By Bruce Klauber
Since the first Exit Zero Jazz Festival took place in Cape May in November of 2012, the three-day confab has become one of the most prestigious and unique jazz festivals in the country. What makes it so special is that the concerts are presented in the spring and fall, representing an eclectic and thoughtful blend of nationally known performers and superb talents who are not yet household names.
Those slated to perform this weekend on various Cape May stages Friday-Sunday, April 19, 20 and 21, exemplify what makes Exit Zero so extraordinary.
There’s no doubting who the headliners are: pianist Joey Alexander, who will perform at Convention Hall 8 p.m. Friday, April 19; and multi-reedman Branford Marsalis, appearing at Convention Hall 8:30 p.m. Saturday, April 20.
Born in Indonesia, Alexander was just 9 when he won the Master-Jam Fest in Odessa, Ukraine, in 2013 against an all-ages field of competitors. He released his first album, “My Favorite Things,” when he was 11 years old in 2015 and has looked back.
I was among the many in the worldwide jazz community who came away astounded after hearing his first recorded effort. How could an 11-year-old boy be so inventive, so swinging, so technically incredible, and so musically mature? Quite simply, it was and is possible.
Alexander started listening to artists like McCoy Tyner, Harry Connick, Jr., John Coltrane, and Bill Evans when he was but a toddler. Though some of those influences are evident, his style is his own. If he sounded like anyone in those early days, it would have to be the late and great French pianist Bernard Peiffer, who spent much of his professional life in Philadelphia.
Now 20, he has matured to a point where he’s finding his own way as a pianist and composer, though I’m hearing more Tyner, Bill Evans and even Keith Jarrett in his playing. He has also added an occasional electric keyboard to the mix. But when he takes a moment to slow down, as he did during a recent performance of “Angel Eyes” at Chris’ Jazz Cafe in Philadelphia, he shows great lyricism and emotion.
Joey Alexander will be with us for a long, long time. I can’t wait to hear what he’s playing in another 10 years, when he’s 30.
Saxophonist Branford Marsalis has taken a different path than his illustrious brother, Wynton. Branford was a straight-ahead swinger in his early days, playing with Lionel Hampton and Clark Terry, later joining Wynton in Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, and eventually in the Marsalis brothers Quintet. But he veered away from the straight-ahead path around 1986 when he formed his own group and expanded into pop music (he’s worked with Sting and the Grateful Dead, among many others), classical music, genre-bending composition, and scoring for films and Broadway.
Perhaps his biggest exposure to the public at large came via his leadership of “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” band in 1992. Wide exposure notwithstanding, Marsalis was unhappy in the role of clown and sycophant, and left the program in 1995 when he handed the baton to Kevin Eubanks.
As a jazz saxophonist, Marsalis is almost impossible to pin down stylistically, and that’s likely the way he wants it. A Marsalis concert may include a Thelonious Monk tune, an old standard like “Stardust,” something from his native New Orleans, and a bunch of originals. No matter what he plays, he doesn’t stray far from his New Orleans roots. Unlike some of his contemporaries who copied John Coltrane in terms of tone, Marsalis has a beautiful, welcoming, warm and room-filling sound on tenor saxophone. Whether the composition is his or someone else’s, he always respects the melody, which gives even the non-jazz fans in the audience a point of reference.
Branford Marsalis is a major talent and a major contributor to jazz whose evolution as a player, and enthusiasm for America’s only original art form, never stops.
Other Highlights
Pianist Matthew Whitaker, Convention Hall on Sunday, April 21 at 2 p.m.
Whitaker, blind since birth, is a pianist and organist who also began playing professionally at a young age. Though originally influenced by Oscar Peterson, Jimmy Smith, and other traditional swingers, Whitaker’s style has evolved to embrace elements of funk, fusion, smooth jazz, and the use of electronics.
Pianist Christian Sands, Convention Hall on Saturday, April 20 at noon.
Sands first gained recognition as a member of award-winning bassist Christian McBride’s group. It’s refreshing to hear a “contemporary” artist who still embraces the jazz piano tradition exemplified by boppers Barry Harris and Tommy Flanagan, Ahmad Jamal, and Sands’ first mentor, the late Dr. Billy Taylor.
Philadelphia Clef Club of Jazz, Convention Hall Deck Stage Saturday, April 20 at 1:15 p.m.
The Philadelphia Clef Club of Jazz has been around in various forms since 1966, when it first opened as an outgrowth of the Musicians Union Local 274, Philadelphia’s African-American Orchestra union. Though the club presents regular and always-impressive events, a significant part of the organization’s mission is jazz education.
The Clef Club’s student groups are always first-rate in terms of ensemble work and enthusiastic soloists.
Delvon LaMarr Organ Trio, Carney’s Main Room on Saturday, April 20 at 8:15 p.m.
Our region has always been known for swinging, jazz organ trios, led by artists from Jimmy Smith and Groove Holmes to Don Patterson and Milt Buckner. Seattle-based Delvon Lamarr listened to all of them and has taken the tradition to the next funky level.
Marianne Solivan, Carney’s Other Room on Sunday, April 21 at 1 p.m.
Over the past few years, several young female jazz vocalists, including Veronica Swift and Samara Joy, have arrived on the scene and taken the jazz world by storm.
Solivan, who comes out of Berklee College of Music, has been on the New York scene for some time, but has not yet “arrived” nationally. After listening to her clear, passionate, and swinging renditions of jazz songbook numbers like “Moody’s Mood for Love,” it’s quite possible that Solivan may be the next jazz vocal artist to watch.
For the complete lineup, ticket prices and other information, visit www.exitzerojazzfestival.com or call 609-849-9202.
Bruce Klauber is the author of four books, an award-winning music journalist, concert and record producer and publicist, producer of the Warner Brothers and Hudson Music “Jazz Legends” film series, and performs both as a drummer and vocalist.
