John Pizzarelli and Swing 7 Share the Stage with the Django Reinhardt Festival as Part of the Kimmel Center’s Mellon Jazz Fridays Series November 2
October 18, 2007
"A master guitarist, connoisseur of songs, mimic and storyteller, he embodies the concept of fluidity: everything comes out of everything else." —New York Times
John Pizzarelli and the Swing 7 set the standard for stylish modern jazz at the Kimmel Center sharing the stage with the gypsy jazz music of Django Reinhardt on Friday, November 2, 2007 at 8pm. Among the prime contemporary interpreters of the Great American Songbook, Pizzarelli’s reinvention of classic standards, late-night ballads, and inventive guitar playing invite classic pop, jazz and swing influences. Compared to the likes of Nat "King" Cole and Frank Sinatra, he will be performing selections from his latest release, Dear Mr. Sinatra, his tribute CD to "Ol' Blue Eyes" with classic standards like "I've Got You Under My Skin" and "Nice and Easy." The Django Reinhardt Festival celebrates the 100th birthday of Stéphane Grappelli performing a branch of gypsy jazz that fuses Eastern European folk traditions with Django swing.
This concert is the second concert in the Mellon Jazz Fridays Series scheduled for the 2007/2008 season. The next concert in the series will be The T.S. Monk Sextet and The Mingus Big Band on Friday, February 22, 2008 at 8pm.
Tickets for John Pizzarelli are $74, $64, $59, $46 and $26 and 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. (Additional fees may apply.) 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 2.5 hours prior to curtain time and 11:30am for matinees. Limit one ticket per person.
John Pizzarelli recently launched "Radio Deluxe with John Pizzarelli," a nationally syndicated radio program co-hosted with his wife, Broadway star Jessica Molaskey. He was recently featured opposite Donna Summer, Jon Secada and Roberta Flack on the Grammy Award winning CD, Songs From The Neighborhood: The Music of Mr. Rogers. In addition to being a bandleader, radio personality and solo performer, Pizzarelli has been a special guest on recordings for major pop names such as James Taylor, Natalie Cole, Tom Wopat, Rickie Lee Jones and Dave Von Ronk, as well as leading jazz artists like Rosemary Clooney, Ruby Braff, Johnny Frigo, Buddy DeFranco, Harry Allen and, of course, Bucky Pizzarelli. He has performed on the country's most popular national television shows such as "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," "The Late Show with David Letterman," "Live with Regis & Kelly," "The Tony Danza Show," among others. Some of his most recent CDs include Knowing You (Telarc 2005), Bossa Nova ((Telarc 2004), and Live at Birdland (Telarc 2003).
Born on April 6, 1960, in Paterson, New Jersey, John Pizzarelli has been playing guitar since age six, following in the tradition of his father, guitar legend Bucky Pizzarelli. Through his father’s work, Pizzarelli was exposed to all the great jazz music of the era, from Erroll Garner and Les Paul to Django Reinhardt, and began playing with his father at age 20, before going out on his own.
The Django Reinhardt Festival pays tribute to French-based jazz guitarist and gypsy-bred Django Reinhardt’s collaboration with violinist Stéphane Grappelli. In 1934, the duo had formed the "Quintette du Hot Club de France," including bassist Louis Vola, Reinhardt’s brother Joseph Reinhardt and Roger Chaput on guitar. The band created the first concept of "lead guitar" with Reinhardt, and backing "rhythm guitar" used as percussive sounds. After surviving World War II, Reinhardt rejoined Grappelli in England, and went on tour to the United States, opening for Duke Ellington and playing at Carnegie Hall. After "going electric," the results were not as much liked by fans and he returned to France with broken dreams. In 1948, Reinhardt recruited a few Italian jazz players (on bass, piano and snare drum) and recorded one of his most acclaimed contributions, "Djangology," once again with Stéphane Grappelli on violin. On this recording, he returned to his roots playing acoustic guitar.
Reinhardt was known by his band, fans, and managers to be extremely unpredictable. He would often skip sold-out concerts to simply "walk to the beach" or "smell the dew." His music has been greatly admired by Latin rocker Carlos Santana, blues legend B.B. King, the Grateful Dead’s Jerry Garcia, Jimi Hendrix, among others. His influence can also be found in pop culture including the idol of 1930’s guitarist Emmet Ray played by Sean Penn in Woody Allen’s film Sweet and Lowdown (1999); the song "Minor Swing" featured in Chocolat with Johnny Depp during the river party scene; and the soundtrack of many films including the oracle scene in The Matrix, The Aviator, and Gattaca, among many others.
Composer and jazz performer Dorado Schmitt formed the Dorado Trio in 1978 with Gino Reinhardt (double-bass) and Hono Winterstein (rhythmic guitar). Schmitt’s compositions were greatly influenced by the gypsy music of Django Reinhardt, while also allowing for experimentation with swing, Gypsy waltz, bossa nova, and flamenco influences. He has performed at concert venues such as the Garnier Opera in France, the Django Reinhardt Festival of Samois, and Birdland in New York. The trio’s releases include Gypsy réunion (1993) and Parisienne (1994).
Samson Schmitt made his debut as a guitarist at the age of 12 at the International Jazz Festival in Munich, Germany, after receiving training from his father, Dorado Schmitt. From 1990 to 1999 Schmitt played in the Dorado Schmitt Quintet, thereafter forming his own group, the Samson Schmitt Quintet, from 2000 to 2001. In November 2002, he performed at the Django Reinhardt Festival at Birdland in New York.
Florin Niculescu grew up in Bucharest, and was trained to play the violin at the George Enescu Academy of Music in Bucharest. He has collaborated with various musicians including Babik Reinhardt, Biréli Lagréne, Jimmy Rosenberg and Bucky Pizzarelli, and performed at the Django Reinhardt Festival, a concert later released as a recorded album. Niculescu is currently involved in a new project with Biréli Lagréne that involves the reworking of Django Reinhardt’s music.
Ludovic Beier’s improvisational skills have given new meaning to the playing of the accordion for Django and Swing Jazz music. He has his own band Ludovic Beier Quartet, and has performed at some of the top jazz festivals throughout Europe with musicians such as Angelo Debarre, Dorado Schmitt, and Florin Niculescu.
Bassist and composer Brian Torff is currently the Music Program Director at Fairfield University. A featured bass soloist in his seven-piece band, Thunderstick, he performs in jazz festivals throughout the United States and has founded the Fairfield University Summer Jazz Camp.
Joining the band is transplanted Philadelphian Kruno Spisic who has often appeared on the Kimmel’s Free in the Plaza series and makes his Verizon Hall debut with the Django ensemble.
Kimmel Center Presents 2007/2008 season is sponsored by Citi. Support for the Mellon Jazz Series comes from The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation. The Great Orchestra Series is supported by ARC Wheeler. Additional support is provided by the University of Pennsylvania Health System and American Express. American Airlines is the Official Airline of Kimmel Center Presents. Toyota is the Official Vehicle of Kimmel Center Presents Jazz and World Pop programming.
The Kimmel Center also receives support from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, The William Penn Foundation, The Wachovia Foundation, Verizon Foundation, PNC Foundation, the Philadelphia Chapter of the American Guild of Organists, and the Philadelphia Music Project and Dance Advance, Initiatives of The Pew Charitable Trust administered by The University of the Arts. In-kind support is generously provided by Deloitte. NBC-10 is a Media Partner for Kimmel Center Presents, and additional media sponsors include WDAS, WRTI, WJJZ, Afro-Pop, WXPN and WXPN's Kids Corner 20th Anniversary.
Free In The Plaza programming and subsidized tickets offered to the community and social service groups for $10 are made possible through the Wachovia Gateway to the Arts Community Access Program, supported by a generous grant from Wachovia Foundation.
KIMMEL CENTER PRESENTS SPONSORED BY CITI
Friday, November 2, 2007 | 8pm
Verizon Hall
Mellon Jazz Friday Series
John Pizzarelli and the Swing Seven
John Pizzarelli, vocals, guitar
Tony Kadleck, trumpet
John Mosca, trombone
Andy Fusco, alto sax, clarinet
Kenny Berger, baritone sax, bass clarinet
Larry Fuller, piano
Martin Pizzarelli, bass
Tony Tedesco, drums
Django Reinhardt Festival
Dorado Schmitt, lead guitar Samson Schmitt, rhythm guitar Florin Niculescu, violin Ludovic Beier, accordion and accordina Krunoslav "Kruno" Spisic, lead and rhythm guitar Brian Torff, bass
FREE AT THE KIMMEL EVENTS:
Friday, November 2, 2007 | 6:30pm
Commonwealth Plaza Stage
Sherry Canaray & The Kool Kats
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