dec

TRIBUTE TO ELMO HOPE - Dec 9 & 10 at the Jazz Standard

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Submitted by press(5)
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Sat, 12/06/2008 - 7:49pm
Elmo Hope- for the Grateful Web

Pianist and composer Elmo Hope was on the scene from the mid 1950s into the 1960s. This year, June 27, 2008, would have been Elmo's 85th birthday. Elmo was very close to two forward-thinking musical giants, in fact, he spent so much time with Thelonious Monk and Bud Powell that they were called "The 3 Musketeers." Monk loved Elmo's composing and referred to him as his favorite contemporary composer.

Elmo left us with a body of important original music that he recorded essentially between 1953 and 1963. On Tuesday, December 9, and Wednesday, December 10, the sextet will be performing 4 different sets of Elmo's music, exploring the music chronologically each night. This will give us the opportunity to present at least 24 of Elmo's compositions over the two nights.

Elmo's music is compelling (to the audience) and demanding (to the musicians). As drummer Kenny Washington said at rehearsal, Elmo's music demands all your musicianship to try to play it, but if you spend the time to really try to learn it, the rewards are incredible! For the audience, it's an opportunity to hear Elmo's world through the artistry of today's fine musicians.

It's been a dream of mine for quite a few years to be able to present Elmo's music to contemporary audiences. So on Tuesday, December 9, and Wednesday, December 10, we will be performing Elmo's original compositions. Most will be performed in a sextet context, featuring a horn section of alto saxophonist Jon Irabagon (the 2008 winner of the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Saxophone Competition), tenor saxophonist Grant Stewart, and myself, Don Sickler, on trumpet. The rhythm section features the pianist who knows more about Elmo's music than anyone, Bertha Hope, Elmo's widow; bassist John Webber; and drummers Kenny Washington (Tuesday the 9th) and Willie Jones, III (Wednesday the 10th). Special guest pianist Jonny King will perform "La Berthe," one of Elmo's tributes to his wife Bertha, on the second set opening night.

Please join us for an exploration of Hope!

Don Sickler

At the Jazz Standard, 116 East 27th Street New York, New York 10016

Magos Herrera & Beat Kaestli @ Drom, Dec. 7th

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Submitted by mike(256)
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Thu, 12/04/2008 - 10:04pm
Magos Herrera & Beat Kaestli- for the Grateful Web

Mexico's Magos Herrera is considered one of the most beautiful voices and the most active vocalist of the contemporary Latin American jazz scene and Esquire Magazine quotes "Beat Kaestli's emergence as a vocalist bespeaks a life full of experience. Like Jazz itself, his willingness to adapt and improvise has given rise to a unique young man and artist." Magos and Beat met in New York City a year ago and immediately felt a connection in each other's music and as artists in this vibrant Metropolis. Soon they performed as guests at each other's live shows and recordings. Now, Magos and Beat will bring their exciting mix of Jazz, R&B and Latin rhythms to Drom NYC, featuring vocal duets and songs from their current solo projects.

Magos Herrera:
A dazzling, accomplished singer-songwriter and known for her beguiling rhythmic scatting, inflected with soulful Latin-Andalusian phrasings, Magos Herrera is known for her signature sound that elegantly blends her classic jazz styling with Mexican, Cuban and Brazilian melodies. Based in NYC since 2007, she has recorded with Saxophonist Tim Ries for the Rolling Stones Jazz Project and for contemporary composer Paola Prestini for John Zorn label. For over 10 years Magos has performed in international arts centers, at festivals and concert halls such as Lincoln Center, NYC, Millennium Park in Chicago, Knitting Factory, Teatro de la Ciudad de Mexico, Sala Galileo and Galilei in Madrid among others.

Magos will be releasing her 6th CD spring 2009 featuring guitarist Lionel Loueke and pianist Aaron Goldberg produced by Tim Ries, saxophonist of The Rolling Stones.

Beat Kaestli:
Beat Kaestli moved to New York from his native country of Switzerland, receiving a scholarship to the Manhattan School of Music (BM) and graduating from the Aaron Copland School of Music with an MA in 2008. Since the release of his 2005 Jazz debut "Happy, Sad and Satisfied", he has toured the world and his unmistakable blend of Jazz, classical and contemporary vibes thrills audiences everywhere. In New York he has performed in renowned clubs, such as The Blue Note, Birdland, The Bitter End, The Jazz Standard, The Stone and Sweet Rhythm, performing with Jazz greats, like Esperanza Spalding, Clarence Penn, Joel Frahm and Victor Prieto.

Beat is now putting the finishing touches on his latest CD "Far From Home – Dedicated to European Song" scheduled to be released in 2009.

Magos Herrera and Beat Kaestli @ Drom, NYC

Sunday, December 7th at 9:30pm and 11pm

85 Avenue A, New York, 212-777-1157

Stryker/Slagle Band Monday Dec. 1st @ The Blue Note

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Mon, 12/01/2008 - 11:15am
Stryker/Slagle Band- for the Grateful Web

Here on their fourth release as co-leaders of a dynamic quartet, West Orange guitar ace Dave Stryker and NYC-based saxophonist Steve Slagle continue to mix the jazz tradition with the music's more forward-looking side. The results can be deep and bluesy one moment, more angular and abstract the next. As on Slagle's "Skee," a spunky, riff-built whose theme resolves warmly. Here, Slagle and guest tenorman Joe Lovano explore the tune's edges while Stryker comes in like a seasoned bluesman with his hearty remarks. The guitarist's title track is of a contemporary lyrical bent, as the leaders and bassist Jay Anderson wax song-like, modern-style, with drummer Victor Lewis creating colorful washes along with a stirring ride beat on his cymbals. Slagle's alluring "Six Four Teo" has a similar lyrical sense - with telling solos - but with a percolating 6/4 rhythm.

DAVE STRYKER guitar, STEVE SLAGLE alto and soprano sax, flute JAY ANDERSON bass, VICTOR LEWIS drums, SPECIAL GUEST JOE LOVANO

Stryker/Slagle Band 

Dave Stryker -guitar
Steve Slagle -sax
Jay Anderson - bass
Billy Hart -drums

Blue Note Jazz Club 
131 W. 3rd St
New York, NY 10012
212-475-8592

Folk music doc 'Chasin' Gus' Ghost' to screen in Indiana Dec. 1

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Submitted by press(5)
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Tue, 11/13/2007 - 10:31pm
Gun Cannon- for the Grateful Web

Following sold-out screenings at the San Francisco Jug Band Festival, the Woodstock Film Festival and the Hartford International Film Festival, jug band documentary 'Chasin' Gus' Ghost' will screen in Bloomington, IN on December 1st at the Monroe County Public Library Auditorium.  The film features music legends such as Bob Weir (Grateful Dead), John Sebastian (Lovin' Spoonful), David Grisman, Maria Muldaur and Erik Darling (Rooftop Singers).

A must-see film for music lovers, 'Chasin' Gus' Ghost' is full of interviews, great live performances and archival film footage and newspaper clippings dating back as far as the 1920s.  The documentary traces the history of jug band music, with emphasis on the enigmatic Gus Cannon, who passed away virtually penniless at the age of 91 despite penning the tune "Walk Right In," which became a Number 1 hit for The Rooftop Singers in 1963.  

The Grateful Dead and Lovin' Spoonful also cite early jug band music as a main source of inspiration, and one of Bloomington native Hoagy Carmichael's first compositions, written when he was still an Indiana University student, refers to an "instrument" frequently used by jug band musicians (and visible in the film) in "Washboard Blues."

Here's what critics are saying about the film:

"An absorbing movie capable of inspiring a whole new generation of ghost-chasers."
AllAboutJazz.com - Sam Chell

"Pull out the banjos and Popcorn Sutton moonshine, for a jug band might just be coming to a theater near you soon."
PasteMagazine.com - Christina Martin

"If you are a fan of blues, jazz, and American roots - or jug - music, ['Chasin' Gus' Ghost'] is not to be missed."
Blogcritics.org- Connie Phillips  

Details:

What: 'Chasin' Gus' Ghost music documentary screening
When: Saturday December 1st at 1 and 3PM    
Where: Monroe County Public Library Auditorium
303 E. Kirkwood Ave Bloomington, IN 47408
http://www.monroe.lib.in.us/
Cost: FREE