SUBA TRIO

Global Rhythms: Omar Sosa & Seckou Keita SUBA Trio

The Atlantic Ocean separates Cuba and Senegal, the respective birthplaces of piano virtuoso Omar Sosa and kora master Seckou Keita, a distance diminished by their shared ancestral connection to Africa.

Recorded during lockdown and released in October 2021, Sosa and Keita’s second album SUBA is a hymn to hope, to a new dawn of compassion and real change in a post-pandemic world, a visceral reiteration of humanity’s perennial prayer for peace and unity. Joining Omar and Seckou in the studio and for live performances is the inimitable Venezuelan artist Gustavo Ovalles.

Tickets: $25.00~$50.00

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

ERIC CHACÓN QUARTET

Jazz At The J presents The Eric Chacón Quartet.

Eric Chacón is a recognized and multifaceted Venezuelan musician. From a musical family, he began his musical studies at a very early age within the renowned project “El Sistema.” Since childhood, he has had an extensive career within this institution until becoming part of the flute section of the prestigious Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of the famous director Gustavo Dudamel. For 15 years he held his position as flutist with the Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra.

Within modern music, Eric is also highly respected, having as his main quality his great interpretive sensitivity, worthy of a bilingual musician. In this musical line he has eight record plates as a soloist, playing the flute and the saxophone as well as composing and arranging his own music.

The Band: Tal Cohen ~ piano | Samuel Burgos ~ Bass | Juan Pablo Romero ~ Drums & Percussion

Musical Director: Alan Lieberman

For more information call 305-932-4200 ext 127

More Posts: ,,,,,,

TONY HIGHTOWER & EDWIN WILLIAMS

Jazz, Cool, Smooth & Soulful special guest singer/actor Tony Hightower celebrates with a special tribute to bassists Stanley Clarke, Jaco Pastorious & Ron Carter featuring bassist Edwin Williams along with a special appearance from vocalists Terry Dukes, Akua Taylor and  Kaitlyn Washington.

Lawn Seating $30 / At Gate $35
Table Seating (Seats 10) $400 (Table seating not sold at the gate on event day)

Rain or Shine Event. No Refunds
Bring your chairs or blankets
Food, beverages and small tables are allowed
No grills or large tables
Online Ticket Sales End Day Before Show.
Only credit/debit cards accepted at the Gate. NO CASH
Gates open at 6:30p

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,,

TONY HIGHTOWER

Singer/Songwriter Tony Hightower is taking up the mantle to be a bridge that ushers R&B audiences into Jazz…Real Jazz. With years of experience as a musical performer and actor with familiar roots that place him firmly within the music’s firmament, the Atlanta native  is still just getting started on this benevolent turn in his journey. And he is bringing a lot of young people with him.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,

NICOLE YARLING & MARTIN BEJERANO

Tribute to Prince.

The music of Prince is iconic and timeless­. Latin Grammy-nominated pianist Martin Bejerano and renowned vocalist and violinist Nicole Yarling present a modern, funky jazz-fusion that reimagines Prince’s “golden period.”

After the concert is an open jam. Bring your instrument!

Students be sure to score one of the limited free student tickets!

 

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,,

BRONX RISING! AJASS AND THE EAST

A look at two historic organizations in the Bronx (AJASS) and Brooklyn (The East) and their cultural and artistic legacies.

Discussion: Ajuba Bartlay~Grinage, George “Maliki” Robinson, Cinque Brath, T.S. Monk, David Antoine, and Basir MChawi.

Concert: Reggie Workman, Danny Mixon, George Braith, Antoinette Montague, T.K. Blue and Ronnie Burrage.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,

NICOLE HENRY & LEESA RICHARDS

Nicole Henry’s versatile and emotionally driven performances have wowed audiences in 20 countries, earning her numerous accolades including a Soul Train Award for “Best Traditional Jazz Performance” and “Best New Jazz Artist” by HMV Japan. Her latest album “Time to Love Again” reached #4 on the U.S. jazz radio chart, and she completed a 35-city U.S. national tour.

Leesa Richards, a Detroit native now based in Miami, began her career as a professional dancer and gained critical acclaim for her role as Mary Magdalene in the national tour of Jesus Christ Superstar. She has performed with artists like Faith Hill, Whitney Houston, and Gloria Estefan, and recorded with Barbra Streisand and Lenny Kravitz.

Limited number of free tickets for students.

After concert jam session, musicians bring your instrument

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,

OMAR SOSA & QUARTETO AMERICANOS

Cuban piano maestro Omar Sosa, a longtime Healdsburg favorite, returns to town with his Quarteto Americanos featuring Cuban bassist Ernesto Mazar Kindelán, Berkeley drummer Josh Jones, and Oakland multi-reed player Sheldon Brown, who’s spent much of the past two years touring with the Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir. Though long based in Barcelona, Sosa gained fame while living in Oakland, and his musical journey from Camagüey and Havana to Ecuador and eventually the East Bay is detailed in the new documentary Omar Sosa’s 88 Well-Tuned Drums, which screens as part of this program. An omnivorously creative figure whose music encompasses Afro-Cuban folkloric chants and European Romanticism, post-bop and hip hop, West African grooves and ambient moods, he’s released more than three dozen albums documenting collaborations with an international cast of fellow sound explorers.

5:00 PM | Documentary Screening

7:30 PM | Concert

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,

GREGORY PORTER & NAJEE

Gregory Porter is a singer, songwriter and musician. He moved to the Bedford-Stuyvesant section of Brooklyn, New York in 2004, along with his brother Lloyd and worked as a chef at Lloyd’s restaurant Bread-Stuy (now defunct), where he also performed. Porter performed at other neighborhood venues including Sista’s Place and Solomon’s Porch, and moved on to Harlem club St. Nick’s Pub, where he maintained a weekly residency. Out of this residency evolved what would become Porter’s touring band.He has twice won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album: first in 2014 for Liquid Spirit and then again in 2017 for Take Me to the Alley. 

Najee, is a smooth jazz saxophonist and flautist. After his studies at the New England Conservatory, Najee returned to New York City in the early 1980s. In 1983, he and his brother Fareed toured with Chaka Khan for the Ain’t Nobody Tour. His albums okyo Blue and Day by Day led to Najee winning two Soul Train Awards for Best Jazz Artist in 1991 and 1993.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,

MONTY ALEXANDER

Grammy nominated pianist Monty Alexander was born on June 6, 1944 (D-Day!) in Kingston, Jamaica and is one of today’s most sought-after pianists, touring the world relentlessly with various projects, delighting a global audience drawn to his vibrant personality and soulful message. He began playing the piano at the age of four. Monty is such a virtuoso on his instrument that he can express each of his improvisational ideas at any time. Swinging style, combined with his vitality and subtlety, is defined by his creativity, rhythmic strength and clearly accentuated sounds. Even Frank Sinatra commented “this guy is like dynamite”. In a career spanning seven decades, he has built a reputation exploring the worlds of American jazz, popular song, and the music of his native Jamaica, finding in each a sincere spirit of musical expression.

His musical collaborations span multiple genres and styles. His projects have been as varied as assisting Natalie Cole in her tribute album to her father, Nat “King” Cole in 1991 (that album, “Unforgettable”, won seven Grammy awards), performing George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” under the direction of Bobby McFerrin at the Verbier Festival in Switzerland, and recording the piano track for the film score of Clint Eastwood’s “Bird”, a movie about the life of jazz titan Charlie Parker. Monty has performed and recorded with artists from every corner of the musical universe: Frank Sinatra, Ray Brown, Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins, Clark Terry, Victor Gaskin, Milt Jackson, Ernie Wilkins, Herb Ellis, Jeff Hamilton, Quincy Jones, Ernest Ranglin, Barbara Hendricks, Sly Dunbar, and Robbie Shakespeare, among many others. In 2000 and 2018 Monty Alexander was awarded the title of Commander in the Order of Distinction by the Jamaican government for outstanding services to Jamaica in his capacity as worldwide music ambassador. Alexander maintains a rigorous touring schedule worldwide, from jazz clubs to concert halls and playing at Jazz Festivals from Switzerland to South Africa, Japan and Australia.

To date Monty Alexander has recorded over 75 albums as a leader. Shortly before his 80th birthday this upcoming June, Monty and his trio bring the 49th International Jazzfestival Bern to a close – on a high note!

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,,

ROBERT GAMBARINI

The Band: Roberta Gambarini, vocal | Bill Easley, saxophone | Cyrus Chestnut, piano | Ameen Saleem, bass | Lewis Nash, drums

Roberta Gambarini began singing and performing at the age of 17 in jazz clubs around Northern Italy. In 1997 she worked with French Hammond organ player Emmanuel Bex touring jazz clubs throughout Italy. Shortly after she moved to New York City, and has since been performing with musicians like Jimmy Heath, Richard Wyands, Curtis Fuller, Hank Jones, Thelonious Monk, Jr., Roy Hargrove, Benny Bailey, Ben Riley, Phil Woods, Ron Carter, Larry Willis, Howard Johnson, Russell Malone, Christian McBride, Jeff Hamilton, Jesse Davis, Ronnie Mathews, Alvin Queen and many more.

Born in 1963, Cyrus Chestnut started his musical career at the age of six. He worked as a sideman with some of the leading players in the music including Wynton Marsalis, Freddie Hubbard, Branford Marsalis, Frank Morgan, Lauryn Hill, Chick Corea, Dizzy Gillespie, Jon Hendricks, Joe Williams, Betty Carter, Freddy Cole, Bette Midler, Jimmy Scott, Isaac Hayes and Kevin Mahogany. As a leader, Cyrus has released 24 albums.

Bill Easley has had a diversified career as a professional musician and started playing professionally with his parents at the age of thirteen. He has played with George Benson, Isaac Hayes, Ruth Brown, Jimmy McGriff, Louie Bellson, Wynton Marsalis, Illinois Jacquet, Ron Carter, Frank Foster, Mercer Ellington, Warren Vache and many more. Bill has released seven recording as a leader.

Ameen Saleem is an allround artist. A native of Washington DC, since the start of his career his great compositional and technical skills have been instantly recognized. Although mainly grounded in jazz, Saleem’s music cannot be strictly defined as pertaining to a particular genre but, rather, as a uniquely personal style that spans a vast musical geography.

Universally recognized as one of the great drummers in jazz history, Lewis Nash’ illustrious career now spans over four decades. Nash is one of jazz’s most recorded musicians, appearing on over 500 recordings including 10 Grammy winners and numerous Grammy nominees. Nash toured, recorded and performed with many of jazz’s most celebrated icons, and his resume reads like a “who’s who” of jazz royalty.

Seating is limited. It is highly recommended buying your ticket in advance.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,,

TARUS MATEEN

Tarus Mateen, a child prodigy on bass, went on a tour of the Caribbean when he was twelve years old. The double-bass and electric bassist, who works in jazz, pop, and R&B idioms.

Receiving his bachelor’s degree from Morehouse College, then relocated to New York City in 1988. He worked with Betty Carter, Marlon Jordan, Roy Hargrove, Eddie Harris, Kenny Burrell, Milt Jackson, Mark Whitfield, Tim Warfield, Rodney Kendrick, Terence Blanchard, Kenny Barron, Bobbi Humphrey, Marc Cary, Stefon Harris, Greg Osby, Bernard Purdie, Nasheet Waits, Stanley Cowell, Mark Shim, Jacky Terrasson, Michael Marcus, Logan Richardson, and Jason Moran among others.

The Band: Tarus Mateen ~ Bass |  Colin Chambers ~ Piano | Tyler Leak ~ Drums | Clarence Ward III ~ Horns | Tamika Love Jones ~ Vocal

 

More Posts: ,,,,,,,

HERBIE HANCOCK

There are few artists in the music industry who have had more influence on acoustic and electronic jazz and R&B than Herbie Hancock. As Miles Davis said, “Herbie was the step after Bud Powell and Thelonious Monk, and I haven’t heard anybody yet who has come after him.”

Now in the sixth decade of his professional life, Hancock remains where he has always been: at the forefront of world culture, technology, business, and music. In addition to being recognized as a legendary pianist and composer, he has been an integral part of every popular music movement since the 1960s. As a member of the Miles Davis Quintet that pioneered a groundbreaking sound in jazz, he also developed new approaches on his own recordings.

Hancock is currently in the studio at work on a new album. He is a true icon of modern music. Throughout his explorations, he has transcended limitations and genres while maintaining his unmistakable voice, and he continues to amaze audiences across the globe.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,,

EUGENIE JONES

Eugenie Jones was not supposed to be a jazz singer. She graduated with an MBA in marketing, and her post-graduate career took her deep within the nonprofit sector as a marketing communications executive. Her mother, a soprano gospel singer, was the singer of the family, and when cancer claimed her life, Jones managed her grief by setting out to see if she could carry forward that part of her Mom’s life.

Jones puts her Marketing MBA and business savvy to work producing music legacy events that commemorate Seattle’s African American musical history, including the Jackson Street Jazz Walk and, in partnership with legendary Crusaders drummer Stix Hooper, the Celebrating Ernestine Anderson Tribute series. These events go beyond entertainment by raising funds for Seattle nonprofits such as the Rotary Boys & Girls Club, the Central Area Senior Center, and the Northwest Harvest Food Bank. Jones’s community efforts were recognized in 2023 when she received the Jazz Hero Award from the Jazz Journalists Association.

Eugenie Jones, vocals
Peter Adams, piano
Bob Antolin, guitar and sax
Jonathan Green, bass
Ronnie Bishop, drums

More Posts: ,,,,,,,

GREGORY PORTER & THE BAYLOR PROJECT

Acclaimed singer-songwriter Gregory Porter was raised in Bakersfield, California, and he cites the Bakersfield Southern Gospel sound as well as his mother’s Nat King Cole record collection as fundamental influences on his own sound. In 2013 he released his breakout Blue Note debut Liquid Spirit, which sold more than a million albums and earned Porter his first Grammy Award, with NPR declaring him “America’s next great jazz singer.”

His 2016 follow-up Take Me to the Alley won Porter his second Grammy for Best Vocal Jazz Album and firmly established him as his generation’s most soulful jazz singer-songwriter. His 2021 release Still Rising collects new songs, covers, duets, and a selection of his much-loved favorite songs.

Featuring Jean Baylor and Marcus Baylor, The Baylor Project is a duo built on love, family, faith, culture, and community. Their debut, The Journey, garnered two Grammy nominations. Their second album, Generations (2021), earned the duo its first NAACP Image Award win for Outstanding Jazz Album-Vocal and its fourth Grammy nomination.

Marcus and Jean’s combined musicianship is unmatched. Their dynamic performances are soulful to the bone. The Baylors will raise you up and inspire you to clap along with them to a swinging mid-tempo tune. Yet, at a moments’ notice, you may be moved to tears when they change the atmosphere with a spiritual song that will stir the emotions.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,,

MALA WALDRON

Mala Waldron is joined by bassist James Cammack and drummer Wayne Henderson.

They will be performing a series of her Mom’s favorites from Duke Ellington to Nat King Cole and much more.

Seating is limited.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,,,

SUBA TRIO

Omar Sosa ~ Piano | Seckou Keita ~ Kora | Gustavo Ovalles ~ Percussion

Seven-time Grammy-nominated pianist Omar Sosa joins kora maestro Seckou Keita and percussionist Gustavo Ovalles for an all-star collaboration.
The Atlantic Ocean separates Senegal and Cuba, the respective birthplaces of kora maestro Seckou Keita and piano virtuoso Omar Sosa, a distance diminished by their shared ancestral connection to Africa. In the summer of 2012, Omar and Seckou were invited to perform together in London by their mutual friend, the drummer Marque Gilmore. “Seckou arrived just before the gig, took out his kora and started playing,” Omar remembers, “and I clicked with him like we had been playing together all our lives.”
Seckou loved Omar for his “high level of musical spirituality.” Omar saw in Seckou a rare ability to blend, collaborate, but never lose his identity. Both men started their careers as drummers, so the melodies grooved. For this collaboration they’re joined by master percussionist Gustavo Ovalles, after their critically acclaimed Tiny Desk performance together.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,

CYRUS CHESTNUT

Ellington 125 | Duke Ellington Sacred Concert

Cyrus Chestnut is a jazz pianist, composer and producer. In 2006, Josh Tyrangiel, music critic for Time, wrote: “What makes Chestnut the best jazz pianist of his generation is a willingness to abandon notes and play space.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Chestnut worked with Wynton Marsalis, Terence Blanchard, Donald Harrison, and other bandleaders. He joined the band of jazz vocalist Betty Carter in the early 1990s and appeared on her 1992 album It’s Not About the Melody. That same year, he recorded his first albums as a bandleader, The Nutman Speaks and Nut. Chesnut has continued to work and record as a bandleader into the 21st century.

In 2006, Telarc released Genuine Chestnut, his first album for the label. On it he is accompanied by his regular trio of Michael Hawkins, bass and Neal Smith, drums. Additional artists on this session include Russell Malone, guitar and Steven Kroon, percussion. It includes jazz interpretations of some well-known pop numbers of the past half-century, including “If”, the early 1970s soft-rock ballad by Bread. “This song has been with me ever since the sixth grade,” Chestnut recalled, “I had to play it for my English teacher’s wedding. I’ve played it in many and various contexts. I actually played it in a Top 40 band when I was just out of school. A lot of time has passed, but then recently I just started thinking about it again.” Chestnut’s own “Mason–Dixon Line” is one of the album’s high points, a joyful bebop number.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,

TYRONE JACKSON

The name Tyrone Jackson is the quintessential jazz piano player. His boundless creativity coupled with harmonic mastery, utilizes the piano as a blank canvas.  Jackson is nationally recognized and has traveled the world as a solo artist and sideman.

As a composer, Jackson has composed original music for Pulitizer Prize winning author Natasha Tretheway’s book of poems “Native Guard” turned theatrical play, Pearl Clege’s play, “Tell Me My Dream”, “Ethel” and this year’s Alliance Theater production of “Nick’s Flamingo Grill.” Jackson has recorded 4 Albums—“Dedicated”, “Another Voyage”, “Melody In Nede”, and new release “From The Mind Of.”

Lavahi is a scholar-artist on a mission to better society from the inside out. Through her music, scholarship, and performance, LAVAHI is building a platform to nourish the heart and mind, empathize our human experiences, and vibe together. As a daughter of jazz, the culture heavily informs her ideology and influences her sound. Acrobatic scatting, compelling chords, and the art of improvisation evoke that classic traditional aesthetic and set her contemporary sound apart from the norm of mainstream neo-soul, hip hop, and R&B. And with her satisfying blend of analog and digital sounds, LAVAHI shows that the lineage of Black sound is not linear but ever folding and stretching.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,

LEESA RICHARDS QUARTET & JEAN CAZE QUARTET

As a part of Miami’s vibrant music scene, singer/songwriter Leesa Richards grew up in music-rich Detroit and started showing an inclination towards the arts at a very early age. “My parents listened to a lot of jazz and I would record myself over and over singing along to Nancy Wilson records,” she says. But when she saw Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, she knew she wanted to be a dancer. She graduated from University of North Carolina School of the Arts with a degree in dance and began her career on stage performing with a variety of dance companies.

She began honing her vocal chops with soul greats Gerald Austin and Peabo Bryson and contemporary soul maverick Dionne Farris. Her first world tour was as a dancer with legendary singer Whitney Houston after which she combined her love for music and dance to earn the role of Mary Magdalene in the national tour of the Broadway musical, Jesus Christ Superstar, earning critical acclaim which led to featured performances throughout the US and Europe.

Renowned jazz trumpeter Jean Caze, stands as a prominent figure in today’s jazz scene. His magnetic performances have graced stages alongside icons such as Herbie Hancock, Aretha Franklin, Mariah Carey, Al Jarreau, Roy Hargrove, Arturo Sandoval, and George Duke, among others. Currently serving as the featured soloist for Michael Bublé worldwide, Jean’s musical journey traces back to his roots in Queens, NY, where his passion ignited at the age of nine. By his senior year, he showcased his talent on national television with “Chicago” on NBC.

Jean’s dedication to his craft earned him scholarships, accolades, and widespread recognition, culminating in a Bachelor’s degree from Manhattan School of Music and a Master’s from Florida International University. Noteworthy achievements include securing second place in the 2007 Thelonius Monk International Jazz Trumpet Competition and claiming victory in both the 2004 National Trumpet Jazz Competition and the 2006 International Trumpet Guild Jazz Competition.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,

NNENNA FREELON

Vocalist, composer, producer, arranger and 7 time Grammy nominee Nnenna Freelon brings her talent to the Hayti Heritage Center on the campus of North Carolina Central University.

She is joined by her ensemble including bassist John Brown, the NCCU Jazz Ensemble under the direction of Robert Trowers, and the NCCU Vocal Jazz Ensemble directed by Dr. Lenora Helms Hammonds.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,,

MYRNA CLAYTON & WEST SIDE WINDS JAZZ ORCHESTRA

America’s Songbird Myrna Clayton joins Big Band Jazz with the West Side Winds Jazz Orchestra, conducted by Jody Mayfield. Special guest vocalist during the  evening performance of is the Enchanting Cheryl Johnson. Presented by Asa Music Production, Inc celebrating Jazz Appreciation Month.

Senior 55+ discount tickets online ONLY. ***Not sold at the door event day.

Fees apply to all tickets

Free entry to handicap patrons and caregivers.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,

MALA WALDRON QUARTET

Year of ALICE, a Jazz Appreciation Month Special features the quartet performing the music of Alice Coltrane.

Mala Waldron is a native of NYC whose first paid gig was playing keys and singing back-up vocals with a local R&B band, “Liquid Pleasure” at the Elk’s club at age 15.  Shortly after joining, the band was signed to RCA Records(Midland International.)  She later enrolled at SUNY, Old Westbury study African-American Music with Makanda Ken McIntyre, Richard Harper, Andrei Strobert, Warren Smith and Amina Claudine Myers, earning a Bachelors Degree.

Mala’s music career has taken her all over the world doing performances in such countries as Japan, France, Italy, Belgium, Russia, Belarus & China.  She has performed on some of NYC’s most prestigious stages, including the Iridium Jazz Club, the Blue Note, the Jazz Standard, the 55 Bar, Brooklyn’s BAM Cafe, and at the Kennedy Center (Millennium Stage in Washington D.C.

She has done numerous international tours and festivals, including, Hennessy-Moet Asian XOXO Jazz Tour (with shows in China, Taiwan & Malaysia), the Catania Jazz Fest, Corinaldo Jazz Fest and Farfa Voice Fest (Sabina) as well as festivals in the U.S., a highlight of which was the Annual Diet Coke Women in Jazz Festival (JALC) opening for Patrice Rushen.

As an educator, Mala has done vocal and composing workshops in Italy, and participated in the WBGO Kids Jazz Concert Series lat the Newark Museum and Jitterbugs – Jazz for Kids (Jazz Forum Arts.) She was a featured performer on the Chapman Stage at the first annual Coltrane Day Festival.  She was featured in the recently published book, Giving Birth to Sound: Women in Creative Music (Renate da Rin and & William Parker editors) and can be seen in the documentary film, ‘The Girls in the Band,” directed by Judy Chaikin.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,

JAZZMEIA HORN

Guest vocalist and multi-Grammy Award nominee Jazzmeia Horn will perform with the North Carolina Central University  Jazz Ensemble, directed by Robert Trowers and the Vocal Jazz Ensemble, directed by Dr. Lenora Helm Hammonds.

More Posts: ,,,,,,,,

« Older Posts       
© Notorious Jazz 2026