This Week In Jazz August 18th thru August 25th

Hey, Jazz fans!!!

Be sure to tune in this week as we celebrate the birthdays of pianist/bandleader/composer Count Basie, trombonists Jack Teagarden and Jiggs Whigham, pianist Jimmy Rowles, trumpeter Art and bassist Addison Farmer, Bluesman John Lee Hooker, drummer Ginger Baker and more!!! We’ll also mark the recording anniversaries of Jimmy Smith’s “The Sermon” (1957), Dave Brubeck’s “Time Out” (1959), The Modern Jazz Quartet’s “Pyramid” (1959), Lou Donaldson’s “Everything I Play Is Funky” (1969), Andre Previn, Mundell Lowe & Ray Brown’s “Old Friends” (1991) and many others throughout the week and Mondays thru Fridays at noon on our ‘JAZZ MASTERS’ program on Jazz 88.3 KCCK.

Clean Up Your Act 9-4-19

Microplastic pollution is increasing exponentially worldwide.

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Talking Pictures 8-14-19

The Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark with Hollis Monroe and Phil Brown.

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Culture Crawl 486 “He’s Happy. And He Has a Band”

Next up at Jazz Under The Stars in Noelridge Park on August 15 is Christopher’s Very Happy Band, a quartet led by UNI Director of Jazz Studies Chris Merz. An accomplished composer of all kinds of jazz, The Very Happy Band is Chris’s outlet for his most upbeat and mass-appeal tunes, perfect for an evening in the park!

Chris talks about his music and career as a teacher and performer, including his connection to the legendary Dave Brubeck

Come early and hear KCCK’s Young Artist Series, featuring The Corridor Quintet, whose members are from Cedar Rapids Washington, City High, and West High The music starts at 6:30.

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Special Programs for August 11 thru August 17

Short List with host Bob Naujoks

Monday – Friday at 8:35 AM and Saturdays at 7 AM

Women In Jazz: Maria Schneider & Lisa Hilton

Maria Schneider and Lisa Hilton are both multi-talented, multi-faceted artists. Schneider’s big break came when she was hired by Gil Evans as his copyist. She has gone on to lead her own jazz orchestra and become a solid composer, arranger, and pianist. Her work has garnered her multiple Grammy awards. Pianist, bandleader, producer, and composer Lisa Hilton blends jazz and blues with minimalism, classical, and avant-garde music. She has recorded with Antonio Sanchez, Larry Grenadier, and Christian McBride.

Jazz Corner of the World with host Craig Kessler

Mondays from 6:00 PM to 10:00 PM

More Classic CTI From the 1970’s

Craig says, “Don’t miss out on the fun!” as he spins more enduring classics from CTI, including strong material from Stanley Turrentine, Paul Desmond, Milt Jackson, Freddy Hubbard, Ron Carter and others.

Wednesday Night Special

Wednesdays at 6:00 PM

Chris Merz and the KCC Big Band

As Christopher’s Very Happy. Band. warms up for Jazz Under the Stars, let’s take a listen to another of this talented reedman and bandleader’s standout performances. He jammed with the Kirkwood Community College Big Band for their 2016 Spring Concert. Recorded live in Ballantyne Auditorium, it was more swing than one stage could contain!

Jazz Night In America with Host Christian McBride

Thursdays at 11:00 PM

Clarksdale, Mississippi – Home of the Blues

Jazz Night in America heads to the Juke Joint Festival in Clarksdale, MS, and visits with musicians — young and old — who are keeping the blues tradition alive.

Jazz Corner of the World with host Craig Kessler

Saturdays at Noon

“Bitches Brew” 50^th Anniversary

Craig urges you not to miss this in-depth look at one of the most impactful releases of our time. We’ll hear the classic recordings from August 19, 20, and 21, 1969, as well as some of the other “adjacent” Miles Davis recordings.

KCCK’s Midnight CD

Every Night at Midnight

Each night, KCCK gives you the chance to hear a new CD in its entirety. The Midnight CD’s for this week are (Monday thru Sunday): Juan Alamo – Ruta Panoramica; Chicago Jazz Philharmonic – The Chicago River; Paul Lichty Sextet – Social Media Suite; Michael O’Neill Quintet with Tony Lindsay – Pacific Standard Time; Coco Montoya – Coming In Hot; The Nick Moss Band – Lucky Guy; Dream Shanti – Music In Our Dreams

New Music Monday for August 12, 2019

Rio de Janeiro native Antonio Adolfo was just a teenager in the early 1960s when he became a part of the bossa nova revolution that was sweeping Brazil and the rest of the world. Not content to spend most of career backing vocalists, the pianist and many of his peers began crafting a more rhythmically robust instrumental interpretation of the lithe and flirtatious bossa. Influenced by the bebop, soul jazz and West Coast trends that ruled the day in the U.S., the potent result was coined Samba Jazz. “Samba Jazz Alley” is the latest chapter in a series of releases by Adolfo that have explored a wide range of stylistic variants of Brazilian music. The session’s title refers to an obscure dead-end alley in the heart of Rio’s storied Copacabana neighborhood that served as a breeding ground for the city’s up-an-coming instrumentalists and singers during the heyday of bossa nova.

He may be the most versatile bassist in or out of jazz, fluent in the musical language of Dizzy Gillespie, Andre Previn, Phil Woods, Kenny Rankin, Hank Jones Paquito D’Rivera and Sheila Jordan, to name just a few of the stars on his resume. But David Finck has spent much of his 40-year career exploring the solo potential of an instrument that is usually the unobtrusive heartbeat of the rhythm section. “Bassically Jazzz” is just his third album as a leader, another testament to his exquisite and eclectic taste, to the lushness of his sound, and to his passion for melody. Guests include vibraphonist Joe Locke, guitarist Bob Mann, flutist Ali Ryerson and singer Alexis Cole.

Also this week, two-time Grammy winning composer and saxophonist Ted Nash releases his 15th disc as a leader, “Somewhere Else: West Side Story Songs,” his second effort in a trio with guitarist Steve Cardenas and bassist Ben Allison;

saxophonist Peter Furlan offers up “Between the Lines,” a collection of compositions influenced by some of his favorite books and authors of modern fiction

and pianist Randy Sandoli, a lecturer in Jazz Studies at the University of the Pacific and assistant director of the Brubeck Institute, delivers his second album as a leader, “Simcha (Joy).”

This Week In Jazz August 11th thru August 17th

Hey, Jazz fans!!!

Be sure to tune in this week as we celebrate the birthdays of organist Bill Heid, saxman Donnie McCaslin, guitarist Pat Metheny, drummer Jo Jones, trumpeter Benny Bailey, pianist George Shearing and more!!! We’ll also mark the recording anniversaries of Red Garland’s “Garland of Red” (1956), Shelly Manne & Friends’ “My Fair Lady” (1956), John Coltrane’s “Lush Life” (1957), Art Blakey’s “A Night in Tunisia/Someone In Love” (1960), Richard Holmes & Gene Simmons’ “Groovin’ with Jug” (1961) and many others throughout the week and Mondays thru Fridays at noon on our ‘JAZZ MASTERS’ program on Jazz 88.3 KCCK.

Culture Crawl 485 “The Open Bar is Part of Our Success”

SPT Theatre opens its 12th season this year in a new location. The company is moving to a freshly-remodeled performance space at Shores Central Park, in Cedar Rapids’ recently-named College District.

Long the home of cool restaurants and music clubs, SPT is pleased to be the neighborhood’s first performing arts company. Mary Sullivan and Gerard Estella say that there will be an opportunity to preview the space and get a sneak peak of the new season of Tales From The Writer’s Room, “Under Construction” on August 22, from 5-8pm.

Shores Central Park is at 700 16th St. NE, Cedar Rapids. More info at www.spttheatre.com.

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