Dave Douglas

There's no way to know what to expect from a Dave Douglas performance. The multifaceted trumpeter-composer has such kaleidoscopic musical interests he could easily show up with anything from his regular quintet to his Freak In ensemble to a collective he calls Mountain Passages.

UNDERRATED 'The Master' : It's a gorgeously filmed meditation on the mentor and protege dynamic and the rise of a cult, and features an acting tour-de-force from Philip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix, whose posture alone is twisted in such a puzzle of demented humanity he's practically the embodiment of the border between beast and manhood. And at the helm is Paul Thomas Anderson, one of the few filmmakers unafraid to allow you to leave the theater with more questions than answers.

Give Dave Douglas credit for putting together good bands. His quintet, which opened a four-night run at the Jazz Bakery on Thursday, is one of the innovative trumpeter's numerous ensembles, each instrumented differently, each focused upon a differing aspect of his musical interests. And it is one of his best.

"Big bands are definitely not coming back," George Carlin once declared in a bit from the '80s, where he posed as Jesus Christ sitting down for an interview. While their golden age certainly has passed, what was as true then as it is now is that big bands have never entirely disappeared, and in fact, there is considerable evidence that the classic format may be enjoying a bit of a revival. Last year's Grammy-nominated John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble and the eclectic steampunk jazz of Darcy James Argue's Secret Society are just two recent examples, and a triple bill at the Hollywood Bowl on Wednesday night headlined by the venerable Count Basie Orchestra honored the form's rich history while also showing where it stands in the present.

One evening last month, trumpeter Dave Douglas and his sextet were blowing into the twilight at Lincoln Center's North Plaza in Manhattan, a stone's throw from the famous Jazz at Lincoln Center program that trumpeter Wynton Marsalis built. As even non-jazz fans know, Marsalis is the long-standing personification of a musical back-to-basics movement emphasizing fealty to Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and the near-metaphysical imperative of "swinging."

"Big bands are definitely not coming back," George Carlin once declared in a bit from the '80s, where he posed as Jesus Christ sitting down for an interview. While their golden age certainly has passed, what was as true then as it is now is that big bands have never entirely disappeared, and in fact, there is considerable evidence that the classic format may be enjoying a bit of a revival. Last year's Grammy-nominated John Hollenbeck Large Ensemble and the eclectic steampunk jazz of Darcy James Argue's Secret Society are just two recent examples, and a triple bill at the Hollywood Bowl on Wednesday night headlined by the venerable Count Basie Orchestra honored the form's rich history while also showing where it stands in the present.

Pianist/composer Horace Silver has remained a popular presence on the international jazz scene for more than 25 years with good reason: He writes enchanting, often exotic, melodies that are underpinned by catchy, foot-tapping rhythms; and he finds top--and mostly young--talents to bring these evocative vehicles to life with feeling and precision.

The Jazz Bakery is a nonprofit organization. To followers of the scene, that statement is a redundancy, of course. In Los Angeles, saying a jazz club doesn't make money is like saying a restaurant doesn't serve scrap iron. In 18 years as president and artistic director of the Jazz Bakery, Ruth Price has always known that fresh music doesn't translate into hefty profits. Lately, though, Price has found it harder to offer quality at a discount. Last May, the Jazz Bakery lost its space in Culver City's old Helms Bakery complex when its philanthropic landlord, Wally Marx Jr., died.

Trumpeter Dave Douglas leads so many different ensembles--from the Tiny Bell Trio to Parallel Worlds--that it almost takes a scorecard to keep track of what he's doing. But none of his other enterprises is any better than the group he brought to the Jazz Bakery on Tuesday, which he simply calls the Dave Douglas New Quintet.

UNDERRATED 'The Master' : It's a gorgeously filmed meditation on the mentor and protege dynamic and the rise of a cult, and features an acting tour-de-force from Philip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix, whose posture alone is twisted in such a puzzle of demented humanity he's practically the embodiment of the border between beast and manhood. And at the helm is Paul Thomas Anderson, one of the few filmmakers unafraid to allow you to leave the theater with more questions than answers.

The Jazz Bakery is a nonprofit organization. To followers of the scene, that statement is a redundancy, of course. In Los Angeles, saying a jazz club doesn't make money is like saying a restaurant doesn't serve scrap iron. In 18 years as president and artistic director of the Jazz Bakery, Ruth Price has always known that fresh music doesn't translate into hefty profits. Lately, though, Price has found it harder to offer quality at a discount. Last May, the Jazz Bakery lost its space in Culver City's old Helms Bakery complex when its philanthropic landlord, Wally Marx Jr., died.

Give Dave Douglas credit for putting together good bands. His quintet, which opened a four-night run at the Jazz Bakery on Thursday, is one of the innovative trumpeter's numerous ensembles, each instrumented differently, each focused upon a differing aspect of his musical interests. And it is one of his best.

There's no way to know what to expect from a Dave Douglas performance. The multifaceted trumpeter-composer has such kaleidoscopic musical interests he could easily show up with anything from his regular quintet to his Freak In ensemble to a collective he calls Mountain Passages.

Trumpeter Dave Douglas leads so many different ensembles--from the Tiny Bell Trio to Parallel Worlds--that it almost takes a scorecard to keep track of what he's doing. But none of his other enterprises is any better than the group he brought to the Jazz Bakery on Tuesday, which he simply calls the Dave Douglas New Quintet.

One evening last month, trumpeter Dave Douglas and his sextet were blowing into the twilight at Lincoln Center's North Plaza in Manhattan, a stone's throw from the famous Jazz at Lincoln Center program that trumpeter Wynton Marsalis built. As even non-jazz fans know, Marsalis is the long-standing personification of a musical back-to-basics movement emphasizing fealty to Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and the near-metaphysical imperative of "swinging."

Pianist/composer Horace Silver has remained a popular presence on the international jazz scene for more than 25 years with good reason: He writes enchanting, often exotic, melodies that are underpinned by catchy, foot-tapping rhythms; and he finds top--and mostly young--talents to bring these evocative vehicles to life with feeling and precision.

Big band review: A review in Friday's Calendar section of a night of big band music at the Hollywood Bowl identified the arranger for the Dave Douglas Big Band as Bill McNeely. His name is Jim McNeely. If you believe that we have made an error, or you have questions about The Times' journalistic standards and practices, you may contact Deirdre Edgar, readers' representative, by e-mail at readers.representative@latimes.com , by phone at (877) 554-4000, by fax at (213)

The words "mountain music" suggest Appalachian bluegrass, Peruvian panpipes, Swiss alphorns or Austrian yodeling. As different from each other as those niches may be, however, they possess a common desire for musical space and openness. Dave Douglas' group Nomad, performing Wednesday at the Jazz Bakery, occasionally displayed a similar regard for clear air sounds in its explorations of music from the new CD, "Mountain Passages." But not nearly often enough.