All Your Jazz

Sara Gazarek and Sachal Vasandani Make Their OCPAC Debuts To Start the 2010-2011 Jazz Series

drumminfabe — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 11:20:05 +0000

Sara Gazarek and Sachal Vasandani are two of today’s brightest young jazz artists, and they will combine their formidable talents to open the Orange County Performing Arts Center’s 2010-2011 Jazz Series September 24th and 25th in Samueli Theater. Each are creating jazz music that moves today’s generation.

Singer/songwriter Gazarek is known for seamlessly mingling her uniquely intimate style with the musical and improvisational elements of jazz while Vasandani is simply one of the hottest jazz vocalists/songwriters/bandleaders working today. Recently, Vasandani won the 2010 DownBeat Critics Poll for best Male Jazz Vocals in the Rising Star category. And Gazarek was voted one of the Best New Artists in the JazzTimes Readers Poll.

Sara Gazarek

Gazarek is a talented young artist on an amazing musical journey who has emerged as a strikingly original artist with limitless potential. In a follow up to Yours, Gazarek’s widely hailed 2005 debut focusing on American Songbook standards, she delivers a sensational sophomore effort with Return to You. Born and raised in Seattle, Gazarek grew up without much exposure to jazz.

Her preliminary jazz education started during high school and as a senior, she was awarded the first-ever Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation Outstanding Jazz Vocalist Award at the Essentially Ellington Festival in New York City.

She studied at the prestigious Thornton School of Music at USC. In 2003, Gazarek was awarded the 2003 Downbeat Student Music Award for Best Collegiate Vocalist. Shortly after the publication hit the press, she was asked to perform with Oleta Adams, Karrin Allyson, and Diane Schuur as the “as yet undiscovered talent” on the Concord Jazz Festival Tour. Simultaneously, Gazarek joined Barry Manilow, Allyson, and Schuur as a Stiletto Entertainment (management) client and was soon being booked by the industry giant, William Morris.

John Clayton, a mentor and teacher at USC, produced her first album, and insisted she develop the arrangements herself with the band she’d been performing with. She found musical soulmates in her group and the resulting record was a debut that was released to national and international rave reviews. It ranked in the Top 10 on the Billboard Traditional Jazz Charts, Top 10 on the iTunes top Jazz Album Downloads (US, UK, Switzerland, and Belgium), No. 1 on the iTunes Top Jazz Album Downloads (Germany, France), No. 5 on the Jazz Week Radio Charts, No. 4 on the HMV (Japan) chart. In addition, Gazarek was voted the No. 3 Best New Artist in the JazzTimes Readers Poll. saragazarek.com

Sachal Vasandani

Vasandani’s sophomore CD, We Move, on Mack Avenue Records was produced with a team of top-flight studio sages (John Clayton, Doug Wamble and Al Pryor). We Move finds Vasandani (who also serves as a producer) maturing as songwriter, tune stylist and bandleader in the wake of his breakout 2007 debut, Eyes Wide Open (Mack Avenue Records).

Vasandani was born in Chicago and grew up in a household where all kinds of music was appreciated. In pursuing his love for music at the University of Michigan, he began to be recognized as a talent of the future, most notably by DownBeat magazine, which awarded him Collegiate Jazz Vocalist of the Year in 1999.

After moving to New York, Vasandani quickly became a part of the jazz scene, and made a musical home in storied clubs like the Zinc Bar. And after the release of his breakthrough debut recording, he toured extensively supporting Eyes Wide Open. He opened for such disparate artists from jazz trumpeter Chris Botti to pop singer Joan Osborne.

On We Move, Vasandani has ample support from his trio comprised of pianist Jeb Patton, bassist David Wong and drummer Quincy Davis. The band has been a group since 2001. Vasandani notes that in addition to their instrumental support, two band members also contributed songs, including Patton’s “Horizons” that is paired with the romping, upswing “Once in a While” (by Michael Edwards and Bud Green) and Davis composed the music on “Ring Road (Back to You).”

In addition to his originals, Vasandani puts his spin on songs from the jazz songbook and canon,including Rodgers & Hart’s “There’s a Small Hotel” with a Vasandani intro (“Escape”) that gives the standard a fresh feel. Also on the CD are “No More,” the Hubert Laws/Jon Hendricks ‘70s song; the Bloom/Kohler tune “Don’t Worry About Me;” “Poinciana;” “There Are Such Things” (by Stanley Adams, Abel Baer, George W. Meyer); “The River of St. Marie” by Joe Williams; and Thelonious Monk’s “Monk’s Dream” (with lyrics by Hendricks). sachalvasandani.com

Performance Info:

Date: September 24th-25th, 2010 (7:30 pm, 9:30 pm)

Location: Orange County Performing Arts Center (Samueli Theater)

Tickets: $49 – will go on sale August 22nd. They will be available online at OCPAC.org, at the Center’s Box Office at 600 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa or by calling 714.556.2787. For inquiries about group ticket discounts for 15 or more, call the Group Services office at 714.755.0236. The TTY number is 714.556.2746.

Famed Jazz Singer Abbey Lincoln Passes

drumminfabe — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 09:54:21 +0000

Abbey Lincoln, a jazz singer who also earned some acclaim as a film actress, died on Saturday, August 14 at her home in New York City. She was 80. Her death was announced by her brother David Wooldridge. Ms. Lincoln had been ailing for some time and had made few if any public appearances in recent years.

Born Anna Marie Wooldridge in Chicago in 1930, Lincoln went through a succession of names, until the late ’50s at the beginning of her show business career, when she got some professional direction from Bob Russell, a song lyricist who became her manager. As she told JT back in 2003, “My manager named me after Abraham Lincoln. He said to me, ‘Since Abraham Lincoln didn’t free the slaves, maybe you can handle it,’ and I’ve been Abbey Lincoln ever since.” The “Abbey” was borrowed from Westminster Abbey.

Nat Hentoff, who worked with LIncoln and Roach on Freedom Now Suite and knew both personally told JT: “Abbey never stopped growing. Knowing and marrying Max Roach taught her, she told me, ‘To be more of myself.’ And as the years went on, having been a fierce opponent of Jim Crow, she later became a universalist. I once did a BBC profile of her and I ended with : ‘Abbey had an integrity that could bite your head off.’ She also, as her singing showed, was an enveloping romantic.”

Ms. Lincoln is survived by two brothers and a sister. The family has requested that donations in Ms. Lincoln’s honor be made to the Jazz Foundation of America. There will be no formal funeral. She will be cremated and the JFA is working to put together the Celebration of Life/Memorial, which they hope will be sometime in mid-September.

All Your Jazz Introduces New Toolbar & Live Chat

drumminfabe — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 03:57:20 +0000

After having lost our forum about a year ago, people have been writing in expressing their disappointment, saying that they wish our site had some way of allowing readers to contribute and share information among the community. We are in the process of getting another forum set up; however in the mean time, we have added a couple of new features to promote community discussion.

The first addition is the built in Wibiya toolbar. An extension of social bookmarking it offers several ways to communicate and share content on our site to Twitter and Facebook. In addition, it offers a very user friendly chat option, allowing readers to contribute to conversation, voice their opinions, and pose questions about jazz. You can view this at the bottom of every page on our site.

The second addition is a chat page, where you can share your thoughts about jazz and reach other readers. While administrators should be online most of the time, our main goal is to establish a way for readers to chat among themselves. You don’t need to register to begin the chat, so feel free to give us your thoughts.

Is there another way we can promote community discussion? Let us know by responding to this post or by email.

Herb Alpert & Lani Hall Perform Medley from Their Album “Anything Goes” On Craig Ferguson Late Show

drumminfabe — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 03:23:55 +0000

Acclaimed jazz duo Herb Alpert & Lani Hall made a pit stop at the Craif Ferguson Late Show last night, performing a medley from their latest release, Anything Goes. The performance was very well received by the crowd, and it’s good to see these two getting the exposure they deserve for this album.

Read Album Review

After launching their new album, Anything Goes (Concord Jazz), this jazz duo is hitting the road to spread exposure and bring their new tunes to the masses.

This stop, on the Craig Ferguson Show, is only one of many that will take place through January. Having started back in the beginning of December, this tour is just what the two needed. They are getting their names back on the charts and continuing to bring their unique sound to fans that have supported them for many years.

See Tour Dates

Video

University of North Texas’ One O’Clock Lab Band Nominated For 2 Grammys

drumminfabe — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 08:23:16 +0000

The University of North Texas’ One O’Clock Lab Band has been nominated for two Grammys this year: “Best Large Jazz Ensemble” (Lab 2009) and “Best Instrumental Composition” (Ice-Nine by Steve Wiest).

Place Your Vote Here

While this is exciting news for the UNT Jazz Band, it shouldn’t come as a shock – after all they do have a pretty good track record.

The six total Grammy nominations that the group have earned in the past are as follows: Lab 1975: Best Large Jazz Ensemble, Lab 1976: Best Large Jazz Ensemble, Lab 1989: Best Instrumental Arrangement for “Got a Match by Mike Bogle, Lab 1991: Best Instrumental Composition for “Values” by Neil Slater, and Lab 2009: Best Large Jazz Ensemble and Best Instrumental Composition for “Ice-Nine” by Steve Wiest.

Video

View more news videos at: http://www.nbcdfw.com/video.

- University of North Texas Website
- Official Grammy Website

2nd Annual “Company of Heaven Jazz Festival” At Cornelia Street Cafe: Jan. 8th-10th

drumminfabe — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 07:58:06 +0000

Get ready to join in the fun at the 2nd Annual Company of Heaven Jazz Festival, hosted by Cornelia Street Cafe in New York City. The event is set to take place January 8th-10th, 2010, featuring some of the most exciting jazz artists New York City has to offer.

Cover charge is $10 for each individual set OR $25 cover charge for the entire night (3 sets). APAP Conference attendees with official badges get free admission for entire Jazz Festival. Additionally there is a $7 food/drink minimum per set. Reservations are highly recommended.

- Festival Details
- Venue Info

Festival Set List

Friday, January 8, 2010
8:30pm “R*Time” w/special guest Judith Insell(viola)
Reut Regev – trombone
David Phelps – electric guitar
Sean Conly – bass
Igal Foni – drums

9:45pm “The Other Quartet”
Ohad Talmor – tenor saxophone, clarinet
Russ Johnson – trumpet
Pete McCann – guitar
Mark Ferber – drums, percussion

11pm Mario Pavone’s “Totem”
Mario Pavone / bass
Peter Madsen / piano
Dave Ballou / trumpet , flugelhorn
Gerald Cleaver drums

Saturday, January 9, 2010
8:30pm “The Thirteenth Assembly”
Taylor Ho Bynum – cornet
Mary Halvorson – guitar
Jessica Pavone – viola
Tomas Fujiwara – drums

9:45pm Tony Malaby’s “Paloma Recio”
Tony Malaby, saxophone
Ben Monder, guitar
Eivind Opsik, bass
Nasheet Waits, drums

11pm Mark Helias’ “Open Loose”
Mark Helias – bass
Tony Malaby – tenor saxophone
Tom Rainey – drums

Sunday, January 10, 2010
8:30pm Michael Musillami’s Trio + 3
Michael Musillami – guitar
Joe Fonda – bass
George Schuller – drums
Marty Ehlich – Alto Sax
Matt Moran – Vibes
Ralph Alessi – trumpet

9:45pm George Schuller “Circle Wide”
George Schuller – drums, comp, arr
Peter Apfelbaum – tenor/soprano sax
Dave Ambrosio – bass
Tom Beckham – vibes
Brad Shepik – guitar

11pm Matt Darriau’s “Ballin’ the Jack”
Matt Darriau – alto/soprano sax, clarinet
Andy Laster – baritone sax, clarinet
Frank London – trumpet
Curtis Hasselbring – trombone
George Schuller – drums
Joe Fitzgerald – bass
Anthony Coleman – keyboard, piano

More Info can be found online at www.companyofheaven.com.

View Larger Map

Festival Location

Cornelia Street Cafe
29 Cornelia Street
Greenwich Village, NYC
(212) 989-9319
www.corneliastreetcafe.com

Jazz At Lincoln Center Presents New Program: “WeBop” Teaches Young Children About Music

jazzman — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 00:35:48 +0000

WeBop is an early-childhood jazz education program in which children (ages 8 months – 5 years) and their parents/caregivers learn about jazz’s improvisation, creative process, instruments, styles and great performers. The classes provide a creative outlet for parents and children to explore jazz as a tool to educate and express themselves together.

More Info

Meet the Jazz Band at WeBop this Winter!
Join this Winter Term, as they have to know the instruments that make up a jazz combo, from the noble trumpet to the engine of the band, the drums. Each week you’ll move, sing, and play along as you learn about each instrument, culminating in a jam session with a live jazz band.

Highlights

* Slide from high to low like a growling trombone
* Swing your favorite nursery songs
* Scat oo-pop-a-da like Ella
* Swing the band with your steady drum beat
* Play a mean jazz riff on the piano
* Walk like a bass swinging way down low
* Jam with the a live jazz quartet
* Have fun playing with your friends and family

Join Here

Video

Details

For dates, registration, and pricing, please visit http://www.jalc.org for more info.

Shelia Anderson Presents Her Experience In Jazz At Harlem’s “Jazz For Curious Readers”

drumminfabe — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 01:45:33 +0000

Kick off the new year with the National Jazz Museum In Harlem for this week’s Jazz For Curious Readers. Join JFCR this week as Shelia Anderson, a.k.a. “The Queen of Hang” and author and WOBC jazz radio host, discusses her career in the jazz literary world. She will be presentin her work Monday, January 4th, 2010 at the NJMH Visitors Center in New York at 7:00pm. The event is FREE

Artist Info

As host-producer of a TV and a radio program on jazz in the New York City area, Shelia Anderson, author of The Quotable Musician: From Bach to Tupac, has met and interviewed musicians, composers, and other music industry professionals from all genres, classical to jazz.

For her latest book, How to Grow as a Musician: What All Musicians Must Know to Succeed (above, right), she put her connections to good use and culled the wisdom and personal experiences of 30 prominent musicians, including Grammy Award-winning performer Al Jarreau; Paula Kimper, a composer of opera, theater, film, and dance music; and Eric Reed, a jazz pianist who has played with the Wynton Marsalis Septet, Joe Henderson, Cassandra Wilson, and a multitude of other masters.

Shelia Anderson weaves together a comprehensive guide that reveals the fundamentals necessary for living a creative and successful life in music, with insights on getting started, developing as an artist, composing, recording, songwriting, preparing for performance, working with a manager, and signing contracts. She shares musicians’ candid and poignant advice on triumph and failure, self-evaluation, ego checks, and personal growth.

More Info

Event Details

Monday, January 4th, 2010
(7:00pm – 8:30pm)
Event is FREE!

Location:
Jazz Museum in Harlem Visitors Center
104 E. 126th Street (Suite 2C)
New York, NY 10035
(212) 348-8300
http://jazzmuseuminharlem.org

Tim Davies Nominated For Grammy: “Counting To Infinity” Up For Best Instrumental Composition

drumminfabe — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 01:10:36 +0000

Composer and Bandleader Tim Davies has been nominated for a Grammy in the category of Best Instrumental Composition for his track Counting to Infinity. The song is only one of nine great tracks from his latest release, Dialmentia (Origin Records, 2009)

Artist Background

From the opening drone of the didjeridu, the listener knows that this is no ordinary big band chart. Counting to Infinity, from the new Tim Davies Big Band album Dialmentia, takes you on a journey like only Tim Davies’s music can. On top of writing all of the music, Davies leads the band from the drums, stoking the band like a powerful steam engine one moment, steering it like a finely-tuned race car the next. He blends swing, rock, hip hop and contemporary techniques into compositions truly unique: this is not your father’s big band.

- Listen

Tim Davies first dreamt of leading his own big band when he was twelve, inspired by a cassette of Australia’s Daly-Wilson Big Band—a dream realized in 1998, when he formed his first band in Melbourne, Australia. Although only having a short run before he moved to the US, it made quite an impact.

Since 2000, Davies has based his big band in Los Angeles, featuring top session and touring players. He maintains an international presence, guest conducting and performing his music with Australian, American and European big bands, often fulfilling commissions. Davies has recently been invited to present a lecture at the first annual Jazz Education Network Conference, May 20-22, 2010 at the University of Missouri St.Louis.

When not writing or playing big band music, Davies works as an arranger, orchestrator and conductor in Hollywood. Recent highlights include: the TV shows Pushing Daisies (arr/orch/cond) and Glee (arr), the games GI Joe (orch/cond), Prototype (orch/cond) and God of War 2&3 (orch/cond) and the films Death Race (orch/cond), Cirque du Freak (cond), Couples Retreat (orch/cond) and the upcoming films Percy Jackson and the Olympians (orch/cond), The Wolfman (orch/cond) and Sex and the City 2 (arr).

More Artist Info

10th Annual Newport Beach Jazz Party: Feb. 11th-14th

drumminfabe — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 00:48:24 +0000

February 11th-14th, 2010Newport Beach for “Right Down The Middle And Straight Ahead” Jazz at the Marriott Newport Beach Hotel & Spa. The party will again center on a large stage nightly at 7:00pm (Thursday at 8:00pm) with reserved seating providing a near perfect mix of concert conditions and intimacy of a club setting, all in the Grand Pacific Ballroom.

Highlights & Schedule

• Thursday’s Grand Opening Night will feature a stunning tribute to Frank Sinatra with the Patrick Williams’ Orchestra conducted by Terry Woodson, in SINATRLAND. Said one reviewer of the “10-star tribute to the Chairman” album- “If you like a well-disciplined big band sound, you gotta hear the Sinatraland Orchestra. You’ll love it!” Closing the evening will be a big band tribute to Benny Goodman with clarinet virtuoso- Ken Peplowski!

• Friday evening will kick off with Ken Peplowski, Gilbert Castellanos, Bill Cunliffe, Paul Keller and Lewis Nash in swinging set of the Great American Songbook, followed by the legendary Jimmy & Tootie Heath quartet featuring Cunliffe and Bob Magnusson. Jackie Ryan and the Tamir Hendelman Trio will follow and closing this second great night of straight ahead jazz will be famed drummer Jeff Hamilton and his Trio which features Tamir Hendelman and Christoph Luty!

• Saturday night will open with one of the most recorded drummers in jazz- Lewis Nash and his Friends, followed by trumpeter and vocalist Byron Stripling who will be joined by Dan Barrett, Paul Keller, Jeff Hamilton and Bill Cunliffe. Marlena Shaw and the Bill Cunliffe Trio will be next and closing the evening will be the Holly Hofmann Quartet with Strings in a tribute to Duke Ellington! Holly will feature Mike Wofford on piano, Christoph Luty on bass and Jeff Hamilton on drums, along with special guest- Byron Stripling.

• Sunday Evening will start by featuring one of the hottest young guitar players on today’s jazz scene- Graham Dechter who will be joined by veterans Jeff Hamilton, John Clayton and Tamir Hendelman. And continuing with
some comedy relief will be Dave Frishberg who is certain to perform many of his classic hits including “Peel Me a Grape”. Byron Stripling and Marlena Shaw will team up for the first time and bringing the weekend to a swinging
close will be the renowned Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra.

More Info

Details

Tickets are now available for the complete four night, three-day package including one Jazz Brunch. Prices are $350/375. Individual reserved seats are priced at $65/$70 for evening performances and $40/50 for the Grand Opening Sessions, $30 each for “Friday, Saturday & Sunday By the Pool” and $50 for each Jazz Brunch. For tickets to the 10th Annual Newport Beach Jazz Party, call the Jazzline at 949.759.5003 or for complete artist appearance times and an order form visit our website at newportbeachjazzparty.com.

Those wishing to have a weekend getaway may also enjoy the Marriott Newport Beach Hotel & Spa special rate of $154 per night for a standard room, $164 for Pool/Music View, $174 for Ocean Music View and $179 for Concierge. For hotel reservations call Marriott at 949.640.4000 and ask for the Newport Beach Jazz Party rate.

Free self-parking will also be available for attendees.

The Newport Beach Marriott
900 Newport Center Dr.
Newport Beach, CA
newportbeachjazzparty.com