by Andrew Frisicano

John Hollenbeck @ The Bitter End for Winter Jazz Fest 2010 (more)

The sixth Winter Jazz Festival in January brought some of the city's best jazz musicians to five Greenwich Village venues. With that lead in, the inauguaral Undead Jazz Festival will be happening in three of the same venues - (Le) Poisson Rouge, Sullivan Hall and Kenny's Castaways - on June 12th and 13th. Tickets for one night and two-night passes are on sale.

The lineup - almost perfectly configured to complement Winter Jazz Fest - includes Happy Apple (sideproject of the Bad Plus' David King), pianist Matthew Shipp, trumpeter Dave Douglas & Keystone (his cinema-scoring/inspired sextet), drummer-composers Dan Weiss and John Hollenbeck (who both appeared with different groups in January) and many more. The initial lineup is posted below...

Continue reading "Undead Jazz Festival (June 12-13 in NYC)"

by Andrew Frisicano

Cecil Taylor & McCoy Tyner...

Born Dec. 11, 1938, [McCoy] Tyner made his name as a member of the legendary John Coltrane Quartet in the 1960s. Since then, he has brought his distinctive playing style, and his compositions, to dozens of records on which he leads his own bands.

[What's his secret?]

Tyner says the secret is simple: Drink carrot juice.

"Well, I like carrot juice," he says. "I have a juice machine at home that helps. Carrot juice is real good for you. Carrot and celery. Don't forget celery." [NPR]

You can buy him a glass at the Highline Ballroom on Sunday, August 23rd, where he'll perform as part of the venue's Piano Series, an 11-night lineup of piano-driven acts that runs from August 17th through August 28th.

We previously reported that Tyner's Lincoln Center shows in May would be his last NYC gigs for a while, and though according to his website that's still true, Tyner will bring his Trio (bassist Gerald Cannon and drummer Eric Kamau Gravatt plus guest saxist Gary Bartz) to the Highline for one two-set night.

Another Hall-of-Fame level jazz great, Cecil Taylor, will play as part of the series too. He'll perform solo on Tuesday, August 25th (two sets also).

The series mixes those legends with a slew of younger but equally impressive acts like the The Bad Plus, Matthew Shipp, and the Benevento/Russo Duo, who are all playing the series.

Tickets to all the shows are on sale now.

The Piano Series' full schedule, which includes non-jazz pianists too, is posted below...

Continue reading "Highline Ballroom Piano Series - 11 shows @ the NYC venue"