CDs of Note - Short Takes

Amina Figarova, Sketches (BMCD / Munich Records)
Netherlands-based, Azerbaijan-born pianist and composer Amina Figerova had the early crowd in the palms of her hands last month at the CareFusion Newport Jazz Festival for good reason. She’s a skilled player and musical conceptualist. This CD, her 12th since her 1994 debut, Attraction, is a gem. She uses her stable, globetrotting sextet, co-led with her husband, flute player Bart Platteau, to showcase her musical vision.

Many of her multi-faceted pieces carry a compositional and lush arranging depth reminiscent of Maria Schneider. They are just delivered in a more intimate context than the sweep of a full jazz orchestra. (It would be interesting to hear the best of Figarova’s pieces expanded to that context one day. Determining which ones are best would be tough – because they all are very different and very fine.) My personal favorites among the 13 travels-inspired pieces on this outing: the uptempo “Sketches” (showcasing the front line of Platteau, trumpeter Ernie Hammes and tenor saxophonist Marc Mommaas), the more pensive “Caribou Crossing,” the groove-centric “WHOTSOT” and “Back in New Orleans,” and ponderous/wistful “Your room.” By the way, WHOTSOT is an acronym for “what happens on tour stays on tour.

The Cookers, Warriors (Jazz Legacy Productions)
This is a must for the many lovers of pure hard bop. This all-star collective includes saxophonists Craig Handy (alto plus flute) and Billy Harper (tenor), trumpeters Eddie Henderson and David Weiss, pianist George Cables, bassist Cecil McBee and drummer Billy Hart. What are the prime ingredients? Intensity, passion and great beauty. Cables, Harper and McBee provided most of the material, which also includes late trumpeter Freddie Hubbard’s “The Core.” (The band is named after named after Hubbard’s live album Night of the Cookers.) My favorites: this team’s version of the Harper classic “Priestess” and McBee’s “U-Phoria.” But it’s all good. Make that very, very fine. I hope they add many more volumes in the next few years.

Birdie Leigh, In A Silky Mood (self-produced)
Silky. Sultry. Husky. Versatile. These are some of the elements that shine through Los Angeles-based Birdie Leigh’s jazz recording debut. She’s very new to my ears, but a most welcome addition given the performances on In a Silky Mood. The session mostly tackle vintage vocal swing and Western swing, with a few Latin and blues tracks to change things up. Leigh sounds like a mystery, but insists she’s not. She performs occasional club dates in and around L.A., as well as a few private parties with her band, Birdie Leigh and her Blue Boys. Mystery? Perhaps. Intrigue, most definitely. Maybe she’ll share story or two when you run into her.


From Patsy Cline to Bobby Gentry (the latter is an interesting remake of “Ode to Billie Jo”), she’s got a terrific way of turning non-jazz standards into jazzy vehicles. My favorites: “My Baby Just Cares for Me,” her playful take on Benny Carter’s “Cow Cow Boogie” (with lyrics by Gene DePaul and Don Ray), “Walkin’ After Midnight,” the blues-drenched “Someday Baby” and the more mainstream “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” Her ace band, anchored by producers Kevin Chown (bass) and Avi Sills (drums), also includes Bill Steinway (piano and keys), Jeff Marshall (guitar), Paulie Cerra (saxophones) and Quetzal Guerrero (violin). Check it out.

2010 is a very Sonny year

The Chinese Lunar Calendar considers 2010 as the Year of the Tiger, but in the jazz calendar this is the Year of the Colossus.

Why? All of the deserved attention focused on tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins, who turned 80 on September 7 - still a vibrant musical force and restless explorer. (At right, Sonny Rollins at Newport, August 2008. Ken Franckling photo).

Here’s the rundown of significant moments that have taken place.

- On June 27, Rollins received the Montreal International Jazz Festival’s Miles Davis Award for his lifetime contributions to and achievements in jazz.

- On August 15, Rollins received the Edward MacDowell Medal from The MacDowell Colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire. The prestigious award is given annually to an artist who has made an outstanding contribution to his or her field. The Colony quite fittingly selected jazz writer, critic and Colony Fellow Gary Giddins to keynote the event.

- On September 10, three days after Rollins turned octogenarian, a sold-out 80th birthday concert at New York’s Beacon Theater was filled with much Rollins wonder and a few surprise guests. The biggest surprise - perhaps the only true surprise - was the appearance of Ornette Coleman, with whom Rollins likely never performed in public in their long parallel careers. In his New York Times review the following Monday, Nate Chinen captured the essence of the summit.

- Four nights later Rollins joined photographer John Abbott and writer/critic Bob Blumenthal at the Barnes & Noble store in Tribeca to talk with fans, including more than a few fellow musicians, and sign copies of Abbott and Blumenthal's Saxophone Colossus: A Portrait of Sonny Rollins. The book was published September 1 by Abrams. See jazztimes.com for images from the event, and see Jazz Times' October issue for book excerpts.

It's not over.

On October 9 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Rollins will be among more than 200 scholars, scientists, writers and artists, as well as civic, corporate and philanthropic leaders, inducted into the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.

The nation's oldest and most prestigious honorary society is celebrating the 230th anniversary of its founding. In the , other new members from humanities and arts include film director Francis Ford Coppola, actor Denzel Washington, dancer Suzanne Farrell and singer Thomas Hampson.

“It is a tremendous privilege and honor to be made a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences," says Rollins. "Not only for me, but for what I represent - the great American music called jazz."

Rollins was nominated by Academy member Apostolos P. Georgopoulos, a Minneapolis-based neuroscientist, amateur saxophonist and longtime Rollins fan. "It's a terrific tribute to a legend," says Georgopoulos, "and a jewel in the Academy's crown."

Since its founding in 1780 by John Adams, James Bowdoin, John Hancock, and other scholar-patriots, the Academy has elected leading "thinkers and doers" from each generation. Prominent inductees in prior centuries included George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Daniel Webster, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Albert Einstein and Winston Churchill in the 20th. The Academy’s current membership includes more than 250 Nobel laureates and more than 60 Pulitzer Prize winners.

In about two weeks, we can officially add a Saxophone Colossus to the list.

Rollins is being honored for a lifetime of achievement as a musician. But don’t for a nanosecond think he’s finished. He has many more creative notes to play.

Short Takes - CDs of Note

Bands led by trumpeters are in the spotlight…

Miles Davis, Bitches Brew: 40th Anniversary Collector’s Edition (Columbia/Legacy)
Two weeks after releasing its three-disc Legacy Edition of Miles Davis’s genre-smashing Bitches Brew project that pulled jazz together with the commercial rock world, Columbia/Legacy is out with a Collector’s Edition. The boxed set includes CDs containing the original recording plus six bonus tracks, a previously unissued performance by Davis’s evolving septet at Tanglewood in August 1970 and a DVD of a previously unissued quintet performance in Copenhagen, plus much more. The other items are an audiophile vinyl replication of the original album, a 48-page color book with an extended Greg Tate essay, and reproduced memorabilia.

Why so much attention now to Bitches Brew? Remember its times and Davis’s ability to take his jazz into distinctly new styles throughout his career. This time, he went head-to-head with arena rock bands at major venues – and found a rock audience welcoming his new group sound. It spawned a new wave of jazz-cum-progressive rock that soon became known as fusion. It paved the way for Weather Report, the Brecker Brothers, the Mahavishnu Orchestra and many other adventurers. Jazz purists at the time were questioning where Davis was headed. Whether or not they embraced it, now we have a clear sense of its progeny and impact.

Alex Sipiagin, Generations – Dedicated to Woody Shaw (Criss Cross)
If you like modern jazz trumpet played with melodic clarity and fire, Russia-born, New York-based Alex Sipiagin is worth a listen. Several listens in fact. He was an instrumental part of the late Michael Brecker’s sextet and now brings his talents to bassist Dave Holland’s big and small bands, and the Mingus Big Band. This session is a tribute to Woody Shaw, who was a key influence on Sipiagin’s development. The leader puts his own stamp on five tunes written by or associated with Shaw and adds four spirited originals. His partners here, all Michael Brecker alumni, are guitarist Adam Rogers, bassist Boris Koslov and drummer Antonio Sanchez. Favorite tracks: there takes on Shaw’s “Cassanadranite” (with terrific soloing by Rogers) and “Katrina Ballerina,” and Sipiagin’s “Greenwood I.”

Jim Rotondi, 1000 Rainbows (Posi-Tone)
Trumpeter Jim Rotondi is a stalwart member of the New York-based jazz collective One For All. He’s also a great leader and writer in his own right, as evidenced on this third release as a leader on Posi-Tone. Vibes player Joe Locke is a strong front-line foil for Rotondi in this swinging setting and contributes the burner “Crescent Street.” Pianist Danny Grissett, bassist Barak Mori and drummer Bill Stewart add strong support. Favorites: Rotondi’s “Bizzaro World,” the band’s teasing take on the Lennon/McCartney classic “We Can Work It Out,” and the Buddy Montgomery title track, “1000 Rainbows.” The latter is a ballad that has long deserved more recognition. This tip of the hat is most welcome - and beautifully done.

Giving credit where it is due - and then some...

When you've made an indelible imprint on an art form - people take notice. Particularly when that effort has helped fuel their own successes.

Such is the case with George Wein, the producer of the first jazz festival as we know it today back in 1954 in Newport RI.

In June 2009, as part of the Montreal International Jazz Festival's 30th anniversary, founders Alain Simard and Andre Menard honored Wein (right) as the “father of all jazz festivals” at a news conference before his Newport All-Stars performance at Montreal's Théâtre Jean-Duceppe. They gave him a symbolic Tony Bennett silkscreen of Louis Armstrong that the singer and painter created especially for the festival.

This Thursday, September 16, the Monterey Jazz Festival will honor Wein at its 2010 Jazz Legends Gala at Mission Ranch in Carmel CA. The $225-per-ticket event will be hosted by another pianist, who is far better known as an actor-producer, Clint Eastwood, and his wife Dina. 2010 Festival Artist-in-Residence Dianne Reeves will perform at the gala, which is a benefit for the Monterey Jazz Festival's education programs.

“With George appearing at this year’s MJF, it is a perfect opportunity to honor him with our Jazz Legends Award,” said Tim Jackson, General Manager of the Monterey Jazz Festival. “He is truly ‘The godfather’ of jazz festivals.”

The Jazz Legends Award was first presented to pianist Dave Brubeck in 2007, and to the composer, trumpeter and bandleader, Gerald Wilson, in 2008. MJF’s Education Programs have a strong impact on students and schools from coast to coast.

Wein will at the 2010 Monterey Jazz Festival on Saturday and Sunday, September 18 and 19 for a performance and a live interview.

The honors are most fitting at both venues not only for starting a jazz venue that is an art form unto itself.

Wein, who turns 85 on October 3, came back from semi-retirement last year to rescue the Newport Jazz Festival. Young entrepreneurs who bought the festival from him a few years earlier ran it into the ground financially under the Festival Network aegis. Wen and his own crew are still hard at it under the banner, New Festival Productions.

Bravo.

A fine time at Tanglewood

JazzTimes.com today posted my review and imagery from last weekend's Tanglewood Jazz Festival in the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts. It is a great late-summer hang and a wonderful spot to hear great music. This year - it blended jazz and classical to great effect.

The blustery remnants of Hurricane/Tropical Storm Earl which rumbled up the East Coast last week didn't keep the audience away. But it did provide for a quite chilly Sunday finale, with temperatures in the low 50s. The lawn chair and blanket crowd out on the lawn braved it for good reason. The music.

It was also a chance to hear Connecticut pianist Noah Baerman for the first time. Baerman (at right) was a clear highlight at the tented Jazz Cafe just up the hillside from Seiji Ozawa Hall. He is a composer, player and bandleader to keep an eye on. I'll follow up in a later blog with more on Noah.

Stay tuned.

CDs of Note…

Tamir Hendelman, Destinations (Resonance)
If you love jazz piano trios, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a better example of their results among the recordings released so far this year. Israeli-born pianist Tamir Hendelman (a longtime resident of southern California), Italian bassist Marco Panascia and New York drummer Lewis Nash have produced a gem in Destinations. The players’ comfort level, adventurous approach to the classic, contemporary and original material - and depth of playing - combine to make this a winner. Gems: all 12 tracks.

Omar Hakim and Rachel Z, The Trio of Oz, Ozmosis Records
How do you draw younger, eclectic pop- and rock-based listeners to jazz? Drummer Omar Hakim, pianist Rachel (Nicolazzo) Z and bassist Maeve Royce have one solution. In this new project, they have taken 10 musical standards from the rock world - and used them as launching pads for their own deconstruction, reconstruction and improvisation.

The music is wide ranging, retaining enough melodic meat to satisfy both casual and adventurous listeners while fueling their own imaginations as players and arrangers. The “covers,” if you can call them that, include “Angry Chair” by Alice in Chains, Coldplay’s “Lost,” Death Cab for Cutie’s “I Will Possess Your Heart,” Depeche Mode’s “In Your Room,” Morrissey’s “There is a Light” and Sting’s “King of Pain” hit for The Police. In these talented hands, the results are electric - and fascinating. (This is a September 8 release.)

Brandi Disterheft, Second Side (Justin Time)
Brandi Disterheft is a marvelous bass player and a charming singer, and she puts both skills to great use on her second recording project as a leader, following up 2007’s aptly titled, Juno-winning, Debut. Disterheft’s talents shine on the beautiful “Combien de Chances” (How Many Chances), “Sketches of Belief,” “Second Dawn” (which features her on kalimba), and the hard-driving “My Only Friends are Pigeons.” Her Joni Mitchell-like approach to lyrics is beautiful on “Twilight Curtain.” Two fellow Canadian singers, Holly Cole and Ranee Lee, join the project - with Cole providing lyrics and singing the country-tinged “He’s Walkin’” and Lee adding her imprint to the lone standard, “This Time the Dream is on Me.” There’s nothing at all wrong with their performances, but to my ears, their inclusion detracts a bit from the leader’s stunning effort.

It’s Tanglewood time – in jazz time

Every summer during my festival wanderings, I get one or more similar pitches. “You really need to go to X.” or “You need to come here… It’s a huge jazz event – and it’s free!” Only problem, it’s many hundreds of miles away, it is indeed a HUGE event, and at this point of my summer festival season, I’m ready to wind down with something a bit laid back and bucolic – but no less musical.

The festivals in question also happen to take place on Labor Day Weekend, when I’m already committed to the Tanglewood Jazz Festival. And it'sTanglewood, in the Berkshire hills of western Massachusetts, that’s a bit laid back and bucolic – but no less musical. That’s a large measure of its charm.

For several decades, jazz has been the traditional closer of the season at Tanglewood, located in Lenox, Mass. Its beautiful woody, pastoral setting - and sweeping lawn - are the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and a range of pop concerts. But over the Labor Day weekend, it’s all about jazz – veterans, rising talents and artists whose work blends the jazz and classical genres.

This year’s festival opens Saturday afternoon in Ozawa Hall with the second annual taping of John Pizzarelli and Jessica Molaskey’s lively “Radio Deluxe” syndicated radio show with special guest Jane Monheit, who straddles the jazz-cabaret line. Saturday night brings Tanglewood veteran and Grammy winner Kurt Elling to the stage with his band. His longtime pianist and musical director (a relationship dating to 1995) Laurence Hobgood, opens the evening with his trio.

Sunday’s matinee features clarinetist-saxophonist Eddie Daniels and pianist Bob James with bassist James Genus and drummer Peter Erskine in a new program they call “Broadway Boogie.” Its repertoire ranges from standards to Bach. Lee Mergner had a great interview on jazztimes.com today with Daniels about the project. Check it out. The Count Basie Orchestra, now led by Bill Hughes, closes the afternoon.

Sunday night’s final concert opens with Julian Lage’s Group, with the Boston-based guitarist fresh from tearing it up at Newport with his group as well as Mark O’Connor’s Hot Swing band. The evening will end with pianist-composer Donal Fox’s latest jazz-classical blend called "Piazzolla to Bach," with classical cellist Maya Beiser as special guest. Fox’s band also includes drummer Dafnis Prieto, vibraphonist Warren Wolf and bassist John Lockwood. Bostonian Fox was a huge hit at Tanglewood two years ago with his "Scarlatti Jazz Project."


Each Ozawa Hall concert will be preceded by a Jazz Café showcase for rising new talent. The tradition began a few years ago – but this year’s has a twist. The four featured bands won a video contest enabling them to play at Tanglewood. The leaders are saxophonist Brandon Wright (Saturday at 12:30 p.m.), pianist Noah Baerman (Sunday at 6:30 p.m.), and singers Kelley Johnson (Saturday at 6:30 p.m.) and Audrey Silver (Sunday at 12:30 p.m.).


Festival regulars will notice something missing this year. There is no Friday night Latin jazz concert, which in the past usually took on a dance party vibe for many attendees well before night’s end . Tanglewood Jazz Festival Manager Dawn Singh called it a victim of the economy, but said she hopes to bring it back.

“We’d like to reinstate the Friday night concerts but it will depend how the economy progresses over the next year,” Singh said. “While it is a bit difficult to get the number of people we would like to see at Tanglewood on a Friday night, the Latin jazz concerts were still very popular and they gave us an opportunity to further diversify our lineup, which we are always striving to do.”

CDs of Note...

Dave Bass Quartet, Gone (Dave Bass Music)
One listen to this dynamic disc and you’ll be asking yourself: “Where has Dave Bass been all these years?” More than 20 years ago, the pianist was busy on the San Francisco jazz and Latin scene. But his musical feature was in doubt after fractured a wrist in the mid-1980s. So he went to college, then law school. Now, he’s a California deputy attorney general specializing in civil rights enforcement. These days, he is practicing law by day, immersing himself in jazz nights and weekends, and we listeners are the better for it.

Ten of 11 tracks are originals, with two including lyrics performed by Mary Stallings (“Surrender” and the catchy and clever “I Bet You Wonder”). The one non-original is Astor Piazzola’s “Libertango.” Bass is a terrific writer and player, and he has masterful support here from Ernie Watts on tenor, drummer-percussionist Babatunde Lea, bassist Gary Brown and conguero Harold Muniz. Bass’s tune “Gone” is a stunning tango showcase for Watts and Bass. Given his history, Gone makes great sense as a CD title. “Back” could have been a worthy substitute.

Kelley Suttenfield, Where is Love? (Rhombus)
This debut CD by Virginia native Kelley Suttenfield, now based in the Big Apple, is a fine illumination for her charming voice – and of her eclectic musical tastes and influences. Straight-ahead jazz, The Beatles, classic country and country-pop tunes, a touch of Brazilia, with some Great American Songbook and movie soundtrack items thrown in for good measure. All get a strong jazz treatment from Suttenfield and quartet. Favorites: Her takes on Stanley Turrentine’s “Sugar,” “Twilight Time,” an uptempo revision of Bobby Gentry’s “Ode to Billy Joe,” a breezy take on Betty Carter’s classic “Open the Door” and Wes Montgomery’s “West Coast Blues.” Another treat: the dazzling electric guitar work of Jesse Lewis on five tracks, most notably “Sugar” and the very hip “West Coast Blues.”

Frank Glover, Abacus (Owl Studios)
Indianapolis clarinetist-composer Frank Glover shifts primarily to soprano sax for Abacus, a formidable project that can best be described as a chamber jazz hybrid featuring his quartet and a 24-member orchestra featuring strings, brass, woodwinds and mallets. The recording’s nine tracks are segmented into three movements. The last segment is the most uptempo movement. Standout tracks include “Modern Times” and the flamenco-tinged “Salamanca” (the riveting latter piece features Glover on both soprano sax and clarinet). From start to finish, Abacus shimmers with great beauty – and a jazzman’s bite. Classically trained and influenced Glover has said that he feels there is a giant gap between improvisation and contemporary classical composition. He’s building his own bridge with the help of his working quartet mates: pianist Zach Lapidus, bassist Jack Helsley and drummer Dave Scalia.

Postcards from Newport...

In addition to my Newport Jazz Festival review and 21 companion images published Monday on JazzTimes.com... here are a few more of my favorites from the festival weekend. Enjoy. Newport 2011 is only 51 1/2 weeks or so away.














Gerald Clayton and Kendrick Scott performed with Gretchen Parlato















The bubble lady in the front row at Fort Adams,
Lorie Turner of Middletown RI.




















David Binney performed with drummer Brian Blade, pianist Craig Taborn and bassist Eivind Opsvik
















orchestra leader Darcy James Argue





















Bill Calhoun has been tuning the pianos on every stage at the Newport Jazz and Folk Festivals for 25 years.



















Guitarist Julian Lage heads to the Fort Stage for two appearances - with his own quartet and Mark O'Connor's Hot Swing band.














Wynton Marsalis














Jon Faddis



















Hailey Niswanger














Grace Kelly and Evan Gregor at Newport Casino















Wynton Marsalis talks backstage with students from Brooklyn's KIPP program.















Jason Moran




Drummer Jeff Ballard catches up with festival producer and bandleader George Wein a couple of hourts before their Newport All Stars performance.

Another Newport gem (updated with link)

I'm just back from this year's CareFusion Newport Jazz Festival and have put together an overview for JazzTimes.com, along with imagery. The link's above. I'll try to post some more images in the next day or so.

The crowd was into it, and about as youngish as I can recall in my coverage of this event since 1981. The weather was perfect on Saturday, a bit wilting on Sunday - not a drop of rain - and the music overall was diverse and excellent.

The blend of artists means there was indeed something for everyone.

CDs of Note…

This week, singers are in the spotlight...

Fay Claassen, Sing! (Challenge)
This is a gem, pairing Dutch jazz singer Fay Claassen’s fine vocals and musicality with Germany’s WDR Big Band Cologne. The project was arranged and conducted by Michael Abene. On three tracks, the 18-piece big band was augmented by the 100-member WDR Rundfunkorchester for added depth and texture.

The material is wide ranging both in time span and original style: from Betty Carter’s “Tight” and Abbey Lincoln’s “Throw It Away” to Joni Mitchell’s “Be Cool,” Björk’s “Cover Me” and Miriam Makeba’s “Umhome.” Then there is more classic material from the likes of Louis Jordan, Billy Strayhorn, Tom Jobim and Cy Coleman. There is much to savor here, including strong soloing by, among others, pianist Frank Chastenier, trumpeter John Marshall, guitarist Paul Shigihara and alto saxophonist Karolina Strassmayer.

Keri Johnsrud, All Blue (self-produced)
Chicago-based Keri Johnsrud opens her debut CD with something novel, yet it’s no novelty. She seamlessly sings Cole Porter’s “Anything Goes” to the beautiful and distinctive melody of Miles Davis’s “All Blues.” The melding works wonderfully, as does Johnsrud’s cool and casual delivery throughout this project.

The CD also includes her reworking of Nat Adderley’s “The Old Country,” Buck Owens’ country classic “Cryin’ Time,” and a range of American Songbook material and more. The seven players supporting her in a range of groupings are excellent with great empathy throughout. You’ll enjoy the standout soloing by Matt Nelson on piano, keyboard and organ, flutist Matt Cashdollar and guitarist Ari Seder on various tracks. Johnsrud’s duet version of “But Beautiful” with Seder is just that. A low-key, laid-back beauty.

Changing of the guard – or end of the line?

What an amazing ride for Carol Stone and her husband, Woody Woodland, who founded the Cape May Jazz Festival 17 years ago to bring jazz fans to their quaint seacoast resort town - and help extend the length of the tourist season at New Jersey’s southernmost point.

Seventeen years - and 33 festivals so far, building a loyal fan base from essentially a two-hour drive radius: Philly, New York City, northern New Jersey, Baltimore and Wilmington are all within easy reach. The festival drew thousands of fans, which was great for local tourism - from the quaint Victorian B&Bs and resort hotels and motels to countless little boutiques and restaurants.

In its heyday, the festival was a regular November and April stop for many regional talents - Philadelphia’s Bootsie Barnes and Frank Bey among them. And quite a few national players - Oscar Brown Jr., Herbie Mann, Clark Terry, Jimmy Scott to name a few - frequented Cape May multiple times. When it was on the grow during its first decade - the number of venues also grew like topsy.

Music could be found in the (now-condemned) Cape May Convention Hall on the beach, a string of bars and restaurants and hotel ballrooms. Even a grammar school gymnasium and a nearby yacht club got into the mix. Some nights, musical choices were bubbling in up to 12 rooms around town. The state-of-the-art theatre at a regional high school a few miles north of town has been the headliner venue in recent years.

The loyal fan base was key - particularly in lean years that were caused by over-expansion, a souring economy - or both. It also helped them overcome the internal bickering that often besets many a nonprofit group. Stone (who was Artistic Director/Program Chair) was always a strong taskmaster - and got her way with things.

Problem with the loyal fan middle-aged (or older) fan base was that it got older – and lost some participants. Stone and Woodland worked hard to book younger talents in hopes of drawing a younger crowd, but that never seemed to make a significant difference. And it went through a lot of financial pain in the past few years.

And now, there are more pressing challenges for the festival - such as whether it has a future. If so, for how long?

Co-founders Stone and Woodland have resigned and plan to move north a bit into Pennsylvania as soon as they get their affairs in order and sell their Cape May home.

“There was a long, well-planned conspiracy which got nasty… no cooperation or teamwork and we lost all confidence in our executive board and staff,” she wrote.

Several years ago, someone in an executive role launched a coup while they were on vacation. Stone got wind of that one and re-exerted control. Now, apparently, the fight is gone. And the board will have to regroup - or revitalize itself.

Some would say the festival’s future is in doubt. They may be right, but only time will tell.

The 34th semi-annual event is scheduled November 12 to 14. Listed headliners include Les McCann with Javon Jackson, and Yellowjackets.

The festival has had strong sponsorship support from many companies over the years, with Bank of America and the New Jersey Division of Travel and Tourism its title sponsors. The State Council on the Arts also has been a key backer.

The Cape May Jazz Festival will need that continued support - and more - if it is to have a sustained future.

And Cape May Jazz Festival fans and supporters owe Stone and Woodland a round of thanks for making it happen for so long - despite the bitter taste that may now hover over some things right now.

CDs of Note...

Christine Jensen, Treelines (Justin Time)
Canadian saxophonist and composer Christine Jensen has added another strong branch to the musical tree that is rooted in the Gil Evans orchestral jazz tradition. (She credits Evans in her notes as “one of the coolest sound shapers in music history.”) Her Montreal-based musicians make her latest project bloom with great depth, nuance and texture. Her sister, trumpeter Ingrid Jensen, is featured as guest soloist on this Christine Jensen Jazz Orchestra premiere recording. The leader's seven compositions on this CD are mostly inspired by the landscape in her native Nanaimo, British Columbia. Ingrid Jensen’s thoughtful flugelhorn feature on saxophonist Joel Miller’s “Dropoff” is a beauty (starting with an electronic looping segment that opens the piece. The sisters share the lead (Christine on soprano sax and Ingrid on trumpet) on “Seafever.” The Len Dobbin tribute “Red Cedar” is a stunning remembrance for Montreal’s longtime jazz stalwart who died in 2009.

Chris Washburne and The SYOTOS Band, Field of Moons (Jazzheads)
For about two decades, trombonist Chris Washburne has led one of the more adventurous and interesting Latin jazz units in New York City. This latest CD leans toward Latin-tinged love songs and ballads rather than the fire longtime listeners are accustomed to. My favorites: their interesting Latin jazz twist on the Ahmad Jamal-associated “Poinciana,” Pedro Flores’ “Obsesion” and Mingus’s “Duke Ellington’s Sound of Love.” Other gems: Washburne’s energetic “Seas of Slumber” and saxophonist Ole Mathiesen’s “Evening Rites.”

Susie Hansen, Representante de la Salsa (Jazz Caliente)
Yes, salsa is for dancing. And the L.A.-based Susie Hansen Latin Band took that feeling to heart in its latest recording. This uptempo session will even make you want to dance in place while listening - even if you’re sitting down. But I dare you not to stand and move. The leader’s electric violin rides the band’s percussive cushion like a surfboard on a great wave. At times one with the horn section, at times contrasting with it, she often sounds like a trumpeter. Some of my favorites are their takes on tunes not associated with salsa: a remake of Blood, Sweat & Tears’ “Vehicle” (vocals compliments of Kaspar Abbo [lead], George Balmaseda and Hansen) and something called “Frank Sinatra Cha Cha Cha.” The latter is a salsa medley, arranged by trombonist David Stout, of four tunes closely linked to Ol’ Blue Eyes: “Fly Me to the Moon,” “It Could Happen to You,” “It Had to be You” and “All of Me.” The title track is one of the many burners here.

Chris Massey’s Nue Jazz Project, Vibrainium (self-released)
The members of drummer Chris Massey’s quintet each have one foot firmly planted into bebop’s strong roots, and the other stepping boldly into their musical future. This ambitious project swings hard and with purpose. Fresh takes on Joe Henderson’s “Inner Urge” and Chick Corea’s “Windows” are wrapped by three originals by Massey and one apiece from trumpeter Donald Malloy and saxophonist Benjamin Drazen. Their other bandmates are pianist Evgeny Lebedev and bassist David Ostrem. Favorites: Massey’s 11-minute title track and Drazen’s “Mr. Twilight.” Serious drum fans will enjoy “Chango,” the leader’s solo tribute to leader/innovators Elvin Jones, Art Blakey, Max Roach and Roy Haynes.

Brubeck's Newport magic

Every time Dave Brubeck plays the Newport Jazz Festival, he breaks his own record.

The pianist, who will turn 90 this December 6, has performed at Newport more than any other jazz artist in the festival's storied, sometimes roller coaster history. He was there for the first festival in 1954 - and has been back more than 30 times since.

Last year, Brubeck's quartet played at Newport - and a later in the day he added a footnote to the Newport history book by joining Tony Bennett on stage for a rousing version of "That Old Black Magic" to end the weekend.

At this year's CareFusion Newport Jazz Festival, Brubeck will be back - without his own band - to join Wynton Marsalis on Sunday August 8 as a special guest with the trumpeter's quintet. It's also a natural progression from the 2005 festival. Marsalis sat in with Brubeck's band after playing appeared earlier in the day with his own quintet.

Producer George Wein loves it when his old friend is in town. Their friendship dates to the early 1950s - when Wein booked and promoted Brubeck's then-emerging quartet on a New England concert tour.

“The atmosphere of love that Dave Brubeck generates completely fills the beautiful harbor, and like last year’s festival surprise when Dave played a tune with Tony Bennett, a memorable piece of musical history will be made,” Wein said.

This year's festival runs August 6 to 8, with a Friday night opener at the historic Newport Casino and International Tennis Hall of Fame) featuring pianist-singer Jamie Cullum and saxophonist Grace Kelly. The action moves to Fort Adams State Park the following two days with an ambitious and wide-ranging schedule on three stages.

Postcards from Montreal

Here are a few visual treats from my coverage of the 31st annual Montreal International Jazz Festival. The musical choices were bountiful and at times painful - with as many as three or four significant offerings simultaneously during peak evening hours.

As the outdoor Quartier de Spectacles continues to evolve, there was a noticeable increase in the number and variety of street performers this time - mimes, men and women on stilts, and a bounty of other zany characters. And that doesn't include a few in the audience.

Concert images, from top:

• Allen Toussaint


• John Scofield and The Piety Street Band


• Grace Kelly and Jason Palmer


• Montreal trumpeter Ron DiLauro's Porgy & Bess project


• MAnu Katché


• Trumpeter Ingrid Jensen was special guest with sister Christine Jensen's Jazz Orchestra.


• Bassist Brandi Disterheft


• Trumpeter Jocelyn Couture presented his big band in a Maynard Ferguson tribute.


• Blues guitarist Ana Popovic