03.22.13Hyde Park Jazz Society at Room 43 Sunday Night 4/24
I'm looking forward to playing one of the best venues in Chicago this Sunday with a great quintet- Victor Garcia, Dennis Carroll, Jeff Parker and Xavier Breaker. The room and the audience are always wonderful, and we'll be playing some music from our forthcoming CD, Melba!, as well as some golden dance hits from previous records. Hope you can join us!
01.22.13Melba! featured on NPR's The JazzSet!
I'm thrilled that Melba!, commissioned by Chamber Music America's New Jazz Works program, was recently featured on NPR's The JazzSet with host Dee Dee Bridgewater. You can stream the program from their website, as well as many other excellent JazzSet concerts.
01.01.13JEN Conference This Week!
I'm headed to Atlanta this week for the JEN conference, where I'll be playing with Ba(SH) on Friday and presenting a clinic on the music of Melba Liston on Thursday. I'll also be part of a panel discussion hosted by CMA on Thursday with Rufus Reid, Christian Howes, and Jeanette Vuocolo. We'll be talking about funding opportunities and our individual CMA-funded projects. If you're at the conference, I hope you'll stop by one or more events- see the schedule page for details.
07.26.12Video and Photos from Melba! Premier
We premiered Melba! at the Woodson library on Chicago's South Side Saturday, July 21st, as part of the Chicago Jazz Festival's new Neighborhood Nights series. Couldn't have asked for a better day- great playing from everyone, wonderful audience, and an encouraging phone call from the great Randy Weston (Melba's closest collaborator and friend) that morning. Not to mention a nice late night hang afterwards... if you missed it (the concert, not the hang), check out the photos and videos at the site below and look for us in September in Knoxville, DeKalb, and at the Green Mill in Chicago.
07.18.12Chicago Tribune Article on Melba!
Howard Reich reached me in Italy for a friendly chat about the upcoming premier of Melba! His article is here:
06.04.12Melba!
I'm just finishing up Melba!, a new suite for septet in six movements dedicated to trombonist and composer/arranger Melba Liston. If you are asking yourself "Melba who?" right now, you can download a pdf press release and project bio from the Melba! section of the website or click on the link below.
The premier will take place at the Carter Woodson library on July 21st as part of the Chicago Jazz Festival’s Neighborhood Nights Series.. In September, we'll take it down to Knoxville and the Square Room, Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, and the Green Mill in Chicago. See the Schedule link for more information. After the tour we'll be in the studio recording- look for the release in 2013!
Melba! has been made possible with support from Chamber Music America’s 2011 New Jazz Works: Commissioning and Ensemble Development program funded through the generosity of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.
