Henderson Keeps Focus Despite Problems

Tenor saxophonist Joe Henderson was his familiar, adventurous self Tuesday night in the opening set of his six-night run at Catalina Bar & Grill. Slender, with a trim, professorial-looking white beard, completely focused on his instrument, he played superbly in a program devoted mostly to works by Antonio Carlos Jobim.

Henderson’s great strength is his ability to range freely across complicated arpeggios, multi-phonic sound textures and interval-leaping phrases without ever losing contact with a tune’s original melody. It is an uncommonly valuable gift for an improvising musician, and one that allows the listener to remain connected throughout the most far-reaching solos.

So why, then, was Henderson’s set so disappointing?

Almost entirely for reasons that had nothing to do with his own playing. In an apparent attempt to lend further credibility to his chosen material, he chose a Brazilian rhythm section of Helio Alves, piano; Nilson Matta, bass; and Paulo Braga, drums. While each of the musicians seemed to be a capable professional--with Matta considerably more than that--on this night, at least, they simply were not in sync with Henderson or one another.

On number after number, Henderson’s solos were battered by loud, randomly aggressive drumming and a persistent absence of the sort of sensitive soloist-rhythm section interaction characteristic of first-rate jazz playing. The evening’s high point, in fact, turned out to be Henderson’s solo rendering of Billy Strayhorn’s “Lush Life.” It was an astonishing performance--a stunning blend of soaring melody and rich, horn-stretching arpeggiation driven by a deep emotional understanding of the song. And it was one of the rare bright moments in a program that asked a crowded audience to somehow seek out the beauties of Henderson’s playing in a surrounding thicket of musical distractions.

* Joe Henderson Quartet at Catalina Bar & Grill through Sunday. 1640 N. Cahuenga Blvd., (213) 466-2210. $14 cover tonight and Sunday, $17 Friday and Saturday, with two-drink minimum. Henderson performs two shows nightly, at 8:30 and 10:30.