The Col’train Returns Home to Philadelphia to Close Out the Kimmel Center’s ‘Mellon Jazz Up Close’ Series
Performance Features Special Guest Ravi Coltrane on Saxophone
May 2, 2005
Ravi Coltrane
The performance will also feature a new work commissioned by The Philadelphia Chapter of the American Composers Forum and the Kimmel Center. This year’s winner is the composition "El Optimista" by Philadelphia composer and pianist Bill Cunliffe. Kimmel Center Up Close Jazz Series Advisor Danilo Perez chose the work.
The American Composers Forum (est. 1973) is a national organization devoted to the service of composers and creators of original music. ACF Philadelphia’s commissioning programs have been responsible for dozens of new works by local composers since 1997. This commission is a collaboration between ACF Philadelphia and the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts.
Mellon Jazz Up Close: Take the Col’train performances are taped by Temple University’s public radio station, WRTI, for broadcast at a later date.
Tickets for Philadelphia on May 14 are $35 and $40 and can be purchased by calling 215-893-1999, or online at www.kimmelcenter.org.
Guided by his love for jazz, the extraordinary Danilo Pérez has been making his mark on contemporary music since the 1980s, when he performed with the likes of Jon Hendricks and Paquito D’Rivera while completing his degree in jazz composition at the Berklee College of Music. After first attracting the spotlight as the youngest member of Gillespie’s United Nations Orchestra between 1989-1992, Pérez began to focus on his own ensembles in1993, and released several albums to critical acclaim. The first Latin member of Wynton Marsalis' band, and the first jazz musician to perform with the Panamanian Symphony Orchestra, Pérez’s numerous awards and honors over the past decade include: three Grammy nominations; three Boston Music Awards for Best Album; a Jazz Journalist’s Association nomination for Pianist of the Year; and “album of the year” recognition from several of the country’s leading publications, including The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune and Billboard. While serving as the Artistic Advisor for the Kimmel Center’s Mellon Jazz Up Close: Take the Col’train series, Pérez also serves as the Ambassador of Goodwill for Unicef, Cultural Ambassador of Panama, and President and Founder of the Panama Jazz Festival.
A respected insider within the bebop and Latin communities who has also made a name for himself as a composer, trumpeter Brian Lynch got his start with alto master Charles McPherson in 1980, shortly after he received his degree from the Wisconsin Conservatory School of Music. Following a move to New York, McPherson formed associations with many respectable musicians in the Jazz and Latin scenes (including legendary cantante Hector LaVoe, and the final edition of Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers) before recording his first album as a leader in 1986. On his many recordings that have since followed, Lynch has continued to reflect the panoramic range of interests that influence his working life as a musician, including collaborations with many Pan-American oriented artists. Lynch’s latest recordings have also paid homage to trumpet lineage, spanning Dizzy Gillespie to Woody Shaw. Eager to teach other up-and-coming jazz trumpeters, Lynch currently holds faculty positions at New York University and the North Netherlands Conservatory, and has taught at other major institutes of learning.
A legend in the making who recorded a Grammy-nominated tribute album to John Coltrane in 1998, trombonist Conrad Herwig got his start in the 1980s, performing with musical ensembles like the Clark Terry Big Band, the Buddy Rich Orchestra, Slide Hampton’s World of Trombones, and Mario Bauza's Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra, among others. He has also performed as a leader in many small groups, producing a vast array of albums that have earned him rave reviews in jazz magazines and critic’s polls. An alumnus of three universities with a Master of Arts in Jazz Studies, Herwig is an in-demand jazz educator who has conducted master classes, seminars and workshops at many major musical institutions around the world. His teaching honors include: grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, status as a Professor of Jazz Trombone, Jazz Improvisation, and Jazz Composition and Arranging at Rutgers University; and status on the Board of Directors of the International Trombone Association.
The son of two jazz musicians (his mother is keyboardist Alice Coltrane), tenor and saxophonist, bandleader and composer Ravi Coltrane grew up listening to popular ‘70s and ‘80s music long before venturing into the jazz scene in the late 1980s. A quest to know more about his father, who passed away when he was just an infant, piqued his curiosity and led to a transformation in the way that he thought about music. As he went through school at the California Institute of Art, Ravi expanded his list of sax influences to greats like Sonny Rollins, and was daunted by the heavy aura of other jazzmen he was investigating. After playing a few premature gigs around home, his big break came during a two-year stint with Elvin Jones, the man behind the classic John Coltrane Quartet. Learning how to separate his own name from his father’s continued to be part of Ravi’s career even as he took on several key sideman gigs and made a couple of CDs in the years to follow. Today, his extensive discography includes four critically acclaimed recordings as a leader (including In Flux in February of 2005), and more than 30 recordings as a sideman. Ravi also launched his own recording company, RKM Music, and was the driving force behind his mother’s return to recording after a 26-year hiatus.
Grammy nominated composer, arranger and jazz pianist Bill Cunliffe is gathering nationwide attention with his innovative and swinging recordings and compositions. He first fell under the influence of jazz by studying at Duke University with the great pianist Mary Lou Williams. He received his masters from the Eastman School of Music, and won several Down Beat Awards for his big band and orchestral pieces.
After teaching at Central State University, in Wilberforce, Ohio, he toured as pianist and arranger with the Buddy Rich Big Band, and worked with Frank Sinatra. He then played and toured with many legends of jazz, including Ray Brown, Joe Henderson, Freddie Hubbard, Benny Golson, James Moody, and Joshua Redman. He currently works with his own trio, and sextet, the Clayton Brothers Quintet, trumpeter Terell Stafford, and flutist Holly Hofmann. Bill was the 1989 winner of the $10,000 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Piano Award, and has received stipends from the National Endowment for the Arts. His three albums for Warner/Discovery Records all charted in nationwide jazz polls. His book "Jazz Keyboard Toolbox, " published by Alfred Publications, is fast becoming a standard reference book in jazz. His big band compositions are published by Kendor Music and the University of Northern Colorado Jazz Press. Bill is a Baldwin Pianos artist, and was Marian McPartland's guest on her famed "Piano Jazz" radio show in June 1998.
As a composer and arranger, Bill’s music has been performed by numerous orchestras, including the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, the Illinois Philharmonic, the Reading (PA) Symphony and the Henry Mancini Institute Orchestra. Among his works are a three movement "Romantic" Fantasy for piano and orchestra, a festive overture, "Viva Mexico," and numerous works for big band, orchestra, and choir. Recently, the Rodger Fox Big Band of New Zealand released a CD of Bill's jazz orchestra compositions. He is currently composer in residence at All Saints Episcopal Church, in Pasadena, California, and combo director at the Henry Mancini Institute. Bill's latest projects include a groundbreaking audiophile recording, "Live at Bernies", with bassist Darek Oles and drummer Joe La Barbera done both to enhanced CD and to 12 inch/ 45 rpm vinyl (!!!) at the famous Bernie Grundman mastering facility in Hollywood for the Groove Note label. In addition, Azica records has recently released the Bill Cunliffe Sextet recording "Live at Rocco" and "Just Duet vol.2" with flutist Holly Hofmann. Tickets for Philadelphia on May 14 in Perelman Theater are $35 and $40. (Additional fees may apply) 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 Up Close: Take the Col’train
Philadelphia
Ravi Coltrane, saxophone
Danilo Perez, piano
Conrad Herwig, trombone
Brian Lynch, trumpet
Mario Rivera, baritone saxophone
Luis Perdomo, piano
Ruben Rodriguez, bass
Robby Ameen, drums
Pedro Martinez, percussion and vocals
Saturday, May 14
7:30pm | Perelman Theater
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