Cameron McGill
Tuesday 9.2
Chazen Exhibitions
Chazen Museum of Art
The Chazen hosts two shows based on couples' collections. "A Shared Taste," donated by Janice and Jean-Pierre Golay, ranges from textiles to paintings to sculpture to prints. "Modernist Sculpture," donated by Terese and Alvin S. Lane, features sculpture and assemblages by the likes of Picasso, Calder and Nevelson.
Andy Frasco
Cafe Montmartre, 9 pm
Soulful piano man Andy Frasco takes an alternative approach to pop keyboard pounding. Think of him as Ben Folds with the heart of a jazz crooner.
Wednesday 9.3
Jon Hendricks
100 block of State Street, 5 pm
The Jazz at Five series winds down with an appearance by the incomparable Hendricks, 86, whose name is all but synonymous with vocalese. The style's practitioners sing lyrics set to melodies composed by jazz greats like Count Basie and Charlie Parker. Hendricks' lyrics are glorious -- smart, playful, deftly rhymed -- and they helped him bag a Grammy with the vocal trio Lambert, Hendricks and Ross. Caravan Gypsy Swing Ensemble also appear.
Mike Gordon
Majestic Theatre, 8:30 pm
Phish bassist Mike Gordon plays the ambidextrous multi-instrumentalist on his good-humored new CD The Green Sparrow. Persistent rumors of an ensuing Phish reunion add even more luster to this early-semester jam showcase.
Isodynamics
High Noon Saloon, 9 pm
Isodynamics bring together Memory and Liquid Form, two denizens of the local hip-hop scene who've bested their peers at several local battles. They celebrate the release of a new CD with help from Fall Guys, Lucha Libre and Siggie Sedge & OD.
Thursday 9.4
Punch Brothers
Barrymore Theater, 7:30 pm
Nickel Creek mandolin player Chris Thile has had his frisky digits in a lot of musical pies over the years. These days the progressive picker expresses his folk, bluegrass and classical sides with this terrifically talented acoustic quintet.
Pierre Bensusan
Majestic Theatre, 8 pm
Algerian fret-board magician Pierre Bensusan is a must for anyone who drools over dazzling fingerstyle guitar work. Folk, jazz, Brazilian music, Medieval styles and North African rhythms are just some of the elements that shape his unique repertoire.
Cameron McGill & What Army
Cafe Montmartre, 9:30 pm
Now backed by a full band, Chicago-based singer-songwriter McGill brings his eccentricities to bear on catchy folk-pop that wouldn't have sounded out of place in Swinging London. Gabriel Reed opens.
