Hi folks, this is just a quick update to tell you about a few upcoming shows I'm excited about.This Thursday (7/2) I'll be joining local legendary pianist, composer, author and poet Don Alberts and his Renaissance Band for my first appearance at Cafe Stritch, San Jose's very happening Rahsaan Roland Kirk-inspired jazz spot. We'll be playing Don's swinging original tunes.What: Don Alberts Renaissance BandWho: Don Alberts, piano; Stu Pilorz, trombone; Ron Marabuto, drums; Ian Carey, trumpet; Larry Epstein, bassWhen: Thursday, July 2, 8:30p-12amWhere: Cafe Stritch, 374 S 1st St, San Jose CA 95113Monday, I'm very excited to be playing for the first time with one of my favorite Bay Area creative music aggregations: the Nathan Clevenger Group, which plays exclusively Nathan's beautiful and thorny compositions, as part of the venerable Monday Make Out series. (I will be shedding this relentlessly unpredictable music until about 8 minutes before the gig in the hope of not crashing and burning in such heavy company.) Also on the bill are two additional bands featuring plenty of other big-time local improvisers!What: The Nathan Clevenger GroupWho: Marcus Stephens: clarinet, tenor sax; Ian Carey: trumpet; Rachel Condry: bass clarinet, clarinet; Sam Bevan: bass; Jon Arkin: drums; Jason Levis: drums, percussion; Nathan Clevenger: guitar and compositionsWhen: Monday, July 6, 10ish? (The show starts at 8:30 and we play the third set, following sets by EGW Trio and Ryan Pate.)Where: The Make Out Room, 3225 22nd Street (& Mission), San FranciscoHow Much: FREE!Finally, I am fortunate to perform once again with Circus Bella, the Bay Area's independent circus, as they begin their 2015 Circus in the Parks series--all shows are free, with live music by Rob Reich and the Circus Bella All-Star Band (Reich, accordion; Ralph Carney, saxophone; Ian Carey, trumpet; Greg Stephens, trombone; Jonathan Seiberlich, sousaphone; and Michael Pinkham, drums). Upcoming shows are:July 3rd, 6pm: Mosswood Park, OaklandJuly 10th, 6pm: Studio One Arts Center, OaklandJuly 11th, 2pm: Hamilton Playground, San FranciscoJuly 12th, 2pm: Union Square, San FranciscoJuly 19th, 12pm: Dimond Park, OaklandJuly 25th, 2pm: Pickleweed Park, San RafaelJuly 26th, 2pm: Herons Head Park, San FranciscoAugust 1st, 1pm: Mission Bay, San FranciscoThanks!P.S. my new graphic design site is now live—please have a look and let me know if you have any design needs!

Happy New Year! (You can thank me later for not saying "jazzy.") Lots going on, so here goes:Here Comes Duocracy!Duocracy, my soon-to-be-released duo album with my good friend pianist Ben Stolorow, is being pressed as we speak! (You can read a lot more about the album here: Ian Carey, Ben Stolorow, and Duocracy.) Ben and I are currently gearing up for our two CD release shows:

• East Bay: Friday, February 21 at The Jazzschool in Berkeley
• North Bay: Friday, March 7 at Old St. Hilary's in Tiburon

If you're not going to be able to make either of those, we're also playing a private preview show in Richmond on the afternoon of January 20 (MLK Day)--email me (ian [AT] iancareyjazz.com) if you're interested in attending.Winter CircusLater this month, I'm happy to be involved in a rare off-season performance with the great Circus Bella, featuring outstanding original music by accordionist/keyboardist/guitarist/composer/"Nice Guy" Rob Reich, with the Circus Bella All-Star Band (with Rob, Greg Stephens on trombone, Ralph Carney on a potpurri of woodwinds & sundries, Michael Pinkham on drums, & me on trumpet). We'll be doing two shows on Saturday, January 26 at the Jewish Community Center in San Francisco. Last chance to see us before summertime!New to Me: Arranger EditionYou may remember I have a periodic series of posts about standout albums which, while not necessarily new to the world, are new to me. As I'm about to get to work on a new, extended composition for my Quintet+1 (funded by a generous grant from the San Francisco Friends of Chamber Music's Musical Grant Program—you should apply too!), which will be premiered this fall, I've been spending a lot of time seeking out new-to-me recordings by great arrangers and composers in order to help get my creative wheels turning. Here are a few:Clare Fischer Orchestra: Extension (1963) Ever run into one of those records where you know almost immediately it's going to be one of your all-time favorites? This one, which I picked up at a record store in San Rafael (along with some other finds including albums by Martial Solal & Don Cherry) was one of those records. Fischer, a burning pianist, has been featured in "New to Me" before, but this was my first time checking out his larger ensemble work. I remember Mike Mossman talking up Fischer's charts in an arranging class, and I can see why--tons of counterpoint, dense but beautiful harmonic language--all delivered without the use of trumpets, which serves the dual purpose of letting his phenomenal woodwind writing shine (lots of flute/clarinet lead) while keeping it away from that stereotypical "big band" sound that is so hard to avoid (no matter how hip the writing). Plus it swings, with some nice blowing by Fischer and the Warne-esque Jerry Coker. It's even got a Passacaglia, which is one of my favorite musical forms! Highly recommended. (P.S. Marc Myers did a great write-up about this album when it was reissued--check it out.) Buy here.Nathan Clevenger: Observatory (2013) Nathan & I run in a lot of the same circles (this album features my longtime collabo-friends Kasey Knudsen, Jon Arkin & Evan Francis, for example) and the frequency at which he can find opportunities to perform music like this with a band this size is nothing short of amazing. (With any luck we may have a double-bill in the future.) A great balance of inspiring blowing & thorny writing, tunes with surprising arcs (see "Sleepwalker's Anecdote"), and more bass clarinet than you can shake a stick at. I don't think it's too presumptuous to say I think Charles Mingus would like this record. Buy here. Speaking of Mingus:Charles Mingus: Mingus Moves (1973) This is one I somehow never got around to hearing until recently. Not everything here is my cup of tea (the singers and trumpet player, for example) but "Canon" is classic, and Sy Johnson's chart on "Wee" makes the trip worthwhile. Plus prime George Adams & Don Pullen, and of course the great Dannie Richmond & the man himself. Buy here.Michael McGinnis+9: Road*Trip (2013) I played with Mike a few times when I lived in NYC and we had a lot of friends in common. This album features a great new recording of Bill Smith's Third-Stream masterpiece Concerto for Clarinet & Jazz Combo--which is worth the price of admission by itself--but definitely stick around for McGinnis's extremely interesting title suite, which brings the Third Stream vibe into the present. The first movement is a personal favorite. Buy here.Andy Clausen: The Wishbone Suite (2012) Man, has this guy got compositional chops to burn. In addition to having no problem "putting the notes on the paper," Clausen brings an impressive amount of variety, with pieces ranging from hypercomposed and intricate to sections of open freeish blowing (I think)--I especially love the frequent lack of obvious lines where the improvisation begins and ends, which loosens up some very in-depth writing (something I've been working on in my own music). The interesting instrumentation (trombone, clarinet, piano, accordion, percussion) adds an extra layer of cohesion. Buy here.

Ah, summertime by the Bay--the cold, the rain, the rock-hard peaches. Hope you're all making the most of it. I wanted to drop a line to let you know about some exciting shows coming up in the next month--many of them free!As you may know, and as my wife likes to say, "Ian ran off and joined the circus!" Specifically, I'm playing with the Circus Bella All-Star Band, which accompanies the local independent circus of the same name as they go about their Death-Defying feats of Derring-Do. The band is led by composer/accordionist extraordinaire Rob Reich, and features a fine cast of Bay Area perennials (including the amazing multi-instrumentalist wizard Ralph Carney). The music is an eclectic (I know, but in this case it's true) mix of early jazz, brass band, Balkan, Gypsy, and indie rock influences, chock full of improvisation and surprises.You can catch Circus Bella (& yours truly) at the following dates & places during their 2011 Circus in the Parks series, beginning THIS WEEK! (All free, unless otherwise noted.)

• Thurs 6/30, 5:30pm: Outside Revolution Cafe, West Oakland (preview show)
• Fri 7/1, 12pm: Yerba Buena Gardens, San Francisco
• Sat 7/2, 12pm & 2pm: Yerba Buena Gardens, San Francisco
• Sat 7/9, 2pm: Pickleweed Park & Community Center, San Rafael
• Sun 7/10, 12:30pm: SF Sunday Streets, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
• Fri, 7/15, 6pm: Studio One Art Center, Oakland
• Sun 7/24, 12pm: Dimond Park, Oakland
• Sun 7/24, 8pm: CD RELEASE SHOW--SEE BELOW
• Sun 7/31, 2pm: Napa Valley Opera House, Napa ($15)

The band has also recorded a fine new album (click here to sample or purchase) featuring an expanded version of the group, and will be having a CD release show on July 24th (Happy Birthday to me!) at Berkeley's Freight & Salvage at 8pm. There may even be assorted juggling and other unexpected circusness!Finally, with the assistance of my lawyers, I will close by saying, Come one, Come all, one of you should come, all of you should come, to the Greatest Show on Earth! to a very good show on this planet!