The Week in Jazz is your roundup of new and noteworthy stories from the jazz world. It’s a one-stop destination for the music news you need to know. Let’s take it from the top.
Noteworthy
Louis Armstrong New Orleans Jazz Landmark Destroyed by Hurricane Ida: CNN reported that the Karnofsky Tailor Shop and Residence, the historic jazz landmark where Louis Armstrong worked and played his first instrument, was completely destroyed by Hurricane Ida. The Shop had been listed on New Orleans’ National Register of Historic Places and plans for its renovation had been announced in 2019.
Numero Group Shares Rare Pastor T.L. Barrett Single to Kick Off Gospel Music Heritage Month: Archival record label Numero Group has kicked off Gospel Music Heritage Month by releasing a newly unearthed single from Pastor T.L. Barrett – “In The Old Time Way” b/w “My Country Tis Of Thee” from 1985 – which marks the final release of the living legend’s physical music output. The songs will be featured in a historic five-album box set of Pastor T.L. Barrett’s music titled I Shall Wear a Crown, due out September 24. Pre-order it here.
Contribute to Miho Hazama’s “Your Scenery Story” Video: Edition Records is calling for contributions to a video for GRAMMY-nominated conductor/composer Miho Hazama’s new single, “Your Scenery Story,” featuring the Danish Radio Big Band. The imprint says via a statement: “We’re looking for videos of your favorite view (maybe the view from your window as you listen to the new track, a video from your favorite walk, or maybe a clip from the most amazing place you’ve ever visited) to include in the ‘Your Scenery Story’ music video.” Upload your video here.
Barrett Martin New Album and Book: Percussionist/composer Barrett Martin will release his 10th solo album and his third book of short stories on October 8 via Sunyata Records/Sony Orchard and Sunyata Books/Ingram. Both the book and the album are titled Stillpoint were written and recorded during a calendar year between 2019-2020, when Barrett and his wife lived in a remote cliff house inside a wildlife refuge overlooking the Strait of Juan de Fuca, between Washington State and British Columbia. Both works are inspired by that wild environment and the album also marks Martin’s first all-acoustic album he has ever produced.
Album Announcements
Makaya McCraven, Deciphering the Message (Blue Note): Drummer/producer/beat scientist Makaya McCraven puts a modern bounce on Blue Note classics by Art Blakey, Horace Silver and more on his new remix album, Deciphering the Message. Due out November 19, the record also features contributions from Joel Ross, Jeff Parker, Marquis Hill and more. “When piecing everything together, I wanted to create a narrative that made the listener feel like they were falling into this space or a movement,” McCraven says. “I was really trying to make a record out of it, not just a series of tracks.” Pre-order it here.
Brandon Goldberg, In Good Time (self-released): Young piano phenom Brandon Goldberg offers five new original compositions and five smartly arranged jazz standards on his sophomore full-length, In Good Time, due out September 17. The record finds the 15-year-old instrumentalist leading a powerhouse quintet that also features the late great Ralph Peterson on drums.
Marcin Wasilewski Trio, En attendant (ECM): The Marcin Wasilewski Trio with pianist Marcin Wasilewski, bassist Slawomir Kurkiewicz and drummer Michał Miśkiewicz is one of the most impressive improvisational trios on the international jazz scene. Their upcoming album, En attendant, finds them in a particularly thoughtful and exploratory mood, illuminating a characteristically wide span of music, the scope extending from Bach to group improvisation. En attendant is due out on September 10 via ECM and you can pre-order it HERE.
Henry Threadgill Zooid, Poof (Pi): Composer/saxophonist/flutist and newly-minted NEA Jazz Master Henry Threadgill will release his new album with Zooid, his primary musical laboratory for the last two decades, on September 24 via Pi. Poof is their first record together since the 2016 Pulitzer Prize-winning In for a Penny, In for a Pound from 2016 and Threadgill describes its compositions as sonatas or concerti: “Come and Go” for saxophone and cello; “Poof” for saxophone and guitar; “Beneath the Bottom” for trombone; “Happenstance” for flute and drums; and “Now and Then” for tuba and guitar. Order Poof here.
Live Music and Festival News
All-Star Maurice “Mobetta” Brown Showcase at San Francisco’s Black Cat on September 8-26: GRAMMY-winning trumpeter/producer/rapper Maurice “Mobetta” Brown will appear alongside an array of music stars at the Black Cat in San Francisco, California, on September 8-26. The showcase is part of Black Cat’s underground groove-fest, JAZZ@theEDGE Festival. Special guests appearing alongside “Mobetta” include Talib Kweli, Marcus King, The Free Nationals Featuring India Shawn and Break Science Unplugged, among others. Click here for more.
NYC’s World Music Institute Kicks Off 2021-2022 Season, Sept. 17: The World Music Institute (WMI) will kick off its 2021-2022 season of live music with an encore performance from the multinational devotional group Riyaaz Qawwali on Friday, September 17. Click here for tickets. The concert will take place at the Kaufman Music Center in Manhattan and marks WMI’s return to presenting live music in New York City after last year’s COVID pause.
International Jazz Composer’s Symposium 2022 Featured Artist Lineup Announced: The 5th International Jazz Composer’s Symposium will be held in the Butler School of Music facilities at the University of Texas in Austin on May 12-14, 2022. The Symposium is designed as a forum to unite jazz composers of all ages and nationalities in an informal exchange of ideas, information and inspiration. This edition will include noted master artists Terri Lyne Carrington, Jim McNeely, Miguel Zenón, Miho Hazama & John Clayton among others, in a series of concerts, lectures, master classes, panel discussions, research presentations, and industry sessions. Click here for more.
Featured photo: Michael McDermott.
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