MAIN CONCERT PROGRAMME - Serbian National Theatre - Thursday, 15th November 2012.
TERENCE BLANCHARD
 TERENCE BLANCHARD – trumpet
BRICE WINSTON – tenor saxophone
FABIAN ALMAZAN – piano
JOSHUA CRUMBLY – bass
KENDRICK SCOTT – drums
TERENCE BLANCHARD
Terence Oliver Blanchard (born March 13, 1962) is an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, arranger, and film score composer. Since he emerged on the scene in 1980 with the Lionel Hampton Orchestra and then shortly thereafter with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, Blanchard has been a leading artist in jazz. He was an integral figure in the 1980s jazz resurgence having recorded several award-winning albums and having performed with the jazz elite. He is known as a straight-ahead artist in the hard bop tradition but has recently utilized an African-fusion style of playing that makes him unique from other trumpeters on the performance circuit. However, it is as a film composer that Blanchard reaches his widest audience. His trumpet can be heard on nearly fifty film scores; more than forty bear his unmistakable compositional style. Since 2000, Blanchard has served as Artistic Director at the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz and as of August 2011 he was named the Artistic Director of the Henry Mancini Institute at the University of Miami Frost School of Music. He lives in the Garden District of New Orleans with his wife and four children.
Blanchard was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, the only child to parents Wilhelmina and Joseph Oliver Blanchard, a part-time opera singer and insurance company manager. Blanchard began playing piano at the age of five and then the trumpet at age eight upon hearing Alvin Alcorn play. Blanchard played trumpet recreationally alongside childhood friend Wynton Marsalis in summer music camps but showed no real proficiency on the instrument. Then, while in high school, he began studying at the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA) under Roger Dickerson and Ellis Marsalis, Jr.. From 1980 to 1982, Blanchard studied under jazz saxophonist Paul Jeffrey and trumpeter Bill Fielder at Rutgers University, while touring with the Lionel Hampton Orchestra. In 1982, Wynton Marsalis recommended Blanchard to replace him in Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers and until 1986, Blanchard was the band's trumpeter and musical director. With Blakey and as co-leader of a quintet with saxophonist Donald Harrison and pianist Mulgrew Miller, Blanchard rose to prominence as a key figure in the 1980s Jazz Resurgence. The Harrison/Blanchard group recorded five albums from 1984-1988 until Blanchard left to pursue a solo career in 1990. In the 1990s, after a laborious but successful embouchure change, Blanchard was as busy as ever. He recorded his self-titled debut for Columbia Records which reached third on the Billboard Jazz Charts. After performing on soundtracks for Spike Lee movies, including Do the Right Thing and Mo' Better Blues, Lee wanted Blanchard to compose the scores for his films beginning with "Jungle Fever" (1991). Blanchard has written the score for every Spike Lee film since including, Malcolm X, Clockers, Summer of Sam, 25th Hour, Inside Man. In 2006, he composed the score for Spike Lee's 4-hour Hurricane Katrina documentary for HBO entitled When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts. Blanchard also appeared in front of the camera with his mother to share their emotional journey back to find her home completely destroyed. Blanchard has also composed for other directors, including Leon Ichaso, Ron Shelton and Kasi Lemmons. With over forty scores to his credit, Blanchard is the most prolific jazz musician to ever compose for movies. Entertainment Weekly proclaimed Blanchard "central to a general resurgence of jazz composition for film." Yet in a 1994 interview for Down Beat, Blanchard was quoted as saying, "Writing for film is fun, but nothing can beat being a jazz musician, playing a club, playing a concert". All the while, Blanchard has remained true to his jazz roots as a trumpeter and bandleader on the performance circuit. He has recorded several award-winning albums for Columbia, Sony Classical and Blue Note Records, including In My Solitude: The Billie Holiday Songbook (1994), Romantic Defiance (1995), The Heart Speaks (1996), Wandering Moon (2000), Let's Get Lost (2001) and Flow (2005), which was produced by pianist Herbie Hancock and received two Grammy Award nominations. Terence Blanchard's 2001 CD Let's Get Lost was his most commercially successful album to date. It features new arrangements of classic songs written by Jimmy McHugh and performed by his own quintet along with the leading ladies of jazz vocals: Diana Krall, Jane Monheit, Dianne Reeves, and Cassandra Wilson. In 2005, Blanchard was part of the ensemble that won a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album for his participation on McCoy Tyner’s Illuminations, an award he shared with Tyner, Gary Bartz, Christian McBride and Lewis Nash. Blanchard was a judge for the 5th annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists' careers. In 2009 in the Disney movie, The Princess and the Frog, Blanchard played all of the alligator Louis’ trumpet parts. He also voiced the role of Earl the bandleader in the riverboat band.
www.terenceblanchard.com
BRICE WINSTON
Brice Winston is a saxophonist/composer/educator currently residing in Tucson, AZ. For several years Brice has been touring and recording with Grammy award winning artist Terence Blanchard, performing all over the world at countless major jazz festivals and clubs. Terence's 2007 Blue Note release A Tale Of God's Will - A Requiem For Katrina features the band with large orchestra and was awarded a Grammy in 2007 for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album. After living in New Orleans for over 16 years, Brice relocated to his hometown of Tucson, AZ following the events of Hurricane Katrina. Brice is currently teaching in Tucson with the newly formed Tucson Jazz Institute.
www.bricewinston.com
FABIAN ALMAZAN
Pianist and composer Fabian Almazan, a native of Cuba now residing in New York City, found his musical roots as a child in his homeland of Havana where he first became involved in the classical piano tradition. When his parents could not afford to pay for private piano lessons, having fled Cuba in political exile to Miami, FL, pianist Conchita Betancourt was gracious enough to impart free lessons for over three years. Thanks to Mrs. Betancourt's exceeding generosity, Fabian was able to audition for the New World School of the Arts High School in Miami, FL where he studied from 1998 to 2002.
In 2002 Fabian was selected for the piano chair in the National 2002 Grammy High School Jazz Combo. The following year, Almazan won the piano chair for the newly up and running Brubeck Institute fellowship program based in northern California where he studied with Mark Levine and performed with Dave Brubeck and Christian McBride. In 2003, Fabian moved to New York City to study with Kenny Barron at the Manhattan School of Music. During the completion of his bachelor's degree, Almazan immersed himself in the realm of orchestral composition studying instrumentation and orchestration with Mr. Giampaolo Bracali. Under Mr. Bracali's tutelage, Almazan composed several pieces for orchestra and chamber ensembles. In the spring of 2009 Fabian Almazan received a master's degree from the Manhattan School of Music, selected as a recipient of the Michael W. Greene Scholarship, studying privately with Jason Moran. Fabian Almazan received the Cintas Foundation 2010/11 Brandon Fradd Award in Music Composition. The award has been granted to many Cuban artists who have gone on to play an influential role in the development of Cuban cultural heritage. Almazan was also selected as one of the six composers to participate in the Sundance Composers’ Lab 2011 where he studied with such acclaimed film composers as Harry Gregson-Williams, Alan Silvestri, George S. Clinton, Christopher Young, Ed Shearmur and Peter Golub. Personalities, Fabian’s debut album, was released in October 2011 and it featured Linda Oh, Henry Cole, Meg Okura, Megan Gould, Karen Waltuch and Noah Hoffeld. For the past four years Fabian has been the pianist for the Terence Blanchard Group and has toured North and South America, Asia and Europe extensively. Almazan has had the opportunity to share the stage with such artists as Gretchen Parlato, Paquito D'Rivera, Christian Scott, Chris Dingman, David Sanchez, Stefon Harris, Kendrick Scott and Ambrose Akinmusire among others.
www.fabianalmazan.com
JOSHUA CRUMBLY
Joshua Crumbly is a 17-year-old upright and electric bassist. He began to play the electric bass at the age of nine, where he quickly excelled in jazz as well as gospel, funk, latin, and r&b. At the age of ten he began playing gigs throughout the Antelope Valley and the Los Angeles Area. Joshua has studied with Victor Bailey bassist for Weather Report, Mary J Blidge, and Madonna. Some of his other teachers include Reggie Hamilton (bassist for Baby Face, Christina Aguilera, etc.), and Todd Johnson. He was also privileged to study with the late Al McKibbon bassist for Charlie Parker, Dizzie Gillespie, and Colman Hawkins. In the summer of 2007 Joshua was selected to participate in the Jazz Workshop under the direction of Terri Lyne Carrington, and Ric Dimuzio held at the Berklee College of Music. He also took 1st place at the Duke Ellington Society Awards. Joshua was also selected to participate in the 2008 Brubeck Colony. He has won the Ruth Nadel Award from the Stanford Jazz Workshop, and the Vernon T High Award from the Dolo Coker Jazz Foundation. He has performed at the Playboy Jazz Festival, Long Beach Jazz Festival, and Gardena Festival. Joshua plans on having a solo, touring , recording, producing, and writing career in music.
www.joshuacrumbly.com
KENDRICK SCOTT
Kendrick ‘KADS’ Scott, born July 8, 1980, and raised in Houston, Texas, is an artist of incredible depth, talent, and determination. He has been featured in Terence Blanchard’s band for the last six years and has appeared on the Grammy Award-winning and nominated recordings, A Tale of God’s Will and Flow, on which he contributed original compositions and orchestrations. Since arriving in New York City in 2003, Scott has appeared on numerous records as a sideman, and on the soundtracks to seven feature films. He is recognized as an endorser by Yamaha Corporation, Remo, Vater, Puresound, Zildjian Cymbals, Protechtor, Craviotto Snare Drums and Danmar Percussion. However, touring the world and recording with the likes of Blanchard, as well as Herbie Hancock, John Scofield, Maria Schneider, Wayne Shorter, Musiq Soulchild, Christian McBride, David Sanborn, Dianne Reeves, John Patitucci, The Crusaders, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Robert Glasper, Stefon Harris, Kenny Garrett, Pat Metheny, Nicholas Payton, Patti Austin, Angelique Kidjo, Lionel Loueke, Roy Hargrove, Raul Midon, Gretchen Parlato plus playing on numerous film soundtracks by Spike Lee and other filmmakers, is not nearly enough for the uber-talented 29-year old. While excelling in the business of playing music, Scott decided to plunge head first into the business of running a record label. In preparation for his debut recording as a leader, the drummer discovered the need for himself and other artists to have a new platform from which they could release their music. Scott also had no desire to place the destiny of his first recording in the hands of a traditional record label. In 2007, he launched World Culture Music with the release of Kendrick Scott Oracle – The Source. Kendrick Scott grew up in a household of musicians. He first encountered the drums in church where his parents and older brother were involved in the music ministry. By age six, Scott’s parents (Stepheny and Kenneth) could see that the young man’s interest in the drums was not a passing fancy, so they set him up with sticks, a pad and lessons. "As a kid, I remember listening to the music at church and feeling chills in my body. I knew then, that music was my calling." Years later his hard work, and the great support of his family, enabled Scott to attend Houston’s renowned High School for the Performing and Visual Arts (other graduates include Mike Moreno, Robert Glasper, Jason Moran, Eric Harland, Beyonce and many others). While a student, he won Downbeat Magazine student awards, plus the Clifford Brown/Stan Getz award, presented by the IAJE and the National Foundation for the Advancement of the Arts. He was later awarded a scholarship to attend the Berklee College of Music where he majored in Music Education. "Going to Berklee was pivotal for my growth as a musician. I met so many great amazing musicians and friends," he exclaims. As an undergrad, Scott gigged with Pat Metheny, Gary Burton, and Kenny Garrett. Upon graduation, he already had offers from Joe Sample and Terence Blanchard. The title track of his debut CD, The Source, was originally recorded on Terence Blanchard's 2005 record, Flow, for Blue Note Records. Flow features Scott as well as pianist and producer Herbie Hancock who plays on Scott's composition. "Being a part of Terence's group for three years has been a godsend. He has given the members of the band freedom to grow and cultivate our voices. When we went in to record ‘The Source’ Herbie said he would play on it; one can only imagine how I felt." If that weren't enough, Scott's composition was the Grammy nominated track (for Hancock's solo). "I knew when I went in to record my record that 'The Source' would be the title track. It is an homage to humanity. While the world is at unrest, I believe compassion will prevail."
In the words of Terence Blanchard, "Kendrick is a true artist of the highest order. He is not bound by the conventional wisdom of the music world. I've noticed that he never says why, but rather why not. He is exactly what the music world needs: someone with the vision and courage to press forward and expand the world of music. I am blessed to have him around and look forward to seeing what he does every time we play."
www.kendrickscott.com
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