Three Adventurous Summaries for October, 2019

The last time I wrote an article presenting “parallel” monthly schedules was for this past July. At that time I mused over the fact that these events were taking place when the season was winding down at many venues. Now October is only a week away, and three plans for the month have already been released by three of the more adventurous venues in San Francisco. So get out your calendar apps, because you will probably need to trade off choices as the month progresses.

The first of the venues is The Lab, which has prepared a major project for the first half of the month, capped off with one additional concert at the end. Director Dena Beard is joining forces with Constance Lewallen to curate a multi-site exhibition, which will also involve performances, entitled Terry Fox: Resonance. Fox, who died in 2008, was part of the first generation of “Conceptual” artists, whose work tended to be organized around installations, often with performance taking place within those installations. Between October 11 and November 12, The Lab will host such an installation called A Resonating Chamber. However, there will also be five performances, only one of which will take place at The Lab, that will explore different aspects of Fox’ work. The schedule for all the events is as follows:

1. Friday, October 4, 6 p.m., Grace Cathedral: Visitors will be able to experience Fox’ The Labyrinth Scored for the Purrs of 11 Different Cats over the course of two hours. The title itself refers to a sound composition that will sustain over the course of those two hours. During that time, visitors are invited to walk the replica of the labyrinth at Chartres on the floor at the rear of the Grace sanctuary. Grace Cathedral is located at the top of Nob Hill at 1100 California Street, between Taylor Street and Jones Street. There will be no charge for admission.
2. Thursday, October 10, 7 p.m., Cushion Works: Marita Loosen-Fox will give a presentation entitled Living Archive. She will be assisted by Ron Meyers. The host for this event is a factory that manufactures cushion and pillow foams for the upholstery and design trades. It is located in the Mission at 3320 18th Street. As of this writing, it appears that there will be no charge for admission.
3. Friday, October 11, 6 p.m., The Lab: The opening of the installation at The Lab itself will include musical performance. Arnold Dreyblatt has interpreted Fox’ Berlin Wall Scored for Sound and realized it as a string quartet. His results will be played by the Del Sol Quartet. In addition, Meyers will activate Circulation: Site Pendulum from the Labyrinth Series created by Loosen-Fox. The Lab is located in the Mission at 2948 16th Street, which is a short walk to the east from the corner of Mission Street. This is particularly good for those using public transportation, since that corner provides bus stops for both north-south and east-west travel as well as a BART station. As of this writing, it appears that there will be no charge for admission.
4. Saturday, October 12, 5 p.m., CCA (California College of the Arts) Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts: This venue will host a second installation, entitled The Labyrinth Series and Other Works. This will present works in a variety of different media, all of which involve Fox’ interpretation of the Chartres labyrinth. Lewallen will host a walkthrough of the installation and will activate a second installation of Circulation: Site Pendulum from the Labyrinth Series. The Institute is located at 360 Kansas Street, between 16th Street and 17th Street, just east of the 101 overpass. As of this writing, it appears that there will be no charge for admission.
5. Thursday, October 17, 7 p.m., San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA): A video of Fox’ performance of his Timbre composition will be screened. It will be followed by a discussion led by artist Tom Marioni. SFMOMA is located at 151 Third Street, between Mission Street and Howard Street, just opposite Yerba Buena Gardens. This event is not yet listed on the SFMOMA Events calendar; so, as of this writing, it is not yet clear whether the screening will be held in conjunction with admission to the Museum itself. Those interested in attending this screening are advised to send an RSVP by electronic mail using the address hyperlinked to the “RSVP” letters early on the day of the screening.

The Lab will host one additional event, which will be part-concert, part-cabaret, and part-lecture. This will be a one-man show by Martin Creed entitled Getting Changed. The performance is a work-in-progress conceived to follow up on Words & Music, which Creed presented at the 2017 Edinburgh Festival.

This performance will begin at 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 24. The admission charge for this program will be $10 for members of The Lab; general admission will be $15 for all others. Doors will open at 8 p.m., and it is usually the case that a long line has accumulated before then. As a result, online registration is highly recommended using the above hyperlinks for the two categories of tickets.

The first concert in October at the Red Poppy Art House will overlap with the first Terry Fox: Resonance event. As might be guessed, however, the content will be quite different, much more in the spirit of diverse approaches to the performance of music that one expects from the Poppy. As usual, this summary of events may be incomplete. As always, I shall do my best to monitor the Upcoming Events Web page on the Poppy’s Web site. This Web page will be updated to reflect additions; and, as always, I shall use my “shadow” Facebook site to put out the word each time new information has been added.

The Red Poppy is located in the Mission at 2698 Folsom Street on the southwest corner of 23rd Street. Tickets are now being sold in advance online through Eventbrite. As a result, the dates provided below are hyperlinked to the Eventbrite event pages for purchasing tickets.

Given the demand for these concerts, it is likely that only a limited number of tickets will be available at the door. Remember, the Poppy is a small space. Even those who have purchased their tickets in advance should probably make it a point to be there when the doors open one half-hour before the performance is scheduled to begin. Here are the specifics for the events that have been posted thus far:

• Friday, October 4, 7:30 p.m.: Lee Dynes and Amanda Addleman present a single night of varied perspectives on the American improvisational art form of jazz. Dynes’ takes a world jazz approach, while Addleman works with a more traditional swinging trio. Dynes alternates between guitar and oud when leading his trio, and he is joined by Lee Hodel on bass and Matthew Bruckner on drums. Addleman is a vocalist. She will also be joined by Hodel, and Dynes will fill out the trio with his guitar work. Admission will be on a sliding scale between $20 and $25 for tickets purchased in advance. General admission at the door will be $25 with a $20 charge for students and seniors with valid identification.
• Friday, October 11, 7:30 p.m.: RagaMenco is a collaboration of Spanish and Indian musicians from the Bay Area. Their repertoire explores exciting new territories by combining haunting Indian melodies with exciting gypsy, flamenco, and jazz traditions from Spain. Admission will be on a sliding scale between $20 and $25 for tickets purchased in advance. General admission at the door will be $25 with a $20 charge for students and seniors with valid identification.
• Saturday, October 12, 7:30 p.m.: The Ultra World X-Tet is the quartet of Doug Ebert on bass, Nick Sager on drums, Gary Schwantes on saxophone and bamboo flutes, and Winnie Wong on guzheng. They describe their repertoire as a “distinct San Francisco sound with a global music sensibility.” Admission will be on a sliding scale between $20 and $25 for tickets purchased in advance. General admission at the door will be $25 with a $20 charge for students and seniors with valid identification.
• Thursday, October 17, 7:30 p.m.: This will be a two-set program bringing a local group together with a jazz quartet visiting from Scandinavia. Örjan Hultén Orion is a combo named after its leader Örjan Hultén, one of Sweden’s foremost saxophonists and improvisers. The other players are Torbjörn Gulz on piano, Anders Langörgen on bass, and Peter Danemo on drums. The local group is called Garuda Blue. Matt Gafney plays different sizes of saxophone with rhythm provided by Abraham Imansjah on piano, Danny Castro on bass, and Evan Williams on drums. Admission will be on a sliding scale between $20 and $25 for tickets purchased in advance. General admission at the door will be $25 with a $20 charge for students and seniors with valid identification.
• Friday, October 18, 7:30 p.m.: Lars and in Charge was formed in the past year by violinist Lars Tergis. He specializes in playing traditional Turkish Roman, Balkan, and Middle Eastern music, as well as original compositions using regional scales and rhythms. However, his backup suggests other influences. Chris Reed plays steel string guitar, and both he and Tergis provide the vocals. Gopal Slavonic, on the other hand, plays flamenco guitar. Finally, Faisal Zedan and Sean Tergis play a wide diversity of percussion instruments. Performances often include contributions by some of the Bay Area’s top dancers. Admission will be on a sliding scale between $20 and $25 for tickets purchased in advance. General admission at the door will be $25 with a $20 charge for students and seniors with valid identification.
• Friday, October 25, 8 p.m.: Karavan Sarai features dancer Nathalie Tedrick performing with a single musician. Naratyan Sijan plays both oud and saz, but he also adds electronics to the mix and serves as vocalist. Admission will be on a sliding scale between $20 and $25 for tickets purchased in advance. General admission at the door will be $25 with a $20 charge for students and seniors with valid identification.
• Saturday, October 26, 7:30 p.m.: Lily and Khatch is the duo of Lily Storm and Khatchadour Khatchadourian. Both of them are vocalists who accompany their singing with a frame drum. Khatchadourian also plays duduk. Each has released separate lullaby albums, Louloudhia: A Collection of Lullabies from Europe from Storm and Oror ou Nani: Armenian Lullabies from Khatchadourian. The program will sample both of these recordings. They will be joined by harpist Diana Rowan and Dan Cantrell on accordion. Admission will be on a sliding scale between $20 and $25 for tickets purchased in advance. General admission at the door will be $25 with a $20 charge for students and seniors with valid identification.
• Sunday, October 27, 2 p.m.: This will be the next installment of the free Monthly Community Rumba, with music provided by Rumberos de Radio Habana. While this is a free event, donations are warmly accepted. All donated money goes to the performing musicians, and a recommended amount is between $5 and $10.

Finally, there are the adventurous offerings that will take place at the Joe Henderson Lab in the SFJAZZ Center. This month there will also be concerts of major historical significance that will take place in Herbst Theatre. Ticket prices tend to vary, and there will probably be different prices for different sections of Herbst. So information about cost will be provided on an event-by-event basis. Tickets may be purchased online through the Web pages for the specific events. However, seating is always open in Henderson; and the acoustics always seem to be excellent no matter where one is sitting. The SFJAZZ Center is located at 201 Franklin Street, on the northwest corner of Fell Street. Performance dates and times are as follows, including hyperlinks to their respective event pages:

• Sunday, October 6, 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.: Pianist Kris Davis will lead her trio Diatom Ribbons, whose other members are Terri Lyne Carrington on drums and sound sculptor DJ Val Jeanty on other percussion. Selections will probably be taken from her newest album Duopoly. Tickets are being sold for $35.
• Thursday, October 10, 8 p.m, Herbst Theatre: This is the first special event taking place in Herbst. Thelonious Monk was born on October 10, 1917. The concert will be a celebration of this jazz master’s 102nd birthday entitled Kenny Barron & Friends Celebrate Monk. Barron previously performed with Sphere, the quartet that included Monk alumni Charlie Rouse on tenor saxophone and drummer Ben Riley. For this concert Barron will be joined by pianist Benny Green and Miles Okazaki on guitar. Ticket prices for the different sections of Herbst will be $35, $45, $65, and $85.
• Monday, October 14, 8 p.m., Herbst Theatre: Herbst will also host an evening with electro-acoustic composer Max Richter. He will be joined by the American Contemporary Music Ensemble and soprano Grace Davidson. Program details have not yet been announced. Ticket prices for the different sections of Herbst will be $30, $50, and $70.
• Thursday, October 17–Saturday, October 19, 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., and Sunday, October 20, 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.: Pianist and composer Christian Sands will perform eight sets over the course of four evenings. He will highlight selections from his latest album Facing Dragons. He will lead a trio, whose other members will be Yasushi Nakamura on bass and drummer Jonathan Barber. Tickets will be $30 for all performances except for those on Saturday, when the price of admission will be $35.
• Wednesday, October 23, 8 p.m., Herbst Theatre: The Paco de Lucía Project was conceived to honor the legendary flamenco guitarist for whom the group is named. It is basically a reconstruction of the band that toured with the guitarist for the last ten years of his career before his death in 2014. The ensemble was organized by Javier Limón. The program will celebrate  the guitarist’s repertoire and will include flamenco dance by Antonio Fernández “Farru” Montoya. Ticket prices for the different sections of Herbst will be $40, $60, and $80.
• Thursday, October 24, 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.: Between October 24 and October 27, SFJAZZ will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the ECM recording label. ECM has been an undisputed champion of innovative approaches to both compositions and performance. The recordings offer some of the most adventurous approaches to be found in both concert music and jazz gigs. Concerts will be held in Miner Auditorium, as well as the Henderson Lab. This site will focus on Henderson, because its listening conditions are particularly suited to the imaginative subtleties one encounters among ECM artists. The first artist to perform in Henderson will be Israeli piano virtuoso Shai Maestro. While on scholarship at the Summer Performance Program at Berklee College of Music in Boston, bassist Avishai Cohen recruited him to play in a new trio along with drummer Mark Guiliana. Their collaboration resulted in the 2008 album Gently Disturbed. This year ECM released its first album, The Dream Thief, with Maestro as trio leader, joined by Israeli dummer Ofri Nehemya and Peruvian bassist Jorge Roeder. The trio will play selections from this album as part of its SFJAZZ debut. Tickets are being sold for $25.
• Friday, October 25, 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.: This will be a solo performance by bassist Larry Grenadier. Grenadier may be known best for having played in Brad Mehldau’s trio for 25 years. However, my own first contact with him was from his ECM album led by wind player Chris Potter. The Sirens was an ambitious undertaking to account for the Homeric epic Odyssey through a suite of nine jazz tracks. Grenadier’s solo gig will be based on his ECM solo album The Gleaners. Tickets are being sold for $30.
• Saturday, October 26, 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.: Peter Erskine may best be known for his contributions to Joe Zawinul’s Weather Report, including the live album 8:30, which won a 1979 GRAMMY award. Now he is leading a quartet, whose other members are George Garzone on tenor saxophone, Alan Pasqua on piano, and Darek Oles on bass. Tickets are being sold for $30.
• Sunday, October 27, 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.: The final ECM artist to perform in the Henderson Lab will be trumpeter and composer Ralph Alessi. He will perform material from his new ECM release Imaginary Friends. He will lead a quintet called This Against That, which is the title of an album released in 2007 that made the annual Top 10 list compiled by JazzTimes. The other members of the quintet are Jon Irabagon on saxophone, Andy Milne on piano, Drew Gress on bass, and Mark Ferber on drums. Tickets are being sold for $25.
• Thursday, October 31–Saturday, November 2, 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., and Sunday, November 3, 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.: The title of the final program of the month will be Deep Grooves. The musicians are listed as Amendola vs. Blades vs. Skerik vs. Baptista vs. Parker. This is less of a street fight than that description might suggest. The leader will be Berkeley-based drummer and composer Scott Amendola. He will be joined by his longtime partner Wil Blades at the keyboard of a Hammond B-3 organ. The other performers will be Skerik on saxophone, Jeff Parker on Tortoise guitar, and Cyro Baptista on percussion. This quintet will perform selections from their studio album Everybody Wins, scheduled for release on October 11. Tickets will be $25 for all performances except for those on Saturday, when the price of admission will be $30.