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Amherst Glebe Arts Response in collaboration with Second Stage Amherst and the Bower Center for the Arts in Bedford will present the jazz quartet of Chris Magee - trumpet, Dana Ballard - piano, Ed Mikenas - bass, and Larry Scott - drums playing the French jazz classic "Toot Suite" at Second Stage Amherst on September 22, 2017 at 7:30 pm, and on September 30, 2017 at 8 pm at the Bower Center in Bedford. Season tickets for AGAR will be honored at both performances. Individual tickets can be purchased through LynchburgTickets.com or at the venue doors one hour before each concert.
Chris Magee is a well-known trumpeter who has played lead trumpet for such artists as Wayne Newton, the Temptations, The Four Tops and the O'Jays. He was staff trumpeter and arranger at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Chris is a native of Harrisonburg, Virginia and resides in Bedford. He received the Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from James Madison University and the Doctor of Musical Arts Degree from the University of Iowa in brass methods. He teaches music at Lynchburg College where he directs the Jazz Ensemble and teaches trumpet, Music Appreciation and courses in world music, music appreciation, conducting and brass methods. Previously, he was Assistant Professor of Music at Northeast Lakeview College in Universal City, Texas, and directed the jazz ensemble at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. Last season for AGAR he premiered the string quartet version of Larry Allan Williams' "Passages." Chris Magee will lead the group in the virtuoso trumpet work, a full evening piece in six parts. Chris Magee points out that "Toot Suite" is so demanding for the trumpet player that he must have at least a day in between performances to recover. Dana Ballard is a wonderful pianist and an accompanist at Lynchburg College. Ed Mikenas and Larry Scott are well-known jazz players in the Greater Lynchburg areas. The group performed "Toot Suite" last year at Lynchburg College and Chris Magee says, "We were very happy to have AGAR give us two more opportunities to play the piece. This is such a fun work, and audiences love it!" |
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"Toot Suite" is a famous full-evening work in six parts, originally composed and performed in 1981 by Claude Bolling a French jazz pianist, composer, arranger, and occasional actor working in collaboration with virtuoso trumpeter Maurice André. Bolling played jazz with Lionel Hampton, Roy Eldridge and Kenny Clarke. He has written music for over 100 films, Bolling was born in Cannes, studied at the Nice Conservatory, and then in Paris. A child prodigy, by age 14 he was playing jazz piano professionally, with Lionel Hampton, Roy Eldridge, and Kenny Clarke. Bolling's books on jazz technique show that he did not delve far beyond bebop into much avant garde jazz. He was a major part of the traditional jazz revival in the late 1960s, and he became friends with Oscar Peterson. Bolling is also noted for a series of "crossover" collaborations with classical musicians. His Suite for Flute and Jazz Piano Trio with Jean-Pierre Rampal proved extremely popular. Bolling went on to work with many other musicians, from different genres, including guitarist Alexandre Lagoya, violinist Pinchas Zukerman, trumpeter Maurice André, and cellist Yo-Yo Ma. He has also worked with, and performed tributes to many others, including Lionel Hampton, Duke Ellington, Stéphane Grappelli, Django Reinhardt, and Oscar Peterson.
Maurice André (1933-2012) was a French trumpeter, active in the classical music field. He was professor of trumpet at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique in Paris. André inspired many innovations on his instrument, and his technical mastery and profound artistry has contributed over fifty years to popularize the trumpet worldwide. He was known worldwide as a classical trumpeter. His jazz collaboration on "Toot Suite" with Claude Bolling was a departure for him and became a very popular work in the jazz repertoire. |
