music
BY BRETT CAMPBELL
Modern Greats
Masters of jazz and more
J
ohn Scofi eld has
always
brought
rhythmic punch to
the party. As his collaborations
with partners as diverse
as Miles Davis, fellow guitar
genius Pat Metheny and even
Medeski Martin and Wood
demonstrate, the jazz master
refused to settle for long
into a single groove. His
new jazz/funk project, the Piety Street
Band, which performs at the Shedd on
April 8, enlists sidemen better known in the
rock and R&B worlds: the legendary bassist
from New Orleans funk pioneers the Meters,
George Porter Jr., Jon Cleary (keyboard
player for Bonnie Raitt) and former Beach
Boys drummer Ricky Fataar. They range
beyond standard blues forms and look as well
to the gospel sounds of Thomas Dorsey and
Mahalia Jackson. It should add up to a funky
fusion built up from several generations and
strains of American music.
On April 15, the Shedd hosts another
modern jazz great. Joshua Redman
garnered plenty of attention when he bounded
on the scene in the early 1990s, propelled by
a famous pedigree, an engaging personality
and a melodic tenor sax style that drew
plenty of listeners from beyond the narrow
jazz audience. He’s continued to evolve
but maintains his mainstream jazz appeal,
especially in this hard blowing trio setting,
featuring drummer Gregory Hutchinson and
bassist Reuben Rogers.
There’s plenty of local jazz on tap this
month, too. This Thursday, April 2, Sound
for the Organization of Society brings
its rich, sometimes raucous sound to Cozmic
Pizza. The collective improv approach
of aggregations like the Art Ensemble of
Chicago and Weather Report echoes through
the septet’s music, and its members’ diverse
backgrounds (they live across the U.S.,
including a couple in Portland, and have
studied with mentors as diverse as Charlie
Haden, Wadada Leo Smith and Darrell
Grant) add up to a wide range of material that
embraces contemporary postclassical, various
jazz fusions and more. Defi nitely a show for
listeners who like their jazz adventurous.
While young SFOS members like
ambitious young pianist Andrew Oliver are
energizing the Portland scene, there’s plenty
of exciting creative jazz bubbling up from
Eugene these days. On April 10th, Hashem
Assadullahi and his Quintet play a release
party at Jo Federigo’s marking their splendid
new CD, Strange Neighbor, whose 10 original
compositions span a variety of tempos, moods
and colors, and display a spacious, probing
compositional approach that invites listeners
in rather than overwhelming them with
virtuoso moves. Just returned from teaching
jazz in Bangkok, Assadullahi also appears with
his old band, the Detrick/Swigart Jazz
Orchestra, which features the compositions
of its two UO alumni directors, on April 14
at Cozmic Pizza. It’s such a pleasure to see
so much young, creative jazz talent emerging
from Oregon.
Former Oregonians Taarka return to
Piety Street Band
Cozmic Pizza on April 4. If you haven’t seen
them in a while, you might be pleasantly
surprised by the latest turns — toward folk,
bluegrass and song forms — the ever-evolving
Colorado based band gypsy chamber folk
quintet has taken.
Another exciting young ensemble appears
at the UO’s Agate Hall Auditorium on April
2. The members of the fl ute, cello and bass
trio Project have appeared as soloists with
various orchestras. Beatbox fl utist Greg
Pattillo has won thousands of listeners via
some amazing YouTube videos, while bassist
Peter Seymour won a Downbeat award for
best jazz soloist. Their dynamic stage manner
more resembles a rock band — Jethro Tull
meets Charles Mingus — than a jazz or
classical trio. Project’s blend of jazz, hip
hop, world music and classical infl uences is
a promising vision of a future of music that’s
truly beyond category.
The UO also hosts an April 3 concert at
the EMU Ballroom benefi ting Tariro (which
funds the education of AIDS-affected girls
in Zimbabwe) and featuring Dance Africa,
Vakasara Mbira, Hokoyo Marimba and
Portland’s Boka Marimba. It’s stirring,
danceable music for a worthy cause.
On April 2, the Shedd showcases one of
Oregon’s top classical music stars, clarinetist
Michael Anderson, who, with pianist
David Riley and cellist Jesús Morales, plays
some of Johannes Brahms’s greatest chamber
works. On April 7, the Shedd brings back
ukulele phenom Jake Shimabukuro, who
continues to prove that the supposedly simple
instrument is no barrier to musical creativity
or audience appeal. He’s a delight in concert,
and you know he’ll play his celebrated cover
of “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.” And on
April 9, the Shedd hosts the folky slack key
songs of his fellow Hawaiians, Hapa.
Finally, classical fans have a pair of
fi ne choices this weekend. On April 4 (at
Springfi eld’s Wildish Theater) and April 5
(at Eugene’s Central Lutheran Church), the
Eugene Vocal Arts Ensemble jettisons
all those distracting instruments and sings a
wide ranging program of music from Russia,
French Canada, Italy and Portland-born
composer Morten Lauridsen’s impending
classic “O Magnum Mysterium,” whose
soothing beauty has won thousands of new
fans for contemporary choral music. And
on April 6, the Oregon Mozart Players
haul out the treats for their always delicious
Chamber Music and Chocolate show, this
time at Cottage Grove’s Cottage Theatre.
The program features Mozart’s tasty Oboe
Quartet and a string duo, plus music by
Dotzauer, Breval and OMP’s own cellist
Dale Bradley.
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EUGENE WEEKLY APRIL 2, 2009 21