SEPTEMBER 27, 7PM
Wayne Smith | Andrew Cyrille

 

Wayne Smith – solo cello concert ranging from a shakuhachi melody to a Bach Suite

Cellist, Wayne Smith gave his recital debut at the Kennedy Center in 1996 to critical acclaim, and as soloist and chamber musician has performed throughout the United States, Italy, Germany, Romania, Hungary, Austria, Poland, and China. In addition to being a highly sought-after chamber musician and soloist with orchestra Smith has recorded and performed with such artists as the Moody Blues, Joe, Richard Smallwood, Anthony Krizan of the Spin Doctors, and the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. In addition to his performance engagements, he enjoys an active teaching career, currently serving on the faculty of Amherst College. He completed his undergraduate studies at the Eastman School of Music with Steven Doane and pursued his graduate studies at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst with Astrid Schween.

 

Andrew Cyrille – world renowned drummer in a rare local appearance

The prolific composer and drummer Andrew Cyrille has toured and performed throughout North America, Europe, Africa, and the former USSR. For over 27 years he has been a member of TRIO3, featuring Oliver Lake and Reggie Workman, and he leads his own groups in various formations, performing in duo, trio and big bands with luminaries such as Archie Shepp, Roswell Rudd, Marilyn Crispell, Bill Frisell, Richard Teitelbaum, Irene Schweizer, Dave Douglas, Joe Lovano, Jason Moran, Vijay Iyer, David Virelles, Bill McHenry, Ben Street, Henry Grimes, William Parker, Soren Kjaergaard, and others.

Andrew Cyrille began formally studying drums and composition first with Philly Joe Jones in 1958, and later at The Juilliard School and Hartnett School of Music. At that time, he also performed with artists ranging from Mary Lou Williams, Coleman Hawkins, Roland Hanna and Illinois Jacquet to Kenny Dorham, Freddie Hubbard, Walt Dickerson, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, and Nigerian percussionist Babatunde Olatunji among others. Beginning in 1964, his 11-year iconic collaboration with pianist Cecil Taylor would define the category of free jazz drumming and establish Cyrille in the vanguard of jazz drummers and percussionists. From 1969, he formed several percussion groups featuring notable drummers such as Kenny Clarke, Milford Graves, Famoudou Don Moye, Rashied Ali, Daniel Ponce, Michael Carvin and Vladimir Tarasov. Since leaving Taylor's group, he went on to work with formidable artists as David Murray, Muhal Richard Abrams, Mal Waldron, Horace Tapscott, James Newton, Peter Brötzmann and Oliver Lake.

Cyrille is currently on faculty at The New School in NYC, and in 1994, he released an educational video, Jazz Methodology in Drum Music: In and Out of Meter, based on nearly 100 jazz albums and 30 years of professional jazz drumming. A Guggenheim Fellow in Composition (1999), his other notable achievements include three National Endowment for the Arts grants for performance and composition, two Meet the Composer/ AT&T- Rockefeller Foundation grants, and an Arts International Award to perform with his quintet in Accra, Ghana, and West Africa, and two ASCAP awards for meritorious achievement in percussion composition. He is the 2019 Vision Festival Lifetime Achievement Award honoree by Arts for Art, Inc.
 

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