The John Coltrane centennial is upon us! That’s the main headline this week, and you should read on for the exciting details. But also take note of the other offerings in town, including a surefooted young songbook interpreter and a hyper-acute jazz-fusion duo. See you in Love Park, I hope? (Be sure to say hello.)
Spotlight: Coltrane 100 — Through Sept. 27, Various locations
As you’re probably aware, John Coltrane’s centennial falls this week — he was born on Sept. 23, 1926 — and the scene is practically bursting with commemorative events. WRTI will be stationed all week in Philly’s iconic JFK Plaza, for a listening party we’re calling A Love Park Supreme. Come out and join us in celebration! And be sure not to miss the Jaleel Shaw Trio in a free concert there on Coltrane’s birthday, Wednesday from 6 to 7:30 p.m.
Ars Nova Workshop has also organized a Coltrane 100 festival, featuring a series of concerts at Mandell Theater on the Drexel University campus. It begins on Wednesday with the Sun Ra Arkestra performing the music of John Coltrane (at 8 p.m.) and continues on Thursday with a double bill featuring a tribute by drummer Terri Lyne Carrington, ‘Legacy of Love and Liberation,’ and the experimental artist L’Rain (at 6:30 and 8 p.m.).
On Friday, another double bill, as Irreversible Entanglements plays Coltrane’s Ascension, before an all-star Odean Pope-Reggie Workman-Andrew Cyrille Trio (at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.). Saturday brings the Immanuel Wilkins Quartet with two special guests, bassist William Parker and drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts, performing John Coltrane’s music, alongside Divine Offering: Celebrating the Legacy of Alice Turiyasangitananda with Sita Michelle Coltrane (at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.). And next Sunday, Sept. 27, pianist Marilyn Crispell will reunite with drummer Tyshawn Sorey (at 6 p.m.).
The Philadelphia Museum of Art has also been chasin’ the Trane, with its very own Coltrane Festival, including talks and film screenings. On Friday night at 5 p.m. in the museum’s Great Stair Hall, the series culminates in Collier Plays Coltrane, featuring the incandescent young saxophonist Isaiah Collier, who has developed this program at recent festivals. If you heard his interview on The Late Set, you know he’s a fervent torchbearer, and should bring plenty of spirit to his tribute.
Ars Nova: Sept. 23-27, various times, Mandell Theater at Drexel University, 3220 Chestnut Street, $43 per performance or $185 for a full festival pass; tickets and information.
Philadelphia Art Museum: Sept. 20-25, various times, Philadelphia Art Museum, 2600 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, pay what you wish entry; tickets and information.
DOMi & JD Beck — Monday, Brooklyn Bowl Philadelphia
The dynamic duo known as DOMi & JD Beck — she’s a keyboard demon, he’s a drumming fiend — made all kinds of waves during the buildup to their 2022 Blue Note debut. Then things got quiet for a spell. This summer they finally dropped WHO ASKED? — a follow-up marked by expansion and contraction: an absence of splashy guest stars, a new foray into orchestration, the addition of vocals. Their hyperarticulate mind-meld has never been deeper, a fact they’re sure to flaunt on their album tour.
Sept. 21 at 8 p.m., Brooklyn Bowl, 1009 Canal Street, $42; tickets and information.
Chris Oatts’ Pretty Big Band — Thursday, Black Squirrel Club
Saxophonist Chris Oatts is a third-generation jazz musician, and a product of Temple’s Boyer College of Music and Dance, where he now teaches. As the name suggests, his Pretty Big Band is a midsize ensemble that packs the punch of a larger ensemble. For this hit at the Black Squirrel, their set list is purported to include not just standards but also fare like Burt Bacharach’s film song “Alfie” and Herbie Hancock’s vocoder-era “I Thought It Was You.”
Sept. 24 at 7:30 p.m., Black Squirrel Club, 1049 Sarah Street, sliding scale ($16-$27); tickets and information.
Lucy Yeghiazaryan with the Grant Stewart Quartet — Friday and Saturday
An Armenian-American jazz singer with smoke and syrup in her tone, Lucy Yeghiazaryan has a fresh new album, Hey Love!, that underscores her easy authority with the Great American Songbook. She’ll draw from a similar wellspring — tunes like “Witchcraft” and “Dedicated to You” — in this 37th Anniversary celebration for Chris’ Jazz Cafe, with a combo led by her husband, the unflappable tenor saxophone standard-bearer Grant Stewart.
Sept. 25 and 26 at 7:30 and 9:30 p.m., Chris’ Jazz Cafe, 1421 Sansom Street, $30-$35, with dinner packages; tickets and information.
Samara Joy Septet — Sept. 27, The Grand Opera House, Wilmington, DE
Jazz hasn’t had another breakout star in recent seasons quite like the singer Samara Joy, who continues to grow as both an artist and an ambassador. During her last spin through these parts, at a Miller Theater concert on her 26th birthday, she sounded thrillingly in command of her sharp young band. The same should hold true on this concert in Wilmington, which will likely draw from Portrait, her most recent Grammy-winning album.
Sept. 27 at 7 p.m., Copeland Hall, The Grand Opera House, 818 N Market Street, Wilmington, DE, $79-$105; tickets and information.
