A faculty jazz ensemble pays tribute to Thelonious Monk in a concert at 8 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 10 in Warren Auditorium in Ives Hall at Sonoma State University.
The Faculty Jazz Quintet is made up of Mel Graves on bass, drummer George Marsh, guitarist Randy Vincent, saxophonist Charles McCarthy, pianist John Simon and Pete Estabrook on trumpet.
Monk was part of that small group of jazz musicians who were responsible for the birth of bebop.
For tickets, call the Center For Performing Arts box office at (707) 664-2353. Prices are general, $12; faculty, alumni and staff, $10; non SSU students, seniors: $8. SSU students, free with valid identification. The box office is open Monday through Friday, noon to 5 p.m.
Mel Graves is a bass player extraordinaire. He has maintained long musical associations with many a top player in the jazz world. Besides his work as a professor, he is an accomplished composer. He has recorded more than 40 CD's and vinyl record projects. He is a graduate of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.
George Marsh has been one of the premiere drummer/percussionists in the San Francisco Bay Area for more than 30 years. During that time he has performed or recorded with such jazz greats as Mose Allison and Joe Henderson. Marsh is a professor at Sonoma State University, and an accomplished author. He has written "Inner Drumming," and is considered a leading authority on polyrhythms.
Guitarist Randy Vincent divides his time between teaching and performing. He too has performed with the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Joe Henderson and Bobby Hutcherson. He has been a sideman on more than 20 albums, and recently released his own CD, " MIrror Image."
Pete Estabrook has authored 10 jazz trumpet solo transcription books as well as three texts on trumpet and two on jazz. He is a freelance player with a variety of groups in the North Bay. He divides his teachiing time between Santa Rosa Junior College and Sonoma State University.
Pianist John Simon did his graduate and undergraduate work at Temple University with a piano concentration. He has been a keyboard player with the likes of Little Anthony, The Coasters and The Drifters. He has served as a musical director on "A Chorus Line" and "Stop The World I Want To Get Off." Simon is a professional keyboardist with an extensive repertoire ranging from jazz to classical, and from rock and roll to rhythm and blues. He is also a composer, and a musical engineer.
The final member of the quintet, Charles McCarthy is a freelance sax, clarinet and flutist who has taught woodwinds at San Francisco City College for more than 20 years. He plays periodically with the San Francisco Symphony and Ballet Orchestras and has recently completed a concert series with Joe Williams and the Louie Bellson Big Band. He is a staff musician at the Curran and Golden Gate Theatres and has performed with Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Joe Henderson, Lena Horne and Sarah Vaughn.
For further information, contact Alan Kleinschmidt, (707) 664-2197.
