Avant Music News

Millennium Park, Chicago, IL, USA from Aon Center (Chicago) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This is a weekly overview live avant performances in the Chicago area.  Contact us if you’d like your shows listed.

May 19:

8:30PM at Constellation, 3111 N Western ($10)
Graham Stephenson, Aaron Zarzutzki
Quicksails

10:00PM at the Hungry Brain, 2319 W Belmont, 773.709.1401 ($7)
Nick Broste Trio, with Keefe Jackson, Anton Hatwich
Minerva : JP Schlegelmilch, Pascal Niggenkemper, Carlo Costa

May 20:

9:00PM at Beat Kitchen, 2100 W Belmont, 773.281.4444
Extraordinary Popular Delusions : Jim Baker, Mars Williams, Brian Sandstrom, Steve Hunt

10:00PM at the Hungry Brain, 2319 W Belmont, 773.709.1401 ($7)
Nick Broste Trio, with Keefe Jackson, Anton Hatwich
Minerva : JP Schlegelmilch, Pascal Niggenkemper, Carlo Costa

9:30PM at The Whistler, 2421 N Milwaukee (Free)
Glad Cloud Ambient Music Series
Gilder
The Variable Why

10:00PM at the Skylark, 2149 S. Halsted Street
Nick Mazzarella – Alto Saxophone
Brian Sandstrom – Bass
Avreeayl Ra – Drums

May 22:

7:00PM The Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Avenue
Unfamiliar Music Series:
Amanda DeBoer Bartlett and Jesse Langen Constellation

10:00PM at the Hideout, 1354 W Wabansia, 773.227.4433 ($8)
Jim Baker Solo
NRG Ensemble Plays Sun Ra : Mars Williams, Dave Rempis, Brian Sandstrom, Kent Kessler, Jim Baker, Steve Hunt, Avreeayl Ra

May 23:

7:30PM at the Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art, 2320 W Chicago ($15-$10)
MAVerick Ensemble with Julia Bentley — music by Stephen Albert

9:00PM at Elastic, 2830 N Milwaukee, 2nd Fl, 773.772.3616 ($8)
Jeff Kimmel, Chris Riggs, Michael Zerang
Paul Giallorenzo Trio, with Anton Hatwich, Quin Kirchner

May 24:

9:30PM at Constellation, 3111 N Western ($10)
Dave Rempis, Joshua Abrams, Avreeayl Ra

May 25:

11:00AM at Austin Town Hall, 5610 W Lake, 773.287.7658 (Free)
Jeff Parker, Rob Mazurek
7:30PM at the Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art, 2320 W Chicago ($15-$10)

To Wake the Dead
MAVerick Ensemble with Julia Bentley — music by Stephen Albert

May 26:

8:30PM at Constellation, 3111 N Western ($10-$5)
Fonema Consort with special guest Mabel Kwan — music by Hans Thomalla, Beat Furrer, Brian Ferneyhough, Monte Weber, Joan Arnau Pàmies, Pablo Chin, Christian Wolff

10:00PM at the Hungry Brain, 2319 W Belmont, 773.709.1401 ($7)
Stirrup : Fred Lonberg-holm, Nick Macri, Charles Rumback

May 27:

6:30PM at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion, Millennium Park, 201 E Randolph
Downtown Sound
Lee Ranaldo Band
Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog
9:00PM at Beat Kitchen, 2100 W Belmont, 773.281.4444
Extraordinary Popular Delusions : Jim Baker, Mars Williams, Brian Sandstrom, Steve Hunt

9:00PM at The Burlington, 3425 W Fullerton, 773.384.3243
Jason Stein, Matt Schneider, Frank Rosaly
Zelienople — Record Release
Mako Sica

May 28:

9:30PM at Constellation, 3111 N Western ($25-$20)
Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog : Marc Ribot, Shahzad Ismaily, Ches Smith

9:30PM at The Whistler, 2421 N Milwaukee (Free)
Jason Stein Quartet

10:00PM at Observatory Studios, 3036 N Lincoln, 4th Fl
Nick Mazzarella Trio with Anton Hatwich, Frank Rosaly

May 29:

10:00PM at the Hideout, 1354 W Wabansia, 773.227.4433 ($8)
The Green Pasture Happiness : Brian Labycz, Daniel Fandiño, Aaron Zarzutzki
Olivia Block, Carol Genetti, Katherine Young

May 30:

6:30PM at the Empty Bottle, 1035 N Western, 773.276.3600 ($5)
Articular Facet
Screaming Planet : Rob Mazurek, Jeff Kowalkowski, Carrie Biolo, Damon Locks
Handshake Error Ensemble : James Connolly, Ryan Dunn, Jeff Kolar, Julia Miller, Melissa Schleicher-Sanchez

7:30PM at the Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E Chicago, 312.280.2660 ($28-$10)
ICE performs David Lang‘s The Whisper Opera

May 31:

7:00PM at the Washington Park Arts Incubator, 301 E Garfield Blvd (Free)
Chicago Jazz String Summit : Opening Performance
Musique Noire
Jessica Pavone, Mary Halvorson
Tomeka Reid Trio
James Sanders Blue Violin Quartet

7:30PM at the Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E Chicago, 312.280.2660 ($28-$10)
ICE performs David Lang’s The Whisper Opera

9:00PM at the Green Mill, 4802 N Broadway, 773.878.5552 ($12)
Nicole Mitchell — Record release

June 1:

3:00PM at the Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E Chicago, 312.280.2660 ($28-$10)
ICE performs David Lang’s The Whisper Opera

7:30PM at the Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E Chicago, 312.280.2660 ($28-$10)
ICE performs David Lang’s The Whisper Opera

9:30PM at Constellation, 3111 N Western ($20-$15)
Peter Brötzmann, Joe McPhee
Peter Brötzmann, Hamid Drake, Kent Kessler, Joe McPhee

For more information, such as show times and directions, as well as upcoming performances, see:

http://now-is.org/

http://www.ratchetmusic.com

http://www.umbrellamusic.org

http://www.mcachicago.org

http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/chicago_culturalcenterschedule.html

http://www.skylarkchicago.com

http://www.hideoutchicago.com

http://www.elasticrevolution.com

http://www.myopicbookstore.com/music.html

http://www.lampo.org

http://dalniente.com

http://iceorg.org/events/category/chicago

http://www.emptybottle.com/

Peter Brötzmann at “Sonore” concert, Lviv (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Tour dates from Eremite Records:

31 V austin, venue TBA
01 VI chicago, constellation, 3111 n. western ave.
03 VI orlando, timucua white house, 2000 s. summerlin st.
04 VI jacksonville, karpeles manuscript library museum, 101 w. 1st st.
05 VI philadelphia, philadelphia art alliance, 251 s. 18th st.
07 VI peterborough, the thing in the spring, town hall
08 VI washington dc, union arts and manufacturing, 411 new york ave ne
10 VI montreal, suoni per il popolo, 4848 saint-laurent
12 VI buffalo, hallwalls, 341 delaware ave.

English: Peter Brötzmann, moers festival 2010 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

From Washington City Paper, the D.C. Jazz Festival takes place in early June and features a handful of avant performances.

Then there’s the festival’s avant-garde contingent, which only came into being two years ago after a long spell of resistance—Washington audiences, after all, aren’t known for their experimental tastes. But CapitalBop’s 2011 entry into DCJF signaled outreach to the newer, younger, hipper District, and the offerings have only deepened since. This year they include a duet between free-jazz saxophonists Peter Brötzmann and Joe McPhee (June 8), as well as Black Host, a noisy, uniquely textured ensemble led by drummer Gerald Cleaver (June 9). This year, though, other wings of the festival are getting in on the avant act: Bassist Michael Formanek leads an edgy quartet (featuring Cleaver) at the Atlas (June 12), and Bohemian Caverns presents one of the titans of the music in saxophone great Pharoah Sanders (June 14-16), whose anthem “The Creator Has a Master Plan” inevitably will provide the closing theme for the entire festival.

Mark Helias at Cornelia street cafe Pnoto: Claire Stefani (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

From NYTimes.com:

Uri Gurvich (Friday through Sunday) Uri Gurvich, a young Israeli alto saxophonist, has a proudly cosmopolitan new album, “BabEl” (Tzadik), featuring the Argentine pianist Leo Genovese, the Bulgarian bassist Peter Slavov, the Cuban drummer Francisco Mela and the Moroccan oud player Brahim Fribgane. This week Mr. Gurvich has been in residency at the Stone, varying his instrumental format and welcoming a few guests, including the guitarist Lionel Loueke (on Sunday). At 8 and 10 p.m., Avenue C and Second Street, East Village, thestonenyc.com; $10 for each set. (Chinen)

Open Loose (Thursday) Mark Helias is a bassist equally committed to the causes of momentum and texture, and in that sense he has a very good thing in Open Loose, a band with Tony Malaby on tenor saxophone and Tom Rainey on drums. At 8:30 p.m., Cornelia Street Café, 29 Cornelia Street, Greenwich Village, (212) 989-9319, corneliastreetcafe.com; $20 cover, includes one drink. (Chinen)

Mike Pride’s From Bacteria to Boys (Wednesday) Mr. Pride is a drummer of strong build and forceful attack, and his writing for From Bacteria to Boys runs toward shifty postbop, constitutionally hardy but prone to digression. Here he draws from “Birthing Days,” one of his two bracing new albums on Aum Fidelity, with a lineup featuring the saxophonists Jon Irabagon and Jonathan Moritz, the pianist and keyboardist Alexis Marcelo and the bassist Peter Bitenc. At 8 p.m., Greenwich House Music School, 46 Barrow Street, West Village, (212) 242-4770, greenwichhouse.org; $15, $12 for students and 65+. (Chinen)

From NYTimes.com:

Bargemusic (Friday through Sunday) There are choice attractions this weekend at the city’s premier floating music hall. On Friday the brilliant violinist Rolf Schulte and the pianist Ran Dank play a wide-ranging program of works by Ravel, Carter, Janacek, Ligeti, Kurtag and Schubert. Saturday brings the cellist Zuill Bailey and the pianist Doris Stevenson in Boccherini, Schubert, Chopin and Franck, and on Sunday the Fine Arts Quartet play Haydn, Saint-Saëns and a little-known quartet by the celebrated educator and violinist Efrem Zimbalist. Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 2 p.m., Bargemusic, Fulton Ferry Landing next to the Brooklyn Bridge, Brooklyn, (718) 624-2083, bargemusic.org; $35, $30 for 65+, $15 for students. (Woolfe)

Crash Ensemble (Friday) Alan Pierson conducts this dynamic new-music group in works by Donnacha Dennehy (the ensemble’s co-founder), including “That the Night Come.” The program also features Mr. Dennehy’s arrangement of a traditional Irish song, as well as songs by Osvaldo Golijov, with the soprano Dawn Upshaw, a frequent collaborator of Mr. Golijov’s, as soloist. At 6 p.m., Zankel Hall, Carnegie Hall, (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org, $36 to $50. (Vivien Schweitzer)

Look and Listen Festival (Friday through Sunday) This adventurous festival offers treats for eyes and ears. Stars of the contemporary music world like the flutist Claire Chase and the Jack Quartet perform against a backdrop of art. Programs, featuring music by Kaija Saariaho, Elliott Carter, Berio, Britten, Meredith Monk and Marcos Balter, also include a multimedia creation for piano, cello and video by the pianist Michael Brown and the cellist Nick Canellakis. Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 4 p.m., Pratt Manhattan Gallery, 144 West 14th Street, second floor, West Village, (718) 622-3005, lookandlisten.org; $15, $35 for a festival pass, $10 for students and 65+ at the door. (Schweitzer)

Philadelphia Orchestra (Friday) The dynamic conductor Simon Rattle has been intensely involved as chief conductor and artistic director of the great Berlin Philharmonic for over a decade. But he has maintained a close relationship with the Philadelphia Orchestra. He brings this storied orchestra to Carnegie Hall’s Isaac Stern Auditorium for an intriguing program: Webern’s early Passacaglia (Op. 1); three fragments from Berg’s “Wozzeck”; Ligeti’s bleakly satirical “Mysteries of the Macabre,” featuring the soprano Barbara Hannigan; and Beethoven’s “Pastoral” Symphony. At 8 p.m., (212) 247-7800, carnegiehall.org; limited availability. (Tommasini)

Queens New Music Festival (Friday through Sunday) Organized by the composer collective Random Access Music, this festival presents eight concerts over three days. The offerings include Friday’s concert by three quartets made up of talented youngsters from the Face the Music program. Among four concerts on Saturday are a program of reflections on Brooklyn and Queens (at 1 p.m.) and, at 8 p.m., a recital by the cellist Kate Dillingham and the pianist Amir Khosrowpour. Sunday includes a 3 p.m. concert by Duo Sonidos (the classical guitarist Adam Levin and the violinist William Knuth) of works by Hispanic composers and, at 6:30 p.m., a closing program from Mantra Percussion. Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday and Sunday at various times, Secret Theater Main Stage, 44-02 23rd Street, Long Island City, Queens, queensnewmusicfestival.org

From London’s Vortex:

SUN 19 • 20.30
MOPOMOSO
Free improv night highlighting the contrasts between acoustic and electronic music.
Featuring KOOK, a Norwegian free improv guitar duo featuring Jorn Erik Ahlsen (guitar / live electronics),
Stian Larsen (guitar / live electronics). Geneva-based Diatribes: Cyril Bondi (floor tom / objects) and
d’incise (laptop / objects) producing a dense sound with tension & layering textures and the captivating
Phil Minton (voice) / John Russell (guitar) performing a duo.

TUES 21 • 20.30
DECO HEART: MAT MANERI & LUCIAN BAN
Here to celebrate the release of their new album, out on ECM in April, The Vortex is delighted to welcome back Deco Heart. Working at the edge of jazz, contemporary classical and downtown NYC improv, Deco Heart is a unique duo featuring legendary violinist (spelling) Mat Maneri and acclaimed Transylvanian expat pianist Lucian Ban.
”Mat Maneri has changed the way the jazz world listens to the Violin & Viola.” – All About Jazz

THURS 23 • 20.30
EVAN PARKER
Continuing the monthly residency from legend of free jazz and free improvisation Evan Parker.

FRI 24 • 20.30 • £10 • MD
SHEIKH ANORAK / ALEX WARD / COLIN WEBSTER + DEAD DAYS BEYOND HELP
Guitarist, Sheik Anorak is the nom de guerre of Frank Garcia, boss of Gaffer Records and lynchpin of the thriving underground scene in Lyon. Last year he teamed up with Led Bib drummer Mark Holub and saxophonist Colin Webster for a short UK tour. It was during this tour that the trio played a wild and frenetic set at The Vortex that was captured for their current live album ‘Languages’. This year they return minus Mark Holub but with the magnificent Alex Ward for another night of raw and uncompromising free jazz.

From Buenos Aires,su Nueva Musica:

Thursday 16 MAY
Ciclo Busquedas Sonoras ( experimental )
Lothus con VJ Lavoisier y Audioperu
At Centro Cultural de Espana en Buenos Aires
Sede: Florida 943 -19:00 Hs

Friday 17 MAY
Sesiones Quinto piso
Masmédula
Ceci Quinteros – cello
Jorge Espinal – guitara prepared
Juan De Cicco – percussion
Duo
Ada Rave-Saxos/ percussion
Nico Chientaroli-piano/percussión
Libertad al 500 ,salida Subte D,Tribunales -20.30hs

Saturday 18 MAY
NICOLAS OJEDA ( FREE JAZZ )
At Casa Nacional del Bicentenario (Riobamba 985)
Nicolás Ojeda: contrabass
Mauro Mourelos: trumpet & flugel
Tomás Babjaczuk: drums
Nicolás Olivera: guitar
Ernesto Amstein: piano

CREATIVE MUSIC FEST At CASA TERRADA , 20.00 HS
1º NICOLÁS CHIENTAROLI TRIO
nicolás chientaroli: piano
carlos álvarez: contrabass
sebastián groshaus: Dums
2º RODRIGO NÚÑEZ QUINTETO
ada rave: tenor sax
francisco salgado: tromone
rodrigo núñez: piano
iván viaggio: contrabass
hernán rodriguez: drums
3º CALATO
javier areal velez, jorge espinal: guitars
agustin genoud: voice
pablo verón: drums

Sunday 19 MAY
COLECTIVO DE COMPOSITORES ( free / Nu jazz/ improv )
Music by
Juani Mendez, Rodrigo Agudelo y Matias Suarez
-17 hs en LA PLAYITA, Rosetti 722