Weekend in Jazz | 3.11-3.13: Glasper's groove, Sanchez's rhumba and Vasandani's croon -

Robert Glasper. Courtesy robertglasper.com

The pianist and innovator Robert Glasper performs with his hip hop/jazz fusion group the Experiment on Friday and Saturday. Courtesy robertglasper.com

by Giovanni Russonello

Welcome to this week’s installation of “Weekend in Jazz,” our list of every D.C. jazz show on our radar. The ever-exciting Robert Glasper and the Experiment – fresh off a surprise show featuring premier rap talents Kanye West, Mos Def and Lupe Fiasco – arrive at Bohemian Caverns. Meanwhile, the Atlas Performing Arts Center’s Intersections series continues to bring us great jazz (Brad Linde and Nasar Abadey are there this week), and all across the city there’s good music to be heard. All of our favorite shows have a label. As always, you can read CapitalBop’s full listings directly at our monthly calendar, if you’d rather. Happy hunting!

FRIDAY, MAR. 11
cb picks:

Rudresh Mahanthappa, KC Jazz Club, 7:30 & 9:30 p.m.
Robert Glasper, Bohemian Caverns, 8:30 & 10:30 p.m.
Donvonte McCoy, 18th Street Lounge, 10:30 p.m.

‘Jazz Night,’ Westminster Presbyterian Church, 6:30 p.m. | For this week’s edition of “Jazz Night,” a quintet honors the late, great soul jazz piano pioneer Gene Harris. The swingin’ jazz will feature Queen Aisha on vocals, Greg Lamont on piano, Zach Graddy on tenor saxophone, Donnie West on bass and Ben Secundy on drums. $5 cover, free for attendees under 16, no minimum. View event on calendar | Westminster Presbyterian Church website

Potomac Jazz Project, Icehouse Café, 6:30 p.m. | The Potomac Jazz Project is a quartet that takes on modern and classic jazz tunes (and even some pop covers) with a showmanly flair, as well as skill. It’s led by bassist Stan Hamrick, and its rotating lineup often features some of D.C.’s best musicians. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Icehouse Café website

Karen Gray Trio, Sala Thai (Bethesda), 6:30 p.m. | Commanding vocalist Karen Gray is joined by vibraphonist Pete Chauvette and bassist John Leonard in her laid-back renditions of jazz standards. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Sala Thai website

Potomac Jazz Project, Sala Thai (U St.), 6:30 p.m. | The Yamomanem Jazz Band plays a faithful take on New Orleans jazz, conjuring the days of King Oliver and early Louis Armstrong with its lush brass section. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Sala Thai website

Jacqui Simmons & Friends, Sala Thai (Petworth), 7 p.m. | Jacqui Simmons sings jazz standards with a heartfelt and elegant presentation. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Sala Thai website

Jolley Brothers, B. Smith’s, 7 p.m. | The Jolley Brothers, Noble on keyboard and Nate on drums, play thrice a weekend at B. Smith’s, the upscale soul-food restaurant in Union Station’s massive East Hall. The Jolleys, who perform with a bassist, comprise one of D.C.’s most exciting and auspicious acts. With roots in gospel, soul and the modal bop of the 1960s, the brothers (who also compose prolifically) bring some of the most creative elements in the African-American music canon forward into the 21st century, all while stamping it with their own distinctive flavoring. But B. Smith’s is a restaurant first, and the music remains in the background – no matter how expertly played. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | B. Smith’s website

Elijah & the Po’ Boys, Bayou, 7 p.m. | Tenor saxophonist Elijah Jamal Balbed leads the Po’ Boys trio — usually with drums and guitar — four nights a week during dinnertime hours at the New Orleans-themed Bayou. A strong, Dexter Gordon-like player, he performs mostly tunes from hard bop’s heyday and other standards. To hear Balbed stretch out with a full quintet, stay late on a Thursday night, when he plays Bayou’s featured set. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Bayou profile

Updated: Rudresh Mahanthappa & the Indo-Pak Coalition, KC Jazz Club, 7:30 & 9:30 p.m. | Rudresh Mahanthappa, one of the world’s leading saxophonists, blends an abundance of post-bop fury – a constant sense of pushing, striving and igniting – with Indian classical impulses. That’s true in most of his music, but nowhere is it more blatantly fleshed out than in the Indo-Pak Coalition, Mahanthappa’s captivating trio. In the group, the Indian-American bandleader joins guitarist Rez Abbasi (a Pakistani American) and young drummer and tabla master Dan Weiss (a Jewish American). View event on calendar | KC Jazz Club profile

Stanley Jordan, Blues Alley, 8 & 10 p.m. | Imagine if George Benson applied a syrup-drizzled layer of guitar effects and the heavy metal guitar technique of fretboard “tapping” to his sorta-jazz, sorta-funk, very-smooth style. Now you’re getting close to figuring out how Stanley Jordan, who plays all this weekend at Blues Alley, sounds. Two separate sets at 8 & 10 p.m. $25 cover, $10 minimum. View event on calendar | Blues Alley profile

Andrea Wood & Michael Kramer, Tasting Room, 8 p.m. | Singer Andrea Wood has started catching people’s ears since returning to D.C., her hometown, in 2009. The Duke Ellington School of the Arts graduate moves fearlessly up and down octaves, all the while maintaining a distinct sense of purpose. She can explore the upper register in a beguiling waft, or plunge into the basement with buoyant, swelling articulation. Wood and guitarist Michael Kramer play Brazilian and classic jazz standards every week as background fare at the Tasting Room, a wine bar in Friendship Heights. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Tasting Room website

Lori Williams Quartet, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, 8 p.m. | Smooth-voiced singer Lori Williams is a regular member of the local jazz group Saltman-Knowles. Here she steps out, singing standards with a quartet featuring Chris Grasso on piano, Zack Pride on bass and Lenny Robinson on drums. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Mandarin Oriental Hotel website

Robert Glasper & the Experiment, Bohemian Caverns, 8:30 & 10:30 p.m. | Robert Glasper’s mother was a gospel pianist and vocalist, and he was clearly influenced by her as much as he was by the Golden Age hip-hop he grew up around. Somewhere along the line, jazz also became part of the equation. With his acoustic jazz trio, Glasper favors warmth and a churning sense of motion, incorporating bluesy and gospel-inflected harmonies, along with a more Monkish side. He has said that he aims to make the music flow in such a way that it could be rapped over. With his electric group, the Experiment, this becomes obvious; the music is progressive instrumental hip-hop, and he often does include rappers in the band’s performances. (At the Blue Note in New York City last month, Kanye West, Mos Def and Lupe Fiasco all performed with the Experiment. No, I’m serious.) The relentlessly innovative band includes Casey Benjamin on saxophone and vocorder, Derrick Hodge on bass and Chris Dave on drums. Two separate sets at 8:30 & 10:30. $22 cover in advance, $28 at the door, no minimum. View event on calendar | Bohemian Caverns profile

Project Natale, Twins Jazz, 9 & 11 p.m. | Brothers Joe and Lou Natale — on bass and drums, respectively — play straight-ahead and Latin jazz with this respected local quartet, which is rounded out by the strong tenor saxophonist Carl Cornwell and pianist Bob Butta. $15 cover, $10 minimum. View event on calendar | Twins Jazz profile

Peter Edelman Trio, Columbia Station, 9 p.m. | The stalwart D.C. piano player Peter Edelman every week leads a rotating cast of musicians that often outgrows the title “trio.” No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Columbia Station profile

Maureen Mullaney, Black Fox Lounge, 9:30 p.m. | Maureen Mullaney sings jazz and blues songs with a light ensemble. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Black Fox profile

Jam Session with Brad Linde, Atlas Performing Arts Center, 10 p.m. | Local saxophonist Brad Linde is a consummate bandleader and cool jazz master who plays alto, tenor and baritone saxes with equal mastery. Here, aspiring musicians as well as his peers on the scene will have the opportunity to share the bandstand (such as it is, given that this show will occur in the Kogod Lobby of the theater) with him and his trio. The group features Regan Brough on bass and Tony Martucci on drums. No cover, no minimum. View event on calendar | Atlas PAC website

Donvonte McCoy, 18th St. Lounge, 10:30 p.m. | Arguably the city’s best jazz trumpeter, Donvonte McCoy plays every Friday and Saturday at the hip 18th St. Lounge. He likes to mix in some funk as well during the lounge gig, and he’s liable to inflect a touch of Chuck Brown-esque groove into his combo’s treatment of classic bop tunes by the likes of Miles Davis and Freddie Hubbard. Cover varies ($5-10), no minimum. View event on calendar | 18th St. Lounge profile

DeAndrey Howard’s Collector’s Edition, Utopia, 11 p.m.

| Trumpeter DeAndre Howard’s weekly engagement at Utopia brings hordes to the restaurant and bar every Friday night. He and his small group, Collector’s Edition, play standards with a friendly, inviting touch, and they add to the positive vibes already flowing throughout the room — especially when Howard tosses aside the trumpet to sing a spontaneous blues. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Utopia profile

SATURDAY, MAR. 12

cb picks:

Nasar Abadey & Supernova, Atlas PAC, 5:30 p.m.
Robert Glasper, Bohemian Caverns, 8:30 & 10:30 p.m.
Poncho Sanchez, Warner Theater, 8 p.m.
Donvonte McCoy, 18th Street Lounge, 10:30 p.m.
Elijah Jamal Experience, Utopia, 11 p.m.

Jam Session with Peter Edelman, Columbia Station, 4 p.m. | Pianist Peter Edelman, a constant presence on the D.C. jazz scene for years now, leads an afternoon jam session every Saturday and Sunday. No cover, no minimum. View event on calendar | Columbia Station profile

Nasar Abadey & Supernova, Atlas Performing Arts Center, 5:30 p.m.| Preeminent local drummer Nasar Abadey leads his quintet, Supernova, with aplomb. Heavily influenced by native African rhythms as well as bebop’s golden age, Abadey is tirelessly modern; he prods and pushes on the drums with a contemporary sense of groove. Here, he’ll put his multifarious sensibilities to work exploring the history of the blues, and the intersections of Western and African music that produced the distinctly American music. $15 cover, $10 for students, no minimum. View event on calendar | Atlas PAC website

Full Ascent, Sala Thai (Petworth), 7 p.m. | Consisting of Joey Whitney on tenor sax, Ed Gallagher on guitar, Alan Pachter on bass and Tom Reed on drums, the Triple Double Jazz Band plays straightforward, straight-ahead versions of jazz standards. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Sala Thai website

Mark Mosley Trio, Sala Thai (U St.), 7 p.m. | Baltimore guitarist Mark Mosley plays a slick hand as a smooth jazz guitarist, but he can also hunker down on serious bop. He performs laid-back straight-ahead here with his trio. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Sala Thai website

Lena Seikaly & Potomac Jazz Project, 7:30 p.m., Extra Virgin Restaurant | Vocalist Lena Seikaly sings jazz standards with a confident and playful demeanor, displaying a haziness reminiscent of Esperanza Spalding as well as a deference to traditional greats. The Potomac Jazz Project is a quartet that takes on modern and classic jazz tunes (and even some pop covers) with a showmanly flair, as well as skill. It’s led by bassist Stan Hamrick, and its rotating lineup often features some of D.C.’s best musicians. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Extra Virgin’s website

Cheryl Jones Quartet, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, 8 p.m.| Singer Cheryl Jones has a weekly engagement every Sunday at Utopia, where she sings with depth, force and clarity. Jones is equally likely to sing jazz standards, pop tunes or gospel classics. Here, she helms a quartet featuring her longtime collaborator Wayne Wilentz on piano, James King on bass and Chuck Redd on drums. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Mandarin Oriental Hotel website

Poncho Sanchez, Warner Theater, 8 p.m. | Influential Latin jazz percussionist Poncho Sanchez has been an active bandleader and musical pioneer ever since the death of his role model, vibraphonist Cal Tjader, in whose band he played. Tjader is well known for bridging the gap between Latin jazz and bebop, and Sanchez continues to do the same. Sanchez brings his infectious Latin Jazz Band to the Warner Theater in this concert, presented by the Washington Performing Arts Society. Cover varies ($25-$55), no minimum. View event on calendar | Warner Theater website

Project Natale, Twins Jazz, 9 p.m. | Brothers Joe and Lou Natale — on bass and drums, respectively — play straight-ahead and Latin jazz with this respected local quartet, which is rounded out by the strong tenor saxophonist Carl Cornwell and pianist Bob Butta. $15 cover, $10 minimum. View event on calendar | Twins Jazz profile

Kaos Theory, Columbia Station, 9:30 p.m. | Kaos Theory is a smooth funk band. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Columbia Station profile

Elijah Jamal Experience, Utopia, 11 p.m. | Young powerhouse tenor saxophonist Elijah Jamal Balbed heads up one of the swinginest shows on U Street every Saturday night. His sound drips with the blues, and from the bell of this 20-year-old’s horn seem to rise the ghosts of Coleman Hawkins and Dexter Gordon. With the Washington City Paper‘s 2010 Best New D.C. Jazz Musician award under his belt, Balbed can always be expected always to deliver the goods. No cover, 1-drink minimum View event on calendar | Utopia profile

SUNDAY, MAR. 13
cb picks:

Jolley Brothers, B. Smith’s, 12 p.m.
Sachal Vasandani, Clarice Smith PAC, 6 p.m.
Sunday Jazz Lounge, Twins Jazz, 8 & 10 p.m.

Jolley Brothers, B. Smith’s, 12 p.m. | The Jolley Brothers, Noble on keyboard and Nate on drums, play thrice a weekend at B. Smith’s, the upscale soul-food restaurant in Union Station’s massive East Hall. The Jolleys, who perform with a bassist, comprise one of D.C.’s most exciting and auspicious acts. With roots in gospel, soul and the modal bop of the 1960s, the brothers (who also compose prolifically) bring some of the most creative elements in the African-American music canon forward into the 21st century, all while stamping it with their own distinctive flavoring. B. Smith’s is a restaurant first, and the music remains in the background – no matter how expertly played. But as far as jazz brunch goes, it’s hard to top the Jolleys’ music. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | B. Smith’s website

Karine Chapdelaine, Anacostia Community Museum, 2 p.m. | The highly talented jazz bassist Karine Chapdelaine will give a lecture on the life and work of Brazilian singer Simone Bittencourt, then perform some of her work. Chapdelaine’s band will include Amy K. Bormet on vocals and piano, Josh Walker on guitar and Jon Laine on drums. The event is part of Rhythm Cafe’s “Women in Jazz” series. Free. View event on calendar | Anacostia Community Museum website

Sachal Vasandani, Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, 6 p.m. | Vocalist Sachal Vasandani is a master of the shades between dark and light whose hazy presentation is coated in what might as well be a trumpet mute. Vasandani uses swing like honey in his tea – a tested and comfortable way of adding some pep, but by no means a necessity. On record, the singer and composer is as fond of a plucked acoustic guitar as he is a classic piano trio. Even when using the latter, the singer might wade in a modern, propulsive groove rather than a classic 4/4 swing feel. At this University of Maryland performance, he performs with a talented quartet featuring Jeb Patton on piano, David Wong on bass and Pete van Nostrand on drums. $35 cover, $9 for University of Maryland students, no minimum. View event on calendar | Clarice Smith PAC website

D.C. Jazz Jam, Dahlak, 6:30 p.m. | This jazz jam presents a friendly, relaxed environment where professionals and amateurs can play together. No cover, no minimum. View event on calendar | View Dahlak profile

Potomac Jazz Project, Laporta’s, 6:30 p.m. | The Potomac Jazz Project is a quartet that takes on modern and classic jazz tunes (and even some pop covers) with a showmanly flair, as well as skill. It’s led by bassist Stan Hamrick, and its rotating lineup often features some of D.C.’s best musicians. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Laporta’s website

Updated: Akua Allrich, Bohemian Caverns, 7 & 9 p.m. | India Arie, Aretha Franklin, Billie Holiday, Miriam Makeba – all of their influences bubble up in vocalist Akua Allrich’s Afrobeat-influenced neo-soul. The Howard University graduate, who composes many of her own tunes, will perform with a small band. Two separate sets at 7 & 9 p.m. $12 cover, no minimum. View event on calendar | Bohemian Caverns profile

Sunday Jazz Lounge with Rodney Richardson & Joe Herrera, Twins Jazz, 8 & 10 p.m. | Guitarist Rodney Richardson and trumpeter Joe Herrera are looking to broaden jazz’s reach in D.C. while challenging the city’s musicians creatively. Increase popularity and raise the quality bar at the same time? you ask skeptically. Sure, the two don’t always go together – but Richardson and Herrera’s effort has its head in the right place, and it’s worth getting behind. The two musicians have organized a Sunday Jazz Lounge in each week of March, and for every installation they plan to start the evening with a different guest soloist. From there, they’ll lead their quartet – featuring bassist Eric Harper and drummer Dave McDonald – through some of the less-traversed compositions in the bop songbook. Richardson and Herrera are two of the city’s top improvisers (at CapitalBop, we chose them to be part of the D.C. Jazz Loft’s U Street All-Stars band), so every Sunday in March is sure to be a good one at Twins Jazz. Not to mention, the Sunday Jazz Lounges are all priced at just $5, unusually low for Twins. This week’s guest soloist is the talented trumpeter Donvonte McCoy. Two separate sets at 8 & 10 p.m. $5 cover, $10 minimum. View event on calendar | Twins Jazz profile

Peter Edelman Trio, Columbia Station, 8:30 p.m. | The stalwart D.C. piano player Peter Edelman every Sunday night leads a rotating cast of musicians that often outgrows the title “trio.” no cover, one-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Columbia Station profile

Cheryl Jones Trio, Utopia, 9 p.m. | Singer Cheryl Jones has a weekly engagement every Sunday at Utopia, where she sings with depth, force and clarity. Jones is equally likely to sing jazz standards, pop tunes or gospel classics. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Utopia profile

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