March
The Bruce Gertz Quintet with Jerry Bergonzi, John Abercrombie Joey Calderazzo & Adam Nussbaum
1 MAR SAT 7:30 & 10pm: $14
Bassist Gertz has been fielding this all-star group for over a decade, and has produced five CDs with it. Three of the sidemen are leaders in their own right, but they continue to return to participate in the joyous interplay born of top level musicianship and mutual respect. Saxman Bergonzi, guitarist Abercrombie, pianist Calderazzo and drummer Nussbaum round out the blue ribbon assemblage, which will be making a long-overdue R'bar debut.
Either/Orchestra
4 MAR WED 8:30pm: $12
Now in its sixteenth year, Russ Gershon's globe-trotting ten-piece band has evolved in a new direction. Dominican conguero Vicente Lebron and Surinamese drummer Harvey Wirht take the band deep into Afro-cuban grooves, and the E/O applies its world-class writing and playing style to this fresh approach.
The Igor Butman Quartet
5 MAR WED 8:30pm: $12
Russian jazz saxophonist Butman hung out in the Boston area (and performed frequently in the Regattabar) in the late 80s.
After a stint in New York City, he returned to Moscow in 1996. Both here and abroad, he has appeared with some of the leading lights of jazz, including Dave Brubeck, Pat Metheny and Grover Washington, Jr. Now the owner of Moscow's Le Club, the largest jazz room in Russia, which has presented the above luminaries as well as Wynton Marsalis, Elvin Jones, Joe Lovano and Gary Burton, he returns to the R to renew his acquaintance with us.
The Tony Pérez Quartet
6 MAR THU 8:30pm: $12
Handpicked by Chucho Valdés to perform in the legendary Cuban big band Irakere pianist Pérez has since emigrated to the US to seek a career here. With past associations with the Fania All-Stars and Celia Cruz, and Jazznow calling him "the successor to Chucho Valdés and Gonzalo Rubalcaba," it's easy to see that he may succeed. He returns to the R with bassist John Lockwood, drummer Bertram Lehmann and percussionist Ernesto Diaz.
The Charles Mingus Big Band with Earl Gardner, Doug Purviance, Frank Lacy, Vincent Herring, Craig Handy, John Stubblefield, Ronnie Kuber & others
7 MAR FRI 7:30 & 10pm: $24
8 MAR SAT 7:30 & 10pm: $26
The band was formed in 1991 to perpetuate the work of bassist/
legend Charles Mingus. Organized by Mr. Mingus' widow, Sue Mingus and using arrangements by him, his alumni and others, the 16-member band performs every Thursday in The Time Cafe in New York City and draws on a rich pool of premier talent that loves to play in it. Last year Ms. Mingus published her book, and the group released a Dreyfus CD-both titled Tonight at Noon-to mark her late husband's 80th birthday. Jon Pareles wrote in The New York Times that the group has "revived Charles Mingus's repertory and the brawling, muscular, hard-swinging, bluesy way he wanted it played,"and it returns to the R for another all-out weekend.
The Milton Academy Jazz Band
9 MAR SUN 3pm : $12
Under the direction of Bob Sinicrope, The Milton Academy Jazz Band performs mainstream and cutting-edge jazz. The group makes their Regattabar debut to celebrate the release of its latest CD as well as providing a fund-raiser for its upcoming tour of South Africa, and a portion of the proceeds will go towards paying the costs of the trip. More importantly, the engagement will provide R'bar patrons (and perhaps Milton students) with a peek at the future. Distinguished band alumni include pianist Aaron Goldberg and vocalist Titilayo Ngwenya, who are not strangers to the R.
Patrons of the 3pm show seated in Henrietta's Table after 1:30pm receive a $10 per person discount on brunch.
The Garrison Fewell Trio with Khan Jamal & Cameron Brown
11 MAR TUE 8:30pm: $12
Described by Guitar Player Magazine as creating "superb melodic, telepathic jazz-one of the finest neoclassical guitarists of our time," Berklee prof Fewell returns to the R with bassist Brown and cutting-edge vibist Jamal. His latest Splash CD is City of Dreams.
Paul Im and Remember Rockefeller
12 MAR WED 8:30pm: $12
Saxophonist Paul Im's Remember Rockefeller is an acoustic jazz octet (5 horns, 3 rhythm) whose approach blends the exuberant sound of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers with the groove of a jam band. This cohesive group has been getting noticed around town, with appearances at The Berklee Performance Center and the Institute of Contemporary Art.
The Christian McBride Band with Ron Blake, Geoff Keezer & Terreon Gully
13 MAR THU 8:30pm: $16; 14 MAR FRI 7:30 & 10pm: $16
15 MAR SAT 7:30 & 10pm: $18
A distinguished sideman with Joshua Redman, Pat Metheny, Wynton Marsalis, George Duke and Sting, Mr. McBride was called by Time Magazine "the most promising and versatile bassist since Charles Mingus." He now leads his own group and experiments with acoustic and electric formats within the same band and returns to the R with bandmates Blake (sax), Keezer (keys) and Gully (dm) to celebrate his new Warner Brothers CD, Vertical Vision.
WATER MUSIC/MAINSTAGE CONCERTS AT SANDERS THEATRE:
The Dave Brubeck Quartet
15 MAR SAT 8pm: $35.50/$29.50 All seats reserved
16 MAR SUN 3pm: $35.50/$29.50 All seats reserved
The legendary pianist, who came to national attention in the 1950s with his adventurous use of uncommon time signatures and his incorporation of classical approaches in jazz again returns to Boston to celebrate his new Telarc CD, scheduled for release this week.
Regattabar closed march 18
Panorama: Calypso & Soca Ensemble
19 MAR WED 8:30pm: $12
Steel pan drummer Mackie Burnette, known in his native Trinidad as a revolutionary musical force, has engaged in a life journey that took him to Jamaica in the 70s and Brown University in the 90s. His current quintet covers classical and pop tunes and reaches into the jazz idiom with infectious enthusiasm. His music, opined Beat Magazine, "takes the listener to far off places and exotic lands."
The Boston Latin Band
20 MAR THU 8:30pm: $14
Under the direction of Hector Cuevas, the 12-piece Boston Latin Band plays sinuous salsas, merengues, and boleros, delighting listeners and dancers alike. It makes its Regattabar debut to celebrate the release of its yet untitled CD, and the R will provide a dance floor for patrons to move to the music.
Los Hombres Calientes with Irvin Mayfield and Bill Summers
21 MAR FRI 7:30 & 10pm: $18
22 MAR SAT 7:30 & 10pm: $20
Mix a veteran percussionist, an up-and-coming trumpeter, and a blazing horn section, and you get the intrinsically New Orleans gumbo known as Los Hombres Calientes. Perhaps the hottest, most inventive musical group that New Orleans has produced in many years, its members draw heavily on the "Spanish tinge" that Jelly Roll Morton claimed as a shaping factor in early jazz. Together they produce a sound that combines Mr. Summers' percussive rhythms (once a part of Herbie Hancock's Headhunters) and the sweeping strokes of Mr. Mayfield's trumpet. Los Hombres, which also includes Leon Brown (tp), Steve Walker (tb), Devin Phillips (ts) Victor Atkins (p), Edwin Livingston (b) and Ricky Sebastian (dm), return to the R to celebrate its new Basin Street CD, Voudo Dance.
The David Azarian Electric Band
25 MAR TUE 8:30pm: $14
Composer/pianist and Berklee prof Azarian returns to the R with regular band members John Lockwood (b) and Jamey Haddad (dm). David Franklin of Jazz Times states that "classically-trained Azarian's playing shows a debt to Keith Jarrett, assimilating certain classical approaches and Armenian sources in to a unique, non-imitative style."
The Richie Hart Trio
26 MAR WED 8:30pm: $12
Guitarist Hart, who has performed with Freddie Hubbard, Ron Carter, Dr. Lonnie Smith and his mentor, George Benson, divides his time between New York City and Boston, where he currently is on the faculty at Berklee. He returns to the R to celebrate his new Hohenberger CD, Timeless, with longtime compatriots Rick Petrone (b) and Joe Corsello (dm).
The Matt Wilson Quartet
27 MAR THU 8:30pm: $12
Drummer Wilson, once one of the most sought after sidemen in Boston, moved to New York City in the 90s where he continues as an A-list sideman and also develops his own projects. The latest of these is his new Palmetto CD, Humidity, and he returns to the R with reedmen Andrew D'Angelo and Jeff Lederer and bassist Yosuke Inoue to celebrate its release.
David Maxwell's Maximum Blues
28 MAR FRI 7:30 & 10pm: $12
Blues pianist Maxwell, who has garnered five Grammy and W.C. Handy Award nominations in his career, returns with an expanded all-star group featuring some of the performers who served with him on those projects, including saxman Sax Gordon, guitarist Mike Williams, bassist Marty Ballou and drummer Per Hanson.
The Sergio Brandão Octet: Manga Rosa
with Fernando Brandão and Daniel Ian Smith
29 MAR SAT 7:30 & 10pm: $14
Brazilian composer/guitarist Brandão performs the music of Rio de Janeiro and Brazil's Northeast. He returns to the R with his brother Fernando on flute, assisted by saxist Smith, pianist Doug Johnson, bassist Fernando Huergo, drummer Steve Langone, percussionist Pedro Ito and special guest vocalist Alida Rohr.
Louise Grasmere
30 MAR SUN 3pm : $20
Vocalist Grasmere began as a coffeehouse folksinger in her teens and, after work with Nigerian drum master Babatunde Olatunji, Ladysmith Black Mambazo's Joseph Shabalala and Sweet Honey in the Rock's Ysaye Barnwell, now combines the grace and elegance of the classic jazz singers with the ringing power and authority of the great blues shouters. She will be accompanied by a quartet including Consuelo Candelaria (p), Kevin Barry (g), Lou Ulrich (b) and Ron Savage (dm).
Patrons of the 3pm show seated in Henrietta's Table after 1:30pm receive a $10 per person discount on brunch.
WATER MUSIC/MAINSTAGE CONCERT AT THE BERKLEE PERFORMANCE CENTER:
The Chucho Valdés Quartet with special guest Joe Lovano
30 MAR SUN 7pm: $27.50/$22.50 oAll seats reserved
Time Magazine called Mr. Valdés "the greatest jazz pianist in Cuba, perhaps one of the greatest pianists in the world." Cuba's most-renowned jazz musician plays the complex rhythms of Cuba's African religious traditions, performs the classics with astounding technique and solos in any jazz style you can name. He returns to Boston with his quartet of compatriots and very special guest, tenor saxophone legend Lovano, for an evening of jazz without frontiers.
