Hiromi©Andrea Canter

I saw her Friday night in Chicago at the Jazz Showcase and was entranced. I saw her Monday night at the Dakota and was thoroughly dazzled and charmed. I saw her again Tuesday night, and by the end of the last set, I was convinced I had heard the most exciting night of piano jazz in my own history. The best? Probably not a fair question…. I’ve seen Jarrett, Peterson, Brubeck, McPartland, Hersch, Barron, Tyner, Jamal and more. Hiromi is only 30—it’s too early to burden her with “legend” status. But it is not too early to predict she will get there. For now, let’s say she may have few living peers in terms of her combination of virtuosity, ferocity, and even delicacy. It’s an exhilarating, and charming, package.

Wynton Marsalis©Andrea Canter

One of the world’s premiere jazz orchestras will be in the Twin Cities for a performance at Orchestra Hall on Sunday, March 14th, followed by a day of clinics at two Twin Cities high schools. The 15-piece Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, directed by trumpeter and jazz icon Wynton Marsalis, will present selections from Portrait in Seven Shades, a suite by saxophonist Ted Nash, as well as repertoire from such luminaries as Count Basie, Mary Lou Williams and others.

"He's just committed to forming bands, working out the music with the same people, building a sound, a repertoire, an audience, and the return on those investments is remarkable. To me, he's almost single-handedly responsible for energizing the Twin Cities music scene." –Reid Anderson (Bad Plus), St Paul Pioneer Press (2003) 

Dave King©Andrea Canter

Drummer Dave King might be best known for his long-standing work with The Bad Plus and Happy Apple, but his affiliations hardly end there. In fact, at any given moment, King is likely involved in at least ten projects ranging from the jazz oriented Bad Plus, Happy Apple and Buffalo Collision to rock bands like Halloween Alaska and impossible-to-define electronic outfits like Gang Font. And with a two-night celebration of King’s music this weekend at the Walker Art Center (March 12-13), dubbed “Dave King for Two Days,” the participating ensembles will only represent part of King’s current resume. But it’s a meaty, eclectic sampling of all things King, including two new projects that bring some old friends together.

Stefan Kac leads the Symphonic Transients Orchestra. Photo © John Whiting

Then came the group Ingo Bethke in 2008, Kac’s trio with Adam Linz and Pete Hennig in 2008, his quartet with Sean Roderick, Josh Granowski, and Nick Zielinski, the group Bronco Vision with Brandon Wozniak, Anthony Cox, and Jay Epstein, and journeys into free jazz/improvised music with Milo Fine at Homewood Studios.

And there are the projects I haven’t yet heard, like the Copper Street Brass Quintet. Earlier this week I was talking with Dick Parker, a member of the Mouldy Figs, and he asked, “Do you know Stefan Kac”? Apparently Kac also plays with this trad jazz band and others. 

John Scofield © John Whiting

The John Scofield quartet with Mulgrew Miller on piano, Ben Street on bass, and Kendrick Scott on drums will be hitting the west coast from north to south in a week. Scofield is taking a break from his Piety Street tour to hit the west coast with this fine jazz quartet. They will perform on March 9th and 10th at Jazz Alley in Seattle. Then on Tuesday, March 11th through Sunday, March 14th they are at Yoshi's in Oakland. For a single night each they play the Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz on March 15th and at Anthology in San Diego on Tuesday, March 16th.