Chicago's John Weber, probably the busiest musician of the festival, fronted his own band early Friday evening, a quintet featuring ace tenor saxman Eric Alexander with Diego Urcola on trumpet, Matt Clohesy on bass, and Mark Walker on drums. With incredible speed and dexterity, Weber provided an inspired solo on Jaco Pastorius' “Teen Town” and led the band through a very quirky original “Triskadeka” in 13/8.

One of the most ambitious sets of the festival—perhaps the closest to leaving the Earth's gravitational pull—was the Friday finale by Hiromi. With Berklee College and recording cohorts Tony Grey on electric bass and Martin Valihora on drums, the diminutive Hiromi Uehara was nothing short of powerful and soaring, treating the evening crowd to original compositions from her recent Telarc release (Brain). Generally she introduced each piece by providing some insight into her inspiration, such as the balance between the rational and emotional that informs the recording's title track or the tribute to Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan that exploded in her finale, “Kung-Foo World Champion.” From the over-the-top wild romp of “The Tom and Jerry Show” (from her debut CD, Another Mind) to the more lyrical “Windsong,” Hiromi managed to blend the complexities of Chick Corea and McCoy Tyner with the quirky melodicism of the Bad Plus' Ethan Iverson; yet the influences of mentors Oscar Peterson and Ahmad Jamal are tossed into the mix, as well as her foundation of classical training. And her bandmates are highly compatible compatriots with nearly telepathic communication; Valihora is one of the most incendiary young drummers I've seen, somewhat reminiscent of Dave King but with a more subtle layer selectively applied. Hiromi might not appeal to everyone, and particularly might be disarming to the most traditional tastes; yet she is so personally and musically engaging that, despite her challenges to the edges of structure and form, one can't help but get inside the firestorm and hang on for the ride.

Back at the main stage on Saturday afternoon, we had another opportunity to enjoy Doug Little's pianist, Giacomo Aula, who performed with another hot local rhythm section (Gordy Johnson and Jay Epstein). Stepping out somewhere between the shadows of Bill Evans and Keith Jarrett, Aula's set was one of the most melodic and harmonically sophisticated of the festival, with standards such as “If I Should Lose You” and a delightful list of original compositions ranging from the lyrical “Amadeo” to the high spirited “Blues for Luciano.” Aula tends to fill every space, layer upon layer, an intellectual romantic with power and swing. In closing one of the festival's most engaging sets, Aula's encore was appropriately a solo tribute to the young Bill Evans, “The Plainfield Boy.” Hopefully his alliance with Doug Little will bring Giacomo Aula back to this area soon.

David “Fathead” Newman was a welcome addition to the festival's all-star line-up of sax players. Backed by pianist John Weber (again!), the splendid Anthony Cox on bass, and one the area's mostversatile drummers, Kevin Washington, Newman's tenor sang with what critic John Murph describes as “a brawny, robust tone that's splendidly enlivened by his nimble, dance-like phrasing.” Equally eloquent on flute, he soared sweet and hot on “Delilah.” I missed the end of the set Saturday, but thanks to KBEM's taping, I caught the quartet's rousing “Night in Tunisia” on the way home, so absorbed by John Weber's solo that I drove well past my block.