For all the contributions that bassist and composer Matt Ulery makes to the Chicago jazz scene—whether via his own music or via platforms he creates—he rarely pats himself on the back. He’s not a gratuitous self-promoter either, preferring to let his music speak for itself. And there’s a lot of it to speak: the brand-new Sifting Stars is Ulery’s eighth album as a bandleader since his debut in 2008. He also plays as a sideman in uncountable groups (ad hoc as well as established), leads weekly jams at the Whistler with drummer Quin Kirchner, and runs his own label, Woolgathering Records.
Ulery experiments within tradition not just in his own music but also by finding new ways to express his love for standards. Most Monday nights for the past year, he and Kirchner have led a jam at the Whistler, striving to create a space where musicians can feel secure in taking untested approaches to tried-and-true songs. The two of them typically begin by playing a set with a guest, then open the session to anybody who’s come prepared to play standards (at some point, if there are enough musicians on hand, both leaders might leave the stage). It’s a welcoming and well-loved event, attracting up-and-comers already on the scene as well as brand-new players still in school—and notably, a fair number of folks show up just to listen. The jam runs organically, and it owes its relaxed feeling to the guidance of Ulery and Kirchner, who help decide who plays and step in when needed.
Ulery celebrates the release of Sifting Stars at the Green Mill on Friday and Saturday, October 19 and 20. He couldn’t duplicate the album’s instrumentation, so he’s assembled a new ten-piece group for the shows: it combines a quintet of Ulery regulars (himself on bass, Clearfield on piano, Johnson on trumpet, Jon Deitemyer on drums, and Geof Bradfield on clarinet) with Ernst on vocals and the Kaia String Quartet (Victoria Moreira and Naomi Culp on violins, Amanda Grimm on viola, and Hope Shepherd DeCelle on cello). They’ll play Sifting Stars material as well as music from other recent Ulery albums.
