Preview- Virtuosic Jazz Quartet, Oregon, Appears at Jazz Alley, Seattle, WA, October 11th and 12th, 2011

By E. Joyce Glasgow, www.artsandculturescene.com

Oregon, www.oregonband.com, the sublime jazz quartet, will appear for two nights at Dimitriou's Jazz Alley, www.jazzalley.com, on October 11th and 12th. They are some of the most virtuosic and creative musicians on the planet, always pushing the envelope of improvisation and playing complex, original, memorable compositions, with an elegant, classical, chamber feel. The group is entering their forty-second year together and I've been following them every step of the way! This is a tremendous opportunity to hear this incredibly sophisticated quartet live and they are not to be missed!

Oregon is : Ralph Towner (guitars/piano/ synthesizers/composer), Paul McCandless (oboe/English horn/saxophones/bass clarinet/whistles/composer), Glen Moore (bass/composer) and Mark Walker (drums/percussion/composer).

Included here is Jazz Alley's information on their two night appearance and two You tube videos of Oregon in live performance.

			OREGON October 11-12, 2011 $23.50 Make a reservation for this show. The Pacific Jazz Institute at Dimitriou’s Jazz Alley presents OREGON, touring in support of their latest release In Stride. Band members include Ralph Towner (guitar), Paul McCandless (reed instrumentalist), Glen Moore (bassist), and Mark Walker (percussion). Set times on Tuesday and Wednesday at 7:30pm. Doors open at 6:00pm Tuesday and 5:30pm Wednesday. “While new talent sprouts, veteran shapers of the future continue to harvest their fertile legacy, OREGON remains an example of a group so completely musical and original that they leave no easy comparisons. Long survived and mastering all the musical convention which they so easily disintegrate in a phrase or measure, Oregon never slows with age, never ceases to celebrate their singularity, and never misses a chance to defy commerciality. Their influence on American and international music has proven nothing less than monumental.” —Christopher Hoard, Jazziz Celebrating their 40th year, OREGON has inspired audiences in renowned concert halls including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Berlin Philharmonic Hall, and Vienna’s Mozartsaal; at international jazz clubs and major festivals such as Montreux, Pori, Berlin, Montreal, and Newport Jazz; and on tours throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico, South America, Eastern and Western Europe, etc. In Stride (2010) the group’s latest CD envelopes the entire history of this band; it enhances the compositional talent of these four musicians, magnifies their voices as soloists and, above all, recalls in case you need reminding that strange and magical alchemy which transformed this quartet into OREGON. In Stride is nothing but sure indication that, rather than winding down with age, OREGON has plenty of promise still ahead. OREGON began in 1960 at the University of Oregon with undergraduate students Ralph Towner and Glen Moore who formed a musical friendship on bass and piano inspired by Bill Evans and Scott LaFaro and later by Brazilian music. Moore earned a degree in history and literature and Towner completed his in composition, taking up guitar in the process. In the mid 60’s, they both traveled to Europe. Towner studied classical guitar in Vienna with Karl Scheit; Moore studied classical bass in Copenhagen and sat in with such greats as Ben Webster and Dexter Gordon. By 1969, both were living in New York City, playing with a community of young musicians who formed the great fusion bands of the ‘70’s including Weather Report and the Mahavishnu Orchestra. OREGON Website