Versatile Jazz Performer and Composer Fred Hersch to Perform on Kimmel Center Mellon Jazz Series
Hersch and Vocalists Kurt Elling and Kate McGarry Joined by 10-Piece Ensemble in Musical Exploration of Poetry of Walt Whitman in LEAVES OF GRASS
February 15, 2005
Fred Hersch and Kurt Elling
The program will feature composer Fred Hersch and The Fred Hersch Ensemble performing a unique musical evening based on the timeless poetry of Walt Whitman. Hersch will be joined by vocalists Kurt Elling and Kate McGarry.
The performance is the third in the Kimmel Center’s Mellon Jazz Specials series. The remaining performance in the series includes the David Brubeck Quartet sharing the stage with the Marian McPartland Duo on March 16.
Tickets for Leaves of Grass on March 12 are $38 and $43 and can be purchased by calling 215-893-1999 or online at www.kimmelcenter.org.
Composer and pianist Fred Hersch, recognized as one of the leading jazz artists in the world today, has a nearly 30-year career under his belt that includes such honors as the 2003 Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship for composition, two Grammy nominations for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, grants from The National Endowment for the Arts and Meet the Composer, four Gay and Lesbian American Music Awards, and four composition residencies at the prestigious MacDowell Colony. When Hersch created the large-scale setting of Whitman’s Leaves of Grass for two voices, it debuted in 2003 to just a handful of cities. After another brief tour and the creation of a Leaves of Grass CD in 2004, the tour’s seven stops in 2005 also includes an appearance at Carnegie Hall.
Jazz vocalists Kurt Elling and Kate McGarry will share the challenging vocal roles. Six-time Grammy nominee Elling, who is also experienced in band leading, composing, arranging, and writing screenplays and poetry, has released 6 albums on the famous Blue Note record label. Elling is also the Vice Chair of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Kate McGarry, who has toured with the Boston vocal ensemble One O’Clock Jump and appeared with the Hank Jones All-Star Quartet, is the first jazz vocalist to be signed to the prestigious Palmetto Records label. McGarry has seven film and soundtrack credits for composing and/or performing, and has also released two CDs to critical acclaim. The instrumentalists of the Fred Hersch Ensemble are Ralph Alessi, trumpet; Mike Christianson, trombone; Bruce Williamson, clarinet/sax/bass; Tony Malaby, sax; Greg Heffernan, cello; Drew Gress, bass; and John Hollenbeck, percussion.
The Washington Post calls Leaves of Grass "golden... an eloquently orchestrated celebration of Walt Whitman's poetry, vision and, above all else, humanity," and notes that "Hersch and a nine-member group turned a Whitman's sampler into a fairly seamless and frequently inspired evening of chamber-like jazz." The Charleston Post and Courier noted, "Most of the players were multi-instrumentalists, switching often and creating different colors over the course of the program."
Tickets for Leaves of Grass on March 12 at the Perelman Theater are $38 and $43. Tickets can be purchased by calling 215-893-1999, online at www.kimmelcenter.org or at the Kimmel Center box office, open daily from 10am to 6pm and later on performance evenings. For group sales call 215-790-5883.
A limited number of $10 tickets are available for every Kimmel Center Presents performance at the Kimmel Center. Tickets go on sale the day of the event and can be purchased at the Kimmel Center box office beginning at 5:30pm for evening performances and 11:30am for matinees.
Sponsors of the 2004-2005 Kimmel Center Presents season include Mellon Financial Corporation, University of Pennsylvania Health System, Bank of America, Sovereign Bank, Wachovia Foundation, The American Express Company, Verizon Foundation, Bucks County Coffee, and SEPTA, the Commuter’s Choice. Special Student Matinees at the Kimmel Center are generously supported by Merck & Co., Inc. American Airlines is the Official Airline of Kimmel Center Presents. Toyota is the Official Vehicle of Kimmel Center Presents Jazz and World Pop programming. In-kind support is generously provided by Deloitte and Southern Wine and Spirit.
KIMMEL CENTER PRESENTS
Mellon Jazz Specials
Saturday, March 12
7:30pm | Perelman Theater
Fred Hersch, piano and composer
Kurt Elling, vocals
Kate McGarry, vocals
Fred Hersch Ensemble:
Ralph Alessi, trumpet
Mike Christianson, trombone
Bruce Williamson, clarinet/sax/bass
Tony Malaby, sax
Greg Heffernan, cello
Drew Gress, bass
John Hollenbeck, percussion
PART ONE
A Riddle Song (Overture)
Song of the Universal
Whoever You Are Holding Me Now In Hand
Song Of Myself
PART TWO
The Mystic Trumpeter
At The Close of the Day (Instrumental)
To You / Perfections
The Sleepers
Spirit That Form'd This Scene
On The Beach At Night Alone (Interlude)
After The Dazzle Of Day
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