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08/05/2015

Darrell Grant’s ‘all 4 naught’ brings today’s pop tunes to a Jazz sensibility at Montavilla Jazz Festival

BY TOM D'ANTONI //

Last summer, in a dark, steamy room, the cream of the most adventurous Jazz musicians in Portland threw themselves a Jazz Festival. OMN was a media sponsor then, and is again. I did some MC’ing and will again this year.

What’s different in 2015 is that the festival will be neither dark nor steamy. The dates are Saturday and Sunday,  August 15 and 16 a new location: Portland Metro Arts, 9003 SE Stark St., 97216, 503-408-0604, an education and performance venue for music, visual arts, theater and dance. Ticket prices are same as last year. $10-$25 sliding scale for full day pass Saturday or Sunday.

Headlining is composer/pianist Darrell Grant with something that’s gonna rock the house…but we’re not sure if it’s going to be a “Rite of Spring” moment or not. Given the open ears of this audience, probably not. He’s going to take, in his all 4 naught program, today’s pop tunes and make them Jazz tunes. It’s an old tradition, but it’s always controversial. He will be playing on Saturday, August 16.

We spoke with him in a rehearsal room at Lincoln Hall at Portland State University, where Grant has had a storied run for over a decade teaching music.

The 2015 Montavilla Jazz Festival (MJF 2015) will feature 13 Portland-based bands performing cutting-edge, original jazz.

This year the festival is proud to introduce the Montavilla Schools Music Fund, an effort dedicated to enriching the lives of children in Montavilla through the power of music education. The fund will earmark a portion of festival revenue for distribution to neighborhood public schools’ music education programs.

The Lineup:

• Darrell Grant’s All 4 Naught (Headliner)
• Alan Jones Sextet
• David Friesen’s Circle 3 Trio
• Ed Bennett Quintet
• George Colligan Quartet
• Ian Christensen Quartet
• Joe Manis Trio
• John Gross Trio
• Machete Order
• Portland Jazz Composers’ Ensemble
• Rich Halley 4
• Ryan Meagher
• Tim Willcox’s Superjazzers

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