Alexis Cuadrado’s Noneto Ibérico Sat., Mar. 3, 8pm. $25 ($30 day of show). Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine St. 215.925.9914 www.paintedbride.org
A Barcelona native and longtime New Yorker, bassist Alexis Cuadrado has been documenting quality work since 2001. But he outdid himself in 2011 with Noneto Ibérico, his second for the Brooklyn Jazz Underground label, bringing jazz and flamenco together in a way that was rigorous, authentic and fresh. He wrote new tunes but adhered to traditional forms such as bulerías, soleá and fandango, adding palmas (handclaps) and jaleos (hollers) for good measure. Best of all, he got a smoking nine-piece band to play it all. This week he’ll have saxophonists Jon Gordon and Loren Stillman, trombonist Alan Ferber, guitarist Brad Shepik, pianist Robert Rodriguez and other monsters in the house. — David R. Adler
Egg on my face for not posting this in advance of last night’s show. But here it is anyway, from Philadelphia Weekly:
David “Fuze” Fiuczynski Sat., Feb. 4, 8pm. $25 advance ($30 at door). Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine St. 215.925.9914 www.paintedbride.org
Just as Hendrix used Delta blues as a launching pad into space, double-neck guitar maniac David “Fuze”Fiuczynski builds on a jazz-rock foundation and ventures into microtonal musical concepts of Asia and the Middle East. His instantly identifiable sound, on fretted and fretless guitars, has caught the ear of esteemed bandleaders such as Jack DeJohnette, Billy Hart, Muhal Richard Abrams and Rudresh Mahanthappa. This week with his Screaming Headless Hendrix project — a spinoff of his band Screaming Headless Torsos — Fuze will bring his advanced theoretical system, “Planet MicroJam,” into focus. His five-piece unit includes vocalist Freedom Bremner, bassist Justin Schornstein, drum heavyweight Kenwood Dennard and Turkish microtonal keyboardist Utar Dundarartun. — David R. Adler
Dave Holland Big Band Sat., Dec. 11, 7 & 9pm. $25. Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine St. 215.925.9914 www.paintedbride.org
A major force in jazz since his late ’60s apprenticeship with electric-era Miles Davis, bassist Dave Holland has devoted much of the last decade to his fiery quintet. But on What Goes Around (2002) and Overtime (2005), Holland expanded to a big band format, keeping the quintet lineup intact while increasing the sound mass with horns galore. This week the Bride hosts the big band’s Philly debut. The music is a stew of stripped-down harmony and off-centered rhythmic attack, with stormy bass-driven vamps and supple grooves courtesy of drummer and aspiring bandleader Nate Smith. The soloists, including saxophonists Chris Potter and Antonio Hart and trumpeter Alex Sipiagin, do not make a habit of holding back. — David R. Adler
Mario Pavone’s Orange Double Tenor Sun., Dec. 12, 8pm. $12. International House, 3701 Chestnut St. 215.895.6546 www.arsnovaworkshop.org
At 70, Mario Pavone continues to blaze the path he embarked on in the late ’60s, bridging the dissonant, structurally open world of the avant-garde and the swinging accessibility of jazz tradition. Like Dave Holland, he’s a prolific leader and composer and a monster bassist, with a raft of recent standouts on the Playscape label to his credit. The latest, Arc Suite T/Pi T/Po, seems to merge the quintet from 2003’s Orange with the twinned tenor sax lineup of 2008’s Ancestors (hence “Orange Double Tenor”). The results are punchy, furious at times, yet finely calibrated at the core. Watch for Pavone’s secret weapon, the underrated pianist Peter Madsen, whose advanced harmony does wonders for these wry, twisted compositions. — David R. Adler
