SEPTEMBER 2017 VOLUME 84 / NUMBER 9 President Kevin Maher Publisher Frank Alkyer Editor Bobby Reed Managing Editor Brian Zimmerman Contributing Editor Ed Enright Creative Director Žaneta(cid:3)(cid:206)untová Design Assistant Markus Stuckey Assistant to the Publisher Sue Mahal Bookkeeper Evelyn Oakes ADVERTISING SALES Record Companies & Schools Jennifer Ruban-Gentile 630-941-2030 [email protected] Musical Instruments & East Coast Schools Ritche Deraney 201-445-6260 [email protected] Advertising Sales Associate Kevin R. Maher 630-941-2030 [email protected] OFFICES 102 N. Haven Road, Elmhurst, IL 60126–2970 630-941-2030 / Fax: 630-941-3210 http://downbeat.com [email protected] CUSTOMER SERVICE 877-904-5299 / [email protected] CONTRIBUTORS Senior Contributors: Michael Bourne, Aaron Cohen, Howard Mandel, John McDonough Atlanta: Jon Ross; Austin: Kevin Whitehead; Boston: Fred Bouchard, Frank- John Hadley; Chicago: John Corbett, Alain Drouot, Michael Jackson, Peter Margasak, Bill Meyer, Mitch Myers, Paul Natkin, Howard Reich; Denver: Norman Provizer; Indiana: Mark Sheldon; Iowa: Will Smith; Los Angeles: Earl Gibson, Todd Jenkins, Kirk Silsbee, Chris Walker, Joe Woodard; Michigan: John Ephland; Minneapolis: Robin James; Nashville: Bob Doerschuk; New Orleans: Erika Goldring, David Kunian, Jennifer Odell; New York: Alan Bergman, Herb Boyd, Bill Douthart, Ira Gitler, Eugene Gologursky, Norm Harris, D.D. Jackson, Jimmy Katz, Jim Macnie, Ken Micallef, Dan Ouellette, Ted Panken, Richard Seidel, Tom Staudter, Jack Vartoogian, Michael Weintrob; North Carolina: Robin Tolleson; Philadelphia: David Adler, Shaun Brady, Eric Fine; San Francisco: Mars Breslow, Forrest Bryant, Clayton Call, Yoshi Kato; Seattle: Paul de Barros; Tampa Bay: Philip Booth; Washington, D.C.: Willard Jenkins, John Murph, Michael Wilderman; Canada: Greg Buium, James Hale, Diane Moon; Denmark: Jan Persson; France: Jean Szlamowicz; Germany: Detlev Schilke, Hyou Vielz; Great Britain: Brian Priestley; Japan: Kiyoshi Koyama; Portugal: Antonio Rubio; Romania: Virgil Mihaiu; Russia: Cyril Moshkow; South Africa: Don Albert. Jack Maher, President 1970-2003 John Maher, President 1950-1969 SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION: Send orders and address changes to: DOWNBEAT, P.O. Box 11688, St. Paul, MN 55111–0688. Inquiries: U.S.A. and Canada (877) 904-5299; Foreign (651) 251-9682. 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Box 11688, St. Paul, MN 55111–0688. CABLE ADDRESS: DownBeat (on sale August 15, 2017) Magazine Publishers Association. Á 4 DOWNBEAT SEPTEMBER 2017 SEPTEMBER 2017 ON THE COVER N A M Ambrose R O 2 8 Akinmusire AZZFEST/JEFF F The Thinker C J RI- T BY YOSHI KATO The acclaimed trumpeter talks about his new double album, A Rift In Decorum: Live At The Village Vanguard, as well as his next project and his relocation to the Bay Area. 22 FEATURES 34 Fred Hersch Truth Teller BY PHILLIP LUTZ Jane Bunnett (left) and Maqueque members Celia Jiménez and Elizabeth Rodriguez at the Tri-C JazzFest in Cleveland on June 24. 40 Roscoe Mitchell Cover photo of Ambrose Akinmusire (and images on pages 28–30) shot by Jay Blakesberg at SFJAZZ Center in 'People Don’t Want To Be San Francisco on June 12. Info for this venue is at sfjazz.org. Categorized’ BY TED PANKEN 44 Matt Wilson Life's Calling BY DAN OUELLETTE 48 Indie Life Ropeadope Yoko Miwa 62 Steve Coleman 62 Fabian Almazan 65 Anne Mette Iversen 67 JD Allen Berta Moreno SPECIAL SECTION DEPARTMENTS 8 First Take 59 Reviews 81 Keyboard School 92 Pro Session BY VADIM NESELOVSKYI 10 Chords & Discords 102 Jazz On Campus 82 Melding Classical Music & Big Band 96 Transcription 13 The Beat 106 Blindfold Test Jazz Herbie Hancock Louis Hayes Synthesizer Solo 24 Players BY BILL CUNLIFFE Adam Rogers 98 Toolshed A 8 8 B MY aDAsVteIDr L COPlaATsOs MNDoYaSnuQ rBereyna nCthoi Louis Hayes GULNARA KHAMATOV 6 DOWNBEAT SEPTEMBER 2017 First Take BY BOBBY REED N A M R O AZZFEST/JEFF F C J RI- T Dan Polletta (left), Terence Blanchard, Ravi Coltrane and Kenny Barron share a laugh at the Tri-C JazzFest. Mutually Beneficial Exchange TEACHERS LEARN FROM STUDENTS. ASK unfortunate bout of flatulence. Barron learned a any educator, and he or she will tell you that lot from Diz, and this funny tale made me realize sometimes the instructor feels like the pupil. that while the great trumpeter definitely belongs The same is true in the grand tradition of jazz on the Mt. Rushmore of jazz—I revere him as mentorship. Art Blakey (1919–’90) is revered much as anyone in music history—he was also a today not only for his artistry but also for the regular human being. way that he served as a mentor to so many Polletta asked Blanchard about his role as remarkable jazz “Messengers” who worked in Artist-in-Residence at the festival, and his his band over the years. Blakey (and his fans) work mentoring students at Tri-C (Cuyahoga benefited tremendously by having incredible, Community College) in the art of scoring films. younger players in his band, including artists Blanchard said, “What they’re teaching me is to who would later become important leaders keep my eyes and my ears open and to not settle. themselves, such as Wayne Shorter, Wynton They’re bringing innovation of their own.” He Marsalis and Terence Blanchard. went on to describe how young people with fresh During my experience at this year’s Tri-C ideas are key to maintaining the cutting-edge JazzFest in Cleveland (June 22–24), jazz men- aspects of music (and other art forms) today. torship emerged as a theme. Blanchard played Young musicians can also inspire elders to in two contexts at the fest. On Friday night, he explore new avenues. This was illustrated by delivered a stunning set that focused on his score Blanchard’s concert on Saturday night with his to the Robert De Niro film The Comedian, fea- band The E-Collective, which is made up of turing the same musicians who played on the young players, including the remarkable pianist soundtrack, including tenor saxophonist Ravi Fabian Almazan (whose new album is the sub- Coltrane and pianist Kenny Barron (see review ject of a 5-star review on page 62). on page 22). Regarding Barron, Blanchard told This notion of artists from different genera- the crowd, “If you’ve got Michael Jordan on your tions learning from each other was also illustrat- team, you don’t leave him on the bench.” That ed by veteran saxophonist/flutist Jane Bunnett’s was how the trumpeter introduced Barron’s bril- performance at Tri-C with her band Maqueque. liant trio rendition of the standard “Isfahan,” Bunnett repeatedly told the audience how much which was a master class on elegance and swing. inspiration she has drawn from these incredi- After the concert, producer/host Dan ble young Cuban players. Fans at this show were Polletta of WCPN moderated a lively conversa- dazzled by the energy radiated by this ensemble. tion with Blanchard, Coltrane and Barron in the Mentors help youth, and youth help mentors. festival’s Jazz Talk Tent. At one point, Barron dis- That two-way street—that exchange of ideas and cussed his stint in Dizzy Gillespie’s band, and he energy—is one of the things that keeps jazz glori- related a humorous anecdote about Diz and an ously, perpetually moving forward. DB 8 DOWNBEAT SEPTEMBER 2017 Chords Discords Our National Treasure Wadada Leo Smith N O How could Wadada Leo Smith not be your KS C A Aheuagvuesnt sc, oavfteerr acortnisvt,i npcoiningtliyn wg inhnisi nhgo Arnr tiuspt, Atolb uthme AEL J H C & Trumpeter of the Year in the Critics Poll? MI As Ted Panken’s story, “Rising Up in Purity,” conveys, sometimes the passage of time is nec- essary for listeners to catch up to an innovative artist like Mr. Smith. Panken mentioned that the pianist Anthony Davis heard Smith play a duo concert with Marion Brown in 1970 while he was a freshman at Yale in New Haven. My wife and I were there, too, getting an antidote to the stress of being a medical student at Yale. Unfortunate- ly, there were less than a dozen attendees in the basement room for the concert and there was no newspaper coverage. I did some jazz record re- views at the time under the name “Dr. Jazz.” That Please take care of yourself, Mr. Smith, as I’m was before Smith had added “Wadada” to his sure you will provide us with many more of your name. Now we are both devoted grandparents. musical treasures. Like his Jazz Album of the Year, America’s H. STEVEN MOFFIC, M.D. National Parks, Smith is a national treasure. MILWAUKEE Eileen Southern Book Poll. I know that torches exist to be passed, es- In your August issue, the cover story on pecially in jazz, but I’m just not ready to accept Wadada Leo Smith misstated the title of one Sonny’s retirement. of Dr. Eileen Southern’s books. The title is The poll results made me appreciate once The Music of Black Americans: A History. again Sonny’s majestic, nearly 70-year contri- bution to our music. JERRY GARMAN WHITEHALL, MICHIGAN ALLEN MICHIE AUSTIN, TEXAS RTIST Poll Criticism A HE At first, I was happy to see the results of OF T the annual DownBeat Critics Poll because I Y URTES usuaBlulyt athgereye m wisitshe dth oeu ct roitnic os’n oep oinf itoondsa.y’s best O C Rising Star acts, the saxophone-and-drums duo Binker and Moses. Also, the duo’s new release, Journey To The Mountain Of Forever, has not been reviewed in DownBeat. You are doing the duo (and your readers) a disservice by not giving these musicians their due. LAWRENCE BUCHAS [email protected] Helen Gillet Editor’s Note: A review of the new Binker NOLA Pride and Moses album will be in our October issue. I always look forward to the annual Critics Poll issue, and I was really pleased with most of Corrections the results this year. I loved seeing New Orle- (cid:31) In the August print edition, the article on Jen ans greats Clint Maedgen and Aurora Nealand Shyu should have indicated that her name is make the cut, but I was surprised that another pronounced like the word “shoe.” Also, Shyu New Orleans standout, Helen Gillet, didn’t. She plays the Taiwanese moon lute, but not the is a phenomenal cellist/composer/vocalist wor- Vietnamese moon lute. thy of note. Anyway, thanks again for the poll! (cid:31) In the August issue, Jim Macnie’s review of SCOTT ARNOLD [email protected] Matt Wilson’s album Honey And Salt should have indicated that actor/singer Jack Black is the husband of Tanya Haden. Missing Sonny I’ve been depressed all day because I saw DOWNBEAT REGRETS THE ERRORS. Sonny Rollins’ name missing from the Tenor Have a Chord or Discord? Email us at [email protected] Saxophone category of the 65th Annual Critics or find us on Facebook & Twitter. 10 DOWNBEAT SEPTEMBER 2017