Critically acclaimed 'Jazz @ the Taylor' announces lineup for 2019

Discounted 8 concert series package available thru Feb 9

The Kenan Center announced a third season of “Jazz @ the Taylor,” an eight-concert series featuring some of the finest musicians from Western New York and beyond. Produced in collaboration with Kathleen Rooney, a former Kenan Center board member and Lockport native, the adventurous jazz series is attracting critical acclaim and audiences from all over the region.

In 2019, in addition to presenting eight distinctly diverse evenings of music, the Kenan Center will offer a significant savings for those who wish to purchase a series package. For $100, patrons will receive admission to all eight concerts – which normally sell for $20 per ticket (general admission) or $15 for Kenan Center members.

Rooney said, “There will also be $10 tickets for anyone 18 years of age and under or with a valid college I.D., making these concerts the perfect way to introduce young people to live jazz.”

The series kicks off Feb. 9 with the Bobby Militello Quartet playing the music of Chick Corea and Dave Brubeck. The band includes Militello on sax, Bobby Jones on keyboards, John Bacon on drums, and Jim Coleman on bass. Tunes will be selected from Brubeck’s 1959 iconic masterpiece “Time Out,” and Corea’s 1978 recording “Friends.” Militello also will share personal stories of his days in the famed Brubeck band.

On March 9, the Buffalo Jazz Collective featuring James Burton III will take the stage. The award-winning 11-piece group will perform jazz standards and original compositions by leader Mark Filsinger. For this special performance, the group will feature NYC-based trombonist Burton III, a member of the jazz faculty at both Juilliard and Manhattan School of Music. He has performed and recorded alongside many jazz legends, including Tony Bennett, Christian McBride, Jimmy Heath, Ron Carter, Lady Gaga, Rihanna and Usher. He co-leads the Uptown Tentet, one of New York’s top jazz groups.

The Buffalo Jazz Collective includes Lisa Hasselback on piano; Coleman on bass; Militello on alto sax; Harry Fackelman on baritone sax; Dave Schiavone, tenor sax; Dennis Tribuzzi, Filsinger and John Hasselback III on trombones; Bacon on drums; and John Hasselback II, on trombone.

April 13 features the popular Ed Croft Trio, with Croft on bass, Nelson Rivera on sax and drummer extraordinaire Joe Goretti. This trio wowed audiences at the recent holiday concert, “Tidings of Comfort & Jazz,” and will feature the music of the legendary Sonny Rollins Trio.

Croft is a multi-award-winning bassist who performs in numerous venues throughout Western New York. Rivera is a respected educator in addition to working as a studio musician, deejay percussionist and as part of numerous jazz groups and ensembles. Goretti is a graduate of the prestigious Berklee College of Music. His resume includes both live performances and world tours, with TV credits including “Saturday Night Live,” “The Tonight Show,” “The Late Show with David Letterman” and “Today.”

The Dave Schiavone Quintet will make its inaugural performance at the Taylor on May 4, with the music of Stan Getz and Brazilian composer Antonio Carlos Jobim. The collaboration from the early 1960s popularized the samba influence in jazz with hits such as “Girl from Ipanema,” “One Note Samba” and “Desafinado.”

Schiavone has performed and toured around the world with artists including Aretha Franklin, Doc Severinsen, Woody Herman and Nancy Wilson. He has also been a music faculty member at SUNY Buffalo, Buffalo State, Canisius and Villa Maria colleges.

On June 15, Star People returns to perform the music of Miles Davis’ “Ascenseur pour l’echafaud,” the 1957 soundtrack to the Louis Malle film of the same name. Members of Star People include Militello on saxes and flute; Andy Weinzler, saxophone; Tim Clarke, trumpet; George Caldwell, piano; Joe Goehle, bass; and Bacon on drums. The group’s performances at the Taylor and elsewhere have earned sold-out houses and standing ovations.

The Buffalo Jazz Composers Workshop will perform an evening of new works and original compositions on Oct. 5. This super-group features some of the finest musicians and educators in the region and includes Clarke, trumpet; Kelly Bucheger, saxophones; Rivera, saxophones and percussion; Jared Tinkham, guitar; Alec Dube, vibraphone; and Bacon on drums.

The Buffalo Improv Collective brings an entirely new program that melds jazz and classical music on Nov. 9. “Inflections & Innuendoes” brings together celebrated musicians and composers Jonathan Golove on cello, Leanne Darling on viola, Dube on vibraphone and Kelly Bucheger on saxophones. Both Dube and Bucheger have led groups at the Taylor in the past, and this new collaboration with Golove and Darling takes improvisation to a new level.

Cellist/composer Golove is a member of the critically acclaimed Baird Trio and serves as associate professor in the University at Buffalo’s department of music. He has been a featured soloist with the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, Slee Sinfonietta, and as a guest artist with the Cassatt Quartet and the Cleveland Octet.

Darling holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music and the Cleveland Institute of Music. She draws from her classical technique, her skills in many musical genres, and her passion for improvisation to break the boundaries for an often-underused instrument. Her unique solo viola compositions use the entire scope of her instrument, mixing more traditional sounds with electric sound effects.

Rounding out the 2019 “Jazz @ the Taylor” series, the Buffalo Jazz Composers Workshop “Ruins Christmas” on Dec. 7 with new and reimagined traditional music for the holidays. With tongue planted firmly in cheek, the group will offer its own spin on holiday music, with many of the Taylor’s favorite musicians being featured.

Tickets may be purchased for $100 through Feb. 9.

Individual tickets are $15 for Kenan Center members, $20 for the general public. Tickets for students 18 and under or with valid college I.D. are also available. All may be purchased online at www.kenancenter.org, in person at the Kenan Center business office, or charged by phone. All concerts take place at 7:30 p.m. inside the Taylor Theater on the Kenan Center campus, 433 Locust St., Lockport. For more information, visit www.kenancenter.org or call 716-433-2617. Because seating is limited, advance tickets are always recommended.

The Kenan Center was established in 1967. Its campus is home to the Kenan House, the Kenan Arena, the Education Building (which houses the Montessori preschool), and the Taylor Theater. For more information about the Kenan Center, visit www.kenancenter.org.