JAZZ UNDER THE STARS
Portland pianist Randy Porter kicks off this free, weekly series of outdoor jazz that runs through August. Stick around after the gig and you can peer into the telescope of Pacific Lutheran University's nearby Keck Observatory. Outdoor Amphitheater, PLU Campus, near Eighth Ave S and Wheeler St S, Tacoma, 253-535-7602, 7 pm, free.
THE GONDOLIERS
Think of Gilbert & Sullivan as rap for classical music fans. Witty, rapid-fire words relate the perils and tribulations of hustling, love, lust, and money. In G&S' The Gondoliers, two Italian gondoliers chase girls and get into trouble with parents, the law, and their multiple wives. Also Fri-Sat July 18-19 at 2 and 8 pm. Bagley Wright Theatre, Seattle Center, 155 Mercer St, 341-9612, 8 pm, $10-$29.
SATURDAY JULY 19
TARI NELSON-ZAGAR & GREG CAMPBELL
Classically trained violinist Nelson-Zagar is a virtuoso, not in the floppy-haired, molto vibrato, spastic windmill bow-strokes way depicted in the movies, but in the best sense of doing the right thing at the right time--even staying silent if need be. Percussionist Campbell has a graceful aplomb, as if gently stroking that pot lid was the only musical act possible in that moment. Polestar Music Gallery, 1412 18th Ave at E Union St, 329-4224, 8 pm, $6.
SUNDAY JULY 20
PROSPETTIVA PLURAL V
This concert assembles four enterprising trumpeters. Lesli Dalaba, a veteran of NYC's 1980s Downtown scene, leads the charge on the prickly yet seductive DalabaFrithGlickRiemanKihlstedt (Accretions) with avant guitar god Fred Frith. Bandleader Jim Knodle plays and composes a range of music from old-time jazz to avant chamber improv. Angelina Baldoz modifies her sound with cookie tins and other accessories. Jay Roulston's new disc, Monkey Mind Control (Conduit Records), simmers with attractively frayed atmospherics. Put this one on your calendar. CoCA, 1420 11th Ave, 728-1980, 4 pm, $8 suggested donation.
MONDAY JULY 21
SEATTLE CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL
Count on the SCMF to unearth seldom-heard chestnuts. Assorted musicians tackle Mahler's Quartet for Piano and Strings and Turina's Quintet for Piano and Strings as well as two songs by Brahms scored for baritone, viola, and piano. Oh, and there's a premiere of David Baker's jazz suite for cello and percussion, Singers of Songs, Weavers of Dreams, but new-music nuts should also catch the free 7 pm recital by Matthew Kocmieroski, who proffers percussion works by Alan Hovhaness, Elliott Carter, and Morton Feldman. Lakeside School, 14050 First Ave NE, 292-2787, 7 pm, $16-$35.
WEDNESDAY JULY 23
MURDEROUS COPULATION OF BIRDS
Some band names, like Sküllpile, practically draw their own logos, while other monikers, like Murderous Copulation of Birds, prompt mental rummaging for allusions to obscure prints by Paul Klee or novellas by Jack Vance. Saxophonist Gregory Reynolds describes this gig as an "avant-garde response to Big Black's Songs About Fucking." With Cristin Miller (voice), Annie Lewandowski (accordion/musical saw), Matt Crane (drums), Tom Swafford (violin), and Serena Tideman (cello). Coffee Messiah, 1554 E Olive Way, 861-8233, 8 pm, donation requested.
