By Will Friedwald
Michael Mwenso
&
Brianna Thomas
celebrate 110 years of
Fats Waller
Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola
Broadway at 60th Street, 5th Floor, (212) 258-9595
Monday & Thursday
Two young vocalists, Michael Mwenso (from Sierra Leone, West
Africa) and Brianna Thomas (from Peoria, Ill.), celebrate Thomas
"Fats" Waller, the legendary pianist-songwriter-singer-comedian at
Dizzy's. The location is apt because Dizzy Gillespie himself lauded
Waller as one of the funniest in jazz. The vocalists will be
accompanied by pianist Chris Pattishall, trombonist Josh Holcomb
and trumpeter-singer Bria Skonberg. Then on Thursday, Ms. Skonberg
leads her own band, honoring Louis Armstrong's mega-masterpiece
album from 1955, "Satch Plays Fats."
Dee Dee Bridgewater
featuring Theo Croker
Blue Note
131 W. 3rd St. (212) 475-8592
Through Sunday
The veteran vocalist, Dee Dee Bridgewater, portrayed Billie
Holiday on off-Broadway during the past year. Recently, she
reinterpreted the "Lady Day" repertoire in her own way at the
Newport Jazz Festival and collaborated with trumpeter Theo Croker
on a new album that combines American jazz with Afrobeat. This Blue
Note appearance promises to draw on Ms. Bridgewater's total oeuvre,
which encompasses a multicultural and multi-continental
approach.
Daryl Sherman
Bryant Park
Between 40th and 42nd Streets and Fifth and Sixth Avenues
Friday
The storied pianist-singer works all over the city--from the
Kitano to the Knickerbocker--but Bryant Park is one of the best
places to hear her. It is quieter than some of the noisier gin
joints that hire piano players, plus this intimate setting
encourages listeners to be more forthcoming with requests.
Duchess
55 Bar
55 Christopher St. (212) 929-9883
Thursday
Lately the most overlooked ensemble format in jazz is the vocal
harmony group--you're more likely to hear a band with three
drummers or accordionists than a trio comprised of three singers.
This recently organized threesome, Amy Cervini, Hilary Gardner and
Melissa Stylianou, devises original arrangements of mostly vintage
songs, both familiar and offbeat. They understand that swinging
music goes hand in hand with an audacious sense of humor.
Percussion Discussion: An All-Percussion Tribute To Max
Roach
Richard Rodgers Amphitheater, Marcus Garvey Park
5th Ave & 124th St, (212) 866-3616
Friday
Even as Jazzmobile continues to celebrate its 50th season and
the legacy of founders Dr. Billy Taylor and Daphne Arnstein,
Friday's concert honors drummer, composer and modern jazz pioneer
Max Roach, who was born 90 years ago this year. The headliners
include traps master (and Roach collaborator) Warren Smith,
vibraphonists Jay Hoggard and Bryan Carrott, Afro-Latin
percussionist Bobby Sanabria and steel-pan virtuoso Lyndon
Achee.
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