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Home , Al Foster, George Mraz, Tommy Flanagan

visitors center: OPEN M-F 10 AM - 4 PM 104 E. 126th Street, #2C, , NY 10035 (Take the 2/3/4/5/6 train) WWW.JMIH.ORG

THE NATIONAL MUSEUM IN HARLEM PRESENTS

Giant Steps Unison /Zoe (Enja) Rahman (Cube-Metier) Harlem Speaks by Andy Vélez A SPECIAL SERIES HONORING HARLEM HEROES Recorded in 1959, became ’s first genuinely iconic album. Pianist Tommy Flanagan was among the players on the recording, which was 10/31 David Amram notable stylistically for a movement away from chordal Multi-instrumentalist/ composer/ author jazz. This reissue of Flanagan’s 1982 Giant Steps is an homage to Coltrane, repeating several of the tracks while adding “Central Park West”. During the ‘80s, Photo copyright Richard Conde. The NaTioNal Jazz MuseuM iN harleM 104 easT 126Th sTreeT, suiTe 2C DoNaTioN suggesTeD 6:30 - 8:30pM For More iNForMaTioN: 212-348-8300 Flanagan favored trios and frequently played with Czech-born bassist George Mraz. Theirs was a felicitous coming together as evident here and recalled fondly by denizens of Bradley’s, a long-gone-but-not-forgotten Village jazz spot where they appeared frequently. Flanagan is notably more confident with what had been a new idiom the first time around. That sureness of technical facility is evident from the first note to the last and the same is true for Mraz. By this time the latter had become one of the most dependable of October 4: FFEAR rhythm men. Together they are as close as pages in a $18 ADVANCE $20 AT DOOR book on a funky “Cousin Mary”. The opener is “Mr. P.C.”, an opportunity for the TICKETS: www.rmanyc.org/harleminthehimalayas trio to cook the bluesy tune. Heating matters up even further is hitting those drums. On “Naima”, a beautiful ballad and one of Coltrane’s best-loved themes, Flanagan’s playing is gentle, a shimmering cascade of mellifluous notes supported by tender shadowing from Mraz. And with the added pleasure of Foster’s perfect time, especially notable on the title Parallax Conversation Series tune, these are masters all in peak form saluting a giant of jazz. 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM Mraz has worked with an imposingly starry list of jazz greats including Bill Evans, , Jones 10/10: Snehasish Mozumder brothers Hank, Thad and Elvin and , and Sylvain Leroux among many others. No less eminent a cohort, said of him, “his balance and innate sensitivity The National Jazz Museum in Harlem 104 E. 126th St., #2C make him one of the finest jazz bassists around today.” Suggested Donation For more information: 212-348-8300 Unison brings together Mraz with a rising star, British pianist Zoe Rahman. A May 2012 live recording, he and Jazz for Curious Listeners Rahman had never met until the afternoon of the Free classes celebrating Harlem and its legacy THE SAVORY CONCERTS concert. But their playing is as easy and relaxed as that of longtime friends. It’s a set that puts Mraz more Tuesdays 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. 7:00 – 8:30pm directly in the spotlight than usual. The National Jazz Museum in Harlem, October 16: Unusual Instruments “Three Silver Hairs”, one of several Mraz tunes on 104 E. 126th Street, #2C in the Savory Collection this disc, comfortably blends a whiff of Middle Eastern flavors with hints of Debussy. Both he and Rahman The Evolution of the mandolin in Jazz Ft. Scott Robinson play dynamically here, each moving in and out of center-stage seamlessly. Another Mraz gem is “Blues with Tim Porter The National Jazz Museum in Harlem 104 E 126th St. #2C $20 suggested donation | For more information: 212-348-8300 for Sarka”, a lovely melody with extended passages, in 10/1: Once Upon a Time which Mraz demonstrates just how eloquent and 10/8: The Mandolins are coming! varied his playing expression can be. SPECIAL EVENT “April Sun” is a Rahman original. It goes from a The roaring 20s to the Big War gossamer bit of piano magic to as suddenly thunderous 10/15: “Two Step” Ragtime and Choro 7:00 – 8:30pm as a summer storm. Mraz occasionally emerges to 10/22: “Triad and Trifecta” Swing, More provide some thunder of his own. October 9: ImproviNation: Mraz also adapted two Moravian tunes, “Grey Blues and Bluegrass An Evening with OneBeat Falcon” and “Little Apple”, but the best-known piece 10/29: “Fast Forward to Today’s Foremost” on Freestyling Across the Globe and in the set is Ennio Morricone’s “Cinema Paradiso”. Blues, and Beyond Around the Block Mraz and Rahman wend a way through it as expressive The National Jazz Museum in Harlem 104 E 126th St. #2C as it is delicately emotional. On a set mostly composed Donation Suggested | For more information: 212-348-8300 of lesser-known melodies, their duets are expressions of shared exploration.

For more information, visit enjarecords.com and Funded in part by Council Member Inez E. Dickens, 9th C.D., Speaker Christine Quinn and the Council cube-metier.com. Mraz is at Jazz at Kitano Oct. 26th with Dado Moroni. See Calendar.

24 October 2013 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD