Thursday, November 6, 2008

PDX Jazz Festival 2009


The 2009 lineup for the Portland Jazz Festival was announced today. In September I was astounded by the news they had disbanded operations because of a budget shortfall which essentially claimed they couldn't put on a quality festival with less than a 700k budget. A few weeks later Alaska Airlines came to the rescue, and now the lineup of the festival's ten major ticketed shows.

Here are the ones not to miss this year, in my opinion.

Bobby Hutcherson plus Lou Donaldson: Saturday, February 21, 2:00 pm, Crystal Ballroom. The most interesting show is in the festival's second week Saturday matinee. These are both jazz legends who are very likely to pull out some very groovy sets. And of all of the shows listed this year, this one comes strongest to the promise of being a tribute the legacy of BlueNote records and their 70thAnniversary. Hutcherson redefined the vibraphone and the boogaloo hard bop of the 82 year old Donaldson is exactly what I hoped PDX jazz would have more of. Great choices.

Joe Lovano’s Us5 plus Jacky Terrasson: Saturday, February 14, 2:00 pm, Portland Art Museum Ballroom. Oh yes! Lovano's double drum group is pretty intense and dynamic. I had the good fortune to see them at work in Philadelphia last spring. I believe I have seen Terrasson before and it was a lively enough set, but solo jazz piano doesn't stick to my ribs or memory banks. The museum ballroom (formerly the Masonic temple ballroom) can feel a bit cavernous and chairs chained together on a flat floor can be kind of pain for sight, comfort and leg room. But it sounds like a nice way to spend Valentine's afternoon. And Lovano is a standard bearer of the saxaphone tradition with a vocabulary from Hawkins and Webster to Trane and Eddie Harris.


Cassandra Wilson plus Jason Moran & The Bandwagon: Friday, February 20, 7:30 pm, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. Maybe. I have always dug Cassandra, but am not always into her concept records. My absolute favorite recording of hers was the Blue Skies album from 20 years back with Mulgrew Miller. It would be a pleasant evening and some of the work I have heard from Moran sounds promising. But it just doesn't seem as essential as the two shows I mentioned prior.

There are also a few other big Schnitzer shows planned. A Tale of God’s Will (Requiem for Katrina) Terence Blanchard Quintet with full orchestra plus Gonzalo Rubalcaba Quintet. I love Rubacala and respect Terry Blanchard, but will probably pass. There is also another Sunday afternoon show with Lovano combined with McCoy Tyner and wacky dreadlocked clarinet man Don Byron as opening act. There are some other shows Patricia Barber, John Scofield, Pat Martino, Lionel Loueke, Diane Reeves. I don't see myself being at any of these shows. But I know indeed where I plan to try to be on a couple of Saturday afternoons in mid February.
posted by well-executed buffet at 1:58 PM
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