Democrat and Chronicle from Rochester, New York • Page 12

DEMOCRAT AND CHRONICLE DemocratandChronicle.com SUNDAY, JUNE 15, 2008 13 A CONCERT REVIEW Growth Mm 0 'mm KATHARINE SIDELNIK staff photographer Frank Sinatra Jr. performs at the Eastman Theatre on Friday for the Rochester International Jazz Festival. Sinatra thrives in father's role Stephanie McKay gathers herself backstage before she and her band on Saturday at the Rochester International Jazz Festival. FROM PAGE 1A growth." "We want to sustain and grow proportionately to what we can control and make happen in a realistic, sensible fashion," he says. This year's newest venue, Christ Church, adds on to the entertainment as the ninth Club Pass venue.

(Festivalgoers can buy one Club Pass that offers offer admission, space permitting, to more than 125 shows.) The last two shows held at Christ Church, Guy Barker Ian Shaw "Made in the and the Union Trio (Saturday), are being sponsored by the British Arts Council. Pending future sponsorship from the British Arts Council, Nugent hopes to turn Christ Church into a U.K. series starting next year. "My goal with Marc (Iacona) in a few years down is to have several international areas represented," he says. Nugent and Marc Iacona, co-directors of the festival, are also producers for the PAETEC Music Tour, which started out as a jazz festival in Baltimore last year.

The tour will reach Tampa, Chicago, Baltimore and Charlotte and include artists along the way such as Ringo Starr, Al Green, Anita Baker and John Legend. Nugent and Iacona are also producers of this year's Rochester MusicFest on June 22 at PAETEC Park. Mitchell Seidel, a national freelance jazz journalist and photographer for publications such as JazzTimes and Down Beat, is covering the Rochester International Jazz Festival for the second year, and says he was impressed last year. "I agree to the point that it's a very manageable size for a jazz festival right now," said Seidel. "At the same time, I don't want this festival to not succeed.

It's too good of a festival for it not to succeed." This year, he chose to be in Rochester instead of New York City's JVC Jazz Festival, which runs today through June 28. Last year's JVC festival drew 30,000. "It's no small surprise when I walked around here and looked at the different venues and how this festival was put together, it reminded me of Montreal (International Jazz Festival). Of course, it is modeled a bit after the Montreal structure, and that is very eclectic, something for everybody, free stuff all within a very easy to get around area. "Last year, I thought it was about two years away from people really, really giving it notice.

I think it's still just a little under the radar screen, but certainly not in quality." Festival representative Jean Dalmath says the sponsorship for the festival has increased across the board as the festival has increased. The city of Rochester has pitched in $10,000 this year, the same amount as last L-i. A WILL YURMAN staff photographer The Buddhahood plays for the crowd at the Jazz Street Stage at East Avenue and Gibbs Street on Saturday at the jazz festival. Tickets The seventh annual Rochester International Jazz Festival runs through Saturday. For most shows at the Eastman Theatre, 60 Gibbs tickets are available through Ticket Express, 885 E.

Main and the festival's Ticket Shop, corner of East Avenue and Gibbs Street (both only a $1 service charge); and Ticketmaster, (585) 232-1900 or www.ticketmaster.com. Admission to the Eastman School of Music Jazz Scholarships Performance with Joe and Pat Labarbera at 8 p.m. Monday is free. Club Passes ($135, plus a $4 service charge) offer admission, space permitting, to more than 125 shows at Kilbourn Hall, 26 Gibbs Max of Eastman Place, 287 E. Main High Fidelity, 170 East Montage, 50 Chestnut Harro East Ballroom, 155 N.

Chestnut Lutheran Church of the Reformation, 1 1 1 N. Chestnut Christ Church, 141 East and the Big Tent, Main and Gibbs streets. If available, single tickets for Club Pass locations are Admission is free at three outdoor stages Jazz Street Stage, Gibbs Street and East Avenue; East Avenue and Chestnut Street; and East Avenue and Alexander Street the nightly jam sessions at State Street Bar Grill (at the Rochester Plaza Hotel), 70 State one concert at Bausch Lomb Public Library, 115 South Ave; and concerts on the Mary Jemison Riverboat, on the Genesee River (launches at Corn Hill Landing on Exchange Boulevard). For details, go to www.rochesterjazz.com. heat.

These guys played loud and fast, refusing to be anchored down by ballads. The set-closing "Take a Walk" was a bass-sax blowout. On this night, the music was here. Riley vs. Foster What a contrast in styles was offered by the two veteran jazz drummers of the evening.

Ben Riley's Monk Legacy Septet was tribute to Riley's former employer, the legendary Thelo-nious Monk. The much-talked about trick to Riley's set of Monk songs during his first set at the Harro East Ballroom is that he does it without a piano player. Indeed, this is horny Monk, with three saxophones and a trumpet, plus guitar, bass and Riley's drums. They presented Monk's sometimes anti-rhythmic compositions with a distinguished swank. You could almost hear Monk picking out the singular piano notes of "Bright Mississippi" and "Bemsha Swing," and the ballad "Ask Me Now," with this horn section, and Riley at one point tapping his drumsticks together alongside a bass solo.

In general, Riley remained the consummate supporting player, even though it is his band, with his drum kit set up to the rear of the stage, in deference to the other players. Al Foster had other ideas for his first show at Kilbourn Hall. He led his quartet with the drums set up center stage, soloing frequently and powerfully, whether with sticks or brushes. Two completely different styles, each with something to say. Today's jazz haiku Foster's cymbals sigh like tires on the rain-wet streets of this jazz-drenched town Downchild downtown Toronto's veteran Downchild Blues Band packed High Fidelity's first show, and if the attitude felt familiar, perhaps you saw it in the movie theater: These guys supposedly put the idea for the Blues Brothers into the heads of Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi.

The band's jumping takes on "How Long Has This Been Going On" were a dress rehearsal for tonight's show, with the band moving to the outdoor party at the East Avenue and Chestnut Street Stage. It plays at 7 p.m., opening for the alt-country southern rockers Cross Canadian Ragweed. Jazz purists are encouraged to check out the dueling harmonicas of Donnie Walsh and Chuck Jackson. "We've got a blues festival going on tonight in Rochester," lead singer Jackson howled, "and everyone's invited." JSPEVAKSDemocratandChronicle.com JEFF SPEVAK STAFF MUSIC CRITIC With the cool of Old Blue Eyes Jr. inside the Eastman Theatre, you could almost forget how swelteringly hot it was outside for Day One of the Rochester International Jazz Festival.

"Sinatra Sings Sinatra" was the headline, curiosity of the night, drawing close to 2,000 fans of music by a fellow who has been dead for a decade but currently has one of the top albums in the country. And, of course, the first thing you want to know is: How does Frank Sinatra Jr. stack up? Well, he does sound like his father, with the same precise phrasing. It's not Sinatra but a close approximation, although Sinatra Jr. could dump the gratuitous, dumb joke about how his father was known in Japan as "Orel Brew Eyes." Elegance was the word for the evening, as Sinatra praised the big orchestra behind him "This is where the music is," he proclaimed.

So for some tunes, such as a pair of Gershwins, "My Sweet Embraceable You" and "S'wonderful," his hands floated like gull wings as he led the way as conductor. But for other songs, he was the saloon singer that his father was. A vast intro gave way to barroom piano and "One For My Baby (And One More For the Road)," in which Sinatra (either one) plays a lonely fella in the bar for last call, conversing with a ready-to-go-home bartender, represented by a sax solo, before finally strolling offstage as the lights go down, the bar closes and the song ends. Nicely done. Spam Allstars If the music was indeed in the Eastman, Sinatra probably wouldn't have much cared for the Latin hip-hop dance groove of Miami's Spam Allstars.

Two saxophones, a trumpet, steel snare drums backed by a DJ spinning beats. If it was the rain that drove the crowd to the Big Tent, and packed it for the 8:30 p.m. show, they stayed for the intoxicating sound, with a pack of young people dancing to one side of the stage. Timo Lassy Finland's Timo Lassy was the talk of Jazz Street, as we call the closed-down Gibbs Street over the nine days of the festival. At the second of two shows at the Lutheran Church of the Reformation, the sax player's quintet got the Nordic Jazz Now series off to a booming start.

Lassy should know how it's done: He was here for last year's inaugural Nordic series, with the elegantly dressed Five Corners Quintet. Friday night, Lassy came out in a vanilla-colored suit, but he didn't melt in the a WILL YURMAN staff photographer take the stage at High Fidelity "abusive." The disclosures come just days after similar revelations about former Fannie Mae CEO Jim Johnson prompted Barack Obama, the presumptive Democratic nominee, to ax Johnson from his vice presidential vetting team. Countrywide also made an exception in lending Conrad $96,000 in 2004 to buy an eight-unit apartment building in Bismarck from his brothers. The company had a policy of only providing loans for buildings of four units or fewer. "They said they frequently made exceptions, especially for good customers," Conrad said.

An internal e-mail from Mozilo, however, said the exception was "due to the fact that the borrower is a senator," according to the Portfolio report. of Hearing TEars it together volume, this Si Parking The East End Garage, Scio and Main streets, is $2 after 5 p.m. and on weekends. Midtown is free after 5 p.m. and on weekends.

For jam sessions at the Rochester Plaza Hotel, the Sister Cities Garage, 28 N. Fitzhugh is $1 per hour (free if you only park one hour); $6.35 maximum. Free shows Jazz Street Stage: Four to five concerts daily starting at 4:30 p.m. East Avenue and Chestnut Street Stage: 7 and 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

East Avenue and Alexander Street Stage: 7 and 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday. For the full schedule, go to www.rochesterjazz.comvenues. year. Despite the finances of a growing festival, the weather might have a hand in this year's festival numbers.

Thunderstorms on opening night threatened to cancel the second set of outdoor music on the Jazz Street Stage, but cleared up for a late start. "The weather is certainly a factor," said Nugent. "Hopefully we'll get lucky. If there's a downpour, it will be earlier in the day and people will still come out 4 (p.m.) in the afternoon and on." Today is expected to be partly sunny with highs in the 80s, according to the National Weather Service in Buffalo. Meteorologist David Sage said the next threat of rain is tonight.

"Even though the other days have a threat, even when the probability is high, it's rain-free most of the time," he said. "It shouldn't be terrible." AREGUtROdDemocratanothronicle.corn crat said in a statement. Conrad said it also appears he was given special treatment on a mortgage when he was financing the purchase of a Bismarck, N.D., apartment building from his brothers. He said he would refinance that loan with another lender. Conrad, who is also a member of the Senate Finance Committee, said he reviewed Countrywide e-mails described to him by the media after it was reported that he and Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat and former presidential candidate, got preferential treatment on their mortgages.

Their involvement in a special program that awarded discounts and waived fees for "friends" of Countrywide CEO Angelo Mo-zilo was first reported by Conde Ask yourself, is your repairman too (pensive, unreliable, unpredictable? Gutter Cleaning Roofing r.M. ii Snow Ice Chimney Liners Basement Walls PaintedRepaired Water Proofed Structural, Bracing, 1988 Levelin' Jackinc Senator donates discount from his mortgage deal MARY CLARE JALONICK THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad said Saturday he is donating $10,500 to charity and refinancing his loan on an apartment building after reviewing documents showing he received special treatment from Countrywide Financial Corp. Conrad said it appears that Countrywide waived 1 point on his mortgage for a Bethany Beach, vacation home. He said he would donate the equivalent amount of money to Habitat for Humanity. "Although I did not ask for or know that I was receiving a discount, and even though I was offered a competitive loan from another lender, I do not want to have received preferential treatment," the North Dakota Demo Nast Portfolio magazine's Web site.

Conrad said Friday that he had placed a personal call to Mozilo in 2002 seeking a mortgage for the Delaware home. But he said Countrywide's rates were competitive with another offer he "I called (Mozilo). I said, 'I'm buying this property. Would you be interested in the And he said, 'Yeah. Call these people and we'll take a Conrad said.

"I did not think for one moment and no one ever suggested to me that I was getting preferential treatment," Conrad said. Dodd has been a leader of Congress' efforts to help homeowners caught in the subprime mortgage meltdown and once called Countrywide's practices Give the Gift NEW! EXPANDED Fathers Day. ft SAVE $10 on Hear TV better and enjoy No more loud TV Wireless headset controls tone and balance Mb )irm. a. jr -ill Holley, NY 14470 hi mTPODDnnPlWr.

nA "uu'5 -oiumy rmiiiuwiuuiiiiu ouu carpentry Insulation Ventilation Limited Time Only Your Safest Choice! Since Valid 52208 to 61 508. Must present coupon. IGH306AHAC I Com In for a FREE Huge Selection of Estes Rockets! Everything you need to take you "out of this Riricte 16131 Ridge Road West i demonstration. nnvniKEi HFARIMG CF J-Road En OlaUUIl ooo-owuu iVkVkVndl'l: Mil' i.