Event Calendar
Don Braden: Earth, Wind & Wonder
Friday, September 27, 2019, 7:30 pm
Unique jazz arrangments of songs by Earth, Wind and Fire and Stevie Wonder.
"Earth Wind and Fire and Stevie Wonder captured my teenage heart, mind and soul and have not let go. The messages within their music – built around core themes such as strength, love and joy -- are imbued with African-American spirit, and yet embody a wide variety of human emotions and experience. They are delivered with power, artistry and elegance via memorable and singable melodies, rich harmonies, compelling lyrics, infectious grooves, outstanding arrangements and superb performances. Happily, the commercial success of these great artists reflects their brilliance." - Don Braden
Saxophonist and flutist Don Braden is known around the world as an exciting and interactive jazz soloist, a creative and prolific composer, and a passionate and energetic educator. He is also known as a specialist at arranging and performing classic popular songs in the modern jazz style. For over 30 years he has toured the world leading his own ensembles, as a special guest, and as a sideman with Jazz greats Betty Carter, Wynton Marsalis, Freddie Hubbard, Tony Williams, Roy Haynes, and many others. He has composed music in various styles for ensembles ranging from duo to full symphonic orchestra, for recordings (including 21 CDs as a leader and over 80 as a sideman), film, and the television networks NIckelodeon and CBS. His latest CD Earth Wind and Wonder features his quartets performing jazz interpretations of songs by R&B titans Earth Wind and Fire and Stevie Wonder. He has spent over two decades giving master classes at countless schools and universities, and running first class educational programs such as the Litchfield Jazz Camp, NJPAC's Wells Fargo Jazz For Teens, and most recently, the Harvard University Monday Jazz Band. He is an imaginative, technically excellent, soulful player, and his harmonic and rhythmic sophistication give him a unique approach to improvising as well as composing and arranging. Most important of all: he has a beautiful sound, and he swings! All this combines with his joyous yet disciplined personality to make him one of the most important musicians working today.
More information on Don Braden is available at www.DonBraden.com.
