Los Angeles Times, Festival Preview - Grand Performances >>
Summer concerts: Jazz at the Bowl, outdoors and in the clubs
By: Chris Barton
Jazz concerts in Southern California this summer include performances by Chris Botti, George Benson and Wynton Marsalis’ Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.
Once the jacarandas start blooming, Los Angeles’ typically rich menu of live jazz gets that much richer in the great outdoors. This year’s Hollywood Bowl season offers a few tilts toward the smoother side of the music with dates with Chris Botti and George Benson, and a return by Wynton Marsalis’ Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra joined by saxophonist Joe Lovano. Also up is the reliably eclectic Playboy Jazz Festival, as well as a star-studded reexamination of Joni Mitchell’s “The Hissing of Summer Lawns” led by Herbie Hancock that should offer plenty of unfettered exploration. Even the Greek Theatre gets into the act with a September date with Chick Corea’s latest incarnation of the fusion powerhouse Return to Forever.
Little Tokyo’s Blue Whale continues to be a can’t-miss bet regardless of the season, including June dates with Satoko Fujii and Michael Formanek. And Catalina in Hollywood opens the summer with a four-night run with the ever-rambunctious Bad Plus and two shows with rising young guitarist Julian Lage. Grand Performances also offers the occasional evening of free (that is, no cover charge) jazz led by a celebration of L.A.’s influential Pan Afrikan People’s Arkestra and a meeting of jazz and Armenian folk in a show with the Shoghakan Ensemble and pianist Tigran Hamasyan..
JULY
An evening of Arkestry. A celebration of L.A.’s rich jazz heritage led by the late Horace Tapscott’s Pan Afrikan People’s Arkestra and its contemporary offshoot Build an Ark. Grand Performances at California Plaza, 350 S. Grand Ave., L.A. July 23, 8 p.m. Free. www.grandperformances.org.
Hiroshima. The breezy fusion ensemble recently celebrated 30 years together. Hyatt Regency Newport Beach, 1107 Jamboree Road. July 29, $45-$90. (949) 729-1234. www.hyattconcerts.com
Shoghakan Ensemble with Tigran. Up-and-coming pianist Tigran Hamasyan joins the traditional Armenian folk group for a night of musical cross-pollination. Grand Performances at California Plaza, 350 S. Grand Ave., L.A. July 30, 8 p.m. Free. www.grandperformances.org
05/27/11 >> go there
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