Jimmy Scott>> On his current tour, guitar legend Pat Metheny is unveiling a new technological foundation for “solo” performance that he dubs “Orchestrionics.” Think of a player piano, but with a digital “brain” controlling an orchestra-sized range of instruments. This new project will be on display tonight at the Music Center at Strathmore. 8 p.m. Only $75 tickets are available as of this writing.
>> Chopteeth, the area’s most popular Afrobeat band, will play intimate 8 and 10 p.m. sets tonight at Blues Alley. Tickets are $18 + $12.50 minimum/surcharge.
>> Thursday marks the start of the Kennedy Center’s 15th Annual Mary Lou Williams Women in Jazz Festival, which presents three days of the finest female jazz artists in the world. Tickets are sold out for the Thursday and Saturday sets, but still available for Friday. 7 p.m. The event includes free 6 p.m. performances on those same days at the Millennium Stage.
>> Veteran blues pianist/vocalist Mose Allison makes at a stop at the Birchmere on Thursday for a 7:30 p.m. set. $29.50 + service fees
>> Julie Mack, a vocalist who has been working regularly in the area since moving here 10 years ago, will lead a fine band on Thursday at the Bethesda Theatre. Her ensemble includes local veterans Wayne Wilentz (piano) and Dominic Smith (drums). 8 p.m. $15
>> Spyro Gyra came out of the fusion movement, and then went on to pioneer the platinum selling smooth jazz sound. The group begins a four night stand of 8 and 10 p.m. sets at Blues Alley on Thursday. Tickets are $43 + $12.50 minimum/surcharge.
>> Saxophonist Fred Foss, a longtime veteran of the local scene, will lead a group on Friday at Jazz Night in Southwest. 6 to 9 p.m. $5
>> “Building a better world through Shut The F*** Up.” That is the motto of Word Free DC, an event designed to celebrate the power of instrumental music. Taking place on Friday at Joe’s Movement Emporium in Mt. Rainier, MD, the event brings together four neo-classical and nu-jazz acts, including Vattel Cherry’s Soulstation from Baltimore, and Trevor Dunn‘s PROOFreaders, a band specializing in Ornette Coleman‘s music. Tickets to the 8 p.m. show are $15.
>> Jimmy Scott was born with a medical condition that not only caused his diminutive stature, but also left him with a high pitched contralto voice. Over the past six decades, he has used this instrument to great effect. The one-and-only Billie Holiday named him as her favorite vocalist, and in 2007 he was named an NEA Jazz Master. Scott will perform 8:30 and 10:30 p.m. sets at Bohemian Caverns on Friday and Saturday. Tickets are $45.
