by Giovanni Russonello
Editorial board

The D.C. Jazz Loft is back this weekend — and after a bit of confusion, we have a definite location: Hole in the Sky, located just around the corner from the Rhode Island Ave. Metro stop. We hope you can join us for that show. But also, don’t miss the exciting shows happening at D.C.’s various clubs all weekend (most notably, Roy Hargrove is at Blues Alley). The redoubtable SFJAZZ Collective is at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center on Friday night, and Medeski, Martin & Wood is at the Kennedy Center on Saturday. You can find details on all these shows and more in this week’s edition of “Weekend in Jazz,” a listing of every D.C. jazz show on our radar. Our favorites have a label, and as always, you can read CapitalBop’s full listings directly at our D.C. jazz calendar, if you’d rather. Happy hunting!

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 12

cb picks:

• Roy Hargrove, Blues Alley, 8 & 10 p.m.
• SFJAZZ Collective, Clarice Smith PAC, 8 p.m.
• John Lamkin, Bohemian Caverns, 8:30 & 10:30 p.m.
• Lenny Robinson w/Eddie Allen, Twins Jazz, 9 & 11 p.m.
• Donvonte McCoy, 18th Street Lounge, 10:30 p.m.

Larry Brown, Westminster Presbyterian Church, 6 p.m. | What began as an experiment over a decade ago continues today as one of Washington’s greatest weekly traditions: Westminster Presbyterian Church’s “Jazz Night.” Every Friday night, the house of God becomes a hub for fish frying, communing and jamming on straight-ahead jazz. This week, the pianist Larry Brown leads a swinging ensemble that includes Kent Miller on bass, Dominic Smith on drums, Thad Wilson on trumpet and Peter Fraize on saxophone. $5 cover for adults, no cover for attendees under 16, no minimum. View event on calendar | Westminster Presbyterian Church website

Karen Gray Trio, Sala Thai (Bethesda), 7 p.m. | Commanding vocalist Karen Gray sings laid-back renditions of jazz standards in a drumless trio. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Sala Thai website

Yamomanem, Sala Thai (U St.), 7 p.m. | The Yamomanem Jazz Band plays a faithful take on New Orleans jazz, conjuring the days of King Oliver and early Louis Armstrong with its lush brass section. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Sala Thai website

Jacqui Simmons & Friends, Sala Thai (Petworth), 7 p.m. | Jacqui Simmons sings jazz standards with a heartfelt and elegant presentation. No cover, 1-drink minimum View event on calendar | Sala Thai website

SFJAZZ Collective, Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, 8 p.m. | The SFJAZZ Collective each year fills its ranks with a handful of jazz’s top-shelf improvisers and thinkers. This year, it’s exploring the music of the bushwhacking pianist and composer Chick Corea, presenting original arrangements of his tunes as well as some compositions by current band members – all centered on their vigorous abilities as improvisers. The band includes Miguel Zenón on alto saxophone, David Sánchez on tenor saxophone, Avishai Cohen on trumpet, Robin Eubanks on trombone, Stefon Harris on vibraphone, Edward Simon on piano, Matt Penman on bass and Jeff Ballard on drums. Tickets $35, $30 for senior citizens or University of Maryland Alumni Association members, $28 for subscribers or members of UMD staff, $10 for UMD students. View event on calendar | Clarice Smith PAC website

Deborah Brown Quartet, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, 8 p.m. | Deborah Brown is an internationally traveled vocalist with a strong voice. Here she performs with a top-notch combo. Here she leads her own combo. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Mandarin Oriental website

Roy Hargrove, Blues Alley, 8 & 10 p.m. | Considered by many to be the best trumpeter of the post-Wynton Marsalis generation, Roy Hargrove has an affinity for countless musical styles. With his group RH Factor, he explores the boundaries between jazz, funk and hip-hop. In his old band Crisol, he offered a modernist’s approach to Afro-Cuban jazz. With his straight-ahead quintet, he’s liable to get into a lively post-bop groove. Two separate sets at 8 and 10 p.m. $40 cover, $12 minimum. View event on calendar | Blues Alley profile

Film Screening: “Oxygen for the Ears,” West End Cinema, 8 p.m. | “Oxygen for the Ears,” a feature documentary on the local jazz scene, deals with the major questions that have been accruing around the music, both nationally and provincially: What defines it, aesthetically? How ought it to be taught? Will anyone listen? This showing at the “Reel Independent Film Extravaganza” festival is the film’s official premier, although it debuted earlier this year at the Atlas Performing Arts Center to widespread praise among the jazz community. Tickets $10. View event on calendar | West End Cinema website

John Lamkin, Bohemian Caverns, 8:30 & 10:30 p.m. | There’s been no more prolific producer of young jazz talent in history than Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. That’s partly because Blakey early on honed an avuncular and inclusive demeanor. But it’s also because his drums could always drive and lift a band – his main goal. Here, the D.C. drummer John Lamkin pays homage to Blakey in a swingin’ affair with Janelle Gill on piano and Herman Burney on bass. Two separate sets at 9 & 11 p.m. $15 cover, $20 at the door, no minimum. View event on calendar | Bohemian Caverns profile

Peter Edelman Trio, Columbia Station, 9 p.m. | The stalwart D.C. piano player Peter Edelman every Friday night leads a rotating cast of musicians that often outgrows the title “trio.” No cover, one-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Columbia Station profile

Alfredo Mojica, Bossa Bistro, 9 p.m. | Alfredo Mojica, who sang at Bossa for years with the group Sin Miedo, unites salsa, jazz and Latin American balladry. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Bossa profile

Lenny Robinson w/Eddie Allen, Twins Jazz, 9 & 11 p.m. | Lenny Robinson, a frequent presence behind drum kits all over the city, can play tonal, widely spaced avant-garde music, but here he will most likely swing hard with a quartet that features the redoubtable trumpeter Eddie Allen. Allyn Johnson on piano and Michael Bowie on bass fill out the rhythm section. Two separate sets at 9 and 11 p.m. $15 cover, $10 minimum. View event on calendar | Twins Jazz profile

Saltman Knowles, HR-57, 9 p.m. | Saltman Knowles is a band that blends Latin, straight-ahead and soul-jazz influences. The core trio consists of joyous and smooth-voiced singer Lori Williams, pianist William Knowles and bassist Mark Saltman. But the group’s ancillary instrumentation — like its musical ambitions — is always changing: On the band’s latest CD, Saltman Knowles refashioned itself as an octet, complete with the steel pan sounds of Victor Provost. $15 cover, no minimum. View event on calendar | HR-57 website

Peter Fields & Tara Hoffman, Black Fox Lounge, 9:30 p.m. | Guitarist Peter Fields and vocalist Tara Hoffman team up for a light dose of jazz standards and pop tunes. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Black Fox profile

Donvonte McCoy, 18th St. Lounge, 10:30 p.m. | Arguably the city’s best jazz trumpeter, Donvonte McCoy plays every Friday and Saturday at the hip 18th St. Lounge. He likes to mix in some funk as well during the lounge gig, and he’s liable to inflect a touch of Chuck Brown-esque groove into his combo’s treatment of classic bop tunes by the likes of Miles Davis and Freddie Hubbard. After all, the setting is that of a dance club, not a jazz joint – no tables and chairs or hushed applause after every solo. Cover varies ($5-10), no minimum. View event on calendar | 18th St. Lounge profile

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 13

cb picks:

• Roy Hargrove, Blues Alley, 8 & 10 p.m.
• Steve Synk Trio, Columbia Station, 9:30 p.m.
• John Lamkin, Bohemian Caverns, 8:30 & 10:30 p.m.
• Lenny Robinson w/Eddie Allen, Twins Jazz, 9 & 11 p.m.
• Medeski, Martin & Wood, Kennedy Center, 9:30 p.m.
• Donvonte McCoy, 18th Street Lounge, 10:30 p.m.

Jam Session with Peter Edelman, Columbia Station, 4 p.m. | Pianist Peter Edelman, a constant presence on the D.C. jazz scene for years now, leads an afternoon jam session every Saturday and Sunday. No cover, no minimum. View event on calendar | Columbia Station profile

Charles Woods, Johnny’s Half Shell, 6 p.m. | Saxophonist Charles Woods plays and has recorded in both free and straight-ahead jazz styles, but for his regular gig at Johnny’s Half Shell he keeps things within the traditional bop realm. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Johnny’s Half Shell website

Mark Mosley Trio, Sala Thai (U St.), 7 p.m. | Baltimore guitarist Mark Mosley plays a slick hand as a smooth jazz guitarist, but he can also hunker down on serious bop. He performs laid-back straight-ahead here with his trio. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Sala Thai website

Triple Double, Sala Thai (Petworth), 7 p.m. | Consisting of Joey Whitney on tenor sax, Ed Gallagher on guitar, Alan Pachter on bass and Tom Reed on drums, the Triple Double Jazz Band plays straightforward, straight-ahead versions of jazz standards. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Sala Thai website

Deborah Brown Quartet, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, 8 p.m. | Deborah Brown is an internationally traveled vocalist with a strong voice. Here she performs with a top-notch combo. Here she leads her own combo. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Mandarin Oriental website

Roy Hargrove, Blues Alley, 8 & 10 p.m. | Considered by many to be the best trumpeter of the post-Wynton Marsalis generation, Roy Hargrove has an affinity for countless musical styles. With his group RH Factor, he explores the boundaries between jazz, funk and hip-hop. In his old band Crisol, he offered a modernist’s approach to Afro-Cuban jazz. With his straight-ahead quintet, he’s liable to get into a lively post-bop groove. Two separate sets at 8 and 10 p.m. $40 cover, $12 minimum. View event on calendar | Blues Alley profile

John Lamkin, Bohemian Caverns, 8:30 & 10:30 p.m. | There’s been no more prolific producer of young jazz talent in history than Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. That’s partly because Blakey early on honed an avuncular and inclusive demeanor. But it’s also because his drums could always drive and lift a band – his main goal. Here, the D.C. drummer John Lamkin pays homage to Blakey in a swingin’ affair with Janelle Gill on piano and Herman Burney on bass. Two separate sets at 9 & 11 p.m. $15 cover, $20 at the door, no minimum. View event on calendar | Bohemian Caverns profile

Lenny Robinson w/Eddie Allen, Twins Jazz, 9 & 11 p.m. | Lenny Robinson, a frequent presence behind drum kits all over the city, can play tonal, widely spaced avant-garde music, but here he will most likely swing hard with a quartet that features the redoubtable trumpeter Eddie Allen. Allyn Johnson on piano and Michael Bowie on bass fill out the rhythm section. Two separate sets at 9 and 11 p.m. $15 cover, $10 minimum. View event on calendar | Twins Jazz profile

DeAndrey Howard Quartet, HR-57, 9 p.m. | DeAndrey Howard, a punchy trumpeter fluent in the lingua franca of hard-bop, is best known for his regular shows at Utopia, which closed for renovation earlier this year. Here he leads a quartet at HR-57 for the first time. $15 cover, no minimum. View event on calendar | HR-57 website

Cubista, Bossa Bistro, 9 p.m. | Cubista is a salsa band that plays at Bossa every Saturday. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Bossa profile

Dee Stone, Black Fox Lounge, 9 p.m. | Dee Stone sings soul, blues, jazz and rock. The first set of every performance is usually comprised of jazz standards. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Black Fox profile

Steve Synk Trio, Columbia Station, 9:30 p.m. | Lyrical bassist Steve Synk, a music major at the University of Maryland, leads a young trio that explores music ranging from standards to originals, groove-based contemporary jazz to swinging bop. No cover, one-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Columbia Station profile

Medeski, Martin & Wood, Kennedy Center, 9:30 p.m. | Medeski, Martin & Wood has done more than any other group to justify jam-band music’s allegedly filial ties to jazz. The group has released over a dozen studio albums in the past 20 years, always experimenting with sonic palettes and rhythmic ideas. On its recently released “Free Magic,” the keyboardist John Medeski takes some Ahmad Jamal-esque turns over protracted jams that careen from swing to filthy groove. It’s hard to hear the band’s music without wanting to dance, so it makes sense that the trio will inaugurate the Kennedy Center’s newest sub-venue: the Supersized Jazz Club, a dance hall that strives for hospitality and hipness, located in the building’s atrium. Tickets $25. View event on calendar | KC Jazz Club profile

Donvonte McCoy, 18th St. Lounge, 10:30 p.m. | Arguably the city’s best jazz trumpeter, Donvonte McCoy plays every Friday and Saturday at the hip 18th St. Lounge. He likes to mix in some funk as well during the lounge gig, and he’s liable to inflect a touch of Chuck Brown-esque groove into his combo’s treatment of classic bop tunes by the likes of Miles Davis and Freddie Hubbard. After all, the setting is that of a dance club, not a jazz joint – no tables and chairs or hushed applause after every solo. Cover varies ($5-10), no minimum. View event on calendar | 18th St. Lounge profile

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 14

cb picks:

• Jazz Brunch: Reginald Cyntje, Twins Jazz, 11 a.m.
• D.C. Jazz Loft, Hole in the Sky, 7 p.m.
• Jason Marsalis Vibes Quartet, The Hamilton, 7:30 p.m.
• Roy Hargrove, Blues Alley, 8 & 10 p.m.
• Lyle Link, Twins Jazz, 8 & 10 p.m.

Gospel Brunch, The Hamilton, 10 a.m. & 12:30 p.m. | Every Sunday morning, the Hamilton presents two sets of rafters-raising gospel, along with an all-you-can-eat buffet. Two separate shows at 10 a.m. & 12:30 p.m. $25 cover, no minimum. View event on calendar | The Hamilton website

TBA, Acadiana, 11 a.m. | Performer TBA. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Acadiana website

Jazz Brunch: Reginald Cyntje, Twins Jazz, 11 a.m. | Twins Jazz’s new Sunday Jazz Brunch initiative revolves around the magnetic powers of Reginald Cyntje’s trombone. Last year, he released his debut CD, “Freedom’s Children: The Celebration,” a glimmeringly hopeful record immersed in the warm, danceable rhythms of Cyntje’s native U.S. Virgin Islands. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Twins profile

Harlem Gospel Choir, Howard Theatre, 12 p.m. | The talented Harlem Gospel Choir, which has been active since 1986, performs a Sunday brunch show every week at the Howard Theatre. Either an all-you-can-eat buffet or an a la carte menu are available. Doors open at noon, and the music starts at 1:30 p.m. Tickets vary ($35 for all-you-can-eat or $20 for admission and a la carte options in advance, $45 or $30 at the door). View event on calendar | Howard website

Jam Session with Peter Edelman, Columbia Station, 4 p.m. | Pianist Peter Edelman, a constant presence on the D.C. jazz scene for years now, leads an afternoon jam session every Saturday and Sunday. No cover, no minimum. View event on calendar | Columbia Station profile

D.C. Jazz Jam, Dahlak, 6 p.m. | This jazz jam presents a friendly, relaxed environment where professionals and amateurs can play together. No cover, no minimum. View event on calendar | Dahlak profile

Potomac Jazz Project, Laporta’s, 6:30 p.m. | The Potomac Jazz Project is a quartet that takes on modern and classic jazz tunes (and even some pop covers) with a showmanly flair, as well as skill. It’s led by bassist Stan Hamrick, and its rotating lineup often features some of D.C.’s best musicians. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Laporta’s website

D.C. Jazz Loft, Hole in the Sky, 7 p.m. | If you’ve never heard a five-trombone ensemble, or a vocals-bass-drums trio, or a quartet that blends Keith Jarrett’s fluid jazz improvisations with Karlheinz Stockhausen’s ambient New Music experiments, then this is your chance to cross all three of those off your list. The trombone master Reginald Cyntje will lead a large band, the singer Heidi Martin will present her original compositions with a trio, and experimentalists Anthony Pirog and Bobby Muncy will play with their exhilaratingly guileless quartet, called Kung Fu Bastard. $15 suggested donation, BYOB. View event on calendar | D.C. Jazz Loft website

DC Choro, Grill from Ipanema, 7:30 p.m.| DC Choro is a sextet that plays Brazilian music drawing on European folk traditions. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Grill from Ipanema profile

Mike Flaherty’s Dixieland Jazz Direct, Zoo Bar Café, 7:30 p.m.| This combo specializes in traditional New Orleans-style jazz. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Zoo Bar website

Jason Marsalis Vibes Quartet (with Victor Provost), The Hamilton, 7:30 p.m. | The youngest of five standard-bearing musicians in the Marsalis family, Jason Marsalis is best known as a lithe and driving drummer, but he doubles as an accomplished vibraphonist. Here he performs in that capacity, with a quartet including three up-and-coming sidemen. The District’s steel pan master, Victor Provost, will lead a combo here for the opening set. Tickets $26.50. View event on calendar | The Hamilton website

Lyle Link, Twins Jazz, 8 & 10 p.m. | With a presentation that’s always strong and often sultry, saxophonist and flautist Lyle Link grabs you, tells you the music is about feeling as much as it’s about hearing. This soulful and sophisticated player has been a mainstay of D.C.’s jazz scene for over 10 yeas, and he’s had a major hand in its revitalization. Two separate sets at 8 & 10 p.m. $10 cover, $10 minimum. View event on calendar | Twins Jazz profile

Bill Heid, Black Fox Lounge, 8 p.m. | Bill Heid plays piano and sings blues songs and jazz standards. No cover, 1-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Black Fox Lounge profile

Roy Hargrove, Blues Alley, 8 & 10 p.m. | Considered by many to be the best trumpeter of the post-Wynton Marsalis generation, Roy Hargrove has an affinity for countless musical styles. With his group RH Factor, he explores the boundaries between jazz, funk and hip-hop. In his old band Crisol, he offered a modernist’s approach to Afro-Cuban jazz. With his straight-ahead quintet, he’s liable to get into a lively post-bop groove. Two separate sets at 8 and 10 p.m. $40 cover, $12 minimum. View event on calendar | Blues Alley profile

Peter Edelman Trio, Columbia Station, 8:30 p.m. | The stalwart D.C. piano player Peter Edelman every Sunday night leads a rotating cast of musicians that often outgrows the title “trio.” no cover, one-drink minimum. View event on calendar | Columbia Station profile

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