Jazz at the Cambridge River Festival Saturday June 1

[steve(thelil)]

I'll be in Cambridge this weekend because an old friend and bandmate is promoting the annual Across The Ages Dance Project in Cambridge and I'll be attending the Friday night performance.

Natch, I checked out what else is going on in the area this weekend and was thrilled to see this lineup at the Jazz Stage o the Cambridge River Fest on Saturday. Very interesting lineup:

CREATE: Jazz, R&B, and World Music Stage
LINEUP AND INVORMATION
Location: Weld Boathouse at JFK Street (Riverside)
Coordinator: The Jazz Club at the Multicultural Arts Center
Host: Shelley Neill, Executive Director, Multicultural Arts Center

12pm
Tre Corda
AgitatedCatMusic.com
TIM RAY -PIANO, EUGENE FRIESEN - CELLO & GREG HOPKINS - TRUMPET and FLUGELHORN

Whether reinventing jazz standards, breathing fresh life into classical repertoire, or premiering their own original works, Tre Corda generates a compelling sound all its own. Their works blend composition and improvisation in new and unexpected ways, using the musical vocabulary of classical composers like Bartok and Stravinsky, as well as songs and ideas from the worlds of jazz and popular musics. Cellist Eugene Friesen’s dynamic rhythms and incredible array of bowing and plucking techniques, trumpeter Greg Hopkins’s virtuosic leaps and outrageous genre-bending phrases, and pianist Tim Ray’s lyric melodicism and two-fisted pyrotechnics - these are just a few of the ways Tre Corda concerts have satisfied and delighted audiences with both jazz and classical expectations. More info on Tre Corda at AgitatedCatMusic.com.

1:15pm
Modern Impression: The Ron Savage Trio
Personnel: RON SAVAGE - DRUMS, RON MAHDI - BASS, JETRO DASILVA - Piano

The Ron Save Trio features three outstanding musicians. Ron Savage, who in addition to serving as the Chair of the Ensemble Department at Berklee College of Music, has worked with Mulgrew Miller, Gary Bartz, Johnny Griffin, Joe Zawinul, Albert King, Art Farmer, Nennana Freelon, James Williams, Bill Pierce, James Moody and many others. Ron Mahdi who has performed with Roy Haynes, Chet Baker, Donald Harrisonand others, Jetro daSilva, known for a 10-year stint as Whitney Houston's pianist, and Modern Impression marks the group's efforts to seamlessly mesh music from throughout the African diaspora including; bebop, swing, gospel, African R & B and Brazilian music into a fresh new sound.

2:30pm
Marco Pignataro Jazzet
www.marcopignataro.net/
MARCO PIGNATARO – TENOR & SOPRANO SAX, LASZLO GARDONY– PIANO, ALLAN CHASE -ALTO & BARI SAX - MATT MARVUGLIO – FLUTE, JOHN LOCKWOOD – BASS, YORON ISRAEL – DRUMS

Marco Pignataro, who in addition to his latest CD Sofia's Heart and work with Eddie Gomez, John Patitucci, Ben Street, George Garzone, Billy Drummond and others, is also the Managing Director of the Berklee Global Jazz Institute at Berklee College of Music. Matt Marvuglio, Dean of the Performance Division at Berklee College of Music, along with the brilliant Allan Chase, the master drummer Yoron Israel and exceptional John Lockwood round out this unique assemblage of master musicians.

3:45pm
Kevin Harris Project
www.kevinharrisproject.com/
PERSONNEL: KEVIN HARRIS – PIANO, RON MAHDI – BASS, JERRY BERGONZI – TENOR SAXOPHONE, TERRI LYNE CARRINGTON - DRUMS

When the unmistakable musical influences of Thelonious Monk, Danilo Perez, and Charlie Parker intersect with J.S. Bach, Scott Joplin, and the folkloric rhythms of Cuba, could one possibly conceptualize the celebration that occurs at that intersection? Boston-based jazz pianist Kevin Harris plays a distinctive combination of traditional and contemporary music that seeks to explore such a crossroads. Jazztimes magazine says “Harris possesses a spare style and gentle touch” and the Boston Globe quotes that “Harris has worked to refine the creative push and pull of a music that demands it. Drummer, composer, producer and clinician, Terri Lyne Carrington has worked with luminaries like Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Al Jarreau, Stan Getz, David Sanborn, Joe Sample, Cassandra Wilson, Clark Terry, Dianne Reeves and others.

5:00pm
Joel Larue Smith Afro Cuban Jazz Trio
http://www.joellaruesmith.com/
JOEL LARUE SMITH – PIANO, FERNANDO HUERGO – BASS, TAGO MICHELIN - DRUMS

Smith's voice resonates strongly, clearly presenting his concept as composer, performer, and arranger with focused intensity. His compositions dance around Afro-Cuban rhythms and traditional jazz ideals with a knowledgeable movement that reflects a solid foundation in both worlds. His ideas often place one foot in each genre, placing his compositions firmly in clave while his band interprets them with the loose freedom of swing."(Chip Boaz, The Latin Jazz Corner). The Joel Larue Smith Trio has performed both nationally and internationally. Most recently, the trio has performed in the 2010 & 2011 Guatemala International Jazz Festival; the 2011 Costa Rican International Jazz Festival; the 2010 Hellenic Music Festival, Athens; Jazz Dock, Prague; The Blue Frog, Mumbai; in a 2010 Czech Republic Tour.

[jazztrain]

For the benefit of some, that's Cambridge, Massachusetts (not UK).

Not to be confused with this: http://www.camboaters.co.uk/2011/08/cambridge-river-festival-sunday-25th.html or this: http://cambridgecarbonfootprint.org/blog/ccf-at-cambridge-river-festival/

or this: http://www.dragonboatfestivals.co.uk/dragon-boat-festivals/cambridge/index.html

Let's hope the weather is better than last year, when the festival was cancelled due to rain and concerns about potential flooding.

The forecast for Saturday is for very hot, muggy weather, but there should not be any rain unless some pop up showers form.

The full schedule is available here: http://www2.cambridgema.gov/CAC/Community/CRF_Schedule_Events_2011.cfm

[Head Man]

For the benefit of some, that's Cambridge, Massachusetts (not UK).

Damn!!!!!

[steve(thelil)]

For the benefit of some, that's Cambridge, Massachusetts (not UK).

Whoops. Didn't mean to be a tease!

Back to the Cambridge (MASS) River Fest. I was so pumped to find out that it was this weekend. The first time I visited Cambridge specifically for an event (rather than for a brief visit while in Boston) it was the Riverfest, where I saw an excellent set by Jason Moran and the Bandwagon. I wanted to attend the next year, only to find out that they weren't having it that year. After that, it kind of escaped my consciousness. So it was a blast to learn that it's back and being held on the same weekend I had planned to be staying in Cambridge for something else.

Edited May 30, 2013 by steve(thelil)

[Kevin Bresnahan]

Dress lightly. It's going to be a scoachah this weekend.

And if you head north, you should stop in for a glass of vino and some tunes. Are you alone or is your other half along for the ride?

[steve(thelil)]

As of now Jan's coming, but it's still up in the air in view with a work issue.

Thanks for the offer Kev. Don't think I'll be able to take you up on it.