On to Saturday, June 9th . . . Here are my picks for the second day of the Rochester International Jazz Festival. There is a wide range of new jazz sounds available on this night of the festival:
Randy Brecker Quintet
I'm more familiar with Randy Brecker from his work in the 1970s and with Steely Dan and Paul Simon, but according to some items I'm reading he is an excellent bebop player with a funky streak (which fits nicely with my music needs on the second day). According to the RIJF site, he will be appearing with young Italian saxophonist Ada Rovatti. There's more information on JazzTrumpeter.com and AllAboutJazz.com.
Tiempo Libre
I always make an effort to hear the Latin jazz bands that hit the RIJF; there's something about the heat of summer and the heat of these bands that gets the endorphins pumping for me. This Grammy-nominated band from Miami plays timba, a danceable variant of Cuban son music that is familiar to those of you who have heard the music of the members of the Buena Vista Social Club. They'll be playing a ballroom (Harro East) and perhaps some folks will actually get up to dance—an all to rare occurrence (although not unseen) at the Festival. Check out their page on the RIJF site. Here's a Tiempo Libre video of them doing Manos Pa'rriba (Hands in the Air) from YouTube. It should be hot, especially at the late show.
Tessa Souter
I heard that I should to try to catch Tessa Souter at Johnny O'Neal gig for the Exodus to Jazz Series. Her bassist Essiet Essiet was playing with O'Neal. The cuts (two of them apparently live) and influences on Ms. Souter's MySpace page highlight her crystal clear voice and the interesting and challenging material she chooses. Her RIJF page is here. Anyone who lists as influences Milton Nascimento, Wayne Shorter, Mark Murphy, Andy Bey, Sarah Vaughan, Jon Lucien, Shirley Horn, Miles Davis, Joan Armatrading, Sandy Denny, Pentangle, Sheila Jordan, Bill Evans, Mansur Scott and tons of others is alright with me.
Nordic Jazz Now Presents Zanussi 5
Not sure I'll be able to fit Zanussi 5 from Norway into the programming. Like some of their predecessors in Nugent's Nordic programming, this group is about mixing it up moving from freer styles to pure swing. You can listen to some cuts on their MySpace page.
Just Can't Fit In...
Again, I'm afraid I'm going to miss the gypsy jam jazz of the Stephane Wrembel Trio. I'll also have to regrettably take a pass on the Paul Tillotson Love Trio. Locals The Mambo Kings will be playing this night as well if Tiempo Libre isn't enough Latin jazz for you.
On to June 10th . . . .I'm already feeling tired.
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