SEPTEMBER 28, 2017 // 7
Merry Time hosts ‘Comedy Cult Night’
PHOTO BY DANNY MILLER
The RJ Marx Quartet: (from left) John Orr, R.J. Marx, Dave
Gager and Joe Church
RJ Marx
Quartet jams
in Manzanita
MANZANITA — The RJ
Marx Quartet, a saxophone
and guitar ensemble, will
perform at the Hoffman
Center for the Arts (594 La-
neda Ave.) 7 p.m. Saturday,
Sept. 30. Admission is $10.
The band explores some
of the most challenging and
rarely performed compo-
sitions of the major jazz
artists from the 1940s to
70s, as well as an array of
traditional favorites.
The quartet is led by
saxophonist R.J. Marx,
who began his love affair
with jazz while still in high
school in 1971, followed by
studies at Berklee College
of Music in Boston, and
later studies with celebrated
jazz pianists and saxophon-
ists.
Marx, the editor of the
Seaside Signal and Cannon
Beach Gazette, maintained
his lifelong interest in jazz,
writing for the website Jazz
Central Station and creating
artist profiles for regional
and national publications.
Marx has been a member
of the Jazz Journalists
Association for more than a
decade.
Guitarist John Orr has
played all over the west-
ern states. Fluid in many
styles of music, his main
influences vocally include
The Beatles, Frank Sinatra,
Mose Allison, Louis Prima,
and guitarist influences
Django Reinhardt and Bar-
ney Kessel.
Bassist Joe Church start-
ed playing guitar at 16, and
by 18 had switched to bass.
He plays many other instru-
ments, including lap steel,
flute, sax, ukulele, fretless
electric bass, mandolin and
banjo.
Drummer Dave Gager
started playing drums at 11,
influenced by The Beat-
les’ cartoons. Gager has
recorded and performed
with regional, national and
world-class musicians,
dividing his time between
studio sessions and touring.
He offers drum lessons to
students of every skill level
and musical style.
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Chris Khatami
ASTORIA — The Merry Time
Bar & Grill will host a series of
monthly events called “Comedy
Cult Night,” emceed by Sea-
side’s Gideon For-Mukwai.
The event will debut 9 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 29, and feature
Portland comics Chase Brockett
and Chris Khatami. There will
be a $5 entry fee. Guests must
be 21 or older with valid ID.
The establishment (995
Marine Drive) boasts a full bar
and serves scratch-made food
until 9 p.m. Limited seating will
be available.
Brockett grew up in Bakers-
field, California, where being
tiny and asthmatic forced him
to become funny. After growing
taller and ditching his inhaler,
he moved to Southern Califor-
nia, where he would begin per-
forming all over the West Coast.
Brockett explores subjects
such as family, relationships,
politics and science. His smart
and endearingly frustrated
comedic style fits well in any
room. A fellow comedian
describes him as “America’s
nephew.” His affable charm has
delighted audiences in all venue
types, including bars, theaters,
college campuses and clubs
such as the Improv and Comedy
Store.
Khatami hosts one of
Portland’s top-rated podcasts, “
Reboot, Reuse, Recycle.”
The Comedy Cult is expect-
ed to run for three months.
YOUTUBE.COM
Chase Brockett
The Liberty welcomes Schubert Ensemble of London
ASTORIA — The Schubert
Ensemble of London, a
world-renowned exponent of
music for piano and strings,
will perform at the Liberty
Theatre 7 p.m. Wednesday,
Oct. 4.
Since its first concert in
January 1983, the ensemble
has performed in more than
40 countries, recorded more
than 30 critically acclaimed
CDs, has over 80 commis-
sions to its name, and is
familiar to British audiences
through regular broadcasts on
BBC Radio 3.
In 1998 the Ensemble’s
contribution to British
musical life was recognized
by the Royal Philharmonic
Society when it presented the
group with the Best Chamber
Ensemble Award, for which
it was shortlisted again in
2010.
The Ensemble has also
released recordings for the
Chandos label of works by
Martinu, Fauré, Enescu and
Dvorák. The Dvorák disc
and the most recent of two
SUBMITTED PHOTO
The Schubert Ensemble of London
Enescu discs were chosen
as CD of the month by the
BBC Music Magazine.
The Ensemble has recently
released a new recording of
piano quartets by Chausson
and Saint-Saëns that received
a double five-star review in
BBC Music Magazine.
The Ensemble plans to
bring its 35-year career to a
close at the end of June 2018.
It will see out its final season
in celebratory style, with
roughly 50 concerts planned,
including return visits to
Romania and Luxembourg,
and two tours of the U.S.
Tickets for the Liber-
ty show are available at
libertyastoria.org, or in the
theater’s box office 2 to 5:30
p.m. Wednesday through
Saturday.