Jazz

Who is Robert Sanae?

Dayton native, Robert Sanae, born Robert Jones, is a product of a rich musical heritage with relatives who were accomplished musicians of groups such as ‘Sun’ and ‘Dayton’, and his father an original member of the acclaimed Ohio Players. Robert is a multi-genre producer, composer, writer as well as a multi-instrumentalist. Robert began his professional career as a member of the R&B Group ‘Zapp’ featuring Roger Troutman, where he was a trumpeter, keyboardist, vocalist where he learned numerous other skills, including audio engineering and editing. With the Troutman organization, his credits encompassed five albums out of the Troutman camp, which included ‘Zapp IV’ and its hit track “Computer Love,” Robert composed and arranged the horn parts for several tracks as well as singing background and some small lead vocals on that project; Roger Troutman’s solo project, ‘The Human Body’; Shirley Murdock’s Debut album ‘As We Lay’ and Sugarfoot’s solo Project ‘Kiss.’ His story is not unlike so many other musicians/artists throughout the world that have navigated the vast music abyss along with trying to make a living via a life in music. He came to the realization some time ago that he must accept who he is to the core and not attempt to ignore the gift bestowed upon him by his creator. After ending his tenure with the Troutman organization, Robert moved to California to further his career as a writer, composer, artist as well as a producer and later moved to New Orleans, La. Over the years Robert has created an extensive catalog of productions ranging from R&B, Hip Hop, Neo-Soul, Pop, Adult Contemporary Smooth/Contemporary Jazz and Rock and continues to develop as a producer/composer/musician, aspiring to become a master producer/composer. This coming Saturday, May 11 you will be able to sample some of Sanae’s expertise at Jazz Central in Dayton, when he and some of his friends will introduce his latest venture called “Prelude to Carter Creek – Indigo Blue.” Sanae reaches out to a broad audience, while injecting the highest level of musicianship into every note, phrase and song. I’ve seen Sanae perform on trumpet, keyboard and bass, although a credible player on all instruments, his main forte, in my opinion is the composition and the blending of sounds. What comes out is the real McCoy, a truly new version of an old art form.

My near term recommendations for some good upcoming entertainment: this Thursday it’s High School Jazz night at the Dayton Art Institute, Friday it’s the Spring Edition of Urban Nights in downtown Dayton and Saturday check out Robert Sanae at Jazz Central. Life is short, get out and hear some good live Jazz!

 

Jazz Calendar

Here are some (not all) of the upcoming jazz events for the next couple of weeks:

Today Wednesday, May 8 – Swing Dance with Lizz & Rex Review is at The Dayton Event Connection and The Blue Wisp Big Band performs at the Wisp inCincinnati.

Thursday May 9 – It’s High School Jazz Night at the Dayton Art Institute when Bill Burn and the Centerville High School Jazz 1, Jazz Combo 1 and Student Combo called “The Odyssey” play a wide range of contemporary and straight ahead jazz.
Friday May 10 – It’s the Spring Edition of Urban Nights all over downtown Dayton, the Oregon District and Wright Dunbar who has LYD and Chris Bowman on their Jazz Stage.

Saturday May 11 – Marion Meadows and Deron Bell are at the Artium Hotel and Conference Center in Cincinnati and Robert Sanae is doing a Prelude to CarterCreek called Indigo Blue at Jazz Central in Dayton.

Sunday May 12 – The Jam Session w/ Kenny Baccus continues at Dayton’s Jazz Central and Mother’s Day Brunch with Dwight Lenox is at North PointConference Center in Columbus.
Monday May 13 – The John Taylor Trio is at Brio Tuscan Grille in Beavercreek and Vaughn Wiester’s Famous Jazz Orchestra is at the Clintonville Woman’s Club in Columbus.

Tuesday May 14 – The Part St. Tavern is having a Jazz Jam and Tony Monaco is at the Rumba Café both in Columbus.

Wednesday May 15 –Todd Hepburn is at Arnold’s Bar & Grill in Cincinnati and Paul Hines & 57 Special is the Jazz Kitchen in Indianapolis, IN.

Thursday May 16 – The Generations Big Band is at Jazz Central in Dayton and Dave Greer’s Classic Jazz Stompers is at The Tropics in Kettering, OH.

Friday May 17 – Shawn Stanley Trio is at Carvers Steaks & Chops in Centerville and Jamey Aebersold Quartet is at fhe Blue Wisp in Cincinnati.

Saturday May 18 – The Bobby Floyd Trio is at Boudin’s Bistro & Jazz Club in Columbus and the Jazz of the Month Club presents the Rick VanMatre Quintet at the Cincinnati Public Library Atrium in Cincinnati OH.

Sunday May 19 – The Vernon Hairston Trio w/Tia is at Hollywood Casino Columbus and there’s a Jazz Jam at Victory’s in Columbus.

Monday May 20 – Mark Flugge, Derek Dicenzo & Jimmy Castoe are at Due Amici in Columbus and the Monday Night Big Band is at Blue Wisp in Cincinnati.
Tuesday May 21 – Ed Moss & the Society Jazz Orchestra is at the Schwartz Point Jazz Club in Cincinnati.

More info and jazz listings can be found at JazzAdvocate.com

Local (Springfield, Ohio) jazz artist, Dean Simms, has created a 90 minute full length musical stage play called that tells the story about the amazing life and career of Louis ‘Satchmo’ Armstrong. This musical tells the story about the amazing life and career of Louis Armstrong in a full 90 minute bigger than life stage production. His script was selected out of 100’s by the DC Black Theater Festival to be performed in the nation’s capital on June 21-29 2013.

I have always considered Dean an outstanding trumpet player ever since the days when Rosemary and I first caught him performing at the old Silver Fox Night Club in Dayton. As it’s my nature to mentally track the players I like, I took great interest of an email I received from Dean in October of 2011: “Hello Ron, here is the link to my next Satchmo concert.  It is sponsored by the Springfield Arts Council, and the Clark County Historical Society.  This show is both educational, highly entertaining and I have a great group of Ohio State players as backup. 

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=89lyYfBSWIE’]

My next involvement with Dean’s Satchmo project: “Once upon a time in America there was a young boy who learned to play a horn in reform school, became the ambassador of jazz to all nations and left us with a wonderful world.  On Saturday, March 10th, 2012 a tribute to Louie Armstrong was held at Jazz Central, the club that’s bringing jazz back.  Dean Simms and a very talented group of Ohio State players brought “Satchmo” back on that evening.  This resurgence of jazz project was sponsored by Jazz Advocate and WDPS-FM radio.”

After the tribute to Louie at Jazz Central, which ranks #1 to any live performance I’ve ever seen, I was able to convince the folks at the Dayton Art Institute to include Dean’s show in this year’s “Vectren Jazz and Beyond” series. You will be able to catch them on September 12, which would be a wise move because I have a feeling the big times will be taking this group on high. As Dean says “My tribute to Louis Armstrong has been presented in concerts, festivals, state fairs, and night clubs as a band only. I have now taken it much further to bring his life into a full length musical play from the various time periods in his life when his career began in the 1920’s to 40 years after his passing. His accomplishments in over 35 movies, touring abroad, hit records, civil rights movement, all done in a bigger than life stage production.”

I recently backed the 1st American Rock Star Louis Armstrong the Musical on Kickstarter  with a small contribution to help Dean with this endeavor. He needs our help for travel, set design, hotels, food, rehearsal venue etc, which we can provide through Kickstarter. Check this out and if you can kick in a small donation and share this link with your friends you will be helping to keep the jazz alive.

Jazz Calendar

Here are some (not all) of the upcoming jazz events for the next couple of weeks:

Wednesday, April 10 – The Stan Kenton Alumni Band will be at Cline Elementary School in Centerville and The Blue Wisp Big Band performs in Cincinnati.

Thursday April 11 – The Jazz Central Jammers is the Dayton Art Institute and Dottie Warner and Ricky Nye are at Arnold’s Bar & Grill in Cincinnati.

Friday April 12 – Shawn Stanley Trio is at Carvers Steaks & Chops in Centerville and The Ansyn Banks Quartet is at the Thompson House in Newport, KY.

Saturday April 13 – Internationally Acclaimed Saxophonist Tim Warfield is at Blue Wisp In Cincinnati and James & Moore is at C’est Tout Bistro in Oakwood, OH.

Sunday April 14 – The Jam Session w/ Kenny Baccus continues at Dayton’s Jazz Central and the Four Freshmen are at the Gallagher Student Center Theater, Xavier University inCincinnati.

Monday April 15 – The John Taylor Trio is at Brio Tuscan Grille in Beavercreek and Vaughn Wiester’s Famous Jazz Orchestra is at the Clintonville Woman’s Club in Columbus.

Tuesday April 16 – The Part St. Tavern is having a Jazz Jam and Tony Monaco is at the Rumba Café both in Columbus.

Wednesday April 17 – The Eleven piece Different Hats Band is at The Dayton Event Connection and Rich Lopez is at Rigsby’s in Columbus.

Thursday April 18 – The Generations Big Band plays at Jazz Central in Dayton and Dave Powers is at Amano’s Sports Bar in Worthington, OH.

Friday April 19 – Sinclair Jazz Ensemble w/Tom Walsh is at Blair Hall in Dayton and The Mark Lomax Quartet w/ William Menefield is at The Thompson House  in Newport, KY.

Saturday April 20 – Big Song Music House has Ricky Nye & the Paris Blues Band w/Lisa Biales in Oxford, OH and James & Moore is at C’est Tout Bistro in Oakwood,

Sunday April 21 – There are jazz jams at Victory’s in Columbus and at Jazz Central in Dayton.

Monday April 22 – Mark Flugge, Derek Dicenzo & Jimmy Castoe are at Due Amici in Columbus and Youngstown Jazz Collective is at Nighttown in Cleveland Heights.
Tuesday April 23 – Ed Moss & the Society Jazz Orchestra is at the Schwartz Point Jazz Club and JazzCab is at The Greenwich both in Cincinnati.

 

More info and jazz listings can be found at JazzAdvocate.com

Because I’ve been to six big band performances in the last couple of weeks, this is a good time to write about the impact of jazz band music past and present day in our area. The overall subject is too large to cover in depth but you can find an interesting read here.

A big band is a type of musical ensemble that originated in the United States and is associated with jazz and the Swing Era typically consisting of rhythm, brass, and woodwind instruments totaling approximately 12 to 25 musicians. Standard 17-piece instrumentation evolved in the big-bands, for which many commercial arrangements are available. This instrumentation consists of five saxophones (most often two altos, two tenors, and one baritone), four trumpets, four trombones (often including one bass trombone) and a four-piece rhythm section (composed of drums, acoustic bass or electric bass, piano and guitar).

There were two distinct periods in the history of popular bands. Beginning in the mid-1920s, big bands, then typically consisting of 10–25 pieces, came to dominate popular music. At that time they usually played a form of jazz that involved very little improvisation, which included a string section with violins, which was dropped after the introduction of swing in 1935.

Some names you’re likely to be familiar with today: Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Stan Kenton, Woody Herman, Benny Goodman and Glen Miller because today’s bands play much of their music. The big bands of old toured the country and attracted large crowds, today as a rule those audiences are no longer available but we are fortunate to have many college and high school jazz bands in our area in addition several bands that still survive the leaner economics, mainly because the players love the music and want to keep it going. In today’s market you will also find pocket bands made up of fewer players selected in a manner to play the big band charts.

Speaking of pocket bands and getting back to the performances I’ve seen lately on the 14th of this month The ShinSings Orchestra was at the Dayton Art Institute, a week prior on the 7th it was the Jazz Central Big Band, going forward it was the Sinclair Jazz Ensemble on the 15th, Stivers Jazz Orchestra on the 18th, Generations Big Band on the 21st and this last Saturday, March 23rd it was the fourth annual Jazzcakes where the Centerville School’s put on a benefit concert consisting of three middle school and three high school jazz ensembles. Some other area jazz bands/events I should mention are the Beavercreek Weekend of Jazz where a dozen or more local middle and high school bands compete. The Dayton Jazz Orchestra, the Columbus Jazz Orchestra and the Blue Wisp Big Band and coming in August a series of five weeks of big bands at RiverScape in Dayton.

One final note, I’m told on April 10th at Cline Elementary School in Centerville the Stand Kenton Alumni band concert will perform along with a pre-concert student jam session, from 6:30-7:15. Check it out here.

Jazz Calendar

Here are some (not all) of the upcoming jazz events for the next couple of weeks:

Today Wednesday, March 27 – The Blue Wisp Big Band performs in Cincinnati, OH and you can Swing Dance with Lizz & Rex Review at the Dayton Event Connection.

Thursday March 28 – The Phoenix Project Concert is at Brothers Drake Meadery in Columbus and Dottie Warner and Ricky Nye are atArnold’s Bar & Grill in Cincinnati.
Friday March 29 – Shawn Stanley Trio is at Carvers Steaks & Chops in Centerville and The Mike Wade Quintet is at the Thompson House inNewport, KY.

Saturday March 30 – The Urban Jazz Coalition is at Gilly’s In Dayton and James & Moore is at C’est Tout Bistro in Oakwood, OH.

Sunday March 31 – the Jam Session w/ Kenny Baccus continues at Dayton’s Jazz Central and the Hoo Doo Soul Band is at the Rumba Café in Columbus.
Monday April 1 – The Kyle Eastwood Group is at the Blue Wisp in Cincinnati and the John Taylor Trio is at Brio Tuscan Grille in Beavercreek.

Tuesday April 2 – Dave Greer’s Classic Jazz Stompers is at Jimmie’s Ladder 11 in Dayton and Tony Monaco is at the Rumba Café inColumbus.
Wednesday April 3 – Rich Lopez is at Rigsby’s in Columbus and Dave Powers is at Vittoria Ristorante in Powell, OH.
Thursday April 4 – the Jazz Central Big Band plays at Jazz Central in Dayton and the Elizabeth Hayes Jazz Ensemble is at The Blue Wisp inCincinnati.

Friday April 5 – the Urban Jazz Coalition is at the Thompson House  in Newport, KY and there is a  Friday Night Jazz Show at Washington Platform Saloon & Restaurant  in Cincinnati.

Saturday April 6 – Dick’s Den has the Bob Niederriter Quartet and the Lincoln Theater presents Inside Track series: Kyle Eastwood inColumbus.

Sunday April 7 – There are jazz jams at Victory’s in Columbus and at Jazz Central in Dayton.

Monday April 8 – Vaughn Wiester’s Famous Jazz Orchestra is at the Clintonville Woman’s Club in Columbus.
Tuesday April 9 – Ed Moss & the Society Jazz Orchestra is at the Schwartz Point Jazz Club in Cincinnati and Part St. Tavern Jazz Jam  continues in Columbus.
More info and jazz listings can be found at JazzAdvocate.com

Happy January 16th; Irving Mills was born on this day in 1894, He and his brother Jack built a company that became the largest independent music publisher in the world. Check out Wikipeda for more information.

Miscellaneous Jazz Notes:

Latest word on the possible closing status of the Blue Wisp in Cincinnati: Click Here

More sad news for local jazz – Worthington Inn to Discontinue Regular Jazz Programming: Click Here

Here’s a note on the Cincinnati Winter Blues Fest: Click Here

Dayton Art Institute’s 2013 Vectren Jazz & Beyond

The Dayton Art Institute will present their 2013 Vectren Jazz & Beyond season on the second Thursday of the month this year. The schedule is as follows:

March 14 – The ShinSings Orchestra

April 11 – Jazz Central Jammers

May 9 – Centerville High School Jazz Night

June 13 – Ron Jones Quartet

August 8 – Generations Big Band

September 12 – Tribute to Louie Armstrong

October 10 – Greg Abate and the Lee McKinney Trio

November 14 – Puzzle of Light

Performances take place 5:30 – 8:30 p.m. in the intimate setting of the museum’s Shaw Gothic Cloister. Admission is FREE for museum members and $8 for non-members.

Jazz Central

Over the years many big bands have played at Jazz Central and back in the day they even had their own band. It’s my understanding their band was mostly made up of Air Force players and they always had a grate time playing the music they loved. Coming up on Thursday, January 17 that very same music is returning to Jazz Central. This is because club owner Charles Stone had saved the original charts and Mike Rinderle had the idea of getting a band together to fill in the spot of the vacationing Generations Big Band. Well Mike has assembled some of the very best players in our area:

Steve Shininger – drums

John Slate – keyboard

Leo Smith – bass

John Harner – trumpet       

Wade Baker – trumpet

Tom Shirley – trumpet        

Mike Rinderle – trumpet

Ronald Hartwell – alto saxophone

Luis Rosa – alto saxophone 

Grant Koeller – tenor saxophone

Carlos Serrano – tenor saxophone

Bill Burns – baritone saxophone

Linda Landis – trombone  

Dustin Malone – trombone
Jon Hoff – trombone

Their performance promises to be something very special, which you can check out at: http://www.jazzcentraldayton.com/#16

 

Jazz Calendar

Here are some (not all) of the upcoming jazz events for the next couple of weeks:

Tonight Wednesday, January 16 – Jazz Central presents Blue Wednesday with Jack & Joe Waters and an the eleven piece Different Hats Band is at the Dayton Event Connection.

Thursday January 17 – The return of of the Jazz Central Big Band at Jazz Central in Dayton and Dottie Warner and Ricky Nye at Arnold’s Bar & Grill in Cincinnati.

Friday January 18 – Dave Greer’s Classic Jazz Stompers is at Jay’s Seafood Restaurant in Dayton and the Bobby Floyd Trio is at Boudin’s Bistro & Jazz Club in Columbus.

Saturday January 19 – Ed Clay’s Jazz Patrol featuring Randy Villars is at Gilly’s in Dayton and Ascension is at the The Greenwich in Cincinnati.

Sunday January 20 – the last night for the Slaughter Brothers at Jazz Central in Dayton this trip and there is a Sunday night Jazz Jam at Victory’s om Columbus.

Monday January 21 – the John Taylor Trio is at the Brio Tuscan Grille in Beavercreek and Mark Flugge, Derek Dicenzo & Jimmy Castoe is at Due Amici in Columbus.

Tuesday January 22 – Scott Belck Quartet featuring Alan Wyatt is at the Blue Wisp in Cincinnati and the Part St. Tavern Jazz Jam is going on in Columbus.

Wednesday January 23 – John LaIacona is at Eddie Merlot’s in Cincinnati and Chuchito Valdesos is playing Nighttown in Cleveland Heights.

Thursday January 24 – the Rick Brunetto Big Band is at the 94th Aero Squadron Restaurant in Columbus and Dave Powers is at Amano’s Sports Bar in Worthington, OH.

Friday January 25 – Shawn Stanley Trio is at Carvers Steaks & Chops in Centerville, OH and the Eddie BrookshireQuintet is playing Nighttown in Cleveland Heights.

Saturday January 26 – James & Moore is at C’est Tout Bistro in Oakwood and Gilly’s presents Winter Blues Showcase in Dayton.

Sunday January 27 – the Jazz Jam Session w/ Kenny Baccus is at Jazz Central in Dayton and Hoo Doo Soul Band is at the Rumba Café in Columbus.

Monday January 28 – Vaughn Wiester’s Famous Jazz Orchestra is at the Clintonville Woman’s Club in Columbus and a Jazz Jam hosted by Sandy Suskind Quartet is at the Wisp in Cincinnati.

Tuesday January 29 – the Derek DiCenzo Trio is at Local Roots in Powell, OH and Tony Monaco is at the Rumba Café in Columbus.

 

More info and jazz listings can be found at www.JazzAdvocate.com

Happy December 5th; Art Davis who pioneered the use of two basses in a jazz combo setting and played with likes of Thelonious Monk, John Coltrane, Dizzy Gillespie, and Max Roach was born on this day in 1934. Check out Wikipeda at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Davis for more information. 

 

What do Johnny Lytle, Lady Day, Charlie Parker, Clifford Brown, Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman and Dizzy Gillespie have in common?

These are names of some of the great jazz legends who contributed music that formed much of the backbone of jazz in our nation. This is also the list of artists who have had tribute concerts held in their honor at Jazz Central over the last sixteen months. All as part of the resurgence of jazz in Dayton, Ohio by our local talented jazz performers.

The latest example was last Saturday, December 1st. when Roderick Wilson and Friends: Roderick – trumpet, Jack Novotny – saxophone, Archie McPherson – keyboard, Eddie Brookshire – base, Fenton Sparks – drums and Cliff Darrett – congas paid tribute to Dizzy Gillespie one of the greatest jazz trumpeters of all time. September a year ago Mark Smarelli paid tribute to Springfield, Ohio native vibraphonist Johnny Lytle, then Teresa Moneé Gill did a Gabriel Foundation benefit tribute to Lady Day (Billie Holiday) in October of 2011. Next came Grant Koeller doing Charlie Part justice on his saxophone December a year ago and then came trumpeter Wade Baker paying homage to Clifford Brown in January, 2012. In March, 2012 Dean Simms brought Louis Armstrong to life for an entire evening and last October Ronald Hartwell played Benny Goodman while Mark Smarelli played Lionel Hampton.

Each of these events was not only very entertaining but educational and each had a story to tell us about the wonderful history of America’s great art form called Jazz! In addition to tribute concerts Jazz Central has offered many benefit, memorial and face-off concerts; all designed to expose the public to jazz and help keep the art alive. I was told years ago, by one a club owner, when I was writing for another paper that I shouldn’t write about what has happened but only about upcoming events. I disagree; I believe if people read about the fun and great times others had at an event, they will be encouraged to attend some of the great future events coming up:

 

Jazz Calendar

Here are some (not all) of the upcoming jazz events for the next couple of weeks:

 

Tonight Wednesday, December 5 – Tonight, for you dancers The Dayton Event Connection is featuring the Lizz & Rex Quartet and the Blue Wisp Big Band is at the Wisp in Cincinnati.

Thursday December 6 – Jeremy Pinell & The 55s w/Ricky Nye is at Japps in Cincinnati.

Friday December 7 – the Bob Niederriter Trio is at The Stone Tavern in Kent, Ohio and Kathy Wade & Ed Moss are at Schwartz’s Point in Over-The-Rhine in Cincinnati.

Saturday December 8 – Jazz Explosion w/Kenny Baccus & J. Webster Smith as Dr. Feel Good is doing a benefit for the Blind at Jazz Central in Dayton.

Sunday December 9 – Phil DeGreg Trio plays Dee Felice in Covington, KY and  the Jazz Jam Session w/ Kenny Baccus continues at Jazz Central in Dayton.

Monday December 10 – the John Taylor Trio is at the Brio Tuscan Grille in Beavercreek and the Blue Wisp Jazz Club offers a Jazz Jam hosted by Sandy Suskind inCincinnati.

Tuesday December 11 – Park Street Tavern continues their Jazz Jam and the Tony Monaco Trio performs at The Rumba Café both in Columbus.

Wednesday December 12 – the Blue Wisp Big Band performs at the Wisp in Cincinnati and Ricky Nye & Bekah Williams is at Chez Nora in Covington, KY.

Thursday December 13 – Lisa Biales and Doug Hamilton plays the O’Pub in Oxford, OH and Ricky Nye & Dottie Warner is at Arnold’s Bar & Grill in Cincinnati.

Friday December 14 – Shawn Stanley Trio is at Carvers Steaks & Chops in Centerville, OH and the Thompson House presents Bashiri Asad & Xenobia Green in Newport,Ky.

Saturday December 15 – The final Gabriel Foundation Benefit of the season features The ShinSings Orchestra at Jazz Central in Dayton.

Sunday December 16 – the Blue Wisp Jazz Club has BLUESBENT with Lawrence Bloomfield in Cincinnati and Bill Rudman’s “A Christmas Cabaret” is at Nighttown inCleveland Heights.

Monday December 17 – Vaughn Wiester’s Famous Jazz Orchestra is at the Clintonville Woman’s Club and Mark Flugge, Derek Dicenzo & Jimmy Castoe plays the Due Amici both in Columbus.

Tuesday December 18 – the Derek DiCenzo Trio performs at Local Roots in Powell, OH and the Jazz Cab is at The Greenwich in Cincinnati.

More info and jazz listings can be found at http://www,JazzAdvocate.com