Sax Summit Blows Roof Off The Rex While Chicago Trumpeter Rejuvenates Chestnuts

Source: www.thestar.com - Ashante Infantry, Pop & Jazz Critic

(June 29, 2008) There are two things to hope for on TD Canada Trust Toronto Jazz Festival outings: stellar performances by favoured acts and the discovery of brilliant new talent.

A prowl through the city's jazz venues scored on both counts.

Billed this year as a Saxophone Summit, shows at the Rex Hotel Jazz & Blues Bar are under the umbrella of the main fest's Club Series, but organized by the Rex, which describes it as "a festival within a festival."

The announcer didn't overstate when he outlined the venerable Queen St. W. hangout's commitment to booking "the best Canadian talent" and "the best in jazz" as an introduction to the Davidson/Murley/Braid Quintet's first set Friday night.

The group is co-led by pianist David Braid and saxists Mike Murley and Tara Davidson, with support from bassist Jim Vivian and drummer Ian Froman.

Apart from being outstanding contemporary jazz improvisers, or maybe because they are, it's the calibre of the compositions – contributed by each of the leaders – which resonate.

For example, Murley's "Joni's Steps," an homage to his cat, has a recurring hint of John Coltrane's seminal "Giant Steps," but the versatile players' breezy approach allowed for bold, joyous runs, including a surprisingly ferocious duet between Vivian and Froman.

If you missed out, the band's current disc DMBQ:Live is a worthy substitute.

Across town at artsy Trane Studio on Bathurst St., Chicago trumpeter Corey Wilkes celebrated the release of his recording debut Drop It.

The artist-in-residence at the Jazz Institute of Chicago and member of the highly regarded Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, Wilkes is clearly rooted in bop and blues but fuses his sound with funk and R&B.

It was exciting to hear him turn a sleepy old chestnut like "Willow Weep for Me" into an almost unrecognizable sultry, upbeat burner; and then go completely the other way with a sensitive, lyrical reading of the soul classic "Feel Like Making Love" that had some of the audience singing along.

Wilkes, 29, would have fit neatly in that erstwhile young lions' brigade of Joshua Redman, Christian McBride and Roy Hargrove.

People were snapping up his CD after the show, which is mostly originals and includes poetry. Trane Studio owner Frank Francis is planning to bring him back soon.

It's worth remembering that after the festival ends today, the music continues throughout the city at these venues and several others with the cheapest great jazz in North America: low cover charges, no drink minimums.