Although jazz activity tends to wind down during July and August in many American cities, in Chicago it gathers momentum, with several important events scheduled for the next two months.
Here is a critical guide to key jazz performances this summer, the selection including avant-garde, traditional, bebop, mainstream and other schools of jazz expression:
– Kahil El’Zabar stands as one of the driving forces in new music in Chicago. As percussionist, he invents new sounds and techniques virtually every time he sits down at his instruments; as composer, he has helped create epic pieces for the Ritual Trio and Ethnic Heritage Ensemble, among other groups; as jazz activist, he has helped make Chicago a focal point for musical experimentation.
El’Zabar and his Ritual Trio have just released a splendid and adventurous new recording, “Renaissance of the Resistance” (Delmark), and they’ll play music from the new CD at 9 p.m. July 15 at HotHouse, 1565 N. Milwaukee Ave. Phone 312-235-2334.
– One of the most joyous events on the local jazz calendar is the Chicago Brazilian Jazz Fest, its third annual edition starting at 9 p.m. Friday and 8 p.m. Saturday at the Green Mill Jazz Club, 4802 N. Broadway. The shows will feature pianist Manfredo Fest and Chizil, one of the best Brazilian bands in the city, its personnel including reed virtuoso Steve Eisen, trumpeter Mark Ohlsen and percussionists Alejo Poveda, Ruben Alverez and Geraldo De Oliveira. Phone 312-878-5552.
– Pianist Jodie Christian and reed player Mwata Bowden, both veteran Chicago artists, made news this year by winning the prestigious Jazz Masters Awards, a $5,000 prize presented by not-for-profit, Minneapolis-based Arts Midwest. Chicagoans have an excellent opportunity to hear these formidable players at 6 p.m. Sunday during Jammin’ in the Park, sponsored by the Jazz Institute of Chicago. The performance will be in Washington Park, 740 E. 56th Pl., adjacent to the Du Sable Museum of African American History. Phone 312-427-1676.
– Avant-garde music is thriving in Chicago these days, with new experimental groups turning up regularly. One of the latest, the Unheard Music Quartet, includes reed player Ken Vandermark, cornetist Todd Margasau, bassist J.G.B. Bisner and drummer Otto Huber playing scores by Ornette Coleman, Eric Dolphy, Sun Ra and other music revolutionaries. The band will perform at 8:30 p.m. July 12 at HotHouse, 1565 N. Milwaukee Ave. Phone 312-235-2334.
– Chicago tenor master Ed Petersen recently received the good news that he had won a teaching position in New Orleans, which is bad news for anyone who has admired Petersen’s volcanic playing at the Green Mill and other major clubs around town. A farewell performance will take place at noon July 15 in Seneca Park, between Pearson Street and Chicago Avenue, just east of Michigan Avenue. Petersen will be backed by guitarist Dave Onderdonk, bassist John Whitfield and drummer William “Bugs” Cochran during the free concert, which has been organized by the Jazz Institute of Chicago. Phone 312-427-1676.
– William Russo, the protean teacher-composer-bandleader at Columbia College, has come up with an intriguing concept for a series of jazz repertory performances at the school’s Getz Theater, 72 E. 11th St. Russo has fashioned a program of music by Duke Ellington, Stan Kenton, Jelly Roll Morton and Count Basie, the guest soloists to include jazz singer Bobbi Wilsyn, soprano Carol Loverde and trumpeter Orbert Davis.
What makes the program intriguing is, first of all, its focus on the history and repertory of jazz, the very tack that has inspired the Lincoln Center Jazz series in New York and the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks series in Washington, D.C. In addition, Russo’s July 20 concert will be repeated July 22 through 24, underscoring the seriousness of the venture. How successful Russo will has yet to be seen, but this series could mark an important beginning.
