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"The jazz world needs more Steve Turres. A powerful technician with a soulful tone and quick wit, Turre is perhaps the leading trombonist of this generation. Turre also wails on his self-designed conch shells, making robust sound that can be both eerie and serene." - Rolling Stone  Steve Turre © Anndrea Canter
One of the world's preeminent jazz innovators, trombonist and seashellist Steve Turre, will appear at the Jazz Showscase with the Willie Pickens on piano, Lary Gray on bass and Dion Parson on drums on Thursday, July 12th trough Sunday, July 15th with sets and 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. nightly and a 4:00 p.m. show on Sunday. Steve Turre has consistently won both the Readers' and Critics' polls in JazzTimes, Downbeat, and Jazziz for Best Trombone and for Best Miscellaneous Instrumentalist (shells). Turre was born to Mexican-American parents and grew up in the San Francisco Bay area where he absorbed daily doses of mariachi, blues and jazz. While attending Sacramento State University, he joined the Escovedo Brothers salsa band, which began his career-long involvement with that genre.
 Steve Turre © Anndrea Canter
In addition to performing as a member of the Saturday Night Live Band since 1984, Turre leads several different ensembles. Sanctified Shells utilizes the seashell in a larger context, transforming his horn section into a "shell choir". Turre's Spring 1999 Verve release, Lotus Flower, showcases his Sextet With Strings. The recording explores many great standards and original compositions arranged by Turre for a unique instrumentation of trombone and shells, violin, cello, piano, bass and drums. Turre's quartet and quintet provide a setting based in tradition and stretching the limits conceptually and stylistically. In the Summer of 2000, Telarc released In The Spur of the Moment. This recording features Steve with three different quartets, each with a different and distinct master pianist: Ray Charles, Chucho Valdes, and Stephen Scott.
Turre's self-titled Verve release pioneers a unique artistic vision, drawing upon jazz, Afro-Cuban, and Brazilian sources. This innovative recording also features Cassandra Wilson, Randy Brecker, Graciela, Mongo Santamaria and J.J. Johnson. Previously Turre recorded Right There and Rhythm Within, featuring Herbie Hancock, Jon Faddis, Pharoah Sanders, and Sanctified Shells, on Verve's subsidiary label, Antilles.
Steve Turre continually evolves as a musician and arranger. He has a strong command of all musical genres and when it comes to his distinct brand of jazz, he always keeps one foot in the past and one in the future.
Steve Turre's bio was adapted from matrial on his website: http://www.steveturre.com
 Willie Pickens
In 1954, Willie earned a teacher’s certificate from the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music in Milwaukee and went on to the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee, in 1958, to receive his B.S. in Music Education. His sterling academic credentials have enabled him to share his gifts with many young players, both as a performer and teacher.
After he had recorded and toured with the multitalented Eddie Harris in the early ’60s, Willie’s live appearances were almost all limited to the midwest for the next two decades, while his career as an educator flourished. From 1966 to 1986, he appeared on recordings headlined by Bunky Green, E. Parker McDougal, Vernel Fournier, and Joanie Pallatto. He also performed with Sammy Davis Jr., at Orchestra Hall, and with Quincy Jones, Roberta Flack, and Minnie Ripperton at the Mill Run Theatre in Niles, near Chicago.
In 1990, Willie was invited to join the mighty Elvin Jones Jazz Machine. His first appearance with this legendary band took place later that year at the Bottom Line in New York and also featured Wynton Marsalis. Willie’s commitment to the Jazz Machine over the next several years meant retirement from full-time teaching in the public schools, but enabled him to serve as a linchpin for the group, appearing in Japan, Europe, and Canada, as well as in many U.S. cities.
Willie continues to be one of Chicago’s most in-demand pianists for visiting artists Steve Turre, will appear at the Jazz Showscase with the Willie Pickens Trio on Thursday, July 12th trough Sunday, July 15th with sets and 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. nightly and a 4:00 p.m. show on Sunday. |
Chicago 
Wednesday, 22 May 2013
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