By CLAYTON PARK

Avant-garde guitarist Rik Wright will present several electronically enhanced improvised jazz compositions at Jack Straw Productions on Wednesday, March 13. The performance is part of the monthly Composer Spotlight series by the Washington Composers Forum.

Phinney Ridge resident Christopher Shainin is the director of the Composers Forum. He said the volunteer non-profit group was founded in 1984 by composition students at Cornish and the University of Washington whose goal was to present concerts of their works as well as the works of other composers. The group currently has 50 members.

For his upcoming show, Wright composed and recorded several works for a standard jazz quartet, which he proceeded to "deconstruct" via digital manipulation, with the help of engineer Doug Haire. The result is a collection of lush soundscapes that retain the melodic and chordal movements of the original compositions.

Shainin said Wright will step his audience through the process he used, presenting "before" and "after" sequences of his material and discussing the intricacies of composing with improvisation by the musicians in mind.

The forum's Composer Spotlight series is held the second Wednesday of every month at Jack Straw, a non-profit audio-based arts center located at 4261 Roosevelt Way NE. The performances, which are free, start at 7:30 p.m. For more information, call the Composers Forum at 789-3628 or Jack Straw at 634-0919.

Symphonic Band at NSCC

The Seattle Symphonic Band will perform several orchestral works, including pieces by Brahms, Wagner and Moussorgsky, at North Seattle Community College on Monday, March 18. The concert, which begins at 7:30 p.m., will be held at NSCC's concert hall. Admission is free, but $5 donations are gladly accepted to assist the band's scholarship program. Now in its 30th year, the band is directed by Lauren Anderson.

For more information, call 547-0433.

Groovestock at Connie's Rimrock

Mark Shaffer recalls walking by the Rimrock Steakhouse in Lake City as a kid and hearing rock music reverberating from the bands performing inside. Someday, he used to think, he'd like to play there.

Shaffer's wish has come true. Today, he plays in a band called Groovestock, which performs regularly on Tuesday nights at the restaurant-bar now known as Connie's Rimrock at 12322 Lake City Way NE.

Shaffer, who plays bass, describes his band as a trio that plays everything from unplugged acoustic rock to electric hard rock, country and blues. Dancing is encouraged. "We just want to make people happy and have a good time," he says, adding that the band plays some originals, along with covers. The other members of Groovestock are guitarist Jerry Battista and drummer Fred Hoseman.

Groovestock plays from 8 p.m.-12:30 a.m. Admission is free. Connie's Rimrock also offers live music on other nights. For a full schedule, call 362-7979.

Groove Box at Scarlet Tree

Rhythm and blues vocalist Korla Wygal & Her Private Reserve will perform at the Scarlet Tree on Saturday, March 9 and Saturday, March 23.

Groove Box will perform on Friday, March 15. All shows begin at 9:30 p.m., and have a $7 cover. The Scarlet Tree is located at 6521 Roosevelt Way NE. For a full schedule, call 523-7153.

Toad Jam at Fiddler's Inn

Fiddler's Inn, located at 9219 35th Ave. NE, hosts open mike nights on Mondays, from 8:20-11:20 p.m. Interested performers must call the pub during the day to sign-up. Fiddler's Inn also offers live music several nights a week throughout the month. Alternative folk artist Segrid Lee & friends (March 15), acoustic rockers Toad Jam (March 16) and jazz-funk-fusion band Rai (March 17) are among the bands that will perform in March. A modest cover is charged. For a full schedule, call 525-0752.

BeeCraft at Trolleyman Pub

"Roots groove funk" band Freestyle Candela (March 8), the Hudson Blues Band (March 9), and "original psycho funk" band BeeCraft (March 15) are among the bands scheduled to perform at the Trolleyman Pub in March.

The pub is located at 3400 Phinney Ave. N. in Fremont. The free shows run from 9-11:30 p.m. For a full schedule, call 634-4213.