Allen Toussaint

There were rumors that the Twin Cities’ summer jazz festival was history, and such speculation was furthered by the cancellation of the winter festival and lack of sponsors for the Minneapolis side of the event. But St. Paul has always been the city that refuses to play second fiddle (or in this case, second trumpet?) to Minneapolis. And St. Paul was not about to give up a major community arts event. Thanks to the leadership of St. Paul mayor Chris Coleman and the support of major sponsors Northwestern Foods, TDS Telecom, KBEM Jazz 88 Radio and HSR Event Productions, the Twin Cities Jazz Festival is well and alive this weekend in and around Mears Park in St. Paul’s Lowertown. Scaled back to one city and one weekend, the 2009 festival nevertheless promises to be every bit as memorable as any in the event’s 11-year history, boasting headliners Alan Toussaint and Esperanza Spalding and three dozen more artists/ensembles.

The festival kicks off Wednesday night (June 17) with the Visual Jazz exhibition at the Grand Hand Gallery (at Dale and Grand Avenues in St. Paul), part of the KBEM Gallery Grooves season (see LINK). Thursday night will again be the Jazz Night Out Club Crawl, with 15 club venues throughout downtown and Lowertown featuring great artists from 8:30 pm – 12:30 am, all connected by a free trolley for those buying festival pins to benefit the St. Paul Festival and Heritage Foundation (see www.winter-carnival.com ). Friday from 4 pm-10 pm, and Saturday from Noon – 10 pm, music will be centered around the main stage at Mears Park, with additional stages at the nearby Hat Trick Lounge and special festival gigs on stage at the Artists Quarter a few blocks west. And for those who can’t get enough, or who can’t get into St. Paul, there’s one last gig in Anoka on June 23rd with the Jon Weber Trio.

Friday, June 19

Mears Park, Main Stage; Free! (5th Street East and Sibley Street)

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  Dakota Combo©Andrea Canter
  4 pm, the Dakota Combo. Some of the youngest performers at the TCJF, the Dakota Combo has proven to be an ensemble that can hold its own in performance and composition with far more seasoned musicians. This septet, all but one graduating from high school this spring, were selected from auditions last fall and have spent the past school year rehearsing, composing, performing and recording under the direction of Kelly Rossum. Hear them before they head off to such prestigious music schools as Julliard and the New England Conservatory!

• 5:15 pm, Terence Hughes and the Phill Fest Quartet: Tribute to Manfredo Fest. Los Angeles native Terence Hughes relocated to the Twin Cities in 1982, and began studying with the great Brazilian pianist/bossa nova pioneer Manfredo Fest (1936 - 1999). Hughes’ recent release, Bossa Blues, celebrates the music of his late mentor. With Manfredo's son Phill Fest (guitar), Gordy Johnson (bass) and Brian Lutz (drums).

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  Irv Williams©Andrea Canter
  6:45 pm, Irv Williams, 90th Birthday Celebration. What can we say about Mr. Smooth? It’s an early birthday party for the area’s Grandfather of tenor saxophone. A fixture at the TC Festival, Dakota Jazz Club Happy Hour, AQ and more, Irv defines swing and finesse. His book is encyclopedic; his tone is mellow and sweet; his credits include work with Ella Fitzgerald, Fletcher Henderson, Mary Lou Williams, Billy Eckstine and many other jazz luminaries at venues like the Apollo Theater. And his durability is amazing—he keeps releasing stellar recordings. As Matt Peikan wrote in the Pioneer Press, he’s “either the oldest young guy or the youngest old guy in St. Paul.” One of the funniest, too.

• 8:30 pm, Allen Toussaint. Allen Toussaint is the first member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to appear at the Twin Cities Jazz Festival. Hard to classify as jazz, R&B or rock, the New Orleans singer/songwriter/pianist/producer/arranger is one of the most talented musicians working today in any genre. An early ambassador of the “New Orleans Sound,” his songs were recorded by the likes of Irma Thomas and Aaron Neville, as well as by Glen Campbell ("Southern Nights"), the Rolling Stones, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss. His latest release, The Bright Mississippi on Nonesuch Records, is his first true jazz effort, exploring the work of the early jazz greats with a focus on New Orleans artists. It’s a really rare treat to hear Toussaint in a free venue!

Hat Trick Lounge, Free! (134 E. 5th Street)

• 5:30 pm, Joe Demko. Multi-instrumentalists Joe Demko cut his teeth locally on bass and guitar for Willie and the Bees, playing the R&B circuit at such venues as Moby Dick’s and the Cabooze. Turning more now to the role of “jazz crooner,” Joe has performed with Bruce Henry and has released a CD, Endings and Beginnings, that features his hollow-body guitar and smooth vocals.

• 7 pm, Pooch’s Playhouse. What happens when five veteran jazzmen come together for mutual inspiration and free conversation? Welcome to Pooch’s Playhouse, built over about six months of experimentation and collaboration, launching this past winter. Featuring Bruce “Pooch” Heine on bass, guitarist Joel Shapira, saxophonist Dave Brittain, pianist Mark Asche and percussionist Dave Schmalengerger. According to Shapira, the repertoire for Pooch’s Playhouse “features about about 1/3 originals, 2/3 jazz tunes and standards, done in a ‘modern jazz quintet’ style....lots of sax/guitar/ piano interaction with linear ideas and melody. Also members are actively composing new tunes especially written for PP players and instrumentation.” Sounds like fun.

• 8:30 pm, Jack Brass Band. The only authentic New Orleans brass band in the Twin Cities, Jack Brass was recently the only non-New Orleans-based band invited to perform at the French Quarter Jazz Festival and just returned from the Great American Brass Festival in Kentucky. Together now for ten years, Jack Brass plays a range of area venues including O’Gara’s, Dixie’s and a weekly Saturday morning gig at Famous Dave’s in Calhoun Square and appears at festivals around the nation.

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  Walker West Ensemble II©Andrea Canter
  10 pm, Nikki and the Ruemates. Blending acoustic delta blues (with sweet slide guitar), old time music and psychedelic folk rock, the band features the vocals and guitar of Nikki Matteson, guitarist Rich Rue and bassist Carrie Deans. A Rift Magazine review of their new CD notes that the music will "satisfy like a cold drink on a hot day . . . . The straight forward, no frills attitude of We All Live Together is what makes roots music, roots music."

The Artists Quarter, 9 pm, $10 Cover (408 St. Peter Street)

It’s not an ordinary weekend at the Artists Quarter (of course, there never is an ordinary weekend here!), as the venerable St. Paul club brings together two festival favorites for late night mayhem. Virtuoso pianist (and jazz trivia expert) Jon Weber has long been one of the “house” pianists at TCJF. Dazzling technique, intriguing artistry, and all-around entertainer, Jon will collaborate with 21-year-old alto sax prodigy Alex Han, himself a veteran of two previous TCJF appearances in the past four years. Not yet out of college (he attends Berklee in Boston), Han has been touring the world with bassist Marcus Miller’s band as well as gigging around the east coast with drummer Terri Lynne Carrington. With Billy Peterson on bass and Kenny Horst on drums, this quartet will carry over the festival spirit into the wee hours.  To warm up the stage, Wisconsin native singer and a real Klondike Kate, Paula Berands will start things off at 8 pm. 

Saturday, June 20

Mears Park, Main Stage; Free! (5th Street East and Sibley Street)

• Noon, Walker West Music Academy Young Artists Showcase. Why does the Twin Cities boast such depth of jazz talent? Because of programs like Walker West. This St. Paul community music center has been long known for its teaching and nurturing of young musicians, and their showcase is one of the traditions of TCJF. Students from middle school through high school and beyond will perform under the leadership of Felix James and his staff, and their chops and poise will prove that jazz is alive and will be for a long time.

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  Southside Aces©Andrea Canter
  1:30 pm, Klondike Kates. One of the beloved traditions of the annual St. Paul Winter Carnival, a new “Klondike Kate” is selected each year to perform as a “Gold Rush” entertainers at the Carnival Casino. Enjoy the Royal Order of Klondike Kates in the warmer surroundings of the TCJF!

• 2:30 pm, Southside Aces. Aces they are! Enjoy the traditional swing of one of the area’s premiere purveyors of New Orleans jazz. New Orleans Traditional Jazz Quarterly described the Aces as "A true, authentic New Orleans dance-hall style band." The Southside Aces include cofounder/clarinetist Tony Baluf, cofounder/sousaphonist Erik Jacobson, trombonist Steve Sandberg, trumpeter Andy Hakala, guitarist Robert Bell, and drummer Dave Michael.

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  New Standards
  4 pm, New Standards. Take John Munson (of Trip Shakespeare and multi-platinum Semisonic) on bass, Chan Polin (founder of the seminal 80s haute-punk-pop group The Suburbs) on piano, and Steve Roehm (Billygoat, Electropolis) on vibes, stir it up, and you have one of the most unique bands in Twin Cities music. Wanting to play their favorite songs unplugged with a wide a range of interpretation, The New Standards burst onto the local scene in 2005, their tailored suits in sharp contrast to their rock/pop/soul/jazz songbook. Their second and latest CD, Rock and Roll, presents eclectic fare from The Replacements’ "Androgynous" to OutKast’s "Hey Ya." In addition to the Dakota Jazz Club and other local haunts, they’ve been featured at the famed Joe's Pub in NYC.

• 6:30 pm, Alex Han with Jon Weber. Disregard the TCJF program, this is really Alex’s third appearance—he first brought down the house at the 2005 festival when he was a mere lad of 17; he returned in 2007 and now can claim voting and drinking privileges when he is not on the bandstand. An alto saxophonist since age 8, Arizona native Alex accumulated one award after another, including a Berklee College of Music Presidential Scholarship, several Downbeat Student Music Awards, and an ASCAP Young Composer Award before high school graduation. He released his first CD at age 14 and has been touring lately with Marcus Miller and Terri Lynne Carrington. Oh yeah, he is still in college, just 21. At the TCJS, Alex will be supported by former child prodigy himself, New York-based pianist Jon Weber, a perennial TCJF favorite and a musician of virtuosic technical and artistic skill as well as a walking encyclopedia of jazz trivia. They played together during Jazz Night Out and last night at the Artists Quarter, so they should be exploring volcanic territory by Saturday evening.

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  Esperanza Spaulding©Andrea Canter
  8:30 pm, Esperanza Spalding. Youth continues to rule at Mears Park, with the Saturday’s capstone set by very young (24), very talented (bass and vocals), and very mesmerizing Esperanza Spalding. The Portland, OR native was inspired to pursue music after hearing Yo-Yo Ma when she was just four. Growing up in a multilingual household, she taught herself to play violin and pursued classical music, later discovering the bass and other directions for music including singing and songwriting. She completed her GED at 16, and eventually landed at the Berklee College of Music, completing her degree by age 20 and gaining a faculty appointment as the school’s youngest faculty member. She has since worked with a who’s who list of jazz artists, including Dave Samuels, Patti Austin, Pat Metheny and Joe Lovano. In March, Esperanza sold-out the Dakota Jazz Club and then some. Be prepared to be blown away.

Hat Trick Lounge, Free! (134 E. 5th Street)

• 7 pm, Larry McDonough Quartet. A Legal Aid attorney by day, pianist/singer/composer Larry McDonough is one of the most creative musicians in town, quick to try new time signatures and to reinvent standards with his long-standing band of Richard Terrill on saxes, Chuck Mattaresse on bass and Chaz Draper on drums. With five recordings to his credit, McDonough has also performed with sax great Benny Golson and local songbird Patty Peterson.

• 8:30 pm, Atlantis Quartet. Four accomplished musicians who aren’t afraid to try new approaches and original compositions, the Atlantis Quartet includes saxman Brandon Wozniak, guitarist Zacc Harris, bassist Chris Bates and drummer Pete Hennig. This past winter they presented a full-length interpretation of John Coltrane’s Love Supreme. Following their release of Again, Too Soon, Jazz Improv Magazine declared them “genuinely inspired.”

• 10 pm, George Avaloz Quartet. A fixture of the TCJF, West St. Paul native and drummer George Avaloz is a force to be reckoned with on the bandstand. His usual cohorts include saxman Jim Marentic, bassist Ron Evaniuk, and pianist Mikkel Romstad, all veterans of the hard bop school.

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  Alex Han©Andrea Canter
  11:30 pm, Fat Kid Wednesdays. You have to wait til the very end of the festival to catch one of its prime acts. Featuring saxophonist Michael Lewis (Happy Apple), bassist Adam Linz and drummer JT Bates, this trio is one of the prides of Twin Cities improvised music. They’ve also gained a following in France and now in New York. In fact, the New Yorker blog referred to FKW as “one of the best working jazz bands of the day." Well, we already knew that! Don’t call it a night til you stop by the Hat Trick.

The Artists Quarter, 9 pm, $10 Cover (408 St. Peter Street)

If you missed Jon Weber with Alex Han on Friday night, you have another chance! And if you heard the quartet already, you know you need to hear them again. 

Last Chance, June 23 in Anoka with Jon Weber!

Yes, there is one more chance to enjoy Jon Weber during festival week. In Anoka at the United Methodist Church (850 South Street), Jon teams up with the dream duo of Gordy Johnson and Phil Hey, 7-9 pm. No charge. Let the good times keep rolling! 

Full festival and artist information is available at www.twincitiesjazzfestival.com. KBEM Jazz 88 FM will broadcast live from Mears Park, so if you can’t make it to the full festival, tune to 88.5 FM! 
 

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