Shows not to miss during Opening Night at the Rochester International Jazz Festival
Each day of the CGI Rochester International Jazz Festival provides a bounty of choices for music lovers. Here are some options. For a full lineup and venue and time information go to rochesterjazz.com. Also, these choices are focused on the club venues.
Rochester International Jazz Festival: Friday, June 21
The California Guitar Trio
Each year I struggle with pulling together a mix of performers I don't know and those I do. This trio — not all from California, by the way — falls firmly into the latter category. The original members came together more than 30 years ago after meeting at a guitar "craft course" from the legendary King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp. (They later toured with King Crimson.) Like Fripp, their music is elaborate and intricate, yet accessible. The interplay is seamless and the choices range from classical to pop and rock favorites. They were here in 2022, almost 20 years after I first saw them at the festival, and I wrote this then: "Brilliant guitarists, the trio takes Queen's 'Bohemian Rhapsody' and somehow acoustically finds a simplicity with the song that does not lose any of its operatic complexity."
Stanley Jordan
Speaking of intricate guitarmanship, Jordan has been at the craft a long time as well. The California Guitar Trio are youngsters compared to Jordan, whose unique "touch tapping" playing style milks a singular resonance from the instrument that few others do. His style utilizes both hands on the fretboard, and his festival show is dedicated to a guitarist nonpareil — Jimi Hendrix. This combination of Jordan's virtuostic flair and the musically challenging and occasionally psychedelic tunes of Hendrix assures a very special show.
Connie Han Trio
Okay, let's take a break from guitars. Connie Han is a virtuoso of her own. Han's piano skills are volcanic; the music can simmer and bubble, then erupt with a fiery intensity. Her bandmates lay down the foundation effortlessly, but it is Han whose energy ignites the performances. Downbeat magazine has dubbed her "The Jazz Warrior-Goddess," a fitting moniker for sure. She takes no enemies. Also, she is back for a solo performance Saturday, June 22, at the acoustically divine Hatch Hall.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Rochester Jazz Fest lineup: Best bets for Opening Night 2024
