More than any I can recall, this year’s Chicago Jazz Festival is a mixed bag. The Jazz Institute of Chicago, which programs the festival, still has a soft spot for tributes to international stars and local treasures (dead or alive), but that’s about the only thread running through the bookings. The fest’s diversity has always been one of its greatest strengths, but this time it seems more diffuse than diverse–and it doesn’t help that the quality of the artists is uneven as usual.
thursday30
7:30 PM, SOLD OUTHerbie Hancock
See Sunday’s Petrillo listings; this is a free open rehearsal.
1:10 PMMark Colby Quartet
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Chicago educator and journeyman saxophonist Mark Colby makes his money as a session man–he’s played on more than 2,000 commercials–but you don’t get Stan Getz calling you a “master of the saxophone” if you’re just a good sight reader and technician. On his most recent album, 2005’s Speaking of Stan (Hallway), Colby pays tribute to his longtime hero, evoking the phases of Getz’s career–from bossa nova to the weightless orchestral experiments of Focus–without resorting to mere mimicry. Today this underappreciated blower is joined by drummer Bob Rummage, bassist Eric Hochberg, and a surprise guest. PM
Most visible these days as a member of Yoko Noge’s band Jazz Me Blues, veteran saxophonist Jimmy Ellis has long been a key part of the local scene, both as a musician and an educator. His students have included Steve Coleman, New Horizons Ensemble leader Ernest Dawkins, and young upstart Jabari Liu; Dawkins and Liu join him today in a showcase that promises to demonstrate the trickle-down effects of mentorship. PM
