by Lisa Chase A perfect summer evening sparkled with goddess energy as two jazz “mistresses” filled the air with their inimitable brand of jazz improvisation and interpretation. The Maxine Martin Quartet opened Monday Night Jazz with original compositions executed by Maxine Martin on tenor saxophone and clarinet, guitarist Jim Mercik, “Abu” Alvin Carter, Sr. on [...]
The tone was cool and soulful at Monday Night Jazz under cloudy skies and jacket-weather temperatures. For saxophone lovers, the first half of the evening showcased the instrument’s tonal diversity, with the Kris Allen Quartet’s original compositions centering around the interplay of two saxophones. Playing selections from the recently released album, “Beloved,” the Quartet featured tenor [...]
If Monday night in Hartford wasn’t sultry enough, Latin jazz rhythms turned up the heat in Bushnell Park for another very large and musically enthused crowd. Starting with Heshima Moja and Ofrecimiento’s “Afro Cuban Blues,” featuring Moja scat singing against the beat of David Allen Rivera’s conga drumming, the African and Caribbean influences were infectious. [...]
by Lisa A. Chase photos Maurice D. Robertson Kitty Katherine Paul Brown must have been smiling down on Bushnell Park as Kitty Kathryn and the Paul Brown Tribute Ensemble kicked off the Monday Night Jazz Series’ 50th anniversary celebration. Accompanied by Norman Gage on baritone sax, Alex Nakhimovsky at the piano, James Daggs [...]