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WBGO’s Emily Springer talks with saxophonist Kamasi Washington about his upcoming performance at the Newport Jazz Festival and his latest album 'Fearless Movement'

WBGO's David Matthau reports on the end of the NJ Transit rail strike

“Valentino does it all. He’s modern and eclectic, but also distinctive and well-rooted.” —The Roanoke Times

“[Paul Bollenback] is soulful, sophisticated and spiritual…” —JazzTimes

Acclaimed jazz guitarists Vinny Valentino & Paul Bollenback bring their formidable group to Zinc on Monday, October 10. They’re supported by bassist John Benitez and drummer Steve Smith.

Versatile is an understatement when describing guitarist and composer Vinny Valentino. Playing guitar since age six, this native Virginian began touring in a progressive rock band while still in high school. At age 16, influenced by the music of George Benson, Vinny began pursuing Jazz as a career. He recalls, “The turning point for me was hearing George Benson in concert; I had never heard anybody play like that. It was an eye-opening experience.”

Vinny has shared the stage with such jazz greats as Steve Smith, Tom Coster, Russell Ferrante, Tom Scott, Gary Bartz, Victor Bailey, John Benitez, Peter Erskine, Dave Weckl, John Patitucci, Randy Brecker, George Benson, Steve Gadd, Chick Corea, Dennis Chambers, Bill Evans, and Jimmy McGriff.

Paul Bollenback, a thinking person’s jazz guitarist with a clean ‘n’ fat tone and a barrel full of chops, has been impressing listeners as a sideman and, increasingly, as a leader in recent years. But inquisitive minds want to know: Is he mainstream? Left-of-mainstream? Or a work-in-progress? Probably all of the above. Bollenback has been heard alongside saxophonists Gary Thomas, Gary Bartz, and especially as a commanding, critical 1/3 of Joey DeFrancesco’s organ trio.

Showtimes are at 7:00 pm & 8:30 pm. Tickets: $25 in advance / $30 day of show. For more info, visit https://www.zincjazz.com.

Ambrose Akinmusire Quartet

Saturday, September 17, 2022, 8 pm

Vermont Jazz Center
72 Cotton Mill Hill #222
Brattleboro VT 05301

Ambrose Akinmusire (trumpet), Sam Harris (piano), Russell Hall (bass), Tim Angulo
(drums)

This concert will have ONLY an in-person audience.  There will NO livestream component.

Akinmusire is a multiyear winner of Downbeat’s critics’ choice awards for Trumpeter of the Year (including 2021) and Jazz Artist of the Year.

A visionary artist with six albums as a leader, he is a first call sideman found on recordings with Joni Mitchell, Brad Mehldau, Kendrick Lamar and many others.

Ambrose Akinmusire is a truth-teller whose music is an expression of his personal journey as a Black man. Although he loves playing jazz standards, he has chosen to compose original music that draws attention to the realities of racism.

The list of his accolades include Thelonious Monk International Jazz Trumpet Competition Winner, Carmine Caruso International Trumpet Solo Competition Winner; Downbeat Critics Poll: Jazz Artist of the Year, Best Trumpet (numerous times); Jazz Times Critic’s Poll: Trumpeter of the Year (3 times), Artist of the Year, Record of the Year; New York Times Best Jazz Album of the year (2011), Jazz Journalist Association Trumpeter of the Year and others too numerous to mention.

His discography includes 6 albums as a leader and sideman work with Kendrick Lamar, Joni Mitchell, Joel Ross, Brad Mehldau, Marcus Miller, Trilok Gurtu, the Yellow Jackets, Jack DeJohnette, Archie Shepp,Terri Lyne Carrington, Roy Hargrove, Mimi Jones, Esperanza Spalding,Tom Harrell and many others.

Akinmusire is one of the most acclaimed jazz artists of his generation, a trumpeter of deep expressive resources and a composer of kaleidoscopic vision. —NPR


Sponsored by David Salzberg and Elissa Barr.

Admission is sliding scale, $20- $40 per person.

Mask wearing required for entry. Be sure to purchase your tickets soon as this event will likely sell out quickly and there will be no online option to view this concert.

https://vtjazz.org/safety-protocols/

Tickets available online at
and by email.

Handicapped access available by emailing
ginger@vtjazz.org.

www.vtjazz.org
gingervjc@gmail.com
802 258 9088

https://vtjazz.org/upcoming-events/concerts/
https://vtjazz.org/upcoming-events/sliding-scale-ticket-policy/

The theorem of turntablist as musician has been long proven in the capable hands of DJ Logic, whom with jazz as his foundation has become a wax innovator by crossing genres and mixing his sound across the map. As one of the world’s most accomplished turntablists, DJ Logic is widely credited for introducing jazz into the hip–hop realms and is considered by most as a highly-respected session musician and an innovative bandleader.

Since his emergence in the early nineties amidst the Bronx hip-hop scene, the New York City based deejay has been amassing a veritable mountain of collaborations, including a full-fledged band with members of Blues Traveler (The John Popper Project ft. DJ Logic), a trio with Steve Molitz & Freekbass (Headtronics), a jazz project with Georgian prodigy Beka Gochiasvili, and as a member of Grammy-winning Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra’s The Offense of the Drum album. He also has a long list of other collaborations with artists ranging from the likes of Bob Weir, John Mayer, Medeski Martin and Wood, Christian McBride, O.A.R., Carly Simon, Marcus Miller, Jack Johnson, Vernon Reid, Warren Haynes, Charlie Hunter, Jack DeJohnette, Ben Harper, Mos Def, The Roots, Bernie Worrell, Bill Laswell, Melvin Gibbs, Fred Wesley, Sean Kuti and many more.

DJ Logic and his role as an electronic-music ambassador keeps him at the top of his game. Whether the scratch artist instructs tablas to flirt with drum ‘n’ bass (such as on his Nina Simone and Billy Holiday remixes found on Sony Legacy’s Remixed and Reimagined volumes), meshes free styling MC’s with Afro-Cuban rhythms (such as on ‘Share Worldwide Funk’ – a remix produced for Jack DeJohnette and Golden Beams Collected, Volume 1), or remixes tracks for rock bands such as Moon Taxi, DJ Logic can always be found paying homage to his predecessors while contributing his vision to the deejay genre.

While the context of his work may vary, DJ Logic’s spinning skills are definitely beyond reproach. He works with a phenomenal roster of invited guests, and he knows how to pick his collaborators as well as his samples. With a growing catalogue of recordings under his belt, DJ Logic’s supreme musicianship and eclectic tastes will allow him to journey wherever an infectious groove may take him.

MasterVoices, under the artistic direction of Ted Sperling, presents Love, the third chapter of its central project for the 2020-2021 season: a four-part virtual rollout of award-winning composer Adam Guettel’s theatrical song cycle, Myths and Hymns. Inspired by Greek myths and a 19th-Century Presbyterian hymnal, the 1998 cycle is a kaleidoscopic collection of musical genres as it explores the nature of faith and longing in a secular world. New short musical films illustrate the protagonist’s attempt to seek answers in four ways – through Flight (released January 13), Work (released February 24), Love (to be released April 14), and Faith (to be released May 26). All installments remain available after their premieres for on-demand streaming on MasterVoices’ YouTube channel until June 30, 2021. Love features the MasterVoices chorus and soloists Dianne Drayse Alonso, Nina Bernstein, John Brancy, Dove Cameron, Drew Gehling, Cheyenne Jackson, Shereen Pimentel, and Lori Wilner. Also contributing are directors Victoria Clark and Ted Sperling, visual artist Earl Womack, and orchestrators Don Sebesky and Jamie Lawrence. Love begins with an a cappella vocalese from the chorus, expressing the longing for someone to love, to feel complete with. This flows directly into Hero and Leander, which evokes the sounds of the roiling waves that must be braved for the lovers to unite. Come to Jesus intertwines the story of a young couple’s dissolution because of an unwanted pregnancy with the haunting hymn text of the title. Medusa will be included in Myths and Hymns for the first time, in a new version prepared by the composer. The song recounts the story of the warrior Perseus who beheaded the formidable Medusa, one of three Gorgon sisters whose gaze turned men to stone. It premiered in 1988 at Home for Contemporary Theater and Art in New York City and has not been performed since then. The chapter ends with the wistfully humorous and self-involved How Can I Lose You?

Guitar virtuosos Martin Taylor, Frank Vignola, and John Jorgenson create musical magic with “one night, three award-winning guitarists, eighteen strings”. The Great Guitars™ traces its colorful heritage back to the 1970s when the legendary jazz guitarists of that era toured the world and recorded together. Award-winning guitarist Martin Taylor, who replaced Herb Ellis to become part of the original group in the 1980s with the legendary Barney Kessel and Charlie Byrd, has revised the format for the 21st century-enlisting two of today’s top jazz guitars players to co-create a brilliant program displaying guitar mastery, emotion, humor and musical fireworks. Combining Taylor’s award-winning virtuosic fingerstyle with Vignola’s jaw-dropping technique, and Jorgenson’s incredible musical versatility, the concert features solo, duet, and trio performances by these three acknowledged masters of fingerstyle, jazz and gypsy guitar. Between them, these three guitar greats have worked with artists ranging from Tommy Emmanuel to David Grisman, Donald Fagen to Wynton Marsalis, and Bonnie Raitt to Bob Dylan. ABOUT THE ARTISTS Pat Metheny calls Martin Taylor “one of the most awesome solo guitar players in the history of the instrument”, while Jeff Beck says, “he out-shreds all of us – I’ve never seen anything like it”. Taylor is widely recognized as the world’s foremost exponent of solo fingerstyle jazz guitar playing, with a record 15 British Jazz Awards, Top 10 albums in the USA and Europe and an MBE from the Queen of Great Britain. His innovative online guitar school now teaches guitarists in over 60 countries. Frank Vignola is highly regarded as one of the most accomplished, multi-dimensional players in the world today. Les Paul added him to his “Five Most Admired Guitar List” for the Wall Street Journal while The New York Times deemed Vignola as “one the brightest guitar stars.” John Jorgenson, known for his blistering guitar licks and mastery of a broad musical palette, has earned a reputation as a world-class musician, as evidenced by his collaborations with Earl Scruggs, Bonnie Raitt, Elton John, Luciano Pavarotti, Bob Dylan and many others.

John Pizzarelli, the world-renowned guitarist and singer, has established himself as a prime contemporary interpreter of the Great American Songbook and beyond, with a repertoire that includes Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Tom Waits, Antônio Carlos Jobim, and The Beatles. He has been hailed by The Boston Globe for “reinvigorating the Great American Songbook and re-popularizing jazz.” The Toronto Star pegged him as “the genial genius of the guitar.” And The Seattle Times saluted him as “a rare entertainer of the old school.” In addition to the music of Nat King Cole, he has celebrated the work of composer Richard Rodgers with his GRAMMY Award-nominated With a Song in My Heart, toured the globe performing shows centered on Frank Sinatra, Johnny Mercer and John McCartney, bringing his unique style to a broad range of music and styles. His recordings range from torch ballads to classic swing, from bold originals to holiday fare, and the Fab Four. His two-disc set, Live at Birdland, seamlessly blends James Taylor folk with Gershwin and Van Heusen standards, in addition to his own original compositions. John has been a special guest on recordings for major pop names such as James Taylor, Natalie Cole, Kristin Chenoweth, Tom Wopat, Rickie Lee Jones and Dave Van Ronk, as well as leading jazz artists such as Rosemary Clooney, Ruby Braff, Johnny Frigo, Buddy DeFranco, Harry Allen and, of course, Bucky Pizzarelli. In 1997, Pizzarelli made his Broadway debut in the musical Dream, a revue of Johnny Mercer songs. He led a 40-member live orchestra at Radio City Music Hall in Sinatra: His Voice, His World, His Way in 2003. Pizzarelli received the 2009 Ella Fitzgerald Award from the Montreal International Jazz Festival, joining a select group of past winners including Aretha Franklin, Tony Bennett and Harry Connick Jr. John has performed on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” “Conan,” and “Great Performances” as well as “Leno” and “Letterman.” His themed shows, often performed with his wife Jessica Molaskey, suggest there is no limit to Pizzarelli’s imagination or talent. The New York Times called their recent “My Generation” show “brilliant.”

Join us on Friday, September 23, as we welcome GRAMMY-winning American jazz drummer and Queens native Lenny White for an exciting evening of jazz fusion at 8PM EST.

The performance will feature White's original compositions and deliver a beautiful, surprising, and daring tribute to the late virtuoso Chick Corea- a 23-time GRAMMY-winner, DownBeat Hall of Famer, and NEA Jazz Master beloved by Flushing Town Hall audiences and jazz fans around the world.

White will be joined by Tom Guarna (guitar), Quinton Zoto (guitar), Richie Goods (bass), and Vince Evans (piano and synthesizers).

Leonard "Lenny" White III, who was born in Jamaica, Queens, became interested in music at a young age. As a self-taught drummer, White began his career playing with groups in the New York jazz scene. At only 19 years old, the young White recorded the album "Bitches Brew" with his hero Miles Davis. White is, however, best known as one of the original members of the group Return To Forever founded in 1972 by the late Chick Corea. In the late 1980s, White became part of the Jamaica Boys, a Queens-based funk trio including Marcus Miller on the bass and singer Dinky Bingham, who replaced Mark Stevens, the brother of Chaka Khan.

White is often described as one of the founding fathers of the jazz-rock movement and has emerged as one of the premier drummers in jazz. White has played and collaborated with music artists such as Miles Davis, Joe Henderson, Gato Barbieri, Gil Evans, Stan Getz, Ron Carter, Woody Shaw, Freddie Hubbard, Jaco Pastorius, Herbie Hancock, Cedar Walton, Carlos Santana, Chaka Khan, and many more. Today, he is sharing his music knowledge as part of the Music Adjunct Faculty at NYU Steinhard as Composer-in-Residence.

White has won three GRAMMY awards, received more than two GRAMMY nominations, and won one Latin GRAMMY award.

The concert begins at 8:00PM. Tickets for the performance are $40 for general admission, $32 for members, and $20 for students with valid student ID. Table packages for 2 with refreshments are available for purchase for $130 or $110 for members.