Articles by Erik R. Quick

Ayman Fanous and Tomas Ulrich in Concert: Improvisational Excitement in Classical Music

by Erik R. Quick
June 24, 2009

Ayman Fanous and Tomas UlrichSt. Mary's Episcopal ChurchWashington D.C.May 9, 2009

Jazz performance and concert production is hardly thriving in Washington, D.C. Clubs have either closely entirely or altered programming significantly so as to focus on music deemed to have wider commercial appeal. As a result, creative improvisation is increasingly hard to find. But local guitarist Ayman Fanous has, in the last several years, assiduously produced a number of concerts featuring the solo efforts of ...

Ayman Fanous & Tomas Ulrich: Labyrinths

by Erik R. Quick
December 9, 2007

Ayman Fanous & Tomas Ulrich Labyrinths Konnex Records 2007

For some listeners, “free jazz" means a careless and chaotic jumble. It appears to contain no distinguishable musical patterns or progressions, and seems to be without any discernable influences--though some may note the music's resonance with the complex polyphony of traditional New Orleans band music and its reflection of current political and cultural events. After almost forty years of musical exploration, even the ...

Earl May at the Smithsonian's Jazz Cafe

by Erik R. Quick
November 9, 2007

Earl May Jazz Café, Smithsonian Institute Washington, D.C. October 19, 2007

The Smithsonian Institution hates jazz; at least, their actions may so intimate. For the past few years, Randall Kremer, the intrepid Director of Public Affairs at the National Museum of Natural History and an amateur jazz guitarist, has been booking phenomenal musicians every Friday evening at the museum's Jazz Café. Indeed, the venue has been a most welcome and needed addition to the ...

Falkner Evans: Arc

by Erik R. Quick
October 26, 2007

There has been considerable effort to redefine the means of expression regarding the standard jazz trio of piano, bass and drums. The world of contemporary popular music has been mined to provide unexpected material. Electronica furnishes additional textures which, perhaps, belie the inherent simplicity of a trio. Nevertheless, there are traditional stalwarts working to solidify the mainstream genre.

Pianist Falkner Evans' lack of cover story support within the industry is certainly not an indication that there ...

Brad Dutz: When Manatees Attack

by Erik R. Quick
October 4, 2007

Percussionist Brad Dutz has an astounding range of performance and recording credits, from Leo Kottke and Kiss, to Frank Sinatra and Kenny Loggins. On When Manatees Attack, the Los Angles based musical chameleon both inspires and confuses. The result is a strange mix of improvisatory eclecticism rooted within twentieth century classicism. Although compositional in texture, the expressive components contain elements of great surprise, which illustrate the strong improvisational skills of the performers.

Oboist Paul Sherman is based in ...

Rashied Ali Quintet: Judgment Day, Volume 1

by Erik R. Quick
August 7, 2007

Rashied Ali is most commonly associated with his short tenure as John Coltrane's drummer on Interstellar Space (Impulse!, 1967). His significant participation in the New York loft-jazz movement by opening “Ali's Alley in 1973 is also frequently cited. His most recent collaborations with saxophonist Sonny Fortune continue the conception of Ali as an explosive participant in free improvisation. Nevertheless, Ali's Judgment Day, Volume 1 is a strictly mainstream outing where he focuses his efforts as a teacher to those relatively ...

Mark Murphy at Blues Alley, Washington, DC

by Erik R. Quick
July 29, 2007

Mark Murphy Blues Alley Washington, DC July 11, 2007

I may not be the most aggressive advocate of Blues Alley, but the intimate eighteenth-century carriage house in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, DC has been host to countless jazz legends for over forty years. The lackluster food, indifferent service and an increasingly commercial booking agenda can easily be a disincentive to all but the most intrepid jazz listener. However, it remains one of the ...

Stephan Micus: On the Wing

by Erik R. Quick
July 24, 2007

Stephan Micus is a German-born multi-instrumentalist and inveterate ethnic musicologist. He currently resides in Majorca where, aside from the splendid climate, the airport is well-equipped and prepared to take the adventuresome traveler almost anywhere at any time. Micus utilizes the latter frequently in planning his musical landscapes.

Micus has traveled extensively throughout Asia and Europe and, in doing so, has accumulated an arsenal of exotic instruments. He does not, however, seek to replicate the literal music tradition of a particular ...

Tim Eyermann: Thanks for the Memories

by Erik R. Quick
June 24, 2007

There are countless musicians, in any major city, that regularly display an unusual degree of artistry and musicianship. They perform, compose or teach throughout a region and, regardless of their categorized arena, are known to only a few assiduous hobbyists and music fanatics. The musician may, or may not, fantasize about national fame and considerable fortune. But the merits of their relative talents are often unrelated to the degree of monetary success or obvious name recognition. Although Washington, ...

Bucky Pizzarelli Performing at the Smithsonian Under a Cloud

by Erik R. Quick
May 2, 2007

The Statesmen of Jazz with Bucky Pizzarelli Smithsonian Jazz Café Washington D.C. April 6, 2007

Washington, D.C. consistently limps and trips from scandal to outrage. It is never surprising when yet another committee is formed to investigate the depths of the city's shallow political waters. The venerable Smithsonian Institution is not immune from such controversy. Although the rest of the country may think that the almost $700 million in annual government funding is utilized ...