JAZZ UNDER THE STARS
Splendid jazz vocalist Greta Matassa concludes this free series of summertime jazz concerts. Free star charts are distributed at each performance, so after the gig you can peer into the telescope of PLU's Keck Observatory and survey the night sky. Outdoor Amphitheater, PLU Campus, near Eighth Ave S and Wheeler St S, Tacoma, 253-535-7602, 7 pm, free.
SATURDAY AUGUST 23
OLYMPIC MUSIC FESTIVAL
This rustic festival continues apace with performances of chamber music for strings. On the program: Beethoven's String Quartet in G Major, op. 18, no. 2, Prokofiev's String Quartet no. 2, op. 92, and Brahms' Sextet in B Flat for Strings, op. 18. Also Sun Aug 24 at 2 pm. The Barn, Center Road outside of Quilcene, 527-8839, 2 pm, $12-$24.
SUNDAY AUGUST 24
CHORUS TAUGHT TO PITCH
Saxophonist Gregory Reynolds wrote, "Recently, I have been working to reorient myself to sound through the pursuit of improvisation-based musics that work with sound as narrative vibrational architecture capable of reflecting and communicating a sublime space." Essentially this means he is eminently adept at finding the unique resonance of a room and enveloping you in an otherworldly sonic miasma. The other half of this duo, Gust Burns, joins him on piano. Rounding out the bill are Portland's Htoo Trio, who have added a second drummer for their West Coast tour. CoCA, 1420 11th Ave, 728-1980, 4 pm, $5.
COMPLINE CHOIR
As an antidote to excesses of monasticism such as self-flagellation, standing on a pillar year after year, and vermiform mortification, St. Benedict suggested music and manual labor. Compline, the last holy office of the day, is sung after dinner, hence the late Sunday start time. The cathedral is refreshingly cool this time of year, so put something on over that too-tight T-shirt. St. Mark's Cathedral, 1245 10th Ave E, 323-0300, 9:30 pm, free.
MONDAY AUGUST 25
SOUND OF THE BRUSH
Along with presenting local improvisers, this weekly series also acts as an underground railroad for touring artists. This week, the Portland-based Htoo Trio fulfill the Ninth Law of Free Improvisation: When on tour, play as many gigs as possible in each town. The second set is an open-to-all-comers mix 'n' match as various members of Htoo Trio improvise with local players. CoCA, 1420 11th Ave, 728-1980, 8:30 pm, donation requested.
WEDNESDAY AUGUST 27
MOLD
I haven't heard Mold yet, but any duo that melds, according to the press release, "free jazz performance practices with the sound world of early electronic composition and tape music," piques my interest. Even better, they improvise on two ARP Odyssey analog synthesizers, and promise "ambient soundscapes, all-out noise assaults, slowly unfolding tonal melodies or the random clicks and bleeps of computer dialectic." Sounds yummy. Coffee Messiah, 1554 E Olive Way, 861-8233, 8 pm, donation requested.
