Andrew Berinson won the American Jazz Pianist Competition in Melbourne, FL, for studio recording time at the Yamaha studio in NYC. Given that he told me a couple of weeks ago he's been ready with tunes for recording, that seems like a particularly appropriate prize! If you want to congratulate him in person, he plays at Brasa Steakhouse Thursday 6:30p & with guitarist Kevin Van Sant at Sharp Nine Friday 8p...
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Discoveries:
1. Tenor player Stephen Riley makes everybody sound better: He was the special guest with pianist Chris Pattishall (who Amtrakked from NYC for hours & hours & hours just to get here) last night at Sharp Nine. This was the second time I've heard him play in a first gig with someone (the last was vibraphonist Jason Marsalis) with a minimum of rehearsal time, & each evening has been special. As it was Pattishall played three difficult tunes by a new favorite of his, Willie The Lion Smith, & introduced the only waltzish version of Saint James Infirmary" I've ever heard. All in all, one of the best of many, many nights at S9. 2. Durham's Millenium Hotel has started jazz performances Friday nights: It's now on the LJ home page. I hope it catches on. 3. Duke's J.B. Duke Hotel also has jazz Thursday nights...but it doesn't advertise who & when. I'm waiting a reply to my email inquiry. 4. Raleigh's Watts & Ward private club also has jazz Thursday night...with the same story as above, as I await a reply. Nevertheless, it means more jazz is available for now. This Week...reminds me of weeks past that start relatively slowly but accelerate Thursday-Saturday... Monday: choose between being tickled by trombonist Danny Grewen & pianist Robert Griffin at Imbibe or dancing to the NC Revelers Orchestra at the Pittsboro Roadhouse, both at 7p. Tuesday: Trad jazz yayas with the Second Line Stompers at C Grace 9p. Wednesday: Pianist Jonathan Markow plays melodic jazz standards at the Empress Room 7:30p. Thursday: Choices get tough...
I'm tired just typing this all out... The scene has changed in the 6-7 years I've been looking at it. This week I found out that Durham's Millenium Hotel has starts Friday night jazz this week, that Chapel Hill's West End Wine Bar has given up Sunday night jazz, & that the Station has adjusted its pay arrangement while looking for Saturday afternoon performers. All this as led me to think about what I've seen since I returned to this area (aka Home).
Not that long ago I was happy with the start of Art of Cool, the Beyu Caffe's many nights of jazz, & the growth of Sharp Nine as the place to listen. Right now Art of Cool expanded way beyond jazz & now quiescent (until it finally reveals its 2018 schedule), the Beyu has shifted its music to what brings in people, & the Sharp Nine is the only consistent jazz Triangle jazz listening venue. My take on the latter is that S9 My take on the last is that the relatively small but fervent jazz audience here now knows where to go to listen to good jazz in a community atmosphere once a week. There's a lot packed into that sentence. Having been to more jazz performances than just about anyone in the last few years, some thoughts:
Conclusion #1: There's lots of good music out there, but not enough fanatic fans to support it. How do I know that? I've been a fanatic for the last five years. That's how I've put together the list of venue on the LJ home page. Last night I overdid it & listened to pianist Ernest Turner & bassist Butler Knowles giving two of us a personal concert in the back of Sullivan's Steakhouse bar, stopped briefly at the Empress Room because I'd never heard or heard of pianist Doug Kobs, & then listened to guitarist Jimmy Gilmore's standards trio at C Grace. In the last two it was quiet enough to hear the music, which isn't the case in such bars on busy weekend nights. And, along with Irregardless, the latter two venues provide more jazz gigs than any others including S9. I've gotten to know a small group of fervent fans over that time, but even those folks listen to their live jazz mostly on weekends. That's not to fault people; it's reality. Which may relate to the high proportion of older adults in local jazz crowds. If we're to go out to any music, it's got to start at 8p or earlier. Conclusion #2: It Don't Mean A Thing Unless It Makes the Cast Register Sing! Unless a venue has another source of income (or is very generous), it's hard to justify having (any) music unless it's profitable. A brilliant conclusion, no? I'm stating the obvious, but I have appreciated venues keeping jazz going despite few people attending (or listening). And, this won't change until the local population gets big enough to support more steady venues. Conclusion #3: There's still plenty of good music out there! A blessing for fans & a curse of musicians. Yeah, I now have less choices on weeknights in Chapel Hill, but in mid-week Raleigh venues should be quieter. All I have to do is drive 40 minutes from Carrboro, yet that gets to the point that you gotta makes the effort if you want to hear the music--& you gotta tip musicians generously when you hear them. Nearly all local musicians are playing because they love the music, because they make very little money out of it. Most of them have multiple jobs if they don't have a real day job & scramble to get gigs. So that means go to a few more jazz gigs. There's great pleasure in doing something like I did last night, listening to a melodic piano/bass duo in a quiet venue. Jazz envigorates us through our souls... |
AuthorPeter Burke has liked jazz since he was in high school. Having lived & worked in exotic places with & without local jazz scenes, he has also led a Guide To Local Jazz class in the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at Duke. Archives
April 2024
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