Friends and Former Band Mates Celebrate Pianist/Composer's Vast Contributions to Hard-Bop and Soul Jazz Movement

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2007, 8 PM

Sponsored by Acura with Media support provided by KKJZ

A legion of jazz all-stars - including bassist Christian McBride - pay tribute to the amazing musical legacy of venerable jazz icon and hard bop pioneer Horace Silver on Wednesday, January 17, 2007 at 8:00 p.m., at Walt Disney Concert Hall. Joining McBride, the Carolyn and William Powers Creative Chair for Jazz for the Los Angeles Philharmonic, are a number of Silver's friends and former band mates, including Roger Humphries, Cedar Walton, Andy Bey, Randy Brecker, Dee Bridgewater, George Coleman, Tom Harrell, Joe Lovano, Bernie Maupin and Charles Tolliver. The concert is part of the Los Angeles Philharmonic's Jazz Series.

For more than fifty years, Silver has written some of the most enduring tunes in jazz while performing them in a distinctively personal style. Co-founder of the legendary Jazz Messengers in the early 1950's, Silver went on to help create the rhythmically powerful jazz genre known as hard bop. His compositions integrate aspects of blues and gospel and feature surprising tempo shifts and a range of melodic ideas. They might change from aggressively percussive to lushly romantic in just a few bars. At the same time, his sharp use of repetition was funky even before that word could be used in polite company. Along with Silver's own work, his bands often featured rising jazz stars. In 2005, the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) bestowed on him its prestigious President's Merit Award. Silver's autobiography, Let's Get To The Nitty Gritty (University of California Press) was released last fall.

The Los Angeles Philharmonic's Jazz Series continues on March 24, 2007 with Pat Metheny and Brad Mehldau, and The McCoy Tyner Quartet appears on May 4, 2007. The series concludes on May 16, 2007 with Charles Mingus' Epitaph.

Over the course of three albums as a leader and over a hundred as a sideman, Grammy winner CHRISTIAN MCBRIDE has arguably become the most acclaimed acoustic and electric bassist to emerge from the jazz world in the 1990's. His passion for musical diversity has led him to work with everyone from Chick Corea to Pat Metheny, from Kathleen Battle to D'Angelo, from Diane Krall to Bruce Hornsby, from Quincy Jones to Sting. Given that the bass is the heart and soul of any music, this makes McBride's versatility all the more impressive. McBride's most recent recording, on Ropeadope, resists pigeonholes. His first release for the label, Live at Tonic, captures his capacious quartet joined by an array of guest artists, including eight-string guitar ace Charlie Hunter, Logic, pianist Jason Moran, violinist Jenny Scheinman, beat boxer Scratch, and Soulive guitarist Eric Krasno. McBride holds Artistic Director posts at the Jazz Aspen Snowmass summer program and the Dave Brubeck Institute at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, CA. In January 2005, he was named co-director of The Jazz Museum in Harlem. While working for the museum in Harlem, McBride will be racking up frequent flyer miles as the second Creative Chair for Jazz for the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association. He works with the organization year-round, building on the Philharmonic's presence in the musical community as a leading presenter of jazz. Among his various gigs, McBride spoke at former President Clinton's town hall meeting on "Racism in the Performing Arts," and participated in a Stanford University panel on "Black Performing Arts in Mainstream America." He has also hosted thoughtful one-on-one "jazz chats" in cyberspace on sonicnet.com and scribed the forward for pianist Jonny King's book, "What Jazz Is (Walker & Co., New York).

After a twenty two year absence from recording, ANDY BEY returned with four albums that have become a permanent part of the musical landscape. Since the critical acclaim surrounding the release of Ballads, Blues and Bey in 1996, followed by the overwhelming reception of Shades of Bey in 1999, Tuesdays In Chinatown in 2001, and the 2005 Grammy-nominated American Song, much attention has been paid to the fact that Andy Bey did not record as a leader for over two decades. Andy Bey is that rare artist whose career extends over the decades when the American musical journey traversed Swing, Bebop, R&B, Rock and Roll and Hip Hop. Those in the know have always known about Andy Bey. Like the playground legend who never made it to the NBA, Andy Bey was almost consigned to the fading murmurs of those who caught him in Paris in '59, or Birdland in the mid '60s. There are few left who remember when Lena, Nina and Carmen crowded into Harlem's Shalimar to hear Bey light up the joint. That tantalizing footage in Let's Get Lost of Bey and his sisters delighting a crowd of partygoers, gives us a clue of the years of brilliance that were never committed to vinyl. But, we have been blessed with four records that have changed how we think of Jazz vocals. Between the notes we can only imagine what we've missed.

RANDY BRECKER has been shaping the sound of Jazz, R&B and Rock for more than three decades. His trumpet and flugelhorn performances have graced hundreds of albums by a wide range of artists from James Taylor, Bruce Springsteen, Chaka Khan, George Benson and Parliament-Funkadelics to Frank Sinatra, Steely Dan, David Sanborn, Horace Silver, Jaco Pastorius and Frank Zappa. Randy began his foray into jazz-rock by joining Blood, Sweat and Tears. He worked with BS&T for a year and played on their innovative 1968 debut, Child is Father to the Man. Randy left BS&T to join the Horace Silver Quintet. After Horace Silver, Randy joined forces with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers before teaming up with brother Michael, Barry Rogers, Billy Cobham, and John Abercrombie to form the seminal fusion group Dreams. In 1972, Randy was back with Horace Silver, teaming up with brother Michael as the front line in Horace's quintet. In '74, the brothers joined Billy Cobham's group, Spectrum, with whom they recorded several albums, and by 1975 they were ready to front their own band. The Brecker Brothers were to become a band of immeasurable influence and impact. Hailed by pop and jazz critics alike, their first album, The Brecker Brothers (Arista) which Randy produced, wrote, and arranged, was nominated for four Grammys. In the late 70s. Randy recorded on Charles Mingus' last album, Me Myself and Eye. Randy has performed with various incarnations of Mingus Dynasties, Big Bands, and Epitaphs up to the present day. Through the end of the 80s, Randy toured North America and Europe several times as a leader, as well as touring with Stanley Clarke's Jazz Explosion. The 1990s began with Randy on tour with the Mingus Dynasty/Epitaph. In 1992, exactly ten years after they disbanded, Randy and Michael joined forces again in a much heralded reunion featuring a world tour and the triple-Grammy nominated GRP recording, The Return of the Brecker Brothers. In the fall of 1994, the Brecker Brothers released the double-Grammy winning Out of the Loop, with tours that followed into 1995 throughout the U.S. and Europe. Randy won his first Grammy as a soloist in 1998 for Best Contemporary Jazz Performance for Into the Sun. The Millennium had Randy signed to ESC Records. The first release on that label was Hangin' in the City and his 2003 release, 34th N Lex was released to great reviews. Randy Brecker continues to influence and inspire young musicians, and thoughout the years, has been in constant demand as a Yamaha Clinician, performing at Colleges and Universities the world over.

A consummate entertainer, singer DEE DEE BRIDGEWATER has captured the hearts of musical theatre fans worldwide and is also a sparkling ambassador for jazz. Few entertainers have ever commanded such depth of artistry in every medium. Fewer still have been rewarded with Broadway's coveted Tony Award (Best Featured Actress in a Musical - The Wiz), nominated for the London theater's West End equivalent, the Laurence Oliver Award (Best Actress in a Musical - Lady Day), won two Grammy Awards (1998's Best Jazz Vocal Performance and Best Arrangement Accompanying a Vocal for "Cottontail" - Slide Hampton, arranger - "Dear Ella "), and France's 1998 top honor Victoire de la Musique (Best Jazz Vocal Album). Her most recent recording, This is New, found her plunging headfirst into a different songbook - that of trailblazing German theater composer Kurt Weill. His songs not only represent the highest level of musical craftsmanship, but they are perfectly suited to Bridgewater's intensity of expression and keen wit. She is the first vocalist in jazz history to build an entire album from them. Her first professional experience was as a member of the legendary Thad Jones/Mel Louis Big Band. Throughout the '70s, she performed with such jazz notables as Max Roach, Sonny Rollins, Dexter Gordon and Dizzy Gillespie. After a foray into the pop world during the 1980s, she relocated to Paris and began to turn her attention back to jazz. She signed with the Verve label as both a performer and a producer and has release a series of acclaimed titles, beginning with Keeping Tradition in 1993. All of them - including her last album Live at Yoshi's - have received Grammy nominations. She currently lives in the U.S. and hosts NPR's JazzSet, now in its second decade on the air.

GEORGE COLEMAN was born in Memphis, Tennessee, on March 1935. He taught himself to play alto saxophone while in his teens and went to school with future stars such as Booker Little, Frank Strozier and Harold Mabern. He joined B.B.King's band in 1955, playing tenor saxophone. The following year he moved to Chicago, where he met Johnny Griffin and Gene Ammons, and played with Walter Perkins' group, MJT + 3. In 1958, George left Chicago to play with Max Roach's band, which included Kenny Dorham. In 1959 he settled in New York, and between 1960 and 1962 he played with Slide Hampton's octet. George toured California in the spring of 1963 as part of a sextet led by Miles Davis that included Frank Strozier as a sideman; he was also featured in Davis's classic quintet with Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, and Tony Williams, recording 4 historical albums in within one year: Four, Seven steps to Heaven, My Funny Valentine and Miles Davis in Europe. After leaving Miles, George started a career as a freelance musician, recording with Herbie Hancock (Maiden Voyage), Chet Baker (Smokin', Cookin'), Charles Mingus, Shirley Scott, Clark Terry, Horace Silver, Lee Morgan, Elvin Jones, and many other groups. In 1975 George recorded, with Cedar Walton, Sam Jones and Billy Higgins the famous LP Eastern Rebelion. From 1972 on, George started leading his own bands, like his acclaimed Octet, but his first record as a leader did not appear until 1977, when the famous Meditation album (a duo with Spanish pianist Tete Montoliu) saw the light. During the late seventies and the eighties George recorded many first class LP's: Amsterdam After Dark, Live at Ronnie Scott's, G.C. at Yoshi's, Manhattan Panorama, or Big George. One of his finest CD's, recorded in 1991 is Horns of Plenty, where he plays soprano, alto and tenor saxophone. In 1998 he released I could write a book-The Music of Richard Rogers on Teelark Records, and his second George Coleman Octet album was released in 2001.

A veteran jazz trumpeter, composer, arranger and bandleader, TOM HARRELL has steadily garnered international acclaim since the mid-1970's. A frequent favorite of Down Beat and Jazz Times magazines' critics and readers polls, Harrell is known for his mellifluous sound and is widely regarded as one of the most stylistically versatile improvisers and composers working today. Every album he has made as a leader has found its way into various "top ten" lists worldwide. His Afro-Latin outing, The Art of Rhythm was named "Best Jazz Album of the Year" by Entertainment Weekly while his big band album, Times Mirror, received a Grammy nomination. His live quintet recording, Live at the Village Vanguard received numerous awards in Europe, and was followed by Wise Children, an album honored with the SESAC Jazz Award in the fall of 2004. In addition to the twenty album releases and hundreds of concerts worldwide as a leader, Harrell has performed and recorded with other artists including Horace Silver, Dizzie Gillespie, Bill Evans, Gerry Mulligan, Art Farmer, Charles McPherson, Phil Woods, Lee Konitz, Charlie Haden, Joe Lovano, Kathleen Battle and Jane Monheit. A graduate of Stanford University with a degree in music composition, Harrell is a prolific composer and arranger. Hank Jones, Jim Hall, Kenny Barron, Joe Lovano, Carlos Santana, Cold Blood, Azteca, Vince Guaraldi, the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, Lincoln Center Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, Brussels Jazz Orchestra, and the Metropole Orchestra are among the many who have recorded and/or performed his work. Harrell's compositions and solo transcriptions are published in song books by Hal Leonard, Gerard and Sarzin, Alan Colin and Jamey Aebersold. In 2006 he was awarded a Chamber Music America grant for which he will compose new pieces for trumpet and piano. Harrell is currently at work on a series of albums cumulatively entitled 100 Songs with his current working band featuring Wayne Escoffery on sax, Danny Grissett on piano, Ugonna Okegwo on bass and Johnathan Blake on drums.

ROGER HUMPHRIES is rated by music critics as one of the most exciting percussionists in the business. Roger has played with such well known jazz artists as Lee Morgan, Dr. Billy Taylor, Benny Green, Richard "Groove" Holmes, Lionel Hampton, Coleman Hawkins, Clark Terry, J.J. Johnson, Dizzy Gillespie, George Benson, Jon Faddis, Slide Hampton, Herbie Mann, Randy Brecker, Joe Williams, Milt Jackson and Jimmy Witherspoon. In Pittsburgh, Roger has performed with Nathan Davis, Frank Cunimondo, Pete Henderson, Dwayne Dolphin, and all the other local greats too numerous to mention. Finally, we cannot forget his steady work with Horace Silver, Ray Charles, Stanley Turrntine and Shirley Scott, not to mention leading his own ensembles, the RH Factor and the Roger Humphries Big Band. Roger also teaches at the Pittsburgh High School for the Creative and Performing Arts (CAPA).

JOSEPH SALVATORE LOVANO was born in Cleveland, Ohio on December 29, 1952 and grew up in a very musical household. His dad, Tony, aka Big T, was a barber by day and a big-toned tenor player at night. Big T, along with his brothers Nick and Joe, other tenor players, and Carl, a bebop trumpeter, made sure Joe's exposure to Jazz and the saxophone were early and constant. Not surprisingly, Joe began playing the alto at five, switching to the tenor a few years later. By the time he got his driver's license at sixteen, Joe Lovano was a member of the Musician's Union, Local 4, and working professionally. He started playing club dates (sometimes subbing for his dad), and Motown cover bands, eventually saving enough money from these gigs to put himself through college. Joe attended Berklee and his college years were pivotal. Joe had been searching for a way to incorporate the fire and spirituality of late-period John Coltrane into more traditional settings, and at Berklee he found it, discovering modal harmony. During his Boston years, Joe was part of a vibrant scene, always jamming and meeting new musicians. To finance his education, he continued working club dates and other assorted gigs, including an organ trio engagement he shared with future Nonet member George Garzone. His Berklee instructors also played a key role in his development, including Herb Pomeroy, who led the big band, Joe Viola, head of the saxophone department, Andy McGee, a saxophone teacher renown for his advanced improvisation concepts, the inspiring improvisation instructor John LaPorta, and Gary Burton. Joe was in Burton's number one ensemble during the vibist's first semester on the faculty at Berklee. Twenty years later, Joe Lovano was the recipient of a Distinguished Alumni Award from Berklee and an honorary doctorate in 1998. Berklee also awarded Joe its first endowed chair, The Gary Burton Chair for Jazz Performance in 2001.

BENNIE MAUPIN is best known for his atmospheric bass clarinet playing on Miles Davis' classic Bitches Brew album, as well as other Miles Davis recordings such as, Big Fun, Jack Johnson,and On the Corner. He was a founding member of Herbie Hancock's seminal band The Headhunters, as well as a performer and composer in Hancock's influential Mwandishi band. Born in 1940, Maupin started playing clarinet, later adding saxophone, flute and, most notably, the bass clarinet to his formidable arsenal of woodwind instruments. Upon moving to New York in 1962, he freelanced with groups led by Marion Brown, Pharoah Saunders, and Chick Corea, and played regularly with Roy Haynes and Horace Silver. He also recorded with McCoy Tyner, Lee Morgan, Freddie Hubbard, Jack DeJohnette, Andrew Hill, Eddie Henderson, and Woody Shaw to name only a few. Maupin's own discography as a leader includes a well-received recording for ECM Records, The Jewel in The Lotus (1974), Slow Traffic to the Right (1976) and Moonscapes both on Mercury Records (1978), and Driving While Black on Intuition, (1998). The instrumentation of Maupin's current group, The Bennie Maupin Ensemble, harkens back to the tradition of great saxophone-bass-drum trios, such as the group led by Sonny Rollins with Wilbur Ware and Elvin Jones. While echoes of the great John Coltrane can be heard in Maupin's work, one can also discern the influences of Yusef Lateef, Sonny Rollins, and Eric Dolphy, as well as Maupin's contemporaries like Wayne Shorter and the late Joe Henderson. Maupin's approach to his music is intentional and profound, yet alive in the interpretation of the moment. He maintains active performing and teaching careers in Europe and the U.S., and currently resides in the Los Angeles area.

CHARLES TOLLIVER, entirely self-taught, is a remarkable talent who has gained an outstanding reputation as a trumpetist, bandleader, composer, arranger, and educator. Born in Jacksonville, Florida in 1942, his musical career began at the age of 8 when his beloved grandmother, Lela, presented him with his first instrument, a cornet, and the inspiration to learn. After a few years of college majoring in pharmacy at Howard University, and formulating his trumpet style, Charles began his professional career with the saxophone giant Jackie Mclean. Making his recording debut with McLean on Blue Note Records in 1964, Charles has since recorded and/or performed with such renowned artists as Roy Haynes, Horace Silver, McCoy Tyner, Sonny Rollins, Booker Ervin, The Gerald Wilson Orchestra, Oliver Nelson, Roy Ayers, Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, and Max Roach. In 1968 Charles Tolliver was voted as the Downbeat Critic's Choice for the Trumpet category. In 1969 he formed the quartet Music Inc which has become internationally respected for its innovative approach. Charles and his Music Inc., has toured in North and South America, Europe, Scandinavia, and Japan performing at festivals, concerts, radio and television stations. Charles Tolliver has perfected an extremely individual and distinctive sound. Characterized by a strong sense of tradition, Charles's playing is noted for its brilliance, inventiveness, melodic warmth and even its poignancy. His compositions are inventive, and display masterful writing ability. It is no small wonder that Charles Tolliver has earned the reputation as one of "the" trumpeters in jazz.

CEDAR WALTON is one of the most influential musicians active today. His original compositions like "Bolivia," "Clockwise," and "Firm Roots" have become part of the standard Jazz repertoire. His playing regularly receives praise from critics, fellow Jazz musicians and audiences around the world. Born January 17, 1934, Walton set his sights on a career in music at an early age. An after-hours gig at the Denver Club introduced him to notable musicians like Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and John Coltrane, who would sit in with Walton's group when they passed through town. From there, Walton ventured to New York and began to work with Lou Donaldson, Gigi Gryce, Sonny Rollins and Kenny Dorham before landing his first touring job with J.J. Johnson. Soon after, the pianist made his recording debut backing Kenny Dorham on Kenny Dorham sings. He also made two additional records with J.J. Johnson' s group before joining the Art Farmer/Benny Golson Jazztet. Walton's next major musical association was with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. During his three years tenure with Blakey, Walton stepped forward a composer, contributing originals like "Mosaic" and "The Promised Land." Walton left the Jazz Messengers to lead rhythm sections and trios throughout the New York club and recording studio circuits. His debut recording as a leader came in 1966 with the release of Cedar on Prestige Records. From the late sixties to early seventies, Walton kept steady company with bassist Sam Jones and drummers Louis Hayes and Billy Higgins in multi-purpose trios that occasionally annexed saxophonists Clifford Jordan, George Coleman or Bob Berg for specific tours and albums. During the eighties, Walton embarked on a variety of interesting projects, which have grown into lasting affiliations. In 1981, he formed a trio with Ron Carter and Billy Higgins, which clicked right from the start. Around the same time, Walton became part of the Timeless All-stars, a sextet also featuring Harold Land, Bobby Hutcherson, Curtis Fuller, Buster Williams and Billy Higgins. Walton also ignited rhythm sections behind the likes of Milt Jackson, Frank Morgan, Dexter Gordon and vocalists Ernestine Anderson and Freddy Cole, and held the piano chair of The Trumpet Summit Band.

The Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, under Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen, presents the finest in orchestral and chamber music, recitals, new music, jazz, world music and holiday concerts at two of the most remarkable places anywhere to experience music - Walt Disney Concert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl. In addition to a 30-week winter subscription season at Walt Disney Concert Hall, the LA Phil presents a 12-week summer festival at the legendary Hollywood Bowl, summer home of the Los Angeles Philharmonic and home of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. In fulfilling its commitment to the community, the Association's involvement with Los Angeles extends to educational programs, community concerts and children's programming, ever seeking to provide inspiration and delight to the broadest possible audience.

EDITORS PLEASE NOTE:

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2007 AT 8:00 PM

WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL, 111 S. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles

Jazz Series

HORACE SILVER TRIBUTE

CHRISTIAN MCBRIDE, bass

ROGER HUMPHRIES, drums

CEDAR WALTON, piano

ANDY BEY, vocals

DEE DEE BRIDGEWATER, vocals

RANDY BRECKER, trumpet

GEORGE COLEMAN, saxophone

TOM HARRELL, trumpet/flugelhorn

JOE LOVANO, saxophone

BERNIE MAUPIN, saxophone

CHARLES TOLLIVER, trumpet

Sponsored by Acura with media support provided by KKJZ

Tickets ($15-$93) are on sale now online at LAPhil.com, at the Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office, or via credit card phone order at 323.850.2000. A limited number of $10 rush tickets for seniors and full time students may be available at the Walt Disney Concert Hall Box Office two hours prior to the performance. Valid identification is required; one ticket per person; cash only. Groups of 12 or more may be eligible for special discounts for selected concerts and seating areas. For all information, please call 323.850.2000.

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