Jazz

For Neville Dickie, tickling the ivories is as natural as breathing. The British musician’s piano performances leave audiences stunned, both for their technical adeptness and colorful moments of improvised brilliance. Dickie, who plays stride and boogie-woogie piano, will be one of 19 performers at this weekend’s Orange County Classic Jazz Festival at the Hilton Orange County/Costa Mesa. “It’s a famous festival,” hotel General Manager Shaun Robinson said.

Newport jazz festival wants to rival other major shows; this weekend's features more than 40 straight-ahead jazz artists.Newport Beach has made itself know for its regal shopping centers and high-end palate of eateries, but who knew it was becoming a magnet for jazz? While most of Newport-Mesa endures cloudy skies this weekend, a cadre of music lovers from all over the world will descend on the Newport Beach Marriott for a four-day jazz party packing more straight-ahead jazz than a Harlem nightclub.

As the seconds pass before Wynton Marsalis picks up the phone in his Portland, Ore., hotel room, the mind sends a decree to the body: Be on guard. And have the recorder running too, because a few choice quotes are bound to be in the offing. Marsalis, the man often heralded as the ambassador of jazz (or jazz czar, or Ronald Reagan of jazz, or whichever title you prefer), isn't known for grunting one-sentence responses in interviews. He is known for expressing sharp opinions - sometimes, apparently, at the volume of a John Coltrane solo.

Practice. That's the core of Kenny G's mantra as a musician. No matter the myriad possibilities a day in his life might bring, at least three hours are dedicated to practicing the saxophone. "I keep at it every day," he said. "I work hard, practice a lot and things get better, little by little. " This New York-based saxophone-wielding maestro of adult contemporary and jazz will perform at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall next week. Kenny G will take the stage Thursday through Saturday and regale the audience with numbers like "Songbird," "Silhouette" and "Midnight Motion.

Young Chang Arty "The Rooster" Perez starts crooning Ray Charles' "Georgia," and Tom Fessler leans against the wall as if having found refuge. "Now this is a good song," Fessler says. It is reminiscent of smoke-fogged lounges, women with red lipstick and men wearing stiff suspenders. Fessler, with his white hair and classy, old-school aura, is loving it. He swishes his glass of chardonnay and says, "Arty's the godfather of jazz and soul."Fessler's been standing for a good 15 minutes now at the Villa Nova restaurant in Newport Beach.

Danette Goulet NEWPORT BEACH -- He was obedient to the point that he lay docilely on a blue and white checkered cloth on top of a table while 30 pairs of eyes studied him. Jazz is a black Labrador retriever and a guide dog for 76-year-old Warren "Duke" Henderickson of Newport Beach. Henderickson brought his companion of the last six years to visit Lori Manz's fifth-grade class at Andersen Elementary School on Thursday to teach students about guide dogs and compassion.

Young Chang The character of Gene in the Tony-winning play "Side Man" eventually drives his wife mad after years of neglect and false promises. He is detached and irresponsible when it comes to most everything. But when it comes to jazz, Gene's first love, he "really comes to life," said actor Steven Sloan, who plays Gene in the Orange Coast College production running this weekend and next. As an architect who plays jazz trumpet for fun, and as the son of a professional jazz saxophonist who played with the Stan Kenton Big Band, Sloan can begin to understand and forgive his character's ways.

When Jimmy Spencer strolls onto the stage at Mr. B's restaurant in Burbank impeccably dressed in a gray tailored suit, satin tie, handkerchief and silver cufflinks, he looks like a member of the Rat Pack. But once the room fills with the sound of his rich, velvety baritone voice, it's clear he sings with the intimacy of Nat King Cole. Spencer is a versatile singer who courts his audience with smooth and gentle phrasing and a warm, vibrant delivery.

Suzie Harrison She started playing music when she was very young; she had an affinity for it and has been playing ever since. Mindi Abair will bring her musical talent back to Newport Beach, performing at the Wave's Hyatt Newporter Jazz Festival May 18. "I started playing sax when I was 8 -- I grew up on the road with my dad's band," Abair said. "I've been playing piano since 5." She's looking forward to playing the jazz festival this year, having attended it as a fan in the past.

B.W. COOK It was an evening of "Hot Blues on a Cool Summer Night." That was the title of the 12th annual jazz event held at South Coast Village recently. In actuality, it was a night of cool jazz on a hot summer night. Steve Copeland and the Raging Sun delivered the jazz, which was either cool or hot, depending on your perspective. Some 400 Newport-Mesa guests moved to the jazz rhythms and dined on an array of culinary delights, generously prepared for the crowd by the restaurants of South Coast Village.

It's hard to imagine, given the spectacular weather of the past week, that for a brief moment California was being soaked by torrential rain at the beginning of the month. The downpour did not deter the dedicated volunteers of the Ocean Institute from producing the 2014 Jazz Festival at their headquarters in Dana Point over the weekend of Feb. 28 through March 2. Docents with yellow and blue striped umbrellas greeted patrons arriving for the Friday and Saturday night outdoor concerts and dinners.

As the seconds pass before Wynton Marsalis picks up the phone in his Portland, Ore., hotel room, the mind sends a decree to the body: Be on guard. And have the recorder running too, because a few choice quotes are bound to be in the offing. Marsalis, the man often heralded as the ambassador of jazz (or jazz czar, or Ronald Reagan of jazz, or whichever title you prefer), isn't known for grunting one-sentence responses in interviews. He is known for expressing sharp opinions - sometimes, apparently, at the volume of a John Coltrane solo.

On the weekend of Presidents' Day and Valentine's Day, the Newport Beach Marriott Hotel & Spa will celebrate a uniquely American art form that has provided the soundtrack to more than a few make-out sessions. The 14th Annual Newport Beach Jazz Party will take place Thursday through Sunday. It will feature four nights of music, a Saturday and Sunday Jazz Brunch and a Valentine's Jazz Dinner on Friday. Among the acts scheduled to perform are the Byron Stripling Quartet, the Jeff Hamilton Trio, the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra and Barbara Morrison.

Society tends to label people based on their profession. With these labels comes the inevitable value judgment, and what follows is a tendency to pigeonhole folks into social categories. There should be no surprise when a person breaks the mold. Why is it shocking for a doctor to also be an artist or a farmer to be an engineer who invents a tool that revolutionizes an industry? In Newport Beach this week, a man known to the community as a longtime successful real estate peddler will step in front of the microphone and, backed by an A-list of Hollywood musicians, sing his heart out. Bill Coté will join the Tamir Hendelman Trio on Saturday evening in concert at the Bahia Corinthian Yacht Club in Corona del Mar, introducing to the world his first CD recording of some of the classic songs from the 20th-century American jazz songbook.

The first time Esperanza Spalding played at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts, she was a young jazz bassist and singer who was steadily building a following. Since then, she's played at the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize Concert and scored an upset Grammy win for Best New Artist, beating out such high-profile contenders as Justin Bieber and Mumford & Sons. But when Spalding returns to Segerstrom this weekend, she won't return as a headlining pop star. Rather, she'll come back as S. That's the final letter of ACS, the jazz trio that consists of Spalding, pianist Geri Allen and drummer Terri Lyne Carrington.

It's just six years and a couple of months until the '20s - the 2020s, that is - which may inspire a reflection or two from jazz aficionados. Nearly 100 years ago, the musical form so dominated society that it became a euphemism for an entire decade: the Jazz Age, memorialized in "The Great Gatsby," flapper dresses and other symbols of the time before the Great Depression laid America's fortunes low. A quarter century later, jazz played an...

Bistango has been around for 26 years and is still going strong, perhaps even better than ever. This could be attributed to its chameleon-like nature. By day, it is a power lunchtime gathering place, located in the atrium of a tall office building. By night, it is a grown-up, fine-dining restaurant (but not stuffy) that also features a bar area with a happy hour and tapas, as well as live music and a dance floor. It has always been a very attractive venue. The large space is divided into several areas by curved walls, so the noise level is manageable.

Practice. That's the core of Kenny G's mantra as a musician. No matter the myriad possibilities a day in his life might bring, at least three hours are dedicated to practicing the saxophone. "I keep at it every day," he said. "I work hard, practice a lot and things get better, little by little. " This New York-based saxophone-wielding maestro of adult contemporary and jazz will perform at the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall next week. Kenny G will take the stage Thursday through Saturday and regale the audience with numbers like "Songbird," "Silhouette" and "Midnight Motion.

Jazz aficionados gathered at the Newport Beach Marriott Hotel and Spa this week to listen to the hard-swinging Jeff Hamilton Trio. Hamilton's trio was a hit at the indoor Newport Beach Jazz Party in February. But during Wednesday's Sunset Jazz in Newport, the more intimate rose garden venue, which accommodated 240 guests, pulled the audience into the action. The venue was pleasant and relaxing, except when airplanes flying overhead disrupted the music. Hamilton acknowledged the disruptions humorously.

The award-winning trombonist Wycliffe Gordon will headline Wednesday night's Sunset Jazz show in Newport Beach with a concert paying tribute to Louis Armstrong. The third season of the 11-show summertime jazz series at the Newport Beach Marriott Hotel and Spa kicked off on July 11 with an opening concert by the Ernie Andrews Quartet with special guest Ricky Woodard. Gordon will perform his "Hello Pops!… A Tribute to Louis Armstrong" concert indoors at the Seaview Terrace, a larger venue in the hotel that will accommodate more attendees, Sunset Jazz organizers said.