[JPL] A Jazzy Week in Chicago

[Dr. Jazz]

www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/music/chi-chicago_jazz_1121nov21,0,3555354.story

chicagotribune.com
Jazz notes
Howard Reich's killer jazz week
By Howard Reich
Tribune critic

November 21, 2008

A stroll through the week ahead in jazz:

David Sanchez: One of the world's reigning young saxophonists, Sanchez 
has helped redefine the term "Latin jazz." To the Puerto Rican 
saxophonist, in other words, Afro-Caribbean jazz is not an ethnic subset 
of the real thing. On the contrary, Sanchez understands that Latin 
currents have coursed through jazz since its inception, and he composes 
and improvises accordingly. When Sanchez is at his best, Latin rhythms 
converge with classic swing; Puerto Rican folkloric music embraces 
extraordinarily sophisticated harmonies.

8 p.m. and 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 4 p.m., 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. 
Sunday at the Jazz Showcase, 806 S. Plymouth Ct.; $20-$25; 312-360-0234.

Chicago Jazz Orchestra: Jeff Lindberg's exuberant big band recently made 
musical history for itself, reaching a milestone few jazz 
ensembles—large or small—ever attain: its 30th anniversary (the unit 
originally was known as the Jazz Members Big Band). On this occasion, 
the CJO will help inaugurate a potentially significant new venue: the 
Wentz Concert Hall and Fine Arts Center, at North Central College, in 
Naperville. The CJO plays "A Tribute to Count Basie," featuring 
repertoire that happens to be a specialty for this band. Drummer Butch 
Miles, a Basie veteran, and Chicago tenor saxophonist Eric Schneider 
will be guest soloists. Meanwhile, if you prefer to catch the CJO in 
more intimate quarters, the band makes a follow-up appearance in a 
choice Hyde Park room.

8 p.m. Friday at the Wentz Concert Hall, 171 E. Chicago Ave., 
Naperville; $40; 312-409-3947.

7:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. Sunday at the Checkerboard Lounge, 5201 S. 
Harper Ct.; $10; 773-684-1472.

Orbert Davis: A musician of uncommon versatility, Chicago 
trumpeter-bandleader Davis will celebrate the release of his newest CD, 
"Collective Creativity," featuring his sprawling Chicago Jazz 
Philharmonic. Because it's neither economically nor logistically 
feasible for Davis to bring the 55-piece CJP to a jazz club, he'll be 
playing some of the orchestra's repertoire—and other fare—with his quintet.

9 p.m. Friday and 8 p.m. Saturday at the Green Mill Jazz Club, 4802 N. 
Broadway; $12; 773-878-5552.

Ernest Dawkins: Chicagoan Dawkins has fronted various bands through the 
decades, including the rambunctious Live the Spirit band and several 
incarnations of his long-running New Horizons Ensemble. This weekend, 
the alto saxophonist will lead two distinct versions of New Horizons: On 
Friday, he'll be joined by guitarist Jeff Parker, trombonist Steve 
Barry, bassist Yosef Ben Israel and percussionist Avreeayl Ra. On 
Saturday, Darius Savage will take over on bass and Isaiah Spencer will 
play drums. Each unit stands equipped to convey New Horizons' famously 
incendiary spirit.

9:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the Velvet Lounge, 67 E. Cermak Rd.; 
$10-$20; 312-791-9050.

Lisa Roti: When she's in top form, singer Roti shows sensitivity toward 
the standard-song repertory. She simply needs to step forward and assert 
herself a bit more, rather than yielding control to her band. Here's 
hoping she does so this time around.

9 p.m. Friday and Saturday at Pops for Champagne, 601 N. State St.; $15; 
312-266-7677.

Edward Wilkerson Jr.: One of these days, the formidable Chicago tenor 
saxophonist will finish his epic opera, "Harold in Chicago," which 
explores the life and times of Mayor Harold Washington—in jazz 
vernacular. Until then, we'll have to be content to hear the leonine 
reedist working on a somewhat more intimate scale, as in this date.

8:30 p.m. Monday at the Velvet Lounge, 67 E. Cermak Rd.; $10-$20; 
312-791-9050.

Donald Harrison: A brilliant New Orleans saxophonist, Harrison combines 
tremendous technical acuity with profoundly soulful expression. Though 
he's deeply versed in the rigors of bebop and post-bop, his music always 
has sounded freshly contemporary. What's more, his exploration of Mardi 
Gras Indian music—as on his classic recording "Mardi Gras Blues"—makes 
him a standard bearer of a musical sub-culture unique to the Crescent 
City. For this engagement, he'll be backed by the combustive Willie 
Pickens Trio.

8 p.m. and 10 p.m. Thursday through Nov. 29; 4 p.m., 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. 
Nov. 30; at the Jazz Showcase, 806 S. Plymouth Ct.; $20-$25; 312-360-0234.

hreich at tribune.com



Copyright © 2008, Chicago Tribune


-- 
Dr. Jazz
Dr. Jazz Operations
24270 Eastwood
Oak Park, MI  48237
(248) 542-7888
http://www.drjazz.com
SKYPE:  drjazz99