Picks of the pack

>> The Mirror’s jazz guru crunches the numbers

BASS IS THE PLACE: Esperanza Spalding

by LEN DOBBIN

f I had to pick five concerts at the 28th edition of the Montreal International Jazz Festival, which starts today and runs till July 8, they would be for the most part singers, beginning with the wonderful Roberta Gambarini, who pianist Hank Jones calls the greatest singer he’s played with in some 40 years. She’s a major talent, and as a bonus, she splits the bill with Freddy Cole. The other four are Mark Murphy, Kurt Elling, and Dorothée Berryman, on the St-Laurent boat cruise with her great little quartet (Eric Harding, Jon Gearey, Dave Watts and Claude Lavergne) and at least 10 new songs added to an already wonderful repertoire. Another bonus here—the sight of the city at night, when the boat cruise makes its return.

If it were 10 picks, I would add drummer Alvin Queen—whose group includes Joel Miller and Kenny Bibace—as well as Roy Haynes, who was the highlight of last year’s Montreal Drum Festival, former Miles Davis tenorman George Coleman, Joshua Redman (whose new CD is superb) and the double bill of guitarist Russell Malone and bassist Esperanza Spalding, who was most impressive last year with Joe Lovano’s band.

There are in fact a number of female bassists worth catching—Ms. Spalding, who is also doing two street concerts, Brandi Disterheft and Jodi Proznick. Pianists well worth your attention include Keith Jarrett, Anat Fort, François Bourassa (with Dave Binney added), Robert Glasper and Canadian icon Wray Downes.

For trumpet fans, there’s Wynton Marsalis, Sean Jones and Kevin Dean. The saxophone never seems to lose its popularity, and there’s plenty to choose from, including the aforementioned Mr. Binney, Chet Doxas, Ravi Coltrane, Dave Turner (on baritone), Mark Turner (with guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel), Jean Derome (with Normand Guilbeault and Pierre Tanguay) and a triple bill of Jean-Pierre Zanella, André Leroux and Remi Bolduc.

FEST-CASE SCENARIO: Roy Haynes, Harry Connick Jr. and David Virelles

Besides the bassists already mentioned, I would suggest hearing Dave Holland (with Chris Potter, Robin Eubanks, Steve Nelson and Nate Smith), Michel Donato and Joe Martin (also with Rosenwinkel). Other guitarists worth hearing are Bill Frisell, Jordan Officer and Mike Stern. In the vocal department, there are also Ranee Lee, Diane Nalini, Holly Cole, Harry Connick Jr., Cesaria Evora and, for the blues fancier, Mimi Fox, Dawn Tyler Watson, Kelly Joe Phelps, Bryan Lee and the double bill of Buddy Guy and George Thorogood.

Focusing on the street freebies, there’s a plethora of talent including Streetnix, singer Catherine Russell—the daughter of bandleader Luis Russell, with Larry Ham on piano— and bassists Adrian Vedady and Roberto Occhipinti (with Hilario Duran, Phil Dwyer, Kevin Turcotte and Dafnis Prieto). Among the pianists, there’s another Cuban, last year’s Grand Prix winner, David Virelles, as well as Yves Leveille, Felix Stussi, Stacie McGregor—who impressed during a visit here with Kollage—Marianne Trudel and Elizabeth Shepherd, who also sings.

Singers not already mentioned include Emile Claire Barlow, Robin McKelle and Johanne Desforges. Matt Brubeck (Dave’s cellist son) joins pianist David Braid, there’s the No Name Jazz Sextet, the Christine Jensen Quartet (with Dave Restivo, Fraser Hollins and Greg Ritchie) and reedman Quinsin Nachoff’s combo (with Restivo and Mark Kelso).

For the nightbirds, there is Dan Thouin (at the Savoy Room of Metropolis), and jam sessions headed by John Roney at the Hyatt Regency and Jeff Johnston at Upstairs.

Don’t overlook the closing gala, which will be hosted by Ms. Berryman and Katie Malloch and feature Susie Arioli, Oliver Jones and I Musici.

SAX SYMBOL: Joshua Redman

For complete info, go to
www.montrealjazzfest.com

Hope springs external

>> Good bets among the Jazz Fest’s
many free outdoor concerts

FLORAL HISTORY: DJ Dolores

by RUPERT BOTTENBERG

Do some quick math—11 days and nights, and a dozen or so outdoor stages, each with multiple performances daily. That’s a lot of free music to sort through and choose from, so to simplify the task for you, here are 10 highlights that merit a look and listen.

Carlinhos Brown: The pop-music scene in Brazil is one the most diverse, original and exciting in the world, and among the most important figures in that field is the distinctive Mr. Brown, whose sweet, tuneful music and high-energy stage presence christen the Jazz Fest at this opening concert. At the General Motors stage (Ste-Catherine and Jeanne-Mance) tonight, Thursday, June 28, 9 p.m.

Hazmat Modine: Fronted by duelling harmonicas and boasting a tuba to boot, this New York City outfit raise a riotous racket, blending blues, a little reggae and a lot of klezmer and Gypsy sounds—and that’s just the beginning. The starting point is ostensibly American traditional music, but that’s quickly obscured by the crazy stew of sounds and ideas dragged in from Asia, the Middle East, the Balkans and the New World. Expect the unexpected. At the Samsung stage (President-Kennedy and St-Urbain) on Friday, June 29, 8 p.m. and 10 p.m.

Pawa Up First: Whether your bag is forward-thinking indie rock, experimental jazz, cinematic ambience, robo-tronic hip hop or dizzying, dubbed-out grooves, a set from Montreal’s eclectic unit Pawa Up First will have something in there for you. And if you dig all of the above, you’ll be wowed by their artful interconnections. At the Bell stage (Bleury and de Maisonneuve) on Friday, June 29, 10 p.m.

Forestare: This Quebec ensemble’s name is Latin for “creating a forest,” and at over a dozen strong, this classical guitar army is certainly densely packed. Beyond their intricate and intoxicating repertoire, where Steve Reich meets noted Québécois composers, Forestare expresses strong environmental concerns, in particular about the preservation of woodlands—after all, that’s where their instruments come from. At the Carrefour General Motors (Jeanne-Mance and de Maisonneuve) on Sunday, July 1, 6:30 p.m.

Boom Pam: With basslines provided by “Tuby” Zolotov’s belching tuba, this Israeli quartet—protégés of Germany’s DJ Shantel, a connoisseur of Eastern European party folk—bust out a swaggering, darkly-tinted stew of rollicking rock, ballsy Balkan brass and Jewish folk and pop music. At the Samsung stage on Monday, July 2, 8 p.m. and 10 p.m.

Seun Kuti & Egypt 80: The big indoor double bill for fans of Afrobeat would be NYC’s Antibalas paired up with Femi Kuti, son of the sound’s Nigerian architect, the late, great Fela Anikulapo Kuti. But while Femi’s a dead ringer for his dad, physically, he’s softened up the African funk. Many argue that the true spirit resides in the youngest son, Seun, who plays with no less than his father’s final band, Egypt 80. Expect a tough, politically charged groove attack. At the General Motors stage on Tuesday, July 3, 9:30 p.m.

Andy Palacio: Hailing from Belize, where he’s been a longstanding star of the fun but slight Punta rock scene, Palacio is one of the hottest stories going in world music today (“the next Buena Vista” is a common refrain). That’s not only because of his tireless effort to bolster and preserve his own Garifuna language and culture (a defiant Central American hybrid of West African and Caribbean first nations elements), but because he now does so with breathtakingly sweet and soulful music, rich with memories, with his multigenerational Garifuna Collective. At the Bell stage on Wednesday, July 4, 7:30 p.m.

DJ Dolores & Aparelhagem: Helder Aragão, aka DJ Dolores, has spent almost two decades working towards a fun, flavourful and inventive approach to filtering the wide variety of pop, dance and folk styles of his native Brazil through the chop-and-shuffle technology today’s dancefloors demand. With the musicians from his album Aparelhagem in tow, including the honey-voiced singer Isaar França, DJ Dolores can be counted on to keep the summer vibes simmering at his Jazz Fest sets. At the Samsung stage on Thursday, July 5, 8 p.m. and 10 p.m., and on Friday, July 6, 10 p.m.

NOMO: Hope you still have an appetite for Afrobeat after not one but two Kuti scions, because this outrageously good Michigan unit do some amazing things with the sound, incorporating elements of freak jazz and fucked-up electronics to counterbalance their sturdy yet polyrhythmic grooves and freight-train brass. Definitely a must-see. At the Samsung stage on Saturday, July 7, 8 p.m. and 10 p.m.

Rachid Taha: Ever since his first band Carte de Séjour poked Le Pen in the eye with their cover of Charles Trenet’s “Douce France,” right up to his recent Arabic cover of “Rock the Casbah,” France’s Taha has succeeded in dovetailing his Algerian roots and his punk rock indignation. Over the years, while he was at it, he’s also established himself as the dark prince of raï. His most recent effort, Dîwan 2, revisited classic Arab pop of the ’50s and ’60s, and a fair bit of that material should find its way into the set list of Taha’s blowout fest-closer concert, for which he’s rounded up myriad guests. At the General Motors stage on Sunday, July 8, 9 p.m.

OPEN-AIR FARE: Forestare, Carlinhos Brown, Seun Kuti

At Parc Jean-Drapeau on Saturday and
Sunday, June 23–24, 1–9 p.m., $5 ($7
after 5 p.m., free for kids under 12)