AN OLYMPIC CARNAVAL AT THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL By Don Heckman What a great weekend. A remarkable synchronization , featuring performances of two remarkable Brazilian events . One is at the XXXI Olympiad in Rio de Janeiro. As much as we’d all like to fly down to Rio, few Olympics fans will have ample funds for… Read More HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEKEND IN LOS ANGELES
By Norton Wright Santa Monica, CA. One of the unique experiences on today’s jazz scene is “Big Band Night” at Typhoon Restaurant at Santa Monica Airport in Los Angeles. On Memorial Day evening listeners are ready to experience a veritable bacchanal as the band on stage is Paul McDonald’s big, powerhouse, 17-piece orchestra. The band… Read More Live Music: The Best Memorial Day Party Ever! Paul McDonald’s Big band at the Typhoon Jazz Restaurant.
By Don Heckman Bel Air, CA. Vibrato Grill Jazz…etc. became a very special place when Herb Alpert took it over a few years ago, transforming a small venue in a mini-mall at the top of Beverly Glen into a fine food connoisseur’s delight and a world class showcase for jazz. And it becomes even more… Read More Live Music: Herb Alpert and Lani Hall at Vibrato Grill Jazz…etc.
By Don Heckman Los Angeles – March 6. (Thurs.) Betty Bryant. Singer/pianist Bryant’s engaging style recalls an era of briskly swinging, warmly interpretive jazz cabaret. Vibrato Grill Jazz…etc. (310) 474-9400. – March 7. (Fri.) Savion Glover’s StePz. Tap dancer Glover has brought more jazz qualities to contemporary tap dancing than anyone since Fred Astaire. Valley… Read More Picks of the Week: March 5 – 9
By Don Heckman It’s always a pleasure to hear Herb Alpert and Lani Hall up close and personal. The veteran showbiz couple, whose prolific careers reach back to the ’60s, are still at the peak of their considerable creative powers. On Thursday night at Vibrato Grill Jazz…etc., the elegant, Bel Air night club founded by… Read More Live Music: Herb Alpert and Lani Hall at Vibrato Grill Jazz…etc.
By Don Heckman The 2013 summer season of jazz at the Hollywood Bowl clicked into place Wednesday night with the performances of Herb Alpert, Lani Hall and Sergio Mendes. Alpert and Hall, in particular, offered a musically rich, rhythmically energetic program of material ranging across jazz classics and American Songbook standards spiced with the music… Read More Live Jazz: Herb Alpert, Lani Hall and Sergio Mendes at the Hollywood Bowl
By Don Heckman Los Angeles – July 15. (Mon.) L.A. Jazz Orchestra Unlimited. With Kenny Burrell. Guitarist/educator Burrell leads an aggregation of some of the Southland’s fine big band players. Catalina Bar & Grill. (223) 466-2210. – July 16. (Tues.) Nora Rothman. With an appealing vocal style, young jazz artist Rothman offers what she describes… Read More Picks of the Week: July 15 – 21
By Don Heckman Vitello’s was packed to the gills Saturday night. And with good reason. Johnny Mandel was making one of his rare appearances, leading an assemblage of Southland jazz all-stars in an evening surveying his long, productive career as a composer, arranger and songwriter. At 86, recovering from hip problems and walking with a… Read More Live Jazz: The Johnny Mandel Big Band at Vitello’s
By Don Heckman Los Angeles – July 27. (Tues.) and 29. (Thurs.) Heroic Beethoven. A pair of evenings overflowing with the splendor of Beethoven’s boundless imagination. Pianist David Fray plays the Piano Concerto No. 3. And Pablo Heras-Casado conducts the Los Angeles Philharmonic in the Eroica Symphony No. 3. The Hollywood Bowl. (323) 850-2000. –… Read More Picks of the Week: July 26 – August 1
By Michael Katz It’s a pretty good bet that when your opening act is Poncho Sanchez, you are in for some excitement. That was certainly the case Wednesday evening at the Hollywood Bowl, which kicked off its 2009 jazz series with a Latin program featuring Sanchez, Eddie Palmieri and Sergio Mendes. The program attracted a… Read More Live Jazz: Sergio Mendes, Eddie Palmieri and Poncho Sanchez at the Hollywood Bowl
The International Review of Music 