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Headed by swinging drummer Sherrie Maricle, the Diva Jazz Orchestra exudes the excitement and force found in the tradition of historic big bands, with an eye toward originality and creativity. With New York as its home base, Diva performs original contemporary and mainstream big band jazz composed and arranged to fit their distinctive ensemble sound and highlight their soloists’ unique personalities and styles. Since their premiere performance, Diva has toured the world to critical and popular acclaim. Now this all-female ensemble is celebrating its 30th anniversary with their latest endeavor, “30: Live at Dizzy’s.”
The first time that the two pianists met, Les McCann didn’t bother to formally greet Joe Alterman. The then wheelchair-bound McCann simply approached the stage of New York’s legendary Blue Note, where the younger pianist was in the middle of his sound check, and said, “Play me some blues, boy.” The results were greeted with a simple “Amen”, and with that began an unlikely friendship that has now spanned more than a decade. That tightknit relationship provides the deeply emotional core of “Joe Alterman Plays Les McCann: Big Mo & Little Joe,” a loving tribute from Alterman to his mentor and friend.
Also this week, pianist, singer and big band leader Matt Catingub pays tribute to his mother, the Samoan-born singer Mavis Rivers, with “From Samoa to Sinatra,” including five tunes with Matt singing alongside his mom via the magic of recording technology; Pete Zimmer, a top-call drummer on the New York jazz scene, offers up his sixth release a leader, “Dust Settles”; and veteran drummer Mike Clark, with guests Eddie Henderson, Bill Summers and others, ventures from straight-ahead to funk and beyond on “Kosen Rufu.”