Tag Archive for: #metrowestjazz

Fugitive Music presents The Lori Z Jazz Quintet

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The Lori Z Jazz Quintet:

Lori Zuroff (vocals)
Molly Flannery (piano)
Bill McCormack (bass)
Bill Vint (saxaphone and flute)
Miki Matsuki (drums)

Lori, Molly, and Bill, superb performers in their own right, get together weekly, fine tuning their skills — and getting down and dirty playing the music they love! For this evening’s performance, they add the sparkle of drums and sweet horns to perform music from the 1920s “early days” of jazz to present-day interpretations of jazz standards, blues, and contemporary music. They are at home honoring great players and composers — from Ellington to Jobim to Bacharach — and some of the great singers they admire, including Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, Nancy Wilson, and Etta James. In November 2020, Lori released her debut jazz CD, “Ladybug,” featuring these fabulously talented musicians.

Lori Zuroff (vocals)
Lori has been singing with various rock, blues, R&B, and jazz bands for more 25 years. She has performed with both small and large bands in venues all over Boston including the Chick Singer Night at Johnny D’s and the Burren in Somerville, and The Mad Monkfish in Cambridge. In addition to leading this group, she also headlines The Lola Sweet Band. Lori studied jazz vocals for several years with Boston’s own jazz divas, Rebecca Parris and Dominique Eade, and with Sheila Jordan and Jay Clayton in New York.

Bill Vint (saxaphone and flute)
Originally from Tucson, Bill began playing with jazz, blues, and Latin bands in nightclubs and venues while still in high school. As a student at Berklee College of Music, where he studied woodwinds with Joe Viola and Bill Pierce, he performed in many of the school’s most prestigious ensembles including Herb Pomeroy’s Concert Jazz Orchestra and the Thelonious Monk Ensemble. He has performed in bands backing Aretha Franklin, Jennifer Hudson, the Temptations, the Four Tops, Johnny Mathis, Josh Groban, Bernadette Peters, and John Mayer, among many others. He has done big band/swing tours with the Artie Shaw, Jimmy Dorsey, and Harry James orchestras in addition to playing in the pit of many touring productions of Broadway musicals.

Molly Flannery (piano)
Molly is known for her distinctive touch on the piano, her melodic improvisations, and her ability to groove in jazz, Latin, and Brazilian idioms. After studying composition, improvisation and theory at Yale, Molly began her performing career in Japan where she appeared frequently at local clubs. When she eventually settled in Boston, she studied jazz with Ran Blake, Charlie Banacos, Kenny Werner, Harvey Diamond, and Doug Johnson. Her CD releases include ”Slow Dance at the Asylum” and “Riding the Bull.”

 Bill McCormack (bass)
Bill grew up in Ireland and started playing trumpet and bass at an early age. Before moving to the US, he played with many of Ireland’s top musicians including singers Honor Heffernan and Christine Tobin, and Stocktons Wing, and was a member of renowned jazz guitarist Louis Stewarts’ regular quartet. He continues to hold down the groove on a diverse Boston music scene playing both upright and electric bass with many of the area’s best musicians.

Miki Matsuki  (drummer)
Born in Matsuyama, Japan, Miki moved to the US to study jazz at the Berklee College of Music. In 2000, Miki’s band was selected “Best of Berklee.” She has performed and recorded in various musical settings including soundtrack work, radio and television, a tour of Korea, and so much more. Miki has performed with Wynton Marsalis, Joanne Brackeen, George Garzone, John Tchicai, Darren Barrett, Frank Lacy, Cecil Brooks, Dave Bryant, and Stan Strickland, among others.

Doors open: 7pm • Performance: 7:30pm

Full bar. You’re welcome to bring snacks and/or take-out.  For a list of Maynard many fine restaurants, click here.

Tickets: $15/Advance • $20/door

Fugitive Productions presents The Bruce Gertz Quintet

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The Bruce Gertz Quintet

Award-winning jazz bassist/composer Bruce Gertz leads an all-star quintet featuring Jerry Bergonzi, Phil Grenadier, Tim Miller, and Austin McMahon performing original compositions with many familiar themes.

Bruce Gertz is an award-winning, bassist, composer, author, educator, touring and recording artist, and is on the staff of Berklee College of Music. In addition to a raft of Boston Music Awards, Gertz has garnered a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Performance grant, a composition award from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and recognition from the music rights organization ASCAP, Billboard magazine and other organizations. As an instructor, he was recognized by the Jazz Education Network for clinician expertise and jazz performance.

Tenor saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi is an internationally recognized jazz performer, composer, author, and educator. He has performed throughout the world at all the major jazz festivals and jazz venues, with his own ensembles as well as with numerous jazz greats. His music is renowned for its innovation, mastery, and integrity. His discography includes more than 60 recordings. As a clinician Bergonzi has taught at conservatories and music schools throughout the U.S. and Europe. He is the author of a series of instructional books with play-along CDs and videos and is a three-time NEA grant recipient.

Throughout a career that spans three decades, trumpeter Phil Grenadier has emerged as one of jazz’s most imaginative and innovative players. His three albums as leader, 2000’s Sweet Transients, 2003’s Playful Intentions, and 2014’s Shimmer, have won him copious international acclaim, while his collaborations with a broad array of notable musicians demonstrate the talent and adventurousness that led the San Jose Mercury News to call him “a trumpeter of rare fluency and depth.”

Drummer Austin McMahon is sought out for his versatility. He actively performs in an array of jazz and world music ensembles ranging from trio, to chamber jazz, and big band. He recently recorded with the Ayn Inserto Jazz Orchestra, Macuco Quintet, Hofbauer/Rosenthal Quartet, and groups that he co-leads including The Lost Melody, and Man On Land. McMahon has recently appeared with Kate McGarry & Keith Ganz, Jerry Bergonzi, Carmen Staaf, Noah Preminger, Kevin Harris, Jason Palmer, Grace Kelly, Kim Nazarian (New York Voices), and David Liebman and has performed at such iconic venues as Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, Dizzy’s, Jordan Hall, and numerous festivals, concert halls, theaters and clubs throughout the US and abroad.

Tim Miller is an American guitarist and composer at the forefront of progressive fusion and jazz. He first became known for his distinctive acoustic-electric sound, melodic compositions, and unique approach to improvisation. His latest album, “Synergy,” is the culmination of this aesthetic vision.

Doors open: 7pm • Performance: 7:30pm

Full bar. You’re welcome to bring snacks and/or take-out.  Click here for a list of Maynard’s fine restaurants.

Tickets: $15/Advance, $20/door

POSTPONED: Fugitive Music presents The Arthur Bakopolus Quartet

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POSTPONED: Sadly, we needed to postpone this event. Ticket holders will be reimbursed within the coming days.

The Arthur Bakopolus Quartet

The Arthur Bakopolus Quartet performs a synergistic blend of jazz standards, bop tunes, Latin, ballads, fusion, and lively swing jams.

Arthur Bakopolus – Alto Saxophone
John Baboian— Guitar
Greg Toro — Bass
Jerzy Glod — Drums

Arthur Bakopolus is an in-demand woodwind specialist playing in ensembles from theater pit orchestras to full big bands of all musical styles. He has played and toured with many groups, such as The Coasters, The Drifters, The Marvelettes, Johnny Mathis, Fabian, Liza Minnelli, The Four Tops, Barnum and Bailey’s Circus, The Artie Shaw Orchestra, The Tommy Dorsey Band, The Guy Lombardo Band, The Benny Goodman Tribute Band, The Las Vegas based Rat Pack Band, and countless Boston area groups. Currently he can be seen leading small group jazz ensembles all around the Boston area. He’s the artistic director of Arthur’s House of Jazz running the Jazz at the Sahara series.

John Baboian has been on the faculty at Berklee College of Music since 1980. Although best known for his work in the jazz and swing idioms, John has performed in the Classical, Blues, Rock, R&B, Latin, and World music genres. His compositions and arrangements have been heard on a number of TV shows including “Walker, Texas Ranger,” UPN’s “Seven Days,” ABC’s “All My Children,” HBO’s “The Soprano’s,” among others. John has accompanied headliners Frankie Avalon, Sergio Franchi, Connie Francis, Tom Jones, Al Martino, Marilyn Michaels, Jim Nabors, Bobby Rydell, Ben Vereen, and many others, and has shared the stage with jazz greats Gary Burton, Alan Dawson, Joe Lovano, Bob Moses, Herb Pomeroy, Esperanza Spalding, Leni Stern, Phil Wilson, Warren Vache, and many others.

Gregory Toro was born and raised in Boston. He fell in love with music and rhythm as a child, and at the age of 10 joined a neighborhood steel band that played calypso and church music on weekends. He later took up guitar and piano but, at age 16, he found his true calling as a bass. Greg studied electric and upright bass and jazz composition at Berklee College of Music, where he had the opportunity to collaborate with musicians from many different countries and cultures. He has gone on to travel the world with jazz and rock groups.

Jerzy Glod began playing guitar – his first instrument – in his native Poland at the age of 10. Four years later, he switched to playing drums and just a year later, at the age of 15 started playing professionally in clubs and events in Poland. Later, he formed a jazz trio with Jacek and Wojtek Niedziela with whom he won numerous awards and competitions including the 1st Prize in the prestigious European Jazz Competition in Germany. After completing a Masters Degree at the Music Conservatory in Katowice, Poland, Jerzy received a scholarship to the Berklee College of Music which landed him in Boston.

Doors open: 3:30pm • Performance: 4pm

Full bar. You’re welcome to bring snacks and/or take-out.  Click here for a list of Maynard many fine restaurants.

Tickets: $15/Advance, $20/door