrong.

When I was 14, I discovered Bird, Cannonball, and Phil Woods.

The saxophone is my voice.

If I could do it all over again, I’d be better at trusting my initial instincts more and just getting on with it!

Practice makes no difference at all if you have no plan or goal.

When I look at where I’m at right now, I’m proud of the projects I’ve been a part of and grateful to the musicians who include me.

The piece of music that first mesmerized me was Charlie Parker with Strings “Just Friends”

Some of my best ideas come to me when I’m not trying to come up with an idea.

My parents were and are, always completely supportive. I’m very lucky.

Fear is indecision.

Motivation is best when it’s internally based.

As I get older, I’ve realized that if you try to please everyone, you’re not being sincere. That, and I’m not nearly as old as some of you other guys.

In the big scheme of things, what really matters is are you happy? Do you love what you do? Do you care about the people around you?

Music has taught me friendship, trust, confidence, humility, compromise … pretty much everything.

People ask me “why does your neck expand so much when you play” (I have no idea).
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Election Day Jazz

November 4, 2008 / / No Comments

TULA’S JAZZ CLUB: Jay Thomas Big Band

JAZZ ALLEY: The Two Martins Tour Featuring Martin Taylor and Martin Simpson

NEW ORLEANS: Holotradband

EGAN’S BALLARD JAM HOUSE: Election night jam session starting at 6:00pm

DEXTER AND HAYES: Tim Kennedy Trio

MARTIN’S ON MADISON: Karin Kajita

MIX: Don Mock, Steve Kim & Charlie Nordstrom

Review: Wayne Horvitz and NY Composers Orchestra West at The Triple Door

November 4, 2008 / / No Comments

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.

Read the entire review by David Marriott and view a slideshow here