Chris Botti. (Illustration by Pat Crowley)By Bill MeredithSouth Florida's creative jazz concert calendar is always a case of feast or famine, and there's usually more of a feast south of Palm Beach County.That's partly because there's a stronger jazz nightclub presence in the Fort Lauderdale and Miami areas than on the practically nonexistent West Palm Beach scene. And … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: June 11-13
The Entr’Acte Theatrix cast of Hair.Stage: There’s a new theater company in the area, Entr’Acte Theatrix, a professional offshoot of the 10-year-old Palm Beach Principal Players, which hangs out its shingle for the first time with a worthy production of Hair, the “tribal love-rock musical” from 1968, the previous time we were mired in a protracted, … [Read more...]
Music feature: Jazz world remembers pianist Higgins
Pianist Eddie Higgins (1932-2009).Photo by Andrea Canter.By Bill Meredith Drummer Art Blakey (1919-1990) took many a young, future jazz star on the road for seasoning with his group The Jazz Messengers between the 1950s and the 1980s. The list included Wayne Shorter, Freddie Hubbard, Lee Morgan, Keith Jarrett, Jackie McLean, Wynton and Branford Marsalis, Joanne Brackeen, Benny … [Read more...]