This year’s JazzFest Denver lineup has the potential to be the most satisfying so far, and that’s a real tribute to how the event has evolved over the past few years.
The national acts are all first rate and swinging: Showy pianist Geoffrey Keezer, standout drummer Winard Harper and soon-to-be-a- star trumpeter Sean Jones are all scheduled to play with their touring groups, and that’s just the kind of crowd-pleasing mainstream fare that this kind of festival needs in order to thrive.
But there are some locals who will deservedly share the spotlight at the Donald R. Seawell Ballroom on March 7-8, such as the seasoned Big Swing Trio (expanded to a five- piece for this gig, so they’re billed as the, uh, Big Swing Trio Quintet, and good on them), and the Colorado Salsa Collective.
But the weekend’s name to seek out is that of composer/conductor Chie Imaizumi, whose group is scheduled for March 7. In recent months she’s grabbed attention from Downbeat magazine as a “Rising Star Composer” and her recent CD, 2007’s “Unfailing Kindness” (on Thomas Burns’ always dependable Capri Records label, out of Bailey), won critics over with its energy and optimism.
The music is affirmative, and Imaizumi’s compositions, with titles like “A Change for the Better” and “The More the Merrier” communicate enthusiasm and happiness. It helps that she utilizes so many of the more expressive jazz people in the region, like drummer Paul Romaine, pianists Mark Simon and Jeff Jenkins, and trumpeters Ron Miles and Greg Gisbert. They play her joyful compositions with such commitment that you’d guess they’ve been working with Imaizumi for decades.
Actually, Imaizumi relocated to the Denver area only recently, after an early attempt to establish herself in the competitive New York scene.
“I lived in New York for a year. It’s everybody’s dream to go to New York. But it was hard to get gigs because my name was unknown,” she said.
By chance, she met Gisbert, who suggested that she might find a more sympathetic audience in Denver. He helped book a performance at Dazzle in 2006, and not long after, Imaizumi decided to make the move to the Rockies. The relocation has seemingly paid off, with the acclaimed CD on a local label and more frequent live showcases (particularly at Dazzle) for her compositions than she likely would have had in New York.
It’s also notable that Imaizumi works as a composer/arranger/conductor, but not as a performer. Since jazz is among the least commercial genres, this makes her place in the music world even more specialized.
“I started playing keyboard in Japan when I was 4, but this (composing) feels right.”
Fortunately, she’s created some real opportunities to grow as a composer by finding so much work in the friendlier Colorado environment. And she might make it in New York yet.
JazzFest Denver, 5 p.m., March 7-8, Donald R. Seawell Ballroom, DCPA. Tickets are priced from $40 a day, from $20 a day for students. Find out more at .
Appearing locally. New Orleans trumpeter Nicholas Payton teams up with pioneering trombonist Curtis Fuller at Mount Vernon Country Club on Wednesday. Call 303-526-06167 . . . Dotsero plays from its own stage at Jazz@Jacks on Friday and Saturday . . . The Josh Quinlan Organ Trio will shake up Chapultepec Too on Friday . . . Singer Rene Marie has added a 3 p.m. matinee performance to her busy Saturday at Dazzle . . . Guitarists Larry Carlton and Robben Ford trade off solos on March 6 at the Boulder Theater, and guitarist/sitarist Fareed Haque plugs in with his group Garaj Mahal at the Fox Theatre on March 11.
Bret Saunders is host of the “KBCO Morning Show,” 5:30-10 a.m. weekdays at 97.3-FM. His e-mail address is bret_saunders@hotmail.com.
