Euro jazz club scene 7-15 March highlights

Appearing in the Swedish capital Stockholm in mid-March: Danilo Pérez, John Patitucci, Adam Cruz. See below

Jeremy Pelt Quintet Blue Note, Milan tonight

Wolfert Brederode, Matangi Quartet, Joost Lijbaart Unterfahrt, Munich tonight

Dutch pianist-composer Wolfert Brederode's show proved the best performance by any act that we caught over two days spent at Jazzahead last year and better than anything witnessed live anywhere in 2023 by this blog. Drawing on the Ruins and Remains suite released the previous year by ECM, the performance hushed Hall 7.2. The work of Brederode with the Matangi Quartet and drummer-percussionist Joost Lijbaart completing the ingeniously knitted together instrumental mix - I was quite moved to be frank. An album actually recorded in Bremen, at the Sendesaal where Keith Jarrett had recorded a half century before a key contributory part to his classic solo improvisations Bremen/Lausanne produced by the great Manfred Eicher, dazzling pianism framed inside a transcendental dream consciousness made us reflect via Brederode's compositional arc on war in Europe whether 20th century global conflict or perilously now in Ukraine in the mind's eye inevitably as we listened. 'Duhra' was highly pertinent with pristine violin soloing against piano, the genre-less quasi classical crossover area navigated expertly. SG

Piotr Wojtasik Quartet feat. Anna Maria Jopek Jassmine, Warsaw tomorrow

The Tony Lakatos Organization Jazzkeller, Frankfurt tomorrow

Keyon Harrold Zig Zag, Berlin tomorrow

Spike Wilner Trio le duc des Lombards, Paris tomorrow and Sat 9 Mar

Robben Ford meets Licks and Brains Bimhuis, Amsterdam Sat 9 Mar

Roz Macdonald Quartet feat. Bruce Barth Birdland, Hamburg Sat 9 Mar

Doran, Guilfoyle, Hemingway Arthur's, Dublin Sun 10 Mar in the afternoon

Rymden Stadtgarten, Cologne Sun 10 Mar

Dave Douglas Gifts Quintet Moods, Zurich Mon 11 Mar

Alex Hitchcock Dream Band Jamboree, Barcelona Tues 12 Mar

Ernie Watts, Niels Lan Doky, Darryl Jones, Harvey Mason Porgy & Bess, Vienna Tues 12 Mar

Lawrence Fields Trio Moods, Zurich Tues 12 Mar

Keyon Harrold Jassmine, Warsaw Tues 12 Mar

Jonathan Kreisberg Quartet Jamboree, Barcelona Wed 13 Mar

Eddie Henderson Quartet Montmartre, Copenhagen Thurs 14-Sat 16 Mar

Danilo Pérez, John Patitucci, Adam Cruz Fasching, Stockholm Fri 15 Mar

Dream jazz.

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Pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, composer Taylor Eigsti grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and is appearing this week on the US East Coast with a septet that includes Julian Lage, the Blue Note guitar star, who is also on Plot Amor among a stellar collection of leaders. Here with 11 original Eigsti compositions plus one standard on an album co-produced with Josh Giunta who has a mixing engineering background, included among the guests are New Orleans trumpet icon Terence Blanchard most recently heard by this blog live in Herbie Hancock's band on stage in London last summer.

An album that includes strings with arrangements by Andrew Balogh, singer Becca Stevens guests on 'Look Around You'. And it is the Wayne Shorter tribute 'Light Dream' that features Blanchard, certainly a strong reason to absorb yourself in the Champion composer's feature on the Eigsti piece given TB's anthemic, plangent timbral storytelling ability and signature trumpet sound.

Eigsti's late mother Nancy wrote the lyrics for the powerfully soul-blues drenched original 'Fire Within' sung by Rolling Stones backing singer Lisa Fischer who is really great in a vocal that reminds us of the power and glory of hearing Bettye LaVette live. 'The Rumor' is the best of the more orchestrated tracks and there's strong input from members of Blanchard's E-Collective band in the rhythm section (their Live was a superb album if you care to dredge the 2-year-prior-to-first-COVID-Year memory banks). Vocals icon Gretchen Parlato - Lean In with Herbie guitarist Lionel Loueke last year was mighty - wrote lyrics for 'Beyond the Blue' in honour of Eigsti's mum and the elegy is another firm album highlight.

Plot Amor also includes an instrumental version of the 1940s Rodgers and Hart standard 'Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered,' with poet of the tenor saxophone Dayna Stephens delivering so well. Still in his thirties Eigsti's album Tree Falls on which Becca Stevens and Parlato also contributed won a Grammy in 2022 and this just issued latest once again proves his skill as a composer and virtuoso player who knows how to touch your soul and at the same time engage your brain. Taylor Eigsti, photo: publicity shot

Euro jazz club scene 7-15 March highlights

Taylor Eigsti, Plot Amor, GroundUp Music ****