Jazz- Live! The Duke Ellington Jazz festival

I love my records and my CDs, and you can find me holed up with them for hours, but whenever I can I get out and listen to live performances, particularly jazz, I do so. Pickings have been somewhat slim this summer here in Our Nation’s Capital (you know, the place politicians love to hate, or pretend to hate), and so, I have had little to blog about. However, last week provided an embarrassment of riches, thanks to the Duke Ellington Jazz Festival, presented at various venues around the Capital, with a big outdoor festival on Sunday at the Sylvan Theater on the Mall, near the Washington Monument. The weather was perfect, and the music ran from the very fine to the sublime.

On the Saturday night before the Mall Festival, I stopped in at Twins Jazz to hear saxaphonist and flutist Sonny Fortune, for whose playing I have always had a fondness. Sonny is one of those strong talents who carry the music between the rare appearances of those musical masters (Bird, Miles, Coltrane) who change the world. Sonny looked fit and strong, and his playing matched. He was strong on tenor and expressive on flute. Despite an uneven discography, he is worth checking out.

Sunday dawned sunny, mild, breezy, with startingly clear blue skies. A perfect day for an outdoor festival. First up was Afro Blue, a college a capella jazz ensemble, who were good enough for me to overlook my general dislike of a capella singing. They got the crows into a mellow mood, which Taj Mahal soon dispelled, playing hard, loud (my chest was vibrating from the volume) blues. Taj was fun. I liked him best on acoustic guitar and banjo. Taj is one of the few musicians who can pick up a banjo and not send me running in the opposite direction. I’ve always liked his earliest albums, especially “Taj Mahal,” and “Natch’l Blues.”

The Christian McBride Group followed, with Geoffrey Keezer on acoustic and electric piano, Terreon Gully on drums, and Ron Blake on Saxaphone. The group put on a fusion-inspired set, often channeling Weather Report, but with enough interesting ideas to challenge the audience’s expectations. Blake played strong, and McBride produced a huge sound on bass. A very fine set.

The Conrad Herwig Latin Side Project, with Herwig on trombone, Diego Urcola on trumpet, Craig Handy on sax (not seen often enough on his own) and an array of percussionists, put a Latin touch to compositions by Miles and Coltrane. Herwig’s approach is becoming a bit of a “schtick” but they generally presented an entertaining set. Herwig might be the hardest blowing trombonist out there, which is not to be confused with the best trombonist out there. Unlike a lot of combo leaders, Herwig cracks the whip on his band mates. The highlight of the set was when Paquito D’Rivera joined the band. Paquito brought a true Latin flavor; his constant mugging, however, is a matter of taste.

So you’re wondering what was sublime? McCoy Tyner was sublime. With the superb Gary Bartz on sax, and Gerald Cannon (bass), and Eric Gravatt (drums), McCoy brought moments of sheer sublimity to his performance. Despite advance age and recent illnesses (or were those the springboards for such musical strength), McCoy constantly escaped the bounds of the ordinary, or the merely excellent, and caught moments of The Beautiful on the wing. McCoy’s performance was the distillation of artistry.

I could have left then and been perfectly happy, but the festival was brought to a close by Dee Dee Bridgewater, with a large international ensemble playing music from and inspired by her recent album, “Red Earth- A Malian Journey.” Frankly, I haven’t quite come to grips with her performance, which was equal parts passionate, histrionic, sensual, beautiful and simply over the top. Imagine Nina Simone without restraint. She was joined for much of the performance by Lansine Kouyate, a West African with a velvety baritone voice and a compelling stage presence.

Live Jazz. It’s fantastic. Get out and listen to some soon.