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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, July 29, 2005

All jazzed up for this weekend's jam

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

Larry Coryell, above, and Don Grusin, below, are among the musicians taking part in this weekend's Hawaii International Jazz Festival at the Hawai'i Theatre.
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HAWAII INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL

Hawai'i Theatre

"Piano Titans; Hawaiian Strings"

  • 7 p.m. today
  • With DeShannon Higa, trumpet; Don Grusin, piano with HIJF All-Stars; Abe Lagrimas, 'ukulele; Jeff Peterson, slack key guitar; Owana Salazar, steel guitar; Makoto Ozone, piano, in Hawaiian Strings

"Latin Jazz/Soul; Tribute Night"

  • 7 p.m. Saturday With Scott Martin, saxophone, in Latin Jazz; Keahi Conjugacion, Ginai, Kelly Covington, vocals, in a tribute to Ray Charles; Gabe Baltazar, saxophone, in a tribute to Artie Shaw; Waitiki, in a tribute to Martin Denny
  • $25, $40, $50 each night; $5 discount for seniors, military and students; two-day pass is $5 off for the Saturday show

www.hawaiitheatre.com, 528-0506

Festival schedule at www.hawaiijazz.com

Jazz clinics 10 a.m. today and Saturday

  • Hawai'i Theatre Abe Weinstein and Friends today; John Kolivas, Larry Coryell and Makoto Ozone Saturday
  • 941-9974
  • Free Kapolei festiva 1-6 p.m. Nov. 6
  • Kapolei Hale
  • With North Texas State University 1 O'Clock Band, the Honolulu Jazz Quartet, Gypsy Pacific, Estaire Godinez
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Scott Martin spent 12 years with the Poncho Sanchez Band, sharing in its 1999 Grammy.
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Abe Weinstein may as well be singing the song from "Chicago" this weekend. You know the one:

"C'mon babe
Why don't we paint the town?
And all that jazz?"

Jazz is the livelihood and passion of Weinstein, organizer of the 12th Annual Hawaii International Jazz Festival that runs tonight and Saturday at the Hawai'i Theatre.

"Our guest musicians have become great ambassadors for us; they enjoy playing here so much, they talk about us all over the world," he said.

Weinstein and his cohorts work hard to make the festival experience easy and unforgettable. "Treat them well, and you don't have too many problems," he said. "Jazz is a very democratic art form; you don't have as many temper tantrums, as long as you keep the musicians happy. If they come grumpy, they mellow out by the time they leave."

We hooked up with three of the visiting performers: Don Grusin, Scott Martin and Larry Coryell.

DON GRUSIN

PIANIST

First things first: Don Grusin is not to be confused with Dave Grusin. Don is a noted jazz pianist, the younger brother of Dave, the successful producer-composer-bandleader-musician of film and TV fame.

"If you were in the Grusin household, you'd be doing music," said Don, 64. "My father was a string-quartet violinist, who had been a watchmaker and a jeweler in Colorado; my mom played piano, doing really fast chords with her left hand. With my older brother, music was a nature, or nurture; he certainly was more diligent, because I quit music at 13, in favor of basketball, while he continued and studied and played."

Don was en route to a career as an economist at one point."I taught at a university; I thought one piano player per family seemed fair, and I didn't want to follow in Dave's footsteps. But Quincy Jones (a family friend) called and asked if I wanted to go perform in Japan, so I took a leave of absence from teaching, and loved the idea of traveling."

Working alongside Dave — they have done twin piano concerts — helped him foster his own career. "I guess he's done more than 40 films, and I worked on at least half, as a pianist and synthesizer player, so I learned a lot. He's old-school, sits down and writes everything down, doesn't use the newer software."

Don's ongoing pursuits in jazz are imbued with "music from Brazil, Latin America, and other forms whose structures were very different" from classic jazz, he said.

You might say he's got "The Hang" of it — that's the title of his heralded jam session, on CD and DVD, that assembled 18 top-notch musicians from the realms of jazz, pop and world music, including singer Patti Austin, saxophonist Ernie Watts, saxophonist Sadao Watanabe and percussionist Alex Acuna.

"I wrote most of the music but one; Sadao Watanabe did the other. The recording isn't burning up sales, but it was such fun."

Downloading and piracy are worrisome. "Piracy is rampant in areas where we are popular, such as Latin America and Asia," said Grusin. "Sure, I'm bothered, but the barn door is open and the horses are out. The upside is that there's a little more blanketing of music that might not otherwise be heard. But the illegal downloading hurts; when I asked a university crowd about who does it, almost every hand went up. I told the kids it's like someone stealing food from your fridge."

That's why he adores live performances, like the weekend jazz festival. "You can't steal a live performance," Grusin said.

SCOTT MARTIN

SAXOPHONIST

Music is a family affair for Scott Martin, who recently wound up a 12-year stint with the Poncho Sanchez Band, earning a Grammy in 1999 with the group.

"He's been instrumental in my outlook on music," said Martin, 45. "I recorded 10 albums and traveled around the world with him."

But his family helped lay down his jazz foundation, reinforced as a member of the Martin Brothers group. "I have two brothers who play music — Andy on trombone and Stan on trumpet — and our father (Dave 'Big Daddy' Martin) also plays trumpet on my new record," said Martin. "My son, who's 17, plays baritone sax, so music is pretty much a family thing."

Martin's forte is a blend of Latin, soul and jazz, a sound that stirs the hot rhythms from the Latin camp with the intoxicating, mesmerizing soulfulness of jazz.

He said Sanchez, a notable of Latin soul, heard the Martin Brothers when they were playing in a club in Southern California, and the Martins hauled out some Sanchez classics to jam. "He hired all three of us to play in his band, and though we actually didn't do any recording sessions with him, we were part of his road band for quite a while," said Martin. "But I lasted the longest, almost 13 years."

"The sax has always been my instrument of choice," he said. "I also play the reeds, flute and clarinet; I love 'em because they're very expressive, versatile, with a very seductive sound."

In fact, he said, the mellow sax was how he met and wooed his wife.

"I was playing in a club, she came in, and she picked me. The rest is history — though she's not a musician."

LARRY CORYELL

GUITARIST

Larry Coryell, 62, is a respected guitarist — but perhaps often underrated.

"I can't remember when I got hooked," he said of his introduction to jazz. "It might have been someone I heard on radio, like Wes Montgomery. But I recall playing with a bunch of kids, doing Stan Kenton, and I thought it was really cool."

So cool, in fact, that Coryell eased into the guitar slot held by Gabor Szabo in Chico Hamilton's jazz quintet after turning professional. Over the years, he jammed with or supported a bevy of artists, including Pat Metheny, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Sonny Rollins, Elvin Jones, David Sanborn, Chick Corea, John McLaughlin and Paco DeLucia.

Therein lies some of his frustrations.

"Sometimes I feel I'm underrated," he said. "But every time I turn on the radio, I feel all of my efforts have been worth it. I think it's important that you stay focused on creativity, and not reflect on what you have done. In the long run, I suppose people appreciate when you play; and to have played with some of the greats is something you remember for life."

Jazz, he said, is difficult to define. "It means 'no category,' a definition he picked up from Wayne Shorter. "It is African- American, Hispanic, bumping against European traditions. You can't argue the scientific breakthroughs, in terms of harmony and personalization, that Charlie Parker invented; but then again, John Coltrane did some great stuff, too. Arturo Sandoval brought in the Latin expression. And I understand there's a Hawaiian jazz movement, too — something I'd love to hear. I love slack-key guitar."

Though he never met the late Martin Denny, Coryell tips his hat to the exotic music-maker. "He was one of the first in fusion music; it comes from a certain amount of education within a musician, and Martin developed a very special, incredible sound."

And spontaneity — a key element of jazz improvisation — is something he learned from trial and error. "It took me years to understand how improvisation works," said Coryell. "I used to practice and practice, in my basement — and I fell flat on my face. You listen, you learn; and then you know."