WBGO continues to celebrate Jazz Appreciation Month by showcasing the talents of the next generation of jazz musicians. Recently, students from NYU's Steinhardt's Department of Music and Performing Arts Professions, along with the longtime Director of Jazz Studies at NYU, Dave Pietro, came to visit and record a performance at WBGO Studios.
Since the Fall of 2008, Pietro and the NYU Wayne Shorter Ensemble have performed over 130 compositions by NYU alumnus Wayne Shorter (class of 1956), from his early works with Art Blakey and the Blue Note label, through his work with Miles Davis, Weather Report, and his later recordings on the Columbia and Verve labels.
In addition to Pietro, who performs with the group on soprano saxophone, the NYU Wayne Shorter Ensemble – Spring 2024 semester lineup consists of the following:
Jenna Love - alto saxophone (second-year undergraduate) Bala Cynwyd, PA
Eli Heinen - trombone (first-year graduate) West Hartford, CT
Rafael Chamone - guitar (first-year graduate) Curitiba, Brazil
Arnie Sainz Co - piano & keyboard (second-year graduate) Hercules, CA
Ryoma Takenaga - electric & acoustic bass (second-year undergraduate) New Providence, NJ
Anton Kot - drums (fourth-year undergraduate) Milford, CT
Set List:
1. “Devil’s Island” from Wayne Shorter’s Wayning Moments (1961) on Vee-Jay.
2. “Genesis” from Wayne Shorter’s The All Seeing Eye (1965) on Blue Note.
3. “Sleeping Dancer Sleep On” from Art Blakey & the Jazz Messenger’s Like Someone in Love (1967).
4. “Elegant People” from Weather Report’s Black Market (1976) on Columbia.
Listen, above.