[Dixielandjazz] Louis Armstrong, Vince Giordano, Wynton Marsalis - LIVE via internet

[SargentDrums at aol.com]

I'd let EVERYBODY know about a phenomenal opportunity to see the live  
broadcasts of Vince Giordano & Wynton Marsalis pairing up to present a  series 
of concerts presenting the music of Louis Armstrong's Hot 5 & Hot  7.

But, since, ONLY ONE PERSON on this list apparently reads my  posts, this 
is my New Year's present to that person.

Here's the link to  the live streaming broadcast:  

http://jalc.org/multimedia/webcasts/dizzys?reset=1

Live from  Dizzy's Club Coca Cola 
Wynton Marsalis: Wed-Sun, Dec 26-30, 7:30 &  10:00PM, Mon, Dec 31, 7:30 & 
11:00PM (ET)

Two sets each  night!

Here's the review for the concerts:

The Louis Armstrong  Continuum
Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola 
Broadway at 60th Street, (212) 258-9595  
Through Monday 

Louis Armstrong was the alpha and the omega of jazz, the first genius  of 
the music and the one whose achievements will never be surpassed. For New  
Year's weekend, Wynton Marsalis has assembled a program of Armstrong's "Hot  
Fives and Sevens" compositions of the late 1920s, the music generally 
regarded  as the great man's greatest. What's more, Mr. Marsalis has brought in  
reinforcements: the band at this special fundraising event for Jazz at Lincoln 
 Center features an all-star team incorporating key players from Vince 
Giordano's  Nighthawks, starting with the energetic leader on tuba and bass 
saxophone. (If  the fiscal cliff has got you worried, stay home and view the 
webcast at  jalc.org/live.) How fitting that Satchmo's should be the last music 
you'll hear  in 2012—and the first you'll hear in 2013.

The palette has been expanded in 2012, so that the juxtaposition  between 
old and new feels a lot more seamless. For instance, the current  ensemble 
features two trumpet stars—the deservedly celebrated, multi-stylistic  Mr. 
Marsalis and the brilliant Jon-Erik Kellso, a longstanding Nighthawk and  
specialist in 1920s brass styles. It takes at least two trumpet players to do  
justice to Armstrong's storied legacy, but it should be noted that Messrs.  
Marsalis and Kellso rarely play together as a section but, rather, underscore  
different aspects of the Mighty Man's brass heritage. It's the leader's  
imperative to call dibs on the famous breaks, for instance, on "Potato Head  
Blues"—after all, wouldn't you? 

Likewise, the ensemble essentially sports two bassists, Carlos  Henriquez, 
one of Mr. Marsalis's usual suspects, on bass violin, and Mr.  Giordano on 
tuba (he plays bass sax more on solos, as on "Jazz Lips," than in  the rhythm 
section). String bass and brass bass together would be  redundant—they'd 
just get in each other's way, unless one were soloing—but here,  whenever Mr. 
Marsalis feels the urge to modernize the proceedings, the rhythm  shifts 
from tuba to bass fiddle. 

The JaLCO's drummer, Ali Jackson, is like two drummers in one, and he  
handles the changes with remarkable subtlety. The opener, "Cornet Chop Suey,"  
includes a stealthy time-shift: Mr. Jackson switches the emphasis from his 
bass  drum to the cymbals, and the whole shebang instantly sounds more 
bebop-ish, even  though he continues to play a traditional jazz-style two-beat. 
Rather than  feeling contrived, it has a feeling of freshness and vitality. (If 
you want to  hear the music of the jazz age roar as if the 1920s had never 
ended, make it  your business to catch the Nighthawks at Sofia's on Mondays 
and Tuesdays, and  also next Thursday at Highlights in Jazz.) Dan Nimmer, on 
piano, likewise  transverses multiple generations, suggesting a bridge 
between Earl (as in Hines)  and Erroll (as in Garner).

On opening night, the group also essayed "Melancholy" with an  entertaining 
scat vocal by Mr. Giordano; "Hotter Than That," with a great scat  vocal by 
trombonist Chris Crenshaw; "St. James Infirmary," with a blues vocal by  
Mr. Marsalis; a "generic" New Orleans closer, "Second Line"; and "Ory's Creole 
 Trombone," spotlighting Mr. Crenshaw instrumentally, as an encore. All of 
which  further proved that Louis Armstrong's music will be relevant to 
future musicians  and audiences as long as hearts continue to beat.