NOEL FRIEDLINE & MARIA HOWELL
NOEL FREIDLINE (Bandleader/Piano)
Pianist, vocalist, writer, arranger and educator, doesn’t come close to all things Noel Freidline! As a Magna Cum Laude graduate of the University of North Florida, with a BA in Music, Noel has been the bandleader of The Noel Freidline Quintet for over 26 years. He has numerous recordings to his credit, and has performed at jazz festivals from the Jacksonville Jazz Festival (FL)…to the Montreux Jazz Festival (Switzerland)…not to mention, a 3-year stint at the world famous Bellagio in Las Vegas, as the house band, leading his NFQ, where he performed for actress Julia Robert’s surprise 35th birthday party.
Noel was named Best Jazz Musician by Charlotte Magazine in 2006 and in 2009 and was named “Best Musical Director”, by the Metrolina Theatre Association of the Carolinas. In 2011 Freidline was chosen for the Blumenthal Performing Arts Association – Center Stage Award (Charlotte, NC), in recognition of his excellence in service to the arts. And in May, 2015, Noel Freidline was inducted into the Jacksonville Jazz Hall of Fame.
MARIA HOWELL (Vocals)
For over 35 years, this petite NC native, who splits her time between both the east coast and the west coast, has developed her career as a singer, actor, and voiceover artist. Her debut acting role was the choir soloist in the Oscar Nominated film, “The Color Purple”. She has gone on to appear in hit TV shows as Lifetime’s “Army Wives”, NBC’s “Revolution”, and CBS’s “Criminal Minds”. Feature films…“The Blind Side”, “Hidden Figures”, and “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire”. As a song stylist, Maria has shared the musical stage with legendary artists as, Nancy Wilson, George Benson, Ray Charles, Earl Klugh, brothers Ronnie and Hubert Laws, and veteran actor/singer, Keith David.
Join Noel & Maria and special guest Adrian Crutchfield as they celebrate what the world needs now: Love, Sweet Love. The best of the love songs, from classics to contemporary.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Arthur Doyle was born June 26, 1944 in Birmingham, Alabama and was inspired to play music as a child after watching Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington on television. During his high school years, he began listening to Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins, and picked up gigs as a saxophonist. While still a teenager, he played with saxophonist Otto Ford, trumpeter Walter Miller and in R&B and blues groups.
After graduating high school, Doyle attended Tennessee State University in Nashville, receiving a degree in Music Education. While there he played with trumpeter Louis Smith and singers Gladys Knight and Donny Hathaway. He briefly went to Detroit, Michigan to play with hard bop trumpeter Charles Moore. He gravitated toward free jazz after playing at a Black Panthers festival.
Moving to New York City in 1968, Doyle worked with Sun Ra and Bill Dixon, and met and befriended saxophonist Pharoah Sanders and guitarist Sonny Sharrock. The following year, he recorded with Noah Howard and while in the city he met drummer Milford Graves, who encouraged him to pursue his natural affinity for pure sound. In 1977 he recorded his debut album Alabama Feeling, his first as a leader. He began playing with guitarist Rudolph Grey, and in 1980 along with Grey and drummer Beaver Harris, they became known as The Blue Humans and recorded Live NY 1980.
At around this time, Arthur began struggling with anxiety issues, and moved to Endicott, New York, where he worked as a counselor. In 1981, he moved to Paris, France where he began an association with multi-instrumentalist Alan Silva and his Celestrial Communication Orchestra, and participated in the recording of the album Desert Mirage in 1982. The following year, while in France, he was accused of rape and imprisoned. Maintaining his innocence he was pardoned and released in 1988 and during his time in prison, he wrote over 150 songs and assembled what he called the Arthur Doyle Songbook.
In the early Nineties Doyle returned to the United States, moving back to Endicott, and restarted his involvement in music. He resumed his association with Grey, playing at CBGB and releasing Arthur Doyle Plays and Sings from the Songbook Volume One on Grey’s Audible Hiss label. Over the next decade, he played and recorded with drummers Hamid Drake, Sabu Toyozumi, and Sunny Murray, among others, and formed The Arthur Doyle Electro-Acoustic Ensemble.
Saxophonist, bass clarinetist, flutist, and vocalist Arthur Doyle, who was best known for playing what he called free jazz soul music, died on January 25, 2014 in his hometown.
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DANNY JANKLOW & ELEVATION
Danny Janklow + Elevation Band ft. Katherine Ella Wood and Dennis Hamm
Danny Janklow is an acclaimed saxophonist and composer, recognized as a leading musical voice of his generation. He is celebrated for his work on the Grammy-winning “Monk’estra plays John Beasley” in 2021. His performances, rooted in themes of justice and love, have seen him share stages with icons like Stevie Wonder and Herbie Hancock.
Katherine Ella Wood, a Juilliard-trained vocalist from Miami, is also in the jazz spotlight. Known for her rich, nostalgic voice, Katherine has captivated global audiences and brought her passion for jazz to prestigious venues alongside renowned musicians. Dennis Hamm is a renowned keyboardist and pianist known for his work with Thundercat, Flying Lotus, and Kamasi Washington. His unique style blends jazz, rock, and electronic influences, making him a standout performer and a sought-after session musician in the music industry. Nicholas Clark is a producer, musical director, and bassist from Fort Worth, Texas. His credits include working with Jon Batiste, Kanye West, HER, Demi Lovato, the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Janelle Monae, and many others.
The Band: Danny Janklow, saxophone | Dennis Hamm, piano, keyboard | Nicholas Clark, bass | Katherine Ella Wood, vocals | Anthony Fung, drums
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MIMI JONES & FRIENDS
For more than two decades she’s been on the scene, bassist/vocalist/producer/label owner and now filmmaker Mimi Jones has reigned supreme, as a side woman to an impressive coterie of musicians and as a leader with three original recording projects on her own Hot Tone Music label.
Born Miriam Sullivan in New York City on March 25, 1972, and was raised in the Bronx. Jones studied Music at the Manhattan School of Music Conservatory, and has also studied with Linda McKnight, Lisle Atkinson, Barry Harris, Milt Hinton, Dr. Billy Taylor, Yusef Lateef. She has toured extensively for over 30 years throughout the seven continents, and has played with such people as Frank Ocean, Kenny Barron, DD Bridgewater, Dianne Reeves, Tia Fuller, Roy Hargrove, Terri Lyne Carrington, Beyonce, Jason Moran, Common, Black Thought and more.
Mimi Jones co-directs a multimedia interdisciplinary production with pianist ArcoIris Sandoval entitled The D.O.M.E. Experience, creating choreography, musical and visual works inspired by social injustices and environmental changes in our world. Voted #1 & #2 rising star by the DownBeat polls for 3 consecutive years, she currently works on a new project called The Black Madonna. The Berklee School of Music professor recently began collaborating with a trio called Nite Bjuti featuring Vocalist Candice Hoyes, and Sound Chemist Val Jeanty. Mimi is a recipient of the Chamber Music America Performance Plus Award 2021.
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LADIES OF JAZZ
Join one of Nashville’s favorite shows Wendy Burns Music’s Ladies of Jazz Show on Veteran’s Day Eve, the November edition features a theme of 1940’s USO tour, music of the 1940’s and beyond. Wendy Burns Music’s LADIES OF JAZZ SHOW… “It’s a Nashville Show to See”. Featuring an exciting lineup of talent, Rudy’s Jazz Room’s “Ladies of Jazz” showcase presents Nashville’s favorite female vocalists collaborating together, displaying a variety of original and distinct vocal talent, backed by some of Nashville’s best and well known musicians. Harmonies of the Andrew sisters and jokes and just a gosh darn happy time. Come join us and see the show series that people are loving and talking about.
Wendy Burns
Nashville’s 2022 Inducted member Academy of Local Musicians Hall of Fame and 2023 & 2024 Mississippi Music Foundations Best Female Jazz vocalists of the year.
Flute playing jazz vocalist Wendy Burns of Nashville TN has studied and performed songs from the 1940’s Jazz Big Band era since the age of 9 years old. She has been described as having a unique voice that fits the era. She has performed at the Grand Ole Opry and has sessioned and performed with many of the Nashville classic country greats. With a deep passion for jazz standards, and as a hopeless romantic, Wendy believes there’s beauty in staying true to the melodies as they were written. Her set list includes songs from the “Great American Songbook”, jazz standards, and a number of her fabulous original pieces that reminisce of cherished jazz classics you’ve never heard. Wendy’s influences are Judy Garland, Doris Day, Frank Sinatra, Tommy Dorsey, The Andrew Sisters, and Helen Forrest, to name a few. You will also hear some of her original tunes in vaudeville fashion featuring “Grover” her ukulele.
Mimi Clay
Newly Mimi Clay and formerly Mimi Klipstine grew up in tiny West Milton, Ohio singing with amazing pianists such as David Wion and Betty Lou Johansen. She attended Interlochen Arts Camp and then went on to graduate from the Academy. Next, she graduated with a B.F.A. in Acting with a Musical Theatre Emphasis from Wright State University and is a two-time recipient of the renowned Stephen Schwartz Scholarship awarded by The Human Race Theatre Company. She was a featured vocalist in An Evening with Leslie Uggams — a concert filmed for PBS, has performed her solo show You’re GonnaHear from Mimi at The Duplex in New York City, and has sungat The Bitter End multiple times. She’s had countless performance adventures. Some credits include She Loves Me (Ilona Ritter), Funny Girl (Fanny Brice), Anything Goes (Reno Sweeney), Guys and Dolls (Miss Adelaide), Into the Woods (Witch), and Sunday in the Park with George.
Abigail Flowers
Abigail Flowers is a Nashville-based jazz vocalist and Lanikai Ukuleles artist. Drawing on vocal influences like Ella Fitzgerald, Chet Baker, and Nat King Cole, her vocal style is smooth and precise. She frequently performs in as many languages as possible, including French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and Hawaiian.
After graduating from Belmont University with a degree in commercial vocal performance, she worked as a vocalist at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, Michigan for several seasons. Abigail has recorded in collaboration with producers like Charlie Peacock and Cody Fry, and her vocal arrangements have garnered over 1.5 million streams on Spotify.
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