APPLETON, WIS. — Singer, songwriter and pianist Patricia Barber and legendary saxophonist and composer Branford Marsalis headline Lawrence University’s 27th annual Jazz Celebration Weekend Nov. 9-10.
Described as a combination of Diana Krall and Susan Sontag, with “throaty, come-hither vocals and coolly incisive piano” by Time magazine, Barber opens the two-concert weekend Friday, Nov. 9 at 7:30 p.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel. The Lawrence Jazz Singers, under the direction of Lee Tomboulian, will perform the concert’s opening set.
Marsalis, a three-time Grammy winner, performs with his band Saturday, Nov. 10 at 7:30 p .m. at the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center in downtown Appleton. The 17-member, award-winning Lawrence University Jazz Ensemble (LUJE), recipients of Down Beat’s 2007 big band “outstanding performance” award in the magazine’s annual student music competition, will open the Marsalis concert under the direction of Fred Sturm.
Barber is replacing the previously announced vocal ensemble New York Voices, which canceled its appearance. Tickets for the Barber concert are available through the Lawrence Box Office, 920-832-6749. All tickets sold for New York Voices will be honored for the Barber concert or ticket holders may request a refund by contacting the Lawrence Box Office. A limited supply of tickets for the Branford Marsalis Quartet concert are available through the Performing Arts Center Box Office, 920-730-3760.
Hailed as “the most fearless, most intellectually stimulating and by extension, most interesting singer-songwriter-pianist on the American jazz scene” by Jazz Times, Barber has released nine albums in her career, including “Mythologies” in 2006. The disc features 11 tracks, each based on a different character from the centuries-old classic of Western literature “The Metamorphoses of Ovid.”
“Patricia Barber is a one-of-a kind, a highly literate, witty songwriter, with a dark, understated alto, who has mastered the art of implication,” said Tomboulian. “Her piano and organ and atmospheric backing by her committed band, demonstrate the kind of maturity that speaks of a commitment to communication, as opposed to mere technical mastery, although they have that, too. It should an unforgettable evening.”
Marsalis, who has performed with the pantheon of jazz greats, among them Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie and Herbie Hancock, has established himself as a man of multiple musical interests. In addition to his role as performer, Marsalis has expanded his skills as a composer and founded his own record label to showcase his own projects as well as those of the jazz world’s most promising new and established artists.
His discography includes more than 20 albums, including 2006’s Grammy-nominated “Braggtown.” Marsalis, who served as musical director of “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” for two years in the 1990s, won his first Grammy Award in 1992 for best jazz instrumental performance for his blues-inspired album “I Heard You Twice the First Time.” He also earned Grammy awards in 1993 for his collaboration with Bruce Hornsby on the song “Barcelona Mona” and in 2000 for the disc “Contemporary Jazz.”
“Branford Marsalis presents a lofty model of crossover artistry for our conservatory students,” said Sturm, who founded Lawrence’s Jazz Celebration Weekend in 1981. “He was reared in one of New Orleans’ most storied musical households, classically educated, steeped in blues and funk and exposed to the great jazz traditions. He never drew lines of demarcation between his work with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, touring with a pop artist like Sting and recording a classical saxophone CD with symphony orchestra. He’s continually evolving upward.”
In addition to the Barber and Marsalis concerts, more than 700 instrumental and vocal students from nearly 50 middle and high school jazz ensembles from five Midwestern states will showcase their talents throughout the day in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel, Harper Hall, Shattuck Hall and Cloak Theatre. All of the Saturday daytime performances are free and open to the public.
