Two great concerts coming up soon!: On Saturday, February 13^th, at 7:30pm, at the Webster University Community Music School Concert Hall, 535 Garden Ave., on the Webster University campus, The New Music Circle will welcome multi-instrumentalist Douglas Ewart…….and on Monday, February 15^th, at 7:00pm, The Paul DeMarinis Sextet will present a concert of all original music at the Winifred Moore Auditorinm, also on the Webster U. campus.

Douglas Ewart is a Rennaissance man if there ever was one! For a full biography and list of all his skills and interests, visit the New Music Circle website: http://www.newmusiccircle.org, or his home page: http://indra.com/~jbarnett/ewart/biography.html, but for abreviated blogging purposes, a short list might include composer, improviser, sculptor and multiple instrument designer and maker. By the way, he aslo PLAYS these instruments…and REALLY WELL!

At this event, Ewart will be collaborating with virtuoso keyboardist and synthesist, James Hagarty; percussionist, Rashu Aten and poet, Shirley LaFlore (I have a personal weakness for her verse.)

As for the members of the Paul DeMarinis Sextet, I have known them and composed music for most of them at various times over the years, so I can say without hesitation…….THEY’RE  TOPS! Members include: Debby Lennon-vocals, Paul DeMarinis-soprano and tenor saxophones and bass clarinet, Dave Black-guitars, Nick Schlueter- piano, Ben Wheeler-bass and Kyle Honeycutt-drums.

In order for any musician to comprehend and execute Paul’s broad based and intricate

compositions, that musician must be technically skilled and versatile: Debby has no problem rising to this level, Dave can produce any guitar sound you ask of him and apply his technique to a wide range of genres, Ben plays frequently with the bow, weaving in and out of the texture, Nick can play straight ahead, free or modal, and his comping is SO imaginative..and Kyle backs it all up with strength and subtlety.

But you need to see this whole group in action.

So get on out there and make it to both of these events. It’ll be a big weekend and a big Monday!

On Saturday, January 30, at 7:30pm, the New Music Circle will host a benefit concert at the Kranzberg Arts Center, 501 N. Grand for Zimbabwe Nkenya.  Zimbabwe, one of our community’s most beloved and respected musicians, suffered a stroke last Fall. We hope that by taking voluntary donations at the door we will be able to aid in the payment of his medical expenses and his physical recovery, 100% of the proceeds going to support this cause.

Zimbabwe Nkenya http://www.myspace.com/zimbabwenkenya has pursued a musical career as one of the more accomplished and adventurous double bass players, but his aspirations were never limited to instrumental performance. Before coming to St. Louis in 2007, he spent 20 years in New Mexico as an educator of young children, clinician, visual artist and radio announcer. His tireless devotion to community projects has led him to collaborate with a wide variety of musicians, poets and even visual artists.

So…. now it’s our turn to show him that we can rally together in his time of need and come out as the strong community that we are!

Performers at the benefit will be myself, Jim Hegarty and Deb Summers, representing NMC; Baba Mike Nelson, Bobo Shaw, Dave Cheli’s group “Tribal Chicken”; percussionists, Thomas Zirkle & Matt Henry; poets, Michael Castro and K. Curtis Lyle and others TBA. To stay up do date, visit the New Music Circle website: http://www.newmusiccircle.org

 To help  SAVE KFUO!, scroll down 5 entries.

Starting this Wednesday, 1/20, the Vijay Iyer Trio will be performing at Jazz at the Bistro and playing through Sat. I’ve heard most of his groups recently, and they really shine, with very creative ideas coming in from all members of the group.

I especially like the way the group will lock into certain rhythmic ideas and transform the whole texture of the ensemble; and you know those interesting altered scales and chord substitutions that the more exciting and advanced pianists exploit occasionally? Well, Vijay will often use those structures as merely the starting point for his explorations; and it gets more involved as it goes along. The rhythm section flows, and the music has form, but it’s intense, so don’t think you’ll be able to catch up on your favorite column in the N.Y. Times from breakfast.

Enjoy, I’ll see you at the Bistro!

To help SAVE KFUO! scroll down 4 entries.

For those of you who ask where the new cutting music will be coming from in the next decade, look no further than the St. Louis New Music Circle! Our opening concert for the ‘09 - ‘10 season was the (apparently)  quite controversial Larry Ochs Sax and Drumming Core. An article from the 12/13/09 New York Times describes an encounter with the group by a man who probably thought he was living on the edge just because he happened to be a jazz fan. I’ll quote, enjoy:

“Is contemporary music grounds for arrest? An angry purist attending the Sigüenza Jazz Festival in Spain called the police last week to protest the appearance of the Larry Ochs Sax and Drumming Core, the Guardian of London reported. His doctor had told him that listening to anything but jazz was ‘psychologically inadvisable’. The Civil Guard showed up, armed, and passed the complaint along to a judge. The festival director, Ricardo Checa, told the newspaper El Pais that the jazz purist didn’t get a refund. ‘The question of what constitutes jazz and what does not is obviously a subjective one,’ Mr. Checa said, ‘but not everything is New Orleans funeral music.’ “

I just heard a fabulous new jazz (jazz/fusion) trio last night, led by guitarist and recent St. Louisan, Matthew Von Doran with Steve Davis on drums and Ben Wheeler on acoustic bass. This is music on such a high level of spontaneous interaction that ideas could come from anywhere at anytime. Then add to that arrangements with frequent meter and tempo changes, and you may or may not require the full variety of coffees offered at the Broadway Bean.

As individuals, all three are technically advanced and stylistically broad ranging, so a set will explore at least two or three genres and more often than not, combine them. Matthew may easily run between three or four different guitars on a set, from acoustic to solid body w/”overdrive”. Steve plays a standard kit but with frequent use of brushes and mallets and is constantly exploding with rhythmic ideas and textural colorations. Ben has great melodic ideas, he’s always strong and employs the bow whenever it fits in.

Steve told me that he and Matthew are planning to record a CD together next week, so we’ll definitely want to keep an eye out for that release! Meanwhile, enjoy Matthew’s site http://www.matthewvondoran.com/home.htm, and here’s a link to Steve’s: http://www.stevedavisdrums.com/ Check out the “video & sound” page. He’s got some great sounding clips!

I’ll try to let you know when and where their next trio gig will be, but it will be posted on Matthew’s site, also.

I hope you will join me this coming Wednesday, the 18th, 7:30pm, at the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts (http://www.pulitzerarts.org/events/concerts/urbanalchemy-kurtag/), where  you can see great art and listen to great music all in the same experience! Woodwind quintets by Ligeti and György Kurtág and the Béla Bartók sonata for solo violin will be the sounds; and the sights will be a new installation, called “Urban Alchemy/Gordan Matta-Clark”, all woven together and integrated with commentary by music director, David Robertson. Try it, you’ll love it!

On Friday, Nov. 20, I will be performing with Dave Cheli’s group (woodwinds, piano, drums, guitar) at the St. Charles Coffee House at 8:00pm. Dave is a quite accomplished multi-woodwind player, and his own music combines free improv., swing and rock. I’ll be supplying one of the pieces, but all of the music requires lots of creative input from all the players. Come and enjoy!

 I’m sure that some of you have heard about the pending sale of KFUO-FM, here in St. Louis. The demise of classical music on radio has become widespread, but the situation in our St. Louis community is particularly dire, because we have relied upon KFUO to give us concert announcements, interviews with local arts presenters and even “live” broadcasts of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. Below, I have copied a letter from the SLSO, which some of you may have already received, explaining the situation quite clearly and supplying you with links and phone #s at the bottom for writing and phoning in your opinions. Also, here’s a link to a recent article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch by Sarah Bryan Miller with an even more pointed and detailed accounting.: http://www.stltoday.com/blogzone/culture-club/culture-club/2009/10/lcmskfuo-noemi-neidorffs-letter/  As I have done, I hope you will all express yourselves and help me take action on this matter!

The sale of St. Louis’ only classical music station was announced this morning, Tuesday, October 6, 2009. KFUO-Classic 99 (99.1FM), which is owned by the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, was sold to Gateway Creative Broadcasting, which plans to change the station to JOY FM, a contemporary Christian music station. The sale is pending approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). You may read the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s report on the sale here.

KFUO-Classic 99 has been providing classical music to the St. Louis community for over 60 years. The Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra has a long and valued relationship with KFUO. During the 2009-2010 season, Saturday night orchestral concerts have been broadcast live on Classic 99. The SLSO is one of only a handful of orchestras in the United States to offer live broadcasts.

The SLSO, along with many of its fans and friends in the local artistic community, believes the loss of KFUO-Classic 99 would diminish the cultural diversity of the St. Louis community. With the loss of KFUO, the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra, one of the cultural jewels of the city, would lose a vital advocate. The sounds of classical music over the region’s airwaves would be silenced.

We suggest that you express your opinion on the pending sale of KFUO. You may contact the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod via its website or e-mail its Board of Directors: bod@lcms.org. Or you may reach the Synod by phone 1-888-THE-LCMS (843-5267).

This Saturday, 10/3, the New Music Circle will begin its 51st season at the Mildred E. Bastian Theatre with a concert of interactive media (piano, electronics and video) presented by James Hegarty (Visit http://www.newmusiccircle.org for all details). I attended one of his concerts last season and was nothing short of amazed at how effortlessly and tastefully he is able to blend various electronic sounds and media with his highly virtuosic level of pianism. http://www.jimhegarty.com

As if to take “Multi-media” as a possible theme for this season’s events, other examples would be: Craig Hultgren - cello, synthesizer & poetry; Robert Voisey (”60X60″ Dance) - recorded music by new composers & ‘live’ dance; Van McElwee - new video & ‘live’ music. These are only three of the ten concerts on our season, so for all the personnel and details, visit: http://www.newmusiccircle.org/calendar.htm

Also starting this week (what a week!) will be the opening chamber concert of the Pulitzer Series on Wednesday, 09/30. Directed by David Robertson, his pre-concert introduction, relating the music to art works surrounding you at the Pulitzer Foundation, along with historical anecdotes about the composers, insures that your experience will be communicative and intimate. The opening concert on Wed. will feature works by Elliott Carter, Salvatore Sciarrino and Jonathan Harvey. For more details: http://www.pulitzerarts.org/events/concerts/idealdisplacements-harvey/

And of course, The St. Louis Symphony has just opened its new season with lots of new music being presented! Just scroll down 3 entries on this blog to read my entry from a while back.

I just wanted to let you all know about a sensational group, called Dances of India. I saw them perform last season, and the level of rhythmic intricacy and choreography in the dancing is amazing. Their elongated metric patterns make our little 7/8s & 5/4s look like child’s play! But most importantly, the precision and elegance in the dancing makes the presentation a thing of beauty to behold.
They are performing this Friday & Saturday - 7:00pm; and Sunday - 3:00pm at the Edison Theatre.
Here’s a link to their site if you want to learn more about their whole season:  http://www.dancesofindiastlouis.org/