JUNE 2016—ISSUE 170 YOUR FREE GUIDE TO THE NYC JAZZ SCENE NYCJAZZRECORD.COM LESTER BOWIE brASS MEMories REZ MIKE BOBBY CHICO ABBASI REED PREVITE O’FARRILL Managing Editor: Laurence Donohue-Greene Editorial Director & Production Manager: Andrey Henkin To Contact: The New York City Jazz Record 66 Mt. Airy Road East JUNE 2016—ISSUE 170 Croton-on-Hudson, NY 10520 United States Phone/Fax: 212-568-9628 New York@Night 4 Laurence Donohue-Greene: Interview : Rez Abbasi 6 by ken micallef [email protected] Andrey Henkin: [email protected] Artist Feature : Mike Reed 7 by ken waxman General Inquiries: [email protected] On The Cover : Lester Bowie 8 by kurt gottschalk Advertising: [email protected] Encore : Bobby Previte by john pietaro Calendar: 10 [email protected] VOXNews: Lest We Forget : Chico O’Farrill 10 by ken dryden [email protected] LAbel Spotlight : El Negocito by ken waxman US Subscription rates: 12 issues, $40 11 Canada Subscription rates: 12 issues, $45 International Subscription rates: 12 issues, $50 For subscription assistance, send check, cash or VOXNEWS 11 by suzanne lorge money order to the address above or email [email protected] In Memoriam by andrey henkin Staff Writers 12 David R. Adler, Clifford Allen, Duck Baker, Fred Bouchard, Festival Report Stuart Broomer, Thomas Conrad, 13 Ken Dryden, Donald Elfman, Philip Freeman, Kurt Gottschalk, Tom Greenland, Anders Griffen, CD Reviews 14 Alex Henderson, Marcia Hillman, Terrell Holmes, Robert Iannapollo, Suzanne Lorge, Marc Medwin, Miscellany 41 Ken Micallef, Russ Musto, John Pietaro, Joel Roberts, John Sharpe, Elliott Simon, Event Calendar 42 Andrew Vélez, Ken Waxman Contributing Writers Tyran Grillo, George Kanzler, Matthew Kassel, Mark Keresman, Eric Wendell, Scott Yanow Jazz is a magical word. While acknowledging its complex history, in 2016 it is synonymous with freedom. When you hear the word spoken it opens doors rather than closes them. There Contributing Photographers should be a thousand definitions of the word, as different as the people who play it. George Council, Enid Farber, Scott Friedlander, Radosław Kaźmierczak, Alan Nahigian, Susan O’Connor, This month’s features embody that freedom. Late trumpeter Lester Bowie (On The Cover) R.I. Sutherland-Cohen, Jack Vartoogian balanced entertainment and art like few could. His long-running Brass Fantasy is celebrated at Tribeca Performing Arts Center with a number of original participants. Guitarist Rez Fact-checker Abbasi (Interview) upends notions about his instrument as well clichés like fusion. His new Nate Dorward Cuneiform album gets release concerts at Greenwich House Music School and Red Hook Jazz Festival. Drummer Mike Reed (Artist Feature) has brought together generations and styles and built foundation in his adopted home of Chicago. He makes a rare-ish NYC appearance as part of Vision Festival. Drummer Bobby Previte (Encore) splits his time between Manhattan and Upstate yet hasn’t lost his urban groove. He leads a band at Red Hook Jazz Festival and is at Cornelia Street Café with Jane Ira Bloom. And Chico O’Farrill (Lest We Forget) helped change the entire trajectory of jazz by blending it with the music of his native Cuba. nycjazzrecord.com “Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité” is the motto of France. It could be a jazz slogan too... On The Cover: Lester Bowie (photo by Alan Nahigian) All rights reserved. Reproduction without permission strictly prohibited. All material copyrights property of the authors. 2 JUNE 2016 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD JUNE 2016 JAZZ FESTIVAL WWW.BLUENOTEJAZZ.COM JUNE 1 - 30, 2016 • NEW YORK SCOFIELD /MEHLDAU / ROSA PASSOS ARTURO SANDOVAL GIULIANA JUNE 6 - 8 JUNE 9 - 12 MAY 31 - JUNE 5 CHRISTIAN MCBRIDE ROBERT GLASPER JOSHUA REDMAN 4TET TRIO; W/ AARON GOLDBERG, LARRY GRENADIER, QUARTET W/ JASON MORAN; GREG HUTCHINSON JUNE 14 - 19 W/ TAYLOR MCFERRIN & MORE JUNE 21 - 26 JUNE 28 - JULY 3 TALIB KWELI WITH LIVE BAND + SPECIAL GUESTS JUNE 13 • REBIRTH BRASS BAND JUNE 20 INDELIBLE: SONIA SANCHEZ & GARY BARTZ PRODUCED BY JILL NEWMAN PROD JUNE 25 • AN EVENING WITH THE NIGEL HALL BAND JUNE 27 SUNDAY BRUNCH - ll:30AM & l:30PM, $35 INCLUDES BRUNCH MUSIC AND DRINK GILAD HEKSELMAN TRIO JUNE 5 • EMILIO SOLLA TANGO-JAZZ QUARTET JUNE 12 • JOE ALTERMAN TRIO JUNE 19 • GREGOIRE MARET & KEVIN HAYS DUO JUNE 26 LATE NIGHT GROOVE SERIES - l2:30AM AL STRONG JUNE 3 • ALEXIS HIGHTOWER JUNE 4 • XSPIRITMENTAL PRESENTS SPIRITCHILD JUNE 10 • RABBI DARKSIDE JUNE 11 • KILLIAM SHAKESPEARE JUNE 17 SOUL INSCRIBED JUNE 18 • BEN WILLIAMS & SOUND EFFECT JUNE 24 • TBA JUNE 25 TWO SHOWS NIGHTLY 8PM & l0:30PM bluenotenyc @bluenotenyc @bluenotenyc RD TELECHARGE.COM l3l WEST 3 STREETNEW YORK CITY • 2l2.475.8592 • WWW.BLUENOTEJAZZ.COM TERMS, CONDITIONS AND RESTRICTIONS APPLY JSnycjr0616 5/17/16 12:54 PM Page 1 TUE JUNE 21 JAZZTOPAD FESTIVAL PRESENTS: OBARA INTERNATIONAL DOMINIK WANIA - OLE MORTEN VAGAN GARD NILSSEN “TOP 10 VENUES IMPACTING NY MUSIC SCENE TODAY” [2015]-NEW YORK MAGAZINE QUARTET WED-THU JUNE 22-23 WED JUNE 1 CHRIS PATTISHALL LUIS PERDOMO&CONTROLLING JAMISON ROSS BARRY STEPHENSON - RICK LOLLAR MIMI JONES - RUDY ROYSTON EAR UNIT FRI-SUN JUNE 24-26 THU-SUN JUNE 2-5 CLAYTON BROTHERS AZAR LAWRENCE JEFF CLAYTON - JOHN CLAYTON BENITO GONZALEZ GERALD CLAYTON BUSTER WILLIAMS QUINTETTERELL STAFFORD - KENDRICK SCOTT QUARTETMARVIN “SMITTY” SMITH DR. TUE-THU JUNE 28-30 TUE-SUN JUNE 7-12 THEO CROKER ANTHONY WARE LONNIE SMITH TRIO DEE DEE MICHAEL KING JONATHAN KREISBERG - JOHNATHAN BLAKE DR. FRI-SUN JULY 1-3 ERIC WHEELER BRIDGEWATER KASSA OVERALL LONNIE SMITH’S TUE JUNE 14 DARCY JAMES argue’s JONATHAN“evolution KREISBERG - ALICIA OLATUJA - MAURICE” BROWN SECRET SOCIETY JOHN ELLIS - JOHNATHAN BLAKE - JOE DYSON WED-SUN JUNE 15-19 HMINGUS MONDAYSHMINGUS MONDAYSHMINGUS MONDAYSH MON JUNE 6, 13, 20 & 27 STEPHAN CRUMP VIJAY IYER TRIO MARCUS GILMORE MINGUS BIG BAND NEW YORK @ NIGHT Circumstances required that the Craig Taborn Quartet As Trio 3 closed the first set of their final night at spend all day working on a new album for ECM before Village Vanguard (May 1st), celebrating 25 years rushing over to The Jazz Gallery to finish a two-night together, saxophonist Oliver Lake recited a poem run (May 5th). The band members—pianist/ centered on the phrase “Separation—put all my food keyboardist Taborn, tenor saxophonist/clarinetist on the same plate” and declared the uniting factors Chris Speed, bassist Chris Lightcap and drummer among different strands of Black music. In cadences Dave King—may have been tired but it didn’t show in recalling St. Louis poet Ajulé Rutlin, with whom he the vibrant, rhythmically entrancing music that flowed once collaborated, the alto saxophonist outlined what from the bandstand. The first untitled pieces were full were essentially the precepts behind the trio and its of mystery and sonic abstraction. Taborn began by longevity. Lake is a very different player from bassist coaxing ominous sounds from a small Vox organ before Reggie Workman and drummer Andrew Cyrille—the switching over to acoustic piano. Similarly, Lightcap three performed lengthy unaccompanied soli that alternated between upright and electric bass, pizzicato preceded “Separation”—alternating between Parker- and arco, as the music evolved through loping legato iana and ebullient, grotesque trills, which led into unisons, raw freely improvised passages, intricate Workman expounding on a balladic form with ensemble work and pulsating grooves somewhat quavering arco and harp-like pizzicato glisses and the reminiscent of Taborn’s Junk Magic project (also with drummer exploring a tightly-wound thesis on the King on drums). Roscoe Mitchell’s “Jamaican linkages between bebop drumming and Central or Farewell”, a ballad that Taborn once played on the West African drum choirs. When Lake relocated AACM icon’s Nine to Get Ready, served as a melodic eastward in 1973, he brought a spaciousness that was oasis of sorts, with Speed taking up clarinet to offer rare in New York’s bustling avant garde and his lines lyrical expressions and powerful, cleanly executed still unfold with a gentle logic belying their spiky, high-register tones. Taborn closed the brief but fibrous centers. Across six pieces, including renditions explosive set with the originals “New Glory” and of clarinetist John Carter’s “Encounter” and pianist “Ancient”, pieces that bore yet more fruit in terms of Adegoke Steve Colson’s “Leaving East of Java”, Trio 3 beat logic and momentum. Cycling a hypnotic line on made a distinct case for their brand of ‘supergroup’ as electric bass, Lightcap let it gather steam and then a unity of complementary approaches standing slyly dropped an octave, setting King off to burrow decidedly sure on their own, but that look and taste deeper in search of timbral oddity. —David R. Adler wonderful occupying a single dish. —Clifford Allen M O C . Y S H O P T A R O G H O P T W O O H R P E T C N N O A R G F E / L N E C A I I T G E O O P O / T L R I C A V N U K O C C A J E G 6 1 R 0 O 2 E G © Craig Taborn @ The Jazz Gallery Trio 3 @ Village Vanguard Reconvening the quintet personnel from his superb After Charlie Parker’s death in 1955, the collection of 2012 Clean Feed release Spun Tree (with pianist Jacob Bird Feathers felt massive and separating rare plumage Sacks subbing for Matt Mitchell), alto saxophonist from pigeon chaff was a challenge. Phil Woods (1931- Michaël Attias dove into his first set at Cornelia Street 2015) crafted his own unique approach, hinging on Café (May 12th) with a bright, busy, freely improvised crisp, bitter runs and charged fireworks. At Jazz at and untitled opener. The band began together at close Kitano (May 6th), his life was celebrated by longtime to full intensity, though drummer Tom Rainey’s collaborators drummer Bill Goodwin and bassist Steve deliberate brushwork cooled the music out, allowing Gilmore, pianist James Weidman (subbing for an ailing subtleties in the interplay between Attias and trumpeter Don Friedman) and alto saxophonist Grace Kelly, a Ralph Alessi to speak.