Tierney Sutton Band

Sunday, December 7
at Murry's

The “We Always Swing” Jazz Series is always on the lookout for the lesser-known but well-respected and supremely talented artist. Vocalist Tierney Sutton, though quite well-traveled, is just such an artist – and we’re pleased to welcome her and her band who make their first area appearance as part of the 2008/2009 season.

Hardly newcomers Sutton and her group have been working together 14 years and counting. During its run the Tierney Sutton Band has received a Grammy Nomination for “Best Vocal Jazz Album,” a JazzWeek Award for “Vocalist of the Year,” consecutive nominations for Jazz Journalist Association awards and garnered critical praise throughout the world.

Terence Blanchard Quintet

Sunday, February 8
at Murry's

We are extremely pleased to present trumpeter Terence Blanchard who, leading his quintet, returns for his second Jazz Series appearance and first since 2003. The prominent trumpeter is known for his multiple talents: as a front-line present-day jazz improviser and technician, as a bandleader and as the man who has composed most of Spike Lee’s film scores to date. Like at least two of his significant trumpet playing peers and colleagues – Wynton Marsalis and Nicholas Payton – Blanchard is a Crescent City native – and still resides there in the city’s Garden District. His latest release for Blue Note Records, A Tale of God’s Will (A Requiem for Katrina), speaks volumes about how he feels about his home town – and earned him a Grammy. Previous to that he released Flow.

"With Flow, the trumpeter and composer Terence Blanchard chronicles the maturation of a working band that’s equally comfortable mining hard bop, West African grooves, or R&B-steeped fusion." — The New York Times

The Bad Plus

Sunday, April 26
at Murry's

The 2008/2009 “We Always Swing” Jazz Series concludes on a spectacular note as we present The Bad Plus for the first time. The intriguing and powerful and not-your-tame jazz trio is a collective comprised of pianist Ethan Iverson, bassist Reid Anderson and drummer David King. All three are from the Midwest and they have known each other since their teens. Nonetheless, with the exception of one meeting in 1990, it was only after spending their formative 20s apart – Iverson as the musical director for the prestigious Mark Morris Dance Group, Anderson as a prominent up-and-coming player on the New York jazz scene and King as a session player in Los Angeles – that the threesome reunited in late 2000 to play a weekend club date in Minneapolis. The chemistry was immediate and obvious. They planned a second gig and a one-day recording session for the independent jazz label Fresh Sound and The Bad Plus was born.

"The Bad Plus are the Coen brothers of jazz: Midwesterners, both ironic and dead earnest, technically brilliant, beyond versatile, a little chilly sometimes, but funny, surprising, and pretty hard to pin down."
—The New Yorker

Past Concerts

Frank Wess Quintet

Appeared in November 2008

Historically, there’s little doubt the term “all-stars” has been over used when it comes to putting a supremely talented group of musicians together for a performance. However in this case the label is right on the money. Saxophonist and flutist Frank Wess, still a world traveler and going strong at 86, rightly received the National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master designation in 2007. When he joined Count Basie in 1954 he was already in his 30s – and established. His 60-year-plus career continues to be a marvel. He is one of our great musician treasures and among the most significant figures in the jazz world. That’s why we’re so filled with anticipation as he makes his first-ever Columbia appearance. Well, that and the all-star band he brings with him.

Miguel Zenon Quartet

Appeared in November 2008

A native of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Miguel Zenón studied saxophone at the famed Escuela Libre de Musica – an institution that boasts distinguished alumnus throughout the world. Although Zenón was exposed to jazz while in high school, it wasn’t until he began his studies at the Berklee School of Music that his formal jazz training began. In a still relatively short, but rather illustrious career, Zenón, a member of the SF Jazz Collective, has developed into one of the most respected alto saxophonists of his generation. He has performed and/or recorded with a diverse array of artists including: Danilo Perez, Charlie Haden, The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, Bobby Hutcherson, The Mingus Big Band, Jerry Gonzalez & The Fort Apache Band, Ray Barretto and Branford Marsalis, among others.

Jazz Series Launches Annual Fund as dollar-for-dollar match for major NEA Jazz Masters Live

This is a special year for us. As recipients of a major grant from the National Endowment for the Arts – the Jazz Masters Live Initiative we are required to match the award dollar for dollar. The goal: $30,000 – and we need do reach it by February 18, 2008 – the day commissioned composer and Kansas City native Bob Brookmeyer returns to Missouri to conduct the world premier of his new work performed by the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, at the Missouri Theatre Center for the Arts. This season your tax-deductible donation to the Jazz Series goes twice as far.

Jazz Series Receives NEA Grant

“We Always Swing” Jazz Series snags prestigious NEA Jazz Masters Live grants…

Organization, one of only 12 presenters in the United States selected to receive $30,000 award paves the way for Missouri native and NEA Jazz Master Bob Brookmeyer to compose new work for the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra. New York-based, 16-piece orchestra arrives in Columbia to perform world premiere February 18, 2009, at the Missouri Theatre with Brookmeyer as guest conductor. Also on hand: Dan Morgenstern, fellow NEA Jazz Master and Director of Rutgers Jazz Institute. The world renowned historian will serve as guest emcee and host a pair of forums: a one-on-one interview with Brookmeyer and an in-depth look into the chronology of the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, which has been holding court at jazz’s most famous basement – The Village Vanguard – since 1965. Much-anticipated events serve as centerpiece for MU’s Arts & Science Week.

Are you ready to get your 2008/2009 “Swing” on?

The 2008/2009 “We Always Swing” Jazz Series has arrived and tickets are on sale NOW!

On tap: a sumptuous mix of modern jazz – small groups, large ensembles, varied instrumentation and instrumentalists, vocalists, male and female artists, special events and educational activities all rolled into our 14th season.

We think we have put together a great season, one filled with 10 regularly scheduled concerts and a trio of fun-filled special-event performances that take place in a venues small and large – from the intimacy of Murry’s and the new Ragtag Cinema to the full-size feel of the newly restored Missouri Theatre Center for the Arts and mid-sized houses such as The Blue Note and Stephens College’s Windsor Auditorium and Lela Rainey Wood Ballroom.

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