NEW YORK CONSORT OF VIOLS
Before the cello came the viola da gamba (literally "viol of the leg"), a fretted string instrument held and bowed between the legs. This mellow instrument first appeared during the Renaissance and was replaced by louder, brisker violins and cellos. As part of the Viola da Gamba Society of America's "2004 Conclave" this consort serves up music from the 16th and 17th centuries along with new works. Schneebeck Concert Hall at the University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, (253) 879-3419, 7:30 pm, free.
CLEO LAINE & JOHN DANKWORTH
I caught this couple's appearance at Jazz Alley last year and loved Laine's ability to alternate from low, dusky, near-masculine notes to an agile, crystalline falsetto in a trice. Backing Laine is a quartet featuring her musical soul mate of several decades, nimble reedman John Dankworth, whose daring dip into the clarinet's moody chalumeau register for "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning" knocked me out. Also Fri July 30 and Sat July 31 with sets at 8 and 10:15 pm, as well as Sun Aug 1 with sets at 6:30 and 8:45 pm. Jazz Alley, 2033 Sixth Ave, 441-9729, sets at 8 and 10:15 pm, $22.50/$24.50.
ELLEN FULLMAN
Long String Instrument inventor Fullman presents "Isolated Reflections," a collaboration with choreographer Tonya Lockyer and video artists Christine Wallers and Susan Zoccola. This is quite likely your last chance to see and hear one of our burg's most visually striking and sonically appealing invented instruments. Walking alongside it and stroking 30 or more feet of strung strings, players excite an ethereal, unearthly haze of harmonics with gently rosined fingers. Not to be missed. Also Fri July 30 and Sat July 31. Consolidated Works, 500 Boren Ave N, 381-3218, 9 pm, $10.
SATURDAY JULY 31
LOHENGRIN
I've been gearing up all week to hear Richard Wagner's opera about a heroic knight whose name must forever remain a mystery to the princess he saves and thereafter marries. I'll let you know how it turns out. Also Tues Aug 3, Fri Aug 6, Mon Aug 9, Thurs Aug 12, Wed Aug 18, and Sat Aug 21. The lone matinee is Sun Aug 15 at 2 pm. McCaw Hall, 321 Mercer St, 389-7676, 7 pm, $43-$123.
SUNDAY AUGUST 1
CATHEDRAL MUSICIANS
St. James Cathedral musicians Howard Fankhauser (tenor), Clint Kraus (piano), and Jennifer Sokol (violin) serenade the living and the dead with traditional favorites by Franck, Gounod, Schubert, and Bach. Holyrood Catholic Cemetery, 205 NE 205th St, Shoreline, 363-8404, 2 pm, free.
MONDAY AUGUST 2
NORTHWEST PREVAILING WINDS
No, it's not a massed choir of doe-eyed guitar-strumming Christians singing "the hip music of today for young people," but an all-star jazz big band stocked with superb soloists including Pete Christlieb, Jay Thomas, Bill Ramsay, Chuck Deardorf, and others. Their 2003 CD, Convergence Zone (Origin Records), struts with swinging, swaggering arrangements by bandleader Phil Kelly. The Triple Door, 216 Union St, 838-4333, 7:30 pm, $15.
