Among the more attractive performances scheduled in the near future in the Boston
area are the ones listed below.
With the exception of some gigs that feature Magazine Cover (MC) groups (which can range
in quality from very good to terrible), the gigs listed below are ones that I
wish I could attend.
And—if time and
circumstances permit—I will be there.
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For now some locations indoors are open for music performances. Distancing and mask restrictions apply. If people exhibit safe behaviors, such gigs may not be shut down. Let's hope things improve soon.
A variety of media around the country--and particularly in New England--are offering significant coverage of the
April 19 celebration of the “shot heard ‘round the world.” This year perhaps ironically the party at the
bridge marks the 250th anniversary of our first major action toward
a true democracy. The irony is that the
way things are going it is quite possible that we will prove we were not able
to keep it; having replaced our democracy with an autocratic theocracy, Trump
and his cronies/puppets are using the Project 2025 document as a guide book to
this new autocracy for the rich at the expense of the rest of us. To push that agenda forward on the ground,
they are using the Hitler-Goebbels playbook to ensure that opposition is
silenced and democracies are bullied (e.g., the horrific Oval Office encounter
between Zelensky and Trump and enabler Vance) and dictatorships are celebrated
as friends who will share the spoils.
Trump and his lackeys will do everything within their growing power to
prevent anti-Trump voting blocks from voting and rejecting the votes against
Trump’s team that do get cast in 2026.
Nevertheless, 2026 is our last hope.
To help build forces against that outcome perhaps it is time to sell t-shirts
that say:
I’m Unemployed
and I Vote!
3/1 – Man on Land at 8:00 p.m (MP) – Pianist Brian Friedland, bassist Greg
Loughman, and drummer Austin McMahon are joined by soprano/sopranino
saxophonist Lihi Haruvi for an evening of what should be solid jazz. More information is available at
mandorlamusic.net. The performance takes
place at the Theodore Parker Church, 1859 Centre Street, West Roxbury ($20, $15,
$10 students, under 18 free) …
3/6 - Kris Davis and GEORGE at 8 p.m. (eclectic/PA) – Here we have two sets of music
featuring one of my favorite pianists and a group that has been getting rave
reviews. The first set presents Kris
Davis sharing the stage with various members of GEORGE at 8 p.m.
The second set features the full trio of GEORGE with Kris Davis
apparently joining at times starting at 9:30. GEORGE is Anna Webber (tenor saxophone, flute, alto flute), Sarah Rossy (voice,
synthesizers), and John Hollenbeck (drums,
glockenspiel, and composition). This
should not be your predictable cup of tea.
It happens at the Lily Pad, where pandemic regulations apply ($15/$10
student price per set / $25/$15 for both sets)...
3/16- The Joe Hunt Group at 8:30 p.m. (MP) – The
terrific drummer is back with Mark Pinto, Yuka Hamano Hunt, and John
Lockwood. The Leader says, “We pay
tribute to a special composer or performer at most performances. Recent shows
have included: Burt Bacharach, Ahmad
Jamal, Bill Evans, and Gigi Gryce. Future shows will include the music of Paul
and Carla Bley, and arranger Johnny Mandel.”
Pandemic regulations apply. This is a superb group at the Lily Pad
($15)...
Every Monday – Monday night at the Lily Pad returns with Jerry Bergonzi, Phil Grenadier, guest bassist, and Luther Gray. Then The Fringe Duo, John Lockwood and George continuing the fire no doubt inspired by the memory of Bob Gullotti. It begins around 8:30 pm and continues forever ($15 per group; $10 students)…
Ongoing – Non-Event online Music – Performances at various times plus an archive of music (PA) – Non-Event is offering music via online audio files and video files plus real-time performances. The emphasis is on new music, some of which is improvised music. For example, Matt Samolis (who unfortunately for us moved from Boston to central Massachusetts) is presenting his bowed cymbal meditation recorded on May 1, 2020. Keep in mind, money helps support these events. The URL is: http://www.nonevent.org/
If you would like to read Science News’ fine coverage of the pandemic and its implications (including dozens of articles so far), go to the site’s page of coronavirus feature articles. On that page also is information about how to receive that publication's coronavirus update newsletter twice each week. Science News will try to answer your questions at feedback@sciencenews.org. …
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Key codes: The abbreviation in parentheses following the name of the event or
band/musician performing indicates roughly the type of music that you can
expect if you go to the gig.
MC=
Magazine Covers. These musicians/bands
are popular with jazz fans and therefore often find their photos on the covers
of jazz magazines. This type of band may
or may not be any good qualitatively.
However, many fans like to know “what’s hot.”
MP=Mainstream/Post-Bop. This is the music that most people think of
today when they think of jazz. It runs
the gamut from Parkeresque bebop and Websterish ballads to the post-bop work of
people such as Bergonzi and Lovano.
PA=Post-Ayler. This is Anthony Braxton’s term for all the
adventure that came out of Ayler, Ornette, Cecil and others (including Mr. Braxton,
of course). In some ways it is the most
diverse jazz and jazz-rooted music being performed today, including everything
from near zero dB whispers (e.g., undr, John Tilbury) to eardrum demolishing
walls of sound (Keith Rowe, a ton of stuff from Japan) to performances built on
combinations of composed and improvised material (Liberation Orchestra, Charlie
Kohlhase’s ensembles) to completely improvised offerings
(Evan Parker, Laurence Cook).
S=Swing. It don’t mean a thing… Maybe “nothing” means “anything” if you are a
fan of swing. Sadly, fine swing music
seems to be approaching extinction, at least in the Boston area clubs. The reasons are obvious and elusive. The great names of Swing (such as Lunceford
and Barnet) have passed on and taken almost all of their band mates with
them. In addition, in spite of the fact
that some of the finest music of the swing era was produced by the combos
of Goodman and Basie (among others), people continue to think of swing in terms
of large (and therefore economically untenable) ensembles. You can find it happening in some dance
halls, but mostly at weddings and Bar Mitzvahs.
For years such names as Whitney, Winniker, and Hershman have held the
fort in the Boston
area. But you’ve got to keep your eyes
peeled.
T=Two-beat/Trad. Some of the finest contemporary two-beat jazz
anywhere has been nurtured and grown in Eastern
Massachusetts since the 1970s.
Everyone knows about the New Black Eagles, and a host of other musicians
are held in equally high esteem around here.
Some of the better-known are Jimmy Mazzy, Stan McDonald, Jeff Hughes,
and Guy Van Duser. Unfortunately for
city dwellers, two-beat jazz (and, to a lesser extent, the blues) has moved to
the suburbs. But the best of it is worth
the drive.