Dena DeRose

I popped in to catch the tail end of singer/pianist Dena DeRose's second set in the Coffee House Gallery. She accompanies herself very well and has a smoldering voice that clothes each note. Like Shirley Horn, she uses spacing in her notes and silence to convey a message just as a powerful as when she sings. Her vocals were quite smooth on the reflective "I'm Old Fashioned" and poignant "You've Changed." Dena introduced her own recently composed swinging instrumental, "One for the Road." I definitely want to hear more of her music. Her trio included Michael Zisman on bass and Matt Wilson on drums. After her set, she signed autographs with legendary vocalists Jon Hendricks and Mark Murphy at the Tower Records on the festival grounds.

Kurt Elling

Vocalist/Vocalese Kurt Elling has the amazing ability to glide vocally through air with such ease. He challenges the boundaries of music with his original lyrics set to the compositions of the such jazz greats as Coltrane, Gordon, Zawinul, and Shorter. He breathes new life into these classics and gives the listener a renewed appreciation.

Kurt played the late show at Dizzy's Den to a fairly packed house. He was playful and full of energy in his music. He was wonderfully accompanied by the Laurence Hobgood Trio featuring Hobgood on piano, Rob Amster on bass, and Frank Parker, Jr. on drums. I have been a fan of Kurt since first hearing him on a Yellowjackets album several years ago so seeing him live was definitely a treat. His set included the vocal adaptations of "In The Winelight" (Grover Washington, Jr.), "Tanya Jean" (Dexter Gordon), "When Somebody Needs You", "Never My Love" (The Association), "Minuano" (Pat Metheny), and one of my favorites, "Man in the Air" which is also the title track from his latest Blue Note album, Man in the Air. He closed with his vocalese of the Coltrane classic "Resolution." Kurt kept us captivated as he took us through the highs and lows of his vocal terrain. In the middle of his set, he recited a poem from Robert Creely while accompanied softly by his trio. He displays such versatility in his music and has a great sense of humor as well. He is definitely a modern day keeper of the spirited vocalese tradition made popular by such legends as Jon Hendricks and Eddie Jefferson.

Before I cover the headliners of the day, here are a few things I checked out as I was moving throughout the festival.

• Joe Sample, Wilton Felder, and Herbie Hancock being interviewed before their shows by CNN. Hopefully, my photos will be decent.
• The Monterey Jazz Festival High School All-Star Big Band with Artists-in-Residence John Clayton, Jeff Clayton, Jeff Hamilton, and Gary Burton. The band was excellent and definitely have a bright future. There were also three big band alumni trumpeters that joined them on "Night in Tunisia" that were absolutely sensational.
• The legendary pianist Jay McShann and The Duke Robillard Band at the Garden Stage.
• Saxophonist Dave Ellis also on the Garden Stage.
• Between the evening shows, I briefly got to hear pianist Jacky Terrasson intertwining a passionate melody with "Body and Soul."