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Jazz Standard June Schedule

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May 2, 2005, New York — Jazz Standard, New York City’s “Best Jazz Club” (New York Magazine) serving “NYC’s Best Barbecue” (Time Out New York) from Blue Smoke with its signature style of warm hospitality, will host pianist Fred Hersch in his third annual series of duo performances (June 6-12). Fred’s traveling companions on this amazing musical journey will include saxophonists Chris Potter (6/7), Ted Nash (6/8), and Mark Turner (6/12); veteran trombonist and arranger Bob Brookmeyer (6/9), vibraphonist Stefon Harris (6/10), and vocalist Kate McGarry (6/11).

From June 17-19, Jazz Standard proudly presents tenor saxophonist David Murray & the Gwo-Ka Drum Masters. Over the course of three years of recordings and live performances, this unique group has explored the common African roots shared by American gospel music and the traditional gwo-ka music of the former French Caribbean colony of Guadeloupe. This engagement is an official showcase of the 2005 JVC Jazz Festival.

Jazz Standard’s Monday Night “Voices and Songs” series, inaugurated in February 2005, will continue with performances by Kendra Shank (June 6), Chris McNulty (June 13), Barbara Sfraga (June 20), and Lenora Zenzalai Helm (June 27). Below is a complete schedule of performances in June at Jazz Standard, along with information on the musicians.

ALL SHOW TIMES: 7:30 & 9:30PM + 11:30PM ON FRIDAYS & SATURDAYS. Jazz Standard is located at 116 E. 27th Street between Lexington and Park Avenues in Manhattan.

JUNE SCHEDULE

5/31 – 6/5 Luciana Souza: Brazilian Duos featuring Romero Lubambo
· Luciana Souza – voice, percussion
· Romero Lubambo – guitar
Music charge: $20 / $25 Friday & Saturday
“Luciana Souza's art is manifold,” declared DownBeat’s Jim Macnie in his four-star review of Neruda (2004, Sunnyside). “She sings in Portuguese and English; embraces bossa, samba and swing; writes her own stuff and recasts classics; and most daring of all, places poetry in an art song setting.” There’s no such thing as a typical set by this singular artist, who was voted Top Rising Star Female Vocalist in the 2004 DownBeat Critics Poll. Guitarist Romero Lubambo arrived in New York from his native Rio de Janeiro in 1985. He has performed and recorded with such musical notables as Kathleen Battle, Michael Brecker, Paquito D'Rivera, and Dianne Reeves, while releasing adventurous albums like 2003’s Rio de Janeiro Underground.

6/6 “Voices and Songs" Series: Kendra Shank Quartet plus Billy Drewes
· Kendra Shank – voice, guitar, kalimba
· Billy Drewes – tenor & soprano saxophone
· Frank Kimbrough – piano
· Dean Johnson – bass
· Tony Moreno – drums
Music charge: $20
The genuine warmth, emotional depth and musical prowess of Kendra Shank have earned this gifted singer a plethora of critical praise and a fan base that nearly circles the globe. A former student of Jay Clayton and accompanist to Bob Dorough, Kendra and Shirley Horn co-produced her debut album Afterglow (1994, Mapleshade). Kendra’s 2000 release Reflections (Jazz Focus) made the Top Ten List of both Newsday and The Boston Globe. “Kendra has that soft, sweet sound that I associate with the best in folk singing,” Will Friedwald wrote in The Village Voice, “but with the stronger intonation, dynamics, and more varied tonal colors that are unique to jazz. And she swings. Hard.”

6/7 – 6/12 Fred Hersch Duo Series 3
· Fred Hersch – piano, with:
· Chris Potter – saxophones, bass clarinet, alto flute (6/7)
· Ted Nash – saxophones, clarinet (6/8)
· Bob Brookmeyer – trombone (6/9)
· Stefon Harris – vibraphone (6/10)
· Kate McGarry – voice (6/11)
· Mark Turner – saxophone (6/12)
Music charge $20 / $25 Friday and Saturday
“A poet of a pianist” (The New Yorker) and “a master who plays it his way” (The New York Times), Fred Hersch has earned a place among the world’s foremost jazz artists as well as two Grammy Award nominations for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance. Fred has recorded more than 20 albums as a solo artist or bandleader, including Leaves of Grass (Palmetto, 2005), his critically lauded celebration of the poetry of Walt Whitman. Jazz Standard proudly presents the third annual Fred Hersch Duo Series, which will pair this superb pianist with different collaborators on each of six nights.

6/13 “Voices and Songs" Series: Chris McNulty
· Chris McNulty – voice
· Paul Bollenback – guitar
· Gary Thomas – tenor & soprano saxophones
· Sonny Barbato – accordian
· John Di Martino – piano
· Ugonna Okegwo – bass
· Gene Jackson – drums
Music Charge: $15
As a jazz singer, Chris McNulty is “the genuine article,” wrote British jazz journalist Mike Pinfield. “The subtle variations she applies to each song aptly illustrate her unflinching commitment to jazz.” The Australian-born singer’s fifth and latest album, Dance Delicioso, shows her impressive growth as a songwriter as well as a insightful interpreter of composers ranging from Cole Porter (“All of You”) to Annie Lennox (“Primitive”). Album accompanists Paul Bollenback, John DiMartino, Ugonna Okegwo, and Gary Thomas all will join Chris on the bandstand for this special one-nighter at Jazz Standard.

6/14 – 6/16 Kenny Werner Quartet featuring Chris Potter, Scott Colley & Brian Blade
· Kenny Werner – piano
· Chris Potter – saxophones
· Scott Colley – bass
· Brian Blade – drums
Music charge: $20
Kenny Werner’s piano style is a deeply personal blend of intellect and emotion, “balancing a light, almost impressionistic touch with dark, explosive outbursts” (John Frederick Moore, Jazziz Magazine). In addition to his many years of brilliant trio performances and recordings, he has worked with such notables as Archie Shepp, Tom Harrell, and Joe Lovano; his duet with Toots Thielemans, “Inspiration,” was nominated for a 2003 Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition. “I want to continue to lose myself more and more in the bliss of music,” says Kenny Werner. “Not only do I benefit from the intoxication, but the audience resonates with their own bliss. In this way, the music wakes us all to who we really are.”

6/17 – 6/19 JVC Jazz Festival: David Murray & The Gwo-Ka Drum Masters
· David Murray – tenor saxophone, bass clarinet
· Jaribu Shadhid – bass, double bass
· Hamid Drake – drums (to be confirmed)
· François Ladrezuea – gwo-ka drums, voice
· Klod Kiavue – gwo-ka drums, voice
· Hervé Sambe – guitar
Music charge: $30
Tenor titan David Murray has been recording and performing for the past three years with musicians from the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe — and now he brings this potent global fusion unit to Jazz Standard for his official JVC Jazz Festival showcase. “This blend of African, Caribbean and jazz might just be the start of a new musical language,” says Japan Times, and The Guardian (UK) adds: “The heated, ecstatic rhythms and majestically wailing vocals of the Caribbean players, with Murray's surging tenor sax boiling beneath, sound[s] like a natural liaison.”

6/20 “Voices and Songs" Series: Barbara Sfraga
· Barbara Sfraga – voice
· Allen Won – saxophone
· Mala Waldron – piano & voice
· Christopher Dean Sullivan – bass
· Michael T.A. Thompson – drums/percussion
Music charge: $15
Barbara Sfraga is a “voicist” (her term) of extraordinary passion and range with a penchant for free-spirited improvisation—as well as a savvy bandleader and gifted arranger. On her latest album Under The Moon (A440 Records), Barbara brings her interpretive powers to bear on standards old and new: Ellington’s “Sophisticated Lady,” Hoagy Carmichael’s “Stardust,” Bob Dylan’s “Every Grain of Sand.” In his Billboard review, Philip van Vleck called Under The Moon “one of the most captivating jazz albums of the year” and praised its creator’s “distinctive feel for how to unlock a song in a new way.” At Jazz Standard, Barbara’s supporting cast includes pianist Mala Waldron, daughter of the late jazz piano giant Mal Waldron; and the long-time Sfraga rhythm team of Chris Sullivan (bass) and Michael Thompson (drums).

6/21 – 6/23 Vijay Iyer Quartet featuring Rudresh Mahanthappa
· Vijay Iyer – piano
· Rudresh Mahanthappa – alto saxophone
· Stephan Crump – bass
· Marcus Gilmore – drums
Music charge: $20
Proclaimed one of the “new stars of jazz” by US News & World Report and one of “today's most important pianists” by The New Yorker, Vijay Iyer is a forceful, rhythmically invigorating, and largely self-taught performer who weds a cutting-edge sensibility to a unique sense for compositional balance. His exuberant improvisations—anchored in cyclical rhythmic structures and ringing harmonies—draw upon African, Asian, and European musical lineages to create fresh, original music in the American creative tradition. This much-anticipated Jazz Standard engagement will feature the working band featured on Vijay Iyer’s latest album Reimagining (Savoy Jazz, 2005). The group includes drummer Marcus Gilmore, grandson of the mighty Roy Haynes; and altoist Rudresh Mahanthappa, whose 2004 release Mother Tongue was named one of the year’s Top Ten Jazz CDs by The Chicago Tribune.

6/24 – 6/26 The Javon Jackson Band
· Javon Jackson – tenor saxophone
· Mark Whitfield – guitar
· Kenny Davis – electric bass
· Terreon Gully - drums
Music charge $20 / $25 Friday and Saturday
Jazz Standard and Palmetto Records celebrate Have You Heard, the new album by Javon Jackson—saxophonist, composer, and assistant professor of jazz studies at SUNY/Purchase. This inventive and high-spirited recording is the sequel to his celebrated 2004 release Easy Does It, with Javon’s soulful tenor complemented by the soulfully sympatico performances of guitarist Mark Whitfield, Dr. Lonnie Smith on organ, and vocalist Lisa Fisher. “Javon adds a modern twist to the music we grew up with,” says Branford Marsalis. “Everybody get ready for a funky good time!”

6/27 “Voices and Songs" Series: Lenora Zenzalai Helm
· Lenora Zenzalai Helm – voice
· Brandon McCune – piano
· Miriam Sullivan – bass
· Eric McPherson – drums
Music charge: $15
Vocal musician, composer, and teaching artist: Lenora Zenzalai Helm is “a remarkably gifted and intelligent singer with a restlessly creative streak,” wrote Bill Milkowski in Jazziz Magazine. Lenora’s career résumé includes a stint as an official US Jazz Ambassador (1998-1999), with educational tours of East and Southeast Africa; and the five-part compositional work “Journey Woman Suite,” created by a “New Works: Creation and Presentation” grant from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. Ms. Helm’s latest CD, Voice Paintings, appeared in 2003 on MidLantic Records, and she was a featured guest on pianist Andrew Hill’s 2004 live recording The Day The World Stood Still: The Andrew Hill Octet + 1.

6/28 – Russ Lossing Trio plus Special Guest
· Russ Lossing – piano
· John Hebert – bass
· Jeff Williams – drums
· Special Guest – t.b.a.
Music charge: $15
Through years of study and performance, pianist Russ Lossing has developed a distinctive “syntax” that allows him to blend written and improvised music with graceful ease. In 2004, Russ released two excellent trio albums: Phrase 6 (Fresh Sounds New Talent), with John Hebert and Jeff Williams; and As It Grows (Hat Hut), with Paul Motian and Ed Schuller. He has composed thirteen film scores for avant-garde shorts, PBS/BBC documentaries, and full-length dramatic features. The Village Voice’s Jim Macnie calls Russ Lossing “a gripping improviser, pulling ideas out of the air and nudging them into the action at hand as if they always belonged there.”

6/29 – 7/3 Makoto Ozone Trio
· Makoto Ozone – piano
· James Genus – bass
· Clarence Penn - drums
Music charge $20 / $25 Friday and Saturday
From his debut recording more than 20 years ago, Makoto Ozone displayed what All-Music Guide called his “complete knowledge and mastery of the full jazz piano spectrum.” The former child prodigy’s superb trio, with bassist James Genus and drummer Clarence Penn, has released three impressive albums: Pandora, So Many Colors and New Spirit (Verve).

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