Hello Bay Area jazz lovers! David Hargis from SFJAZZ here writing to you about the amazing concerts coming up in the next few weeks.
As you may know, the 27th Annual San Francisco Jazz Festival is already in full swing. We just completed our first week, capped off by two exquisite, sold out shows over the weekend by jazz-pop chanteuse Melody Gardot and legendary Brazilian songstress Gal Costa.
Week 2 of the Festival begins on Wednesday, 10/28 with powerhouse drummer Cindy Blackman at the Great American Music Hall paying tribute to Tony Williams, the rhythmic genius behind Miles Davis’ immortal ‘60s quintet. On Thursday, 10/29, 89-year-old sitar master Ravi Shankar performs with his daughter Anoushka Shankar in the glorious listening environment of Davies Symphony Hall – an increasingly rare chance to see the godfather of world music play live in the Bay Area.
This weekend starts with a difficult decision. Dee Dee Bridgewater, easily one of the finest jazz singers we’ve got, previews her forthcoming Billie Holiday tribute album To Billie With Love at Herbst Theater on Friday, 10/30. Meanwhile, across town at the same time, New Orleans trumpeter Nicholas Payton and eclectic NYC reed expert Don Byron co-headline our annual Sacred Space concert at Grace Cathedral. The swanky Nob Hill location, gorgeous Gothic architecture and astounding 7-second echo inside the cathedral make this one an only-in-San-Francisco event.
On Halloween night (Saturday, 10/31), there are two fantastic parties from which to choose. At the Herbst Theatre, harmonica master James Cotton and influential guitarist Hubert Sumlin team up for a raucous night of Chicago Blues. As key members of both Muddy Waters’ and Howlin’ Wolf’s bands, these two legends are the real deal – surely one of the blues event of the year. Also that night, adventurous young keyboardist Marco Benevento headlines our Halloween Dance Party at Yerba Buena Center For The Arts Forum (YBCA) with his mix of post-rock covers of greats such as Neil Young and Beck, along with wild jazz-inspired originals.
Sunday finishes the week with three strong shows. Expansive NYC pianist Marc Cary performs an intimate afternoon concert (2pm) at the Koret Auditorium in the de Young Museum with the Bay Area duo of David Ewell (bass) and Sameer Gupta (drums). Glimpse the future of jazz with the SFJAZZ High School All-Stars appearance at YBCA, performing the work of Duke Ellington on Sunday, 11/1 at 3pm. The week culminates in the prestigious Beacon Award for lifetime achievement presentation to saxophonist, composer and educator John Handy. Known for his early sideman work with Charles Mingus (notably on Mingus Ah Um), his solo breakthrough at 1965’s Monterey Jazz Festival, the hit 1976 R&B album Hard Work, pioneering world music collaborations and the inspiration he’s provided to countless jazz students in the Bay Area over the past half-century, there is no one more deserving of the honor. Many of Handy’s past and present colleagues will be on hand to perform and celebrate with us at the Herbst Theatre at 7pm.
Hope you’ll come experience some of the great music the San Francisco Jazz Festival has to offer!
For more information and to purchase tickets for the above shows or upcoming concerts by artists including Pat Martino and Larry Goldings, Savion Glover, Milton Nascimento, John Abercrombie, Ornette Coleman and Keb’ Mo’ with Solomon Burke, visit our website at www.sfjazz.org.
Hats off to our jazz partner, SFJazz, for hosting another fabulous line up this fall! Our KCSM/SFJazz Listener Night is on Nov. 5 with Esperanza Spalding!