West Valley Jazz

Vocalist Madeline Eastman

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Madeline Eastman has established herself as a singular talent, recognized in Down Beat Magazine’s International Critics Poll and heralded for her vocal gifts and irrepressible sense of adventure. From Japan to Finland, from San Francisco and New York nightclubs to the Monterey and Glasgow Jazz Festivals, an Eastman performance is never less than exhilarating. Madeline hails from the Bay Area, but the world is now her stage.

Visit www.madelineeastman.com for more on this creative artist.

Legendary Drummer Louie Bellson

Update 11/17/08:  Bellson performance cancelled because of injury, replaced by concert with drummer Dave Weckl.

Sunday, December 14, 2008, 7 pm

Referred to by Duke Ellington as “not only the world’s greatest drummer...(but also) the world’s greatest musician!”, Louie Bellson has expressed himself on drums since age three. At 15, he pioneered the double bass drum set-up. At 17, he triumphed over 40,000 drummers to win the Gene Krupa drumming contest.

He has performed on more than 200 albums with such greats as Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Harry James, Woody Herman, Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, Oscar Peterson, Dizzy Gillespie, Louie Armstrong, Lionel Hampton, James Brown, Sammy Davis Jr., Tony Bennett, Mel Torme, Joe Williams, Wayne Newton and Bellson’s late wife Pearl Bailey. Louie's newest release, a CD produced with Clark Terry entitled LOUIE & CLARK EXPEDITION 2 is getting rave reviews.

As a composer and author he has written more than 1,000 compositions and more than a dozen books on drums and percussion. He received the prestigious American Jazz Masters Award from the National Endowment for the Arts in 1994. In 2003, a historical land-marker was dedicated at his July 6, 1924 birth house in Rock Falls, Illinois, thus inaugurating their annual 4-day celebration in his honor, and in June, 2007, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) inducted Louie Bellson as a "Living Legend" during a Jazz Wall of Fame ceremony in New York City. Louie is also a six-time Grammy nominee. He and his wife and manager Francine split residence between San Jose and Southern California.

www.louiebellson.net has music, video, history, and more on this great artist.

Keyboardist Jeff Lorber

Sunday, February 14, 2009, 3 pm
Improv, downtown San Jose
$20 General/$15 Students at the door (see our special series subscription offer).
Advance Online $15 General/$12 Students
(Note: Date, Time, Venue changed from original announcement)

Over three decades after breaking ground as leader of the pioneering Jeff Lorber Fusion, the Philly-born and bred composer and keyboard legend is still inspiring contemporary smooth jazz and straight ahead jazz fans everywhere. Jeff is a Grammy-nominated musician with hundreds of credits in jazz, fusion, pop, and R&B, including recent collaborations with Chris Botti, Dave Koz, Michael Franks, David Benoit, and saxophonist Gerald Albright. He even hosts a jazz show on Sirius satellite radio.

Check out music, credits, and interviews on Jeff Lorber's site www.lorber.com.

Saxophonist Ernie Watts

Two-time Grammy Award winner Ernie Watts is one of the most versatile and prolific saxophone players around, featured on over 500 recordings by artists ranging from Cannonball Adderley to Frank Zappa. The list of people he's played with in his 40 year career is stunning - original masters including Miles Davis, Thelonius Monk, Oliver Nelson, Buddy Rich, and Gerald Wilson; to the contemporary "who's who" including Pat Metheny, Charlie Haden, Jack DeJohnette, Arturo Sandoval, Kenny Barron, Mulgrew Miller, Eddie Gomez, Jimmy Cobb, and Marc Whitfield. Ernie's signature sound is also heard on countless TV shows and movie scores, and with pop stars such as Aretha Franklin and Steely Dan.

His current activities includes work with vocalist Kurt Elling in a tribute to Johnny Hartman and John Coltrane with string quartet. He has taken part in Jazz at the Kennedy Center for Billy Taylor, and recently toured Australia with Billy Cobham and orchestra. He gives back to the music by conducting student clinics and master classes.

Visit his site www.erniewatts.com for sound samples and more on this exceptional musician.