Spyro Gyra
Friday, August 11, 7:30 p.m.
Kent Stage, 175 E. Main St., Kent (tickets)
Are they jazz? After 49 years, it’s kind of a moot point. OG saxophonist Jay Beckenstein and his bubbly, rhythm-happy crew have making heads nod and feet pat for a lot of folks–probably more than a few hardcore jazz stans among them. This summertime music should fill the house at Kent Stage.
“To me, music is home,” said guitarist Lucas Kadish in response to a question I posed by email last week.
It’s a pretty sentiment metaphorically, but Saturday, it becomes a statement of fact when the Hudson native brings his trio to BOP STOP to celebrate the release of his new recording Tundra.
Because my interview with this week’s feature artist fell through, I decided to improvise and do something different. Instead of stuffing the Trading Fours roundup of capsule event previews at the end of a 700-word feature article, today they’re the main event. Short and sweet. I’m going to open the comments for this post so you can tell me if you like it or think this should be a one-and-done.
Dan Bruce :beta collective with Alyssa Boyd, Cain Park, Tuesday, July 25
In the language of software developers, a beta project is one that is in development. That’s a pretty good description of the jazz playbook, too, especially as practiced by Lakewood guitarist Dan Bruce. His :beta collective balances a mutable blend of electric and acoustic instruments, composition and improvisation, jazz and prog rock influences. For the latest iteration of his tinkerer’s project in sound, Bruce has added a new wrinkle: the voice of Alyssa Boyd. That makes for an intriguing proposition for us musical beta testers, and as part of the free concert series supported by the Local 4 Music Fund, you can’t beat the price.
“When I went to undergrad, I kind of did jazz in secret, like on the side,” said Ellie Martin. “I remember a teacher telling me once that jazz was going to ruin your voice. You’re not really supposed to do that. A lot of singers did though. You did it on the side and you didn’t say anything.”
Martin’s jazz hobby is no secret anymore. And with a new album, Verdant (self released, 2023), and a Midwest tour that concludes Saturday with an engagement at Akron’s BLU Jazz+, singing jazz has become more than a side hustle for the Toledo-based vocalist.
Despite the increasing numbers of creative improvising musicians who play it, the double bass in a solo context—on record or in performance–remains a comparatively uncommon sound.