Botti to kick off jazzy January

There are some blockbuster events lined up for January. Not the least of them is a concert by trumpeter Chris Botti. His Jan. 5 concert at the Charleston Music Hall culminates a day of jazz-related activities planned by the Skipp Pearson Foundation of Columbia, the show's producer.

Botti plays contemporary jazz with pop influences. He has famously collaborated with Sting, Aerosmith's Steven Tyler and the Boston Pops Orchestra. He's also worked with Joni Mitchell and Paul Simon.

Botti's music is well-executed, stylized contemporary jazz that has wide appeal. He is a top-selling artist. He's shown up over the past several years on South Carolina Educational Television fundraiser, wowing viewers with his artistic agility and expressiveness.

The foundation has reached out to involve and benefit Charleston-area collaborators. The stated mission is also to regionalize the advocacy for and presentation of live jazz.

Skipp Pearson, the jazz artist, spoke movingly to me a few months ago at a concert information-sharing luncheon at 39 Rue de Jean of his longstanding ties to Charleston over the course of his decades of live performing.

He's a well-deserved dean of South Carolina jazz.

The programs planned for Jan. 5 are billed as Chris Botti and a Day of Jazz in Charleston:

At 11 a.m., "The Little Boy Who Hated Jazz," a live presentation of an original children's story that portrays a child's discovery of jazz music, will feature a live jazz band. Free.

At 2 p.m., there will be a Coffee Time Jazz Lecture and Discussion with speaker Teddy Adams, an educator and trombonist popular in the Lowcountry who will discuss "Where Jazz Music Is Going in the 21st Century." Free.

At 7 p.m., a pre-performance show with South Carolina jazz artists will be held.

Botti takes the stage at 7:30 p.m.

A jam session is scheduled for 10:30 p.m. next door at 39 Rue De Jean.

Tickets are: Chris Botti Concert, $75 general admission; VIP, $125/person, $225/couple, includes a pre-performance reception with heavy hors d'oeuvres; Jam Session, $45 with food and drink available for purchase; www.chrisbottijams.webs.com.

Botti is doing this kind of gig these days with seven pieces behind him, the foundation reports. That should play well in the warm environs of the music hall.

I ran into Dany Kapp, lighting designer, the other day at Vickery's. He runs lights for the Charleston Jazz Orchestra at the hall. He was saying he and some other local technicians are working this show. Botti's in good hands, believe me.

Botti's sound is well-designed and accessible to all sorts of musical tastes. His music is not esoteric or convoluted or so introspective there's no swing.

Local trumpeter and orchestra conductor Charlton Singleton likes Botti's stuff.

"I enjoy listening to Chris Botti. As a trumpet player, I really appreciate his sound. As a soloist, I really like his phrasing and choice of notes. Everything seems to fit whether it is related to the chord structure of the song or the mood that has been created. I am looking forward to meeting, listening and perhaps playing with him at the jam session."

Botti's a seasoned showman and a big jazz advocate. From what I've seen of him and know of him, he's also into educating folks about music and art.

He's as articulate in his speech as he is on his horn, so I'm sure he'll have some interesting things to say.

Botti will be the first national jazz act to perform here next year, coming on the heels of 2009 artists such as Rene Marie, Bela Fleck, Jason Marsalis, Bob Belden, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Clay Ross, Lala Hathaway and Boney James.

At the end of January, the Charleston Jazz Orchestra will begin its 2010 season at the John Street venue.

Between those two events are Mark Sterbank's Hymns and Spirituals concert Jan. 17 at Charleston Southern University and Quentin Baxter's pops concerts with the jazz band and the Charleston Symphony Orchestra on Jan. 22 and 23 at Memminger Auditorium.

The rest of the year looks very promising for jazz. I know of many plans not yet announced that have the potential to make 2010 a glorious year in the Lowcountry for America's classical music.

Factor in regularly occurring gigs (www.jazzartistsofcharleston.org) and you can get a taste of all the forms of jazz -- from big band to bop, straight ahead and traditional -- almost anytime around here.

Check out Wiltrout

Quentin Baxter is not the only good jazz drummer in town. I write about him a lot, and he's the highest profile jazz musician in South Carolina.

But Ron Wiltrout is one of the handful of others who can really play.

I happened to hear him Dec. 20 sit in at the Pour House with Gradual Lean and again at the Charleston Grill on Christmas night.

These days, he's especially tasty. And he does it all, capable of playing all the forms. He's just off a run with the band for Brad Moranz's Christmas show.

But Friday at the grill, he was laying down some strokes that made him a lean, mean jazz rhythm machine. He employed sophisticated phrasing, a soft, intense propulsion and a lyrical feel to move the band to ever higher heights.

If you see him on the bill anywhere, check him out.

Jack McCray, author of "Charleston Jazz," can be reached at jackjmccray@aol.com.