John Gilbreath photo by Bill Uznay
May is another strong month for live jazz here in Seattle. In addition to the varied daily events listed in our calendar, this month includes three distinctive festivals and a world of special concerts.
The UW’s IMPfest starts off the month, bringing an impressive list of guest artists into creative collaborations in and around Seattle’s University District. The month continues with the super-solid Ballard Jazz Festival, and winds up with the Bellevue Jazz and (now) Blues Festival, bringing more and more great live music to our region.
And, having just passed International Jazz Day, Earshot Jazz moves forward with a fascinating series of international concerts that continues into next month. With artists from New York, Montreal, Berlin, Barcelona, Amsterdam, Oslo, and points in Greece and Cuba, this series offers a rare opportunity to catch jazz impressions and expressions from some of today’s most fertile international scenes. We invite you to join us.
Since the start of our concert-presenting history almost 30 years ago, the Earshot Jazz organization has served up some of the most distinctive global jazz events the city has seen. Following a course originally set by co-founder Gary Bannister, Earshot continues to provide respectful performance opportunities for touring artists, and rare opportunities for our own audiences to refresh their perspectives on creative music.
We’re as eager to welcome back old friends this month as we are to meet new friends next month. Often, as with established artists like Tim Berne, Vijay Iyer, ICP, and others, Earshot’s history of support sometimes served as their only Seattle performance opportunity in early years. Other times, as with Giulia Valle, Julia Hülsmann, and the members of the Large Unit, Earshot showcases deserving international artists who may be virtually unknown to Seattle audiences.
We launch this month’s concerts with Tim Berne’s consummately New York band, Snakeoil; continue with the brilliant Vijay Iyer Trio; then brace for the titanic saxophonist Peter Brötzmann, in the company of two other old friends, bassist William Parker and drummer Hamid Drake. Earshot’s long connection to Amsterdam’s legendary creative scene has turned many Dutch jazz artists into honorary citizens here. For sheer one-stop-shopping for Dutch jazz, look no further than the legendary Instant Composers Pool, which offers 10 of Europe’s most dynamic artists. An ICP concert, especially in the cozy setting of the Royal Room, is a chance to experience music of stunning virtuosity, startling creativity, fascinating personalities, and, believe it or not, lots of actual fun.
C’mon! Join us! Individual concert listings can be found in the following pages.
We’ll see you out there!
–John Gilbreath, Executive Director
