Picks of the Week: March 2 – 8

By Don Heckman

Los Angeles

Dominick Farinacci

- Mar. 3. (Tues.)  Dominick Farinacci. The much-heralded young trumpet prodigy has just released his first album, “Lovers, Tales & Dances.”  Already a featured performer at Lincoln Center, where he has studied with Wynton Marsalis, the 25 year old Julliard graduate has the chops, the imagination and the presence to be a breakout artist.  Catalina Bar & Grill.  (323) 466-2210.  www.catalinajazzclub.com.

- Mar. 3. (Tues.)  Julie Kelly Trio. The imaginative jazz singer features selections from her recently released CD, “Everything I Love.”  Charlie O’s.  (818) 994-3058.  www.charlieos.com

- Mar. 5. (Thurs.)  Bill Cunliffe.  Pianist/composer Cunliffe fronts a seven piece ensemble performing material from “Blues and the Abstract Truth: Take 2,” his re-imagining of the 1961Oliver Nelson classic. Vitello’s Restaurant.  (818) 769-0905.  www.vitellosrestaurant.com

- Mar. 5. (Thurs.)  The Klezmatics.  Twenty years together, the Grammy-winning Klezmatics have expanded the definitions of traditional klezmer, bringing it into the vanguard of contemporary music.  UCLA Royce Hall. (310) 825-2101.  www.uclalive.org.   Also Mar. 3 at Yoshi’s San Francisco.  (415) 655-5600.  www.yoshis.com.

Lynda Carter

- Mr. 5 – 7. (Thurs. – Sat.)  Lynda Carter. Forget about Wonder Woman.  Carter’s jazz cabaret singing proves that her creative skills reach well beyond the simulation of comic book characters.  Catalina Bar & Grill.  (323) 466-2210.  www.catalinajazzclub.com.

- Mar. 5 – 7. (Thurs. – Sat.)  Pharoah Sanders Quartet. The Coltrane legacy lives, transformed into a uniquely personal expression by one of jazz’s most intriguing musical veterans.  Jazz Bakery  (310) 271-9039.  www.jazzbakery.com.

- Mar. 6. (Fri.)  Anthony Wilson Septet.  He’s everybody’s guitarist of choice, as well as a sterling player in his own right.  And some of his most fascinating music takes place via the charts he writes for his Septet.  Steamers.  (714) 871-8800  www.steamersjazzcafe.com.

- Mar. 6. (Fri.)  The Bad Plus and Wendy Lewis.  The iconoclastic nu-jazz trio perform selections from their new CD, “For All I Care,” their first album featuring vocals. The Mint.   (323) 954-9400.

Ernie Andrews

- Mar. 6. (Fri.)  Ernie Andrews and  Llew Matthews. Combine the inimitable singing of Andrews with the dynamic piano work of Matthews, and expect to share the joy of straight ahead jazz and blues.  Crowne Plaza LAX Hotel.  (310) 642-7500.  www.CrownePlaza.com.

- Mar. 7. (Sat.)  Music and Conversation.  An eclectic evening of music.  The opening portion features violinist Nancy Wu, cellist John Walz, clarinetist Josh Ranz and pianist Delores Stevens performing music by Subotnick, J.S. Bach and Schumann.  The second half showcases a jazz set with pianist Alan Broadbent, saxophonists Gary Foster and bassist Putter Smith.  The Goldman Performance Space. Mt. Washington. (310) 453-6278.  http://www.musicandconversations.org.

San Francisco

- Mar. 2.(Mon.)  Amina Figarova.  The Azerbaijani jazz pianist/composer continues hor West Coast tour.  Yoshi’s Oakland. . (510) 238-9200.  www.yoshis.com.  Also Mar. 3 at Jazz Bakery  (310) 271-9039.  www.jazzbakery.com.

- Mar. 6 – 8 (Fril. – Sun.)  Stanley Clarke Acoustic. Calling all bass players.  Stop by Yoshi’s this week for an object lesson in what your instrument can really do. Yoshi’s Oakland. . (510) 238-9200.  www.yoshis.com.

- Mar. 7 and 8. (Sat. & Sun.)  SFJAZZ kicks off its 10^th Spring Season with performances by Albino! on Saturday and Jenny Scheinman on Sunday at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Forum.(866) 920-5299.  http://www.sfjazz.org.

San Diego

- Mar. 7. (Sat.)  David Sanchez.  The Grammy-winning, Puerto Rican tenor saxophonist affirms his position in the top echelon of cutting edge, contemporary jazz.  San Diego Atheneum. (858) 454-5872 www.ljathenaeum.org.

New York City

Michel Legrand

- Mar. 3 – 8. (Tues. – Sun.)  Michel Legrand. The French pianist/composer makes a rare club appearance in program titled “Romance…with Strings Attached, featuring Legrand’s trio with string quartet and harpist. Not to be missed.  Birdland.  (212) 581-3080.  www.birdlandjazz.com.

- Mar. 3 – 8. (Tues. – Sun.)  Cyrus Chestnut and Eric Reed. A pair of the jazz world’s most unique pianists have an improvisational encounter.  With Dezron Douglas, bass and Willie Jones III, drums.  Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola. (212) 258-9595.  www.jalc.org/dccc.

- Mar. 5 – 8. (Thurs. – Sun.) ” Dexter Calling.” A Dexter Gordon Celebration.  With Dave Liebman (Thurs. & Fri.), Randy Brecker (Sat. & Sun.), Eric Alexander, George Cables, Lonnie Plaxico and Billy Drummond.  Iridium Jazz Club.  (212) 582-2121.  http://www.iridiumjazzclub.com.

.

Live Jazz: Corky Hale

By Don Heckman

Corky Hale’s appearance at Vibrato Sunday night was less a performance than a happening.  That’s not to say that there was a lack of music taking place.  Far from it.  But Hale — who roved freely around the stage, playing piano, harp, singing a far-ranging collection of standards, telling stories, interacting with the full house crowd – is not an advocate of detached presentation.  Listening to her sing and play, laughing at her anecdotes about working with the likes of Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra, George Michael and Bjork, had the feeling of a richly entertaining evening in her living room, surrounded by friends, family and fans.

Corky Hale

Hale is one of the Southland’s true multi-hyphenates. Aside from her instrumental and vocal prowess, she’s a theatre, film and record producer, a political activist, a supporter of numerous charities, and has owned a restaurant and a clothing store.  But she’s always been at her best when there was a piano, a harp or a microphone (and usually all three) within easy reach.  As they were on Sunday.

She didn’t get to the harp – which she described as “that monster” until she’d played two or three tunes on the piano, amply displaying a style that makes full use of rich, two-handed harmonies and a jaunty sense of rhythm.  When she finally moved to the “monster” for “My Funny Valentine,” the connection with her piano playing was immediately apparent – surely one of the most unique jazz styles ever articulated on this potentially cumbersome instrument.  Her vocals were even more fascinating, in part because she sang with the musicality of an instrumentalist.  But even more so because – in readings such as a whimsical take on “Who Cares” and Jerry Leiber and husband Mike Stoller’s “Kansas City” and “Loving You” – she revealed an unerring capacity to find the stories at the heart of a song’s lyrics. .

Hale was immensely aided by the presence of a trio of stellar players – guitarist John Chiodini, bassist Pat Senatore and drummer Ryan Doyle.  Asked to respond quickly and accurately to her spontaneous choices of tunes and free flying interpretations, they did so superbly.  Chiodini was a marvel, often doubling Hale’s harp melodies to produce instant mini-arrangements of tunes, playing several solo choruses – especially on the blues – that were among the evening’s highlights.  Senatore, always a sturdy rhythm player with a rock steady sense of time, was a lyrically melodic soloist, as well. Doyle added the range of percussion sounds needed for Hale’s far-ranging musical selections.  And a pair of songs by daughter-in-law Tricia Tahara assured that the family’s musical flow would continue for another generation.

After she left the stage, Hale confided to me that she felt that music was beginning to slip away as her primary focus.  One hopes that isn’t true — that her many other interests will, in fact, allow her to focus even better on her music, as an unencumbered form of expressiveness.  And that there will be more opportunities to share another unique, Corky Hale musical happening.