Jazz Setlist, May 31-June 8: The Unfestive Alley

Reposted from the Washington CityPaper

Originally Posted by Michael J. West on May. 31, 2012 at 3:59 pm

The DC Jazz Festival is something of a glutton, in that it consumes everything within its sphere. The “Jazz in the ‘Hoods” wing of its programming means that all of the club gigs, bar gigs, even unique weekly events like Jazz Night in Southwest get absorbed into the festival’s scope. There are two exceptions, though, which prefer to stand separate: HR-57, the H Street NE club that’s currently in the process of moving across the street, and Blues Alley, the famous Georgetown spot at 1073 Wisconsin Ave. NW.

With HR-57 out of commission, Blues Alley holds a virtual monopoly on non-festival jazz performances for the next 10 days. Stay tuned for a full overview of the DCJF tomorrow. Meantime, here are Blues Alley’s highlights:

Friday, June 1
It’s not hard, in a pool as small as jazz harmonica’s, to distinguish oneself; still, Frederic Yonnet manages to be something special. The French-born musician’s got a thick, soulful sound on the harp, laden with R&B feeling and a carnival of rhythm from swing to funk to hip-hop. It’s stood him in good stead, too: Yonnet has already made rather a legend of himself working with another legend (and fellow harmonicist) Stevie Wonder in titanic onstage harmonica battles. He’s also made a name for himself working with Prince and Erykah Badu, to name two. Among harmonica players themselves he’s looked on with awe—Yonnet is able to find notes on the harmonica that even scholars on the instruments didn’t know were possible. How do you argue with an artist of that kind of spectrum-spanning caliber? Frederic Yonnet performs at 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. at Blues Alley. $25.