INFORMATION FOR
Pianist George Cables heads an all-star group featuring Jeff “Tain” Watts, James Genus, and Gary Bartz on February 28, 2010 as part of the spring Jazz Room Series. The concert will begin at 4 p.m. in the Shea Center for Performing Arts on the campus. The George Cables Project is produced by Jill Newman Productions.
Prior to the concert, Cables and his group will be the guests for “Sittin’ In,” an informal discussion about jazz, at 3 p.m. in room 101 of Shea Center. Admission is free to all Jazz Room ticketholders.
Tickets are available in advance or on the day of the performance at $15 standard; $12 senior citizens, William Paterson faculty, staff and alumni; and $8 for non-William Paterson students. William Paterson students may attend free of charge.
George Cables is a powerful pianist and composer and has played with some of the greatest jazz musicians in the world. In addition to composing and arranging for his own albums, he has contributed to recordings by Dexter Gordon, Art Pepper, Freddie Hubbard, Woody Shaw, Bobby Hutcherson and many others. He is noted for his fresh interpretations of classic compositions and for his innovative style of writing.
Jeff “Tain” Watts is one of the most in-demand jazz drummers today. He was a member of the Wynton Marsalis Quartet from 1981 to 1988 and won three Grammy Awards with the ensemble. He later joined the Branford Marsalis Quartet. He has worked in the film and television industry both as a musician on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno and as an actor. He has an extensive discography as a sideman, as well as six albums as a leader.
James Genus is well known for his talents on both the acoustic and the electric bass. He has played and recorded with artists such as Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Michael Brecker, Branford Marsalis, Dianne Reeves, Ravi Coltrane, and Dave Douglas. He also performs with the Saturday Night Live band while continuing to write and produce his own music.
Gary Bartz is a landmark saxophonist who has played with the greatest names in jazz. He has worked with Charles Mingus, Miles Davis, Max Roach, and was a member of Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. His group Ntu Troup combined soul, funk, African folk, hard bop, and vanguard jazz. In 2005, he won a Grammy Award for playing on McCoy Tyner’s album Illuminations.
The Jazz Room Series will continue on Sunday, March 7, when Pete Escovedo will join the William Paterson Latin Jazz Ensemble directed by Chico Mendoza for the 4 p.m. concert. On Friday, April 23, at 8 p.m., Maria Schneider will be the guest conductor with the William Paterson University Jazz Orchestra for a special performance in Shea Center.
Launched in 1978, The Jazz Room is one of the largest and most prestigious college-sponsored jazz events in the country. Performers include renowned professionals who encompass the complete spectrum of jazz, from practitioners of traditional jazz to avant-garde to bebop to swing to Afro-Latin jazz, as well as William Paterson’s own student ensembles. The series has won numerous grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts for its innovative programming.
Funding for The Jazz Room at William Paterson University has been made possible, in part, by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State.
For tickets or information, call the Shea Center Box Office at 973-720-2371 or order online at www.wplive.org.
