Sonny Fortune photo by Thomas Lange
Various venues
April 16-19
Ballard may have no problem passing for hip nowadays, but it wasn’t always so – from the 1980s to about 2005, the area was often pregnant with promising possibilities, but rarely delivered.
The likelihood that its current momentum will kick on is thanks to the hard work and belief of some energetic locals, none more worthy of congratulations than the mainstays of Origin Records who have organized the always pleasant and diverting Ballard Jazz Festival.
This month the festival launches its twelfth run, and looks well set to make Ballard’s music venues – permanent or improvised – spring to life after our usual drab, drizzling winter (which, of course, we love, and don’t tell anyone, anywhere else).
The highlights of the event include a mainstage performance by saxophone legend Sonny Fortune (April 19 at The Nordic Heritage Museum) accompanied by pianist George Colligan and two Seattle area mainstays, bassist Jeff Johnson and drummer John Bishop.
It was Bishop and his Origin Records label colleagues and stable who took the initiative in 2003 to mount a community event that would showcase Seattle jazz talent. The first event took the form of a single-night Jazz Walk involving six clubs; now the festival is four days of shows at 15 venues, with concerts, educational events, and a jazz pancake breakfast.
At Sonny Fortune’s concert, the evening will open with two outstanding Spanish musicians, “new flamenco” pianist Chano Dominguez in duo with vibraphonist Marina Albero. That Dominguez is no ordinary jazz pianist is predictable from his early inspirations, which included John McLaughlin’s Mahavishnu Orchestra, but ranged also to Bill Evans and Thelonious Monk. Early in his career, he formed a prog rock band infused with traditional Andalusian music. As his career progressed, he became increasingly interested in jazz forms, but never forsook his own regional roots.
Other special events include the annual Brotherhood of the Drum (Wednesday April 16, 21+), Guitar Summit (April 18, 21+), and the all-ages Swedish Pancake Jazz Brunch on April 19.
Taking it back to where it began is the Ballard Jazz Walk, which on April 19 takes over downtown Ballard with presentations of 16 groups at 12 venues (some 21+), all for one cover charge. As each year, the Jazz Walk features a wide variety of styles of jazz, and a bustling, street-filled time is assured.
Highlight shows feature a fertile mix of Seattle-based and national talents. Brotherhood of the Drum (April 16), for example, this year boasts the trio of Dana Hall, whose debut release came in 2009 from Origin Records. Brooklyn born, Hall has since 1992 worked with the likes of Branford Marsalis, Ray Charles, Roy Hargrove, Joshua Redman, Horace Silver, and Betty Carter. He is a member of the Terell Stafford Quintet, the music director of the Chicago Jazz Ensemble, and a former regular member of the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band under the direction of Jon Faddis.
Ted Poor has recently taken up residence in Seattle, where he is artist in residence at the University of Washington. But he remains best known for driving bands of several leading modernists including Bill Frisell, Chris Potter, Kenny Werner, Maria Schneider, and Ralph Alessi. He is in demand not only as a sideman, but also as an educator, with credits that include residencies at the Eastman School of Music, Berklee College of Music, Cal Arts, and the HR Big Band of Frankfurt.
As exciting a drummer as just about any on the scene today, Poor is a regular in several bands, including those of Grammy award-winning trumpeter Cuong Vu, guitarist Ben Monder, Bad Touch, and the Respect Sextet.
Also at the percussion summit is Cavity Fang, a three-drum outfit formed by keyboardist Michael Coleman. He came up with the idea while joining three drummers backing a pop group at the Hollywood Bowl. He brought all three – Jordan Glenn, Hamir Atwal, and Sam Ospovat – into his own project, described as a generator of “a truly demented jazz sound never before heard by human ears.” Coleman’s compositions for the septet explore the sonic capabilities of the drumset and various musical traditions. “If you listen carefully,” promise the Ballard Jazz organizers, “you will hear the influence of free jazz, Captain Beefheart, Haitian carnival music, Jimi Hendrix, and Ligeti as well as Coleman’s own distinct musical language.”
The Guitar Summit (April 18, 21+) hauls to the mountaintop the likes of Corey Christiansen, of whom Jazzwise reviewer Mike Flynn said: “Christiansen is well versed in the guitar’s sonic heritage and his judicious sense of phrasing finds him light-fingered even on the densest of changes and positively euphoric on his ballad work.”
Also on the bill is Mimi Fox, a frequent Seattle visitor whose records and performances have won high praise from guitar elders like Joe Pass and Jim Hall, and whom Guitar Player called “a prodigious talent who has not only mastered the traditional forms but has managed to reinvigorate them.”
Also on the festival billing is guitarist Gregg Belisle-Chi, a young revelation on the Seattle scene.
The all-ages Swedish Pancake Jazz Brunch takes place on April 19, with seatings at 11am and 12:30pm. Buttering the griddle and flapping the jacks will be the quintet of another fine younger player around Seattle, alto saxophonist Jacob Zimmerman, performing 1940s and 1950s bebop. Zimmerman is pedigreed: he came up in the Garfield High jazz hotbed, then attended the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston and Mills College in Oakland. His teachers have included Roscoe Mitchell, Jerry Bergonzi, Joe Morris, and Anthony Coleman. That he has arrived as a major talent was evident at a recent performance where he, keyboardist Wayne Horvitz, and bassist Geoff Harper supported two luminaries visiting from Amsterdam, violinist and violist Mary Oliver and the dervish of poly-stylistic drummers Han Bennink. At the Seattle concert, Bennink repeatedly signaled his delight with Zimmerman’s contributions, no mean demonstration of the Seattleite’s rapidly growing stature.
Tickets for the festival are on sale at ballardjazzfestival.com and for the Ballard Jazz Walk and mainstage concert at Sonic Boom Records on Market St.
Ballard Jazz Festival Schedule
Wednesday, April 16, 8pm
Brotherhood of the Drum
Four drummers lead their own groups. Admission is $15 at the door. Conor Byrne Pub, 5140 Ballard Ave NW. 21+.
Thursday, April 17, 8pm
Guitar Summit
Guitarists take the stage on night two of the festival. Admission is $15 at the door. Conor Byrne Pub, 5140 Ballard Ave NW. 21+.
Friday, April 18, 6:30pm
Ballard Jazz Walk
Jazz takes over downtown Ballard with 16 groups in 12 venues. Admission is $30 day of show. New York Fashion Academy, 5201 Ballard Ave NW. All ages, 21+ at various venues.
Saturday, April 19, 11am & 12:30pm
Swedish Pancake Jazz Brunch & Classic Volvo/Saab Car Show
Admission for non-museum members is $15; members, $12; family of four package, $40. Nordic Heritage Museum, 3014 NW 67th St. All ages.
Saturday, April 19, 7:30pm
Mainstage Concert
The biggest event of the festival welcomes international jazz artists to Ballard. Admission is $35, general admission; $55, reserved; $18, student. Nordic Heritage Museum, 3014 NW 67th St. All ages. For more information and updates to the show schedule, visit ballardjazzfestival.com.
