JAM: August/September 2001 Issue: Folly Jazz News

Doug Tatum

The Folly Jazz Series for 2001-2002
For the 101st Season of the historic Folly Theater, I am happy to announce the lineup of the 2001-2002 Folly Jazz Series.

Jane Monheit
Saturday, October 13, 2001
This year we will be launching a new concert feature, the Folly Jazz Spotlight, which will highlight the Kansas City premiere of a rising new jazz star each season. To inaugurate this feature, we are proud to present vocalist Jane Monheit, who is the most talked-about new arrival in the rarefied world of jazz singing since Diana Krall surfaced nationally in the mid-'90s.

Jane Monheit

Monheit, 23, is the youngest person ever to be runner-up in the prestigious Thelonious Monk Competition. This honor led to a debut album that was a huge hit in jazz circles, and sell-out concerts at New York's Lincoln Center, the Village Vanguard, and now around the world, as this rising young star continues her ascent. In the June 18th issue of Time, Daniel Okrent stated, "Most of all, her voice is a silken, controlled wonder that is both a genetic gift and the product of superb training. When she wraps it around one of the classic American songs she loves to sing, you know Jane Monheit can't miss. She has, in a word, everything."

Don Byron
"Music for Six Musicians"
Friday, November 9, 2001
Back by popular demand after wowing the Folly audience in 1998 with "Bug Music," clarinetist Don Byron continues to set the jazz world on fire and be voted best jazz clarinetist by critics and readers alike. "Socially conscious, musically adventurous, and doggedly determined to obliterate pigeonholes, Don Byron boldly goes where no clarinetist has gone before." (David Okamoto)

Herbie Mann

Herbie Mann Quartet
Saturday, December 8, 2001
Seminal jazz flutist Herbie Mann was exploring the rhythms and harmonies of Africa, India, Cuba, Jamaica, the Middle East, and Japan long before people talked about "World Music." He continues to find inspiration in Brazilian music (he helped usher in the Bossa Nova craze in the '60s) and, more recently, in the rhythms of Eastern Europe, his roots. About Herbie's considerable talents, Jazz Times stated, "…Mann leads the way, (with) playing that showcases the versatility and many facets of one of jazz's most distinctive flutists."

Ahmad Jamal
Saturday, January 19, 2002
Celebrated pianist-composer Ahmad Jamal (who will be performing with his trio) is a continually evolving, uncompromising, and uniquely original stylist who, "unlike some veteran artists, …has never lost the ability to renew himself. Nor has he lost his gift for pleasing average listeners without compromising his art one bit." (Lloyd Sachs, Chicago Sun-Times) His physical command of his instrument and his extraordinary musical intelligence create a presence that commands the listener's attention. As Jamal himself says, "I'm a storyteller."

The Yellowjackets
Saturday, February 23, 2002
For nearly 20 years, the Yellowjackets have flourished as one of America's most loved and top-selling contemporary jazz groups. Utilizing infectious rhythms and strong melodic structures that define their sound, the Yellowjackets are masters of a wide range of musical styles. In fact, the group's "willingness to incorporate a variety of genres, including traditional jazz with R&B, rock, soul, even bluegrass and orchestral, has solidified its reputation as a band without boundaries." (Michael Swanger, Newton Daily News)

Regina Carter

Regina Carter Quintet
Saturday, March 9, 2002
One of the most significant, versatile, and innovative violinists to emerge on the jazz scene in decades, Regina Carter creates music that has brought cheering fans to their feet at the Monterey Jazz Festival and the Hollywood Bowl and has kept the critics marveling. "Her violin is her voice -- soaring, sighing, demanding, convincing… Carter creates music that is wonderfully listenable, probingly intelligent and, at times, breathtakingly daring... taking the listener into the future of jazz." (Time)

Marian McPartland Trio
Saturday, May 4, 2002
Marian McPartland's legendary virtuoso performances at the piano and her own personable style have won her international acclaim as one of the most important figures in jazz today. As a jazz educator, McPartland provides an enlightening insider's view of jazz on her Peabody Award-winning "Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz" on National Public Radio. As a performer, she continues to astound audiences with her "nonchalant stylistic range and uncompromising allegiance to a deeply personal interpretation of classic songs…" She has rightfully been called The First Lady of Jazz. "Long may she reign!" (Geoff Chapman, Toronto Star)

For more information about the Folly Jazz Series or to request a brochure, please call the Folly Theater at 816-474-4444.

Doug Tatum is the Executive Director of the Folly Theater.

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