What a splendiferous, fantastical, and magical evening I had. After Monday morning quarterbacking the night before, and handicapping the upcoming schedule with the JAZZ90.1 jumpin’ jazzperts, I dove right in to Max of Eastman Place once again. This time it was to see Vanessa Rubin. What an absolute joy she was as she sang with […]
Jazz Festival Review
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 5: Daniel reviews Mario Rom’s Interzone and Ole Mathisen’s Floating Points
At The Little Theatre on Tuesday night, the Austrian jazz trio Mario Rom’s Interzonepicked up right where it left off two years ago during its last appearance at XRIJF. Interzone is almost too much fun, if that’s even possible: Lukas Kranzelbinder continues to be one of the most riveting double bassists I’ve seen, and Herbert […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 4: Ron reviews Miguel Zenon, Ikonostasis, and Red Hook Soul
Miguel Zenon let the music do the talking at Kilbourn Hall Monday night as his excellent quartet burned through selections from his latest album, “Tipico.” Zenon was front and center with his saxophone, but the band also boasts one of today’s greatest pianists, Luis Perdomo, and a superb rhythm section with Hans Glawischnig on bass […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 4: Frank reviews Marquis Hill Blacktet and New Breed Brass Band
The Marquis Hill Blacktet got my motor running right tonight with an outasight dose of the bop during the matinee set at Max of Eastman Place. His trumpet zipped and ping-ponged off the walls into a shimmery cascade that was straight from the fridge, dad. Hill traded off liberally to his alto sax man while […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 4: Daniel reviews Dinosaur and Lera Lynn
The “Made in the UK” series continued to captivate on Monday night with the American debut of Dinosaur, led by trumpeter and composer Laura Jurd. The band — which includes the members of the Elliot Galvin Trio — makes spacey jazz that sounds wonderfully imaginative and restless, yet always feels in control. The quartet can […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 5: Ron reviews Eri Yamamoto, Steve Kuhn, and Dave O’Higgins
Eri Yamamoto was so charming at Hatch Hall Tuesday night that the audience was in love with her before she had played a note. Once she began to play her fantastic bluesy opener, “You Are Welcome,” we only fell deeper. She explained that it was the first tune she wrote when she moved from Japan […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 3: Daniel reviews Holophonor and Elliot Galvin Trio
Holophonor plays a brand of jazz loaded with understated swagger and suave cool. Mentored by jazz greats Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter, the band is rooted in the past while resolutely looking toward the future, as evidenced by its early set on Sunday evening at The Wilder Room. The powerhouse rhythm section — drummer Jonathan […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 3: Ron reviews Bill Frisell and Thomas Morgan, Jochen Rueckert, and Adam Kolker Trio
When guitarist Bill Frisell and bassist Thomas Morgan picked up their instruments at Kilbourn Hall Sunday night, they eyed each other playfully. But when they began to play, almost the entire first tune was a sort of musical primordial soup. There were notes and chords and deep bass responses, but they were all in search […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 2: Ron reviews Billy Childs, Eivør, and Gabriel Algeria Afro-Peruvian Sextet
Billy Childs opened his Kilbourn Hall show in a gallop and hardly let up throughout the hour-long set. He played the piano with the sort of wild abandon that can only come after decades of painstaking practice and extensive experience. His quartet — with Dayna Stephens on saxophone; Ben Williams, bass; and Ari Hoenig, drums […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 2: Frank reviews The Quebe Sisters and Adam Wakefield
Other than the meteorological mind games the clouds played with our heads, it turned out to be a beautiful day as we traipsed the jazz fandango well into the night. Ron Netsky knows what I like and immediately insisted I check out Grace, Sophia, and Hulda, The Quebe Sisters. These three fiddle-wielding young women from […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 2: Daniel reviews Neil Cowley Trio and Durham County Poets
The Neil Cowley Trio doesn’t really play jazz. Yes, all the tell-tale instrumentation is there — piano, upright bass, and drums. But the music itself is more accurately post-jazz: spacious minimalism meets percussive pop piano and driving rock rhythms, resulting in a sound that is alternately introspective and punchy. The British trio delivered on that […]
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Jazz Fest 2015, Day 9: Daniel reviews Katie Ernst’s “Big Words” and The Wood Brothers
Eastman School of Music alumna, vocalist, and upright bassist Katie Ernst brought her “Little Words” project — featuring her original compositions set to the poetry of Dorothy Parker — to Max of Eastman Place and the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival on its last day, along with what may have been the most refreshing voice […]
