The complete outfit live at Saturn Bar. Outrageous lineup of new orleans music scene luminaries.
James P. Walsh- conductor Janna Saslaw-flute Chris Kohl- clarinet Persis Randolph-oboe/bassoon Steve Bertram- bassoon Martin Krusche-Sop. Sax Aurora Nealand-Alto sax Ray Moore-Tenor Sax Brent Rose- Tenor sax Joe Cabral- Bari sax Mike Fulton-tpt Cyrus Nabipoor-tpt Jeff Albert-tbone Rick Trolsen-tbone John Gros-tuba jonathan Freilich-guitar Helen Gillet-cello Stephanie Nilles-piano Nobu Ozaki-bass Doug Garrison- drums
Thursday Oct. 5- The new Orleans Klezmer All Stars, 9PM, Siberia-
Last month we played at Siberia, and it was a fitting return for Glenn Hartman, our keyboardist and blood pumper. The food is excellent and Eastern Euro. Everyone loved it. Folks can't help but dance and imbibe. Come out for this one.
Thursday Oct 12th- The Naked Orchestra, 10PM, Allways Lounge-
The full 20 odd piece Naked Orchestra performs again, at a new venue for us. Come see some of the greatest and most exciting improvisors and composers from across the scene. It's always an instant party.
Friday Oct. 13th- The New Orleans Klezmer All Stars, 9pm Chickie Wah Wah
This will be a party and some really driving music a) because it's the klez and b) because it's my birthday, and you are all invited c) it's friday the 13th again.. Let's really go crazy, it's been a tough year. This one is going to rock!
Saturday Oct. 14th- Wadada Leo Smith performs 10 Freedom Summers at Loyola.
I'm happy to have contributed to the effort to help get Wadada here to perform and work with the New Orleans music community. He is a great artist with great vision and this is a seminal work about civil rights. This group is not to be missed and is augmented by string quartet and strong multimedia presentation.. The information on the show is here... please attend you will be edified.
Sunday Oct. 15th- w/ James Singleton quintet, 8 and 10PM- Snug Harbor-
My flagship chamber group, in a great room. Rex Gregory- saxes etc; Cyrus Nabipoor-trumpet; Rick Trolsen-trombone; James Singleton-bass; Stanton Moore-drums; Jonathan Freilich- guitar. Yep, you read right. Our original drummer, Stanton is back for a great evening of music.
Thursday Oct. 19th- w/ singer, Annie Ellicott- 8:43PM- The Sidebar
Annie is a great writer and fascinatingly flexible vocalist. If you haven't checked out the sidebar you are living in a dream where you can't figure out what's up.
And that's just to start, get you salivating at the diversity, and give you some strength to take on the adversity.
Conductor of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Carlos Miguel Prieto and I, talk about the funny money stuff that goes on with orchestra operation. The show is available online at any time. It airs on WWNO on 5/26 at 1pm and again at 6:30pm.
Fresh off a refreshing hiatus, with new works, some newer faces and a lot of old friends. There will be a catwalk! The full complement will be there:
Jimbo Walsh- conductor Janna Saslaw- flute/piccolo Chris Kohl- clarinets Steve Bertram-Bassoon Martin Krusche- soprano sax Aurora Nealand- Alto sax Rex Gregory- tenor/ bass clarinet Joe Cabral- tenor sax Dan Oestreicher- bari sax John Culbreth-trumpet Scott Frock- trumpet Jeff Albert- Trombone Devon Taylor- Tuba Nobu Ozaki-bass Helen Gillet-cello Carl LeBlanc-guitar Jonathan Freilich- guitar Doug Garrison-drums
I'll let you in on a secret. The Naked Orchestra shows are also a party with some of the most interesting and colorful folks in town. Come over and get down while comparing the key system on bassoons and bass clarinets; the body differences between a cello and a bass, all while pretending to eye the object of your desires so you aren't caught staring hungrily at such things. You wouldn't want to appear over eager.
3 shows at The Old U.S. Mint on Friday 10th, 17th, and 24th of July from 2-3pm. 1 Show at Snug Harbor on Sunday 12th of July. It's going to be fascinating and entertaining no matter what.
After a great weekend of playing interesting music at an interesting musical time of year, it is time for me to announce the most important musical event of the week for you to support...
The Naked Orchestra and some others including Brian Coogan(Pretty Lights) and Zoe Boekbinder will be at 3405 Royal St for the Naked in Wonderland event. Glenn Hartman of The New Orleans Klezmer All-Stars will do a solo Accordion Set from atop the trees.
The Orchestra will play at 7:30 but there is much fine entertainment and crawfish with the price of admission before that. Click that SONO link above for more information and ticketing.
The best bartenders in NOLA will be serving.
We all demand your fun and free, embodied, spirits in attendance.
Jimbo Walsh- conductor
Old winds Janna Saslaw-flute, piccolo Chris Kohl Steve Bertram-bassoon
Saxes
Martin Krusche-(magnetic ear) Ray Moore Rex Gregory Skerik Joe Cabral Dan Oestreicher Brad Walker
Brass
Jeff Albert-trombone Steve Bernstein-trumpet Devon Taylor-tuba
Strings
Jonathan Freilich-guitar/bandleader Carl Leblanc-guitar Robin Sherman-bass
The Naked Orchestra will play again at the site of the band's recent return to action. Another very solid lineup of some of the finest in New Orleans. "Not to be missed!" exclaimed a previous audience before loosening it all up and heading out into the streets.
So far the lineup is as follows:
James Walsh-conductor Janna Saslaw-Flute Chris Kohl-Clarinet Steve Bertram-Bassoon Martin Krusche-soprano sax Ray Moore-Alto sax Brad Walker- Tenor sax Jason Mingeldorff-Baritone sax Scott Frock-trumpet Jeff Albert-trombone/ electronics Devon Taylor-tuba Carl LeBlanc-guitar Jonathan Freilich-guitar/director Robin Sherman-bass Marcello Bennetti-drums
Jonathan Freilich, Sam Rivers, Jeff Albert, Zeitgeist theater, New Orleans The great Sam Rivers has passed and what a big loss, what a human being, what an improvisor. And really...what do I know? I only got to see him a handful of times but each was better than a delight; it was actually transformative.
The first couple of times that I saw him in person was when he came out to a couple of New Orleans Klezmer All-Stars shows in Orlando, FL. At one of them he was dancing wildly and he made sure to come over and tell us how much he liked it. He was one of my heroes and I felt like i'd been given a fresh, strong, backbone.
When we would go down to Orlando, we were sometimes lucky to see his Rivbea orchestra; a great band- check out some of those hot clips on youtube.
The most important memory of Sam for me, and a number of my comrades in New Orleans, was when he came down to play with the Naked Orchestra. He had some music prepared but there had been a mixup with his management who had incorrectly communicated the Naked Orchestra's instrumentation to him. He felt badly about it and said that he had lots of music for such a project if he'd been told what kind of band it was. He dissolved the rehearsal and said he would have new music for us right before the gig and he did just that; the following evening he had worked up a complete piece for the orchestra. It was a very ear opening piece of music and I wish I had a recording of that evening.
Every time you saw Sam Rivers he exuded a shocking amount of energy and his multi instrumental trio of recent years was also something else to see.
My old friend, David Kunian wrote a poem inspired by the show that night with the Naked Orchestra . Here it is...
SAM RIVERS AND THE NAKED ORCHESTRA 3/8/02 ZEITGEIST THEATRE
Michael Ray is his own delay.
If he were going the speed of light,
Would he hear his instrument in the mirror?
Yeah, Einstein, I’m hearing things, All Right!
Tim Green’s blowing breath through the bass sax
Powering the band like a B-2 bomber.
Sounds like Operation Anaconda creeping
Through the mountains and then a big BOOM
As Eric Lucero’s trumpet and Rob Wagner’s horn
Drop the furious atonal BOMB. Sam the Man Rivers
Writing a new piece like a snake
Sousaphone in the hills, saxophones in the grass.
Mikiel Williams fingering like a snake charmer.
Sam has Hart McKnee adding flute
And interpretive dance stomps.
“Ooops, I brought music for an orchestra,
but not this kind of Orchestra.”
Maybe an Arkestra? A Dressed Orchestra?
Michael Skinkus is the tomato conga.
Matt Perrine on sousaphone is definitely pickles.
Doug Miller no offense slathers on tenor mayo.
Jonathan Froelich’s sharp guitar tones and crazy clusters
Folks often ask about the titles I give to musical pieces and records. The recent Naked orchestra record was called From Pandemonium to a View of Eidolons and, believe it or not, it was shortened from the song title, A dose of mer-c takes the fractured soul from pandemonium to a view of eidolons. There are a number of puns and references in there that mostly cover all of the sorts of things I was thinking of, reading, viewing etc. at the time of composition.
Here are some fun background bits about the record title:
Mean while the winged Haralds by command Of Sovran power, with awful Ceremony And Trumpets sound throughout the Host proclaim A solemn Councel forthwith to be held [ 755 ] At Pandæmonium, the high Capital Of Satan and his Peers: thir summons call'd From every Band and squared Regiment By place or choice the worthiest; they anon With hunderds and with thousands trooping came [ 760 ]
