Live Jazz in Washington, D.C.

Trumpeter Kenny Rittenhouse has led ensembles of various sizes around the DMV for two decades, and is a member of many others (including the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra). Rittenhouse specializes hard-bop a la Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers under Freddie Hubbard and Lee Morgan and his groups deliver swinging takes on the standards and the members’ originals. He leads a strong quintet – Grant Langford on alto saxophone, Allyn Johnson on piano, Kris Funn on bass and C.V. Dashiell on drums – to celebrate the release of his new album “Anthem for the Elders.”

D.C. guitarist Knox Engler plays what he calls progressive math rock – think rhythms and beats complex enough to make Dave Brubeck’s experimentations in “taking five” seem like four on the floor.

D.C. guitarist Knox Engler plays what he calls progressive math rock – think rhythms and beats complex enough to make Dave Brubeck’s experimentations in “taking five” seem like four on the floor.

D.C. guitarist Knox Engler plays what he calls progressive math rock – think rhythms and beats complex enough to make Dave Brubeck’s experimentations in “taking five” seem like four on the floor.

D.C. guitarist Knox Engler plays what he calls progressive math rock – think rhythms and beats complex enough to make Dave Brubeck’s experimentations in “taking five” seem like four on the floor.

Saxophonist BJ Simmons’ music is heavily layered, bridging elements of jazz, hip-hop and soul. His compositions feature a mixture of spoken word, velvety R&B style vocals, rich improvisational melodies, abstract soundscapes and chilled syncopated beats. At D.C.’s jazz church, Simmons shows of his true bebop and classic sax-work chops by leading a tribute to one of Duke Ellington’s longest-tenured collaborators, alto saxophonist Johnny Hodges. As Ellington said of Hodges at a famous performance at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1958, “If you’ve heard of the saxophone, then you’ve heard of Johnny Hodges.” Simmons employs a strong band for this tribute: Donvonte McCoy on trumpet, Allyn Johnson on piano, Herman Burney on bass, and Tyler Leak on drums.

D.C. guitarist Knox Engler plays what he calls progressive math rock – think rhythms and beats complex enough to make Dave Brubeck’s experimentations in “taking five” seem like four on the floor.

D.C. guitarist Knox Engler plays what he calls progressive math rock – think rhythms and beats complex enough to make Dave Brubeck’s experimentations in “taking five” seem like four on the floor.