"Thara's commitment to our music is a beacon of inspiration to musicians everywhere, and an example for all practitioners of the arts and all educators." –Grammy winner Esperanza Spalding, a former student
In a speech given at the Mission Theater the previous year, before the Portland Jazz Festival kicked off, perennial honoree, the honorable trumpeter Thara Memory spoke of the confounding, frustrating, yet eventually liberating experience of chasing the elusive Miles Davis. “I made myself listen to Miles Davis … and made myself try to play like him, because I thought he played the wrong notes all the time. And I just couldn’t figure out why…” explained Memory. “I ended up crying, because I thought I was never gonna be that good, I was never gonna be like Miles.” The next day, with a fresher perspective, Memory resolved instead to “try to hold down my own thing.”
Memory has been doing his own thing all his life. Born with a health setback that would leave his circulation hampered — complications from Diabetes and kidney failure would exacerbate this to the point where he lost several of his playing fingers a few years ago — the Portland legend nevertheless pursued his love of classical orchestration, fascination with Miles Davis modalities, and ease in R&B, to brew up a wicked mix of fusions that have inspired the next generations toward greatness (Grammy winner Esperanza Spalding is a prodigy of his).
This year’s US Bank Portland Jazz Festival kicks off with artist, composer, educator, advocate, inspiration, and second annual Jazz Master Thara Memory performing a free Jazz Conversation concert with Carlton Jackson February 17, 1:30 p.m., at the Art Bar, and then an ambitious, special tribute to Miles Davis later on at 7:30 p.m., in the Winningstad Theatre. “Artfully Miles” will delve into Davis and Gil Evans’ collaborative music, most notably from the albums “Porgy And Bess [1958]” and “Sketches Of Spain [1960],” February 17, 7:30 p.m. Both the Art Bar and the Winningstad Theatre are housed in the Portland Center for the Performing Arts (PCPA).
"I met Miles once, but he never taught me straight on. Yet his teaching was so prevalent, for four or five decades, he constantly changed the music. I hope by doing this program, I can pick up where Miles left off and I can continue going with that torch and making sure it stays lit." –Thara John Memory
Miles Davis and Gil Evans revolutionized modal jazz in two of their most famous collaborative albums. “Porgy And Bess,” their Gershwin adaptation, set the modality stage, while “Sketches Of Spain” arguably laid the groundwork for a new style set of eclectic early Latin jazz. Audiences will enjoy renditions of the classics, “Summertime,” “Gone,” “It Ain't Necessarily So,” “Concierto de Aranjuez,” and a solo from “Seven Steps To Heaven.”
To pull off “Artfully Miles,” Memory will have an army of fabulous musicians from both the jazz and the classical, and the seasoned and the student novice, joining him — about 20 total. They include Oregon Symphony principal, tubist Ja'Ttik Clark, Portland Opera violinist Peter Piazza and lead trumpeter Ben McDonald, bassist Ben Jones, drummer Israel Annoh, pianist Janice Scroggins, trombonists Stan Bock and Dan Brewster, French hornist Bill Stalnaker, and tenor saxophonist Renato Caranto, among others.
“I met Miles once, but he never taught me straight on,” Memory said. “Yet his teaching was so prevalent, for four or five decades, he constantly changed the music. I hope by doing this program, I can pick up where Miles left off and I can continue going with that torch and making sure it stays lit.”
PDX Jazz Managing Director Don Lucoff couldn’t be more thrilled to have the Oregon Music Hall of Famer, Memory, do his thing. Lucoff’s been a longtime fan, along with most of the Portland populace. “Thara is truly a national jazz treasure and we are lucky to have him here in Portland. We are honored to recognize Thara for his numerous accomplishments throughout a celebrated career that continues to inspire in the classroom and concert hall.”
Receiving the festival’s Jazz Master honor this year has been a revelation for Memory. “This is a very high honor and I have never had anything of this magnitude happen to me.”
For more info: Thara Memory, Enrico Rava, and the Jazz Passengers – with special guest Dan Balmer – all play in the Winningstad Theatre for the ninth annual Portland Jazz Festival. Purchase an exclusive $79 package to see all three shows via the jazz festival box office, 133 SW 2nd Ave., Ste. 420, Portland, OR, (503) 228-5299, or online. Or, go to the PCPA’s main box office (walk-ups only) on 1111 SW Broadway, (503) 248-4335, to purchase individual concert tickets, ranging in price from $22-$42. The jazz festival runs from February 17 through 26.
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