Steve Wilson © Andrea Canter

Dubbed a “musician’s musician,” soprano/alto saxman Steve Wilson has played sideman on over 100 recordings with such artists as Chick Corea, Dave Holland, Don Byron, Bill Stewart, James Williams, and Mulgrew Miller. Notes George Varga in the San Diego Times, “Wilson has the rare ability to say more with less and to let the space between each note breathe and resonate.” The Virginia native began formal sax studies at 12, continuing at Virginia Commonwealth University where he studied or played with Percy Heath, Jon Hendricks, Jaki Byard, Frank Foster and Ellis Marsalis.

After moving to New York, he was part of the OTB (Out of the Blue) Sextet and toured with the Lionel Hampton Orchestra. Today he tours with many of the top bands in jazz, including the Maria Schneider Orchestra, Buster Williams, Lewis Nash and Michael Weiss. He leads two quartets, the Steve Wilson Quartet with Ed Howard, Bruce Barth and Adam Cruz, and his Generations Quartet with Miller, Drummond and Riley. Wilson is also a dedicated jazz educator and former faculty member at William Paterson College.

Mulgrew Miller © Andrea Canter

Over his 30+ year career, Ray Drummond has excelled as a composer, arranger, bandleader, educator and producer, but is best known as an acclaimed bassist. After his early work with Bobby Hutcherson in San Francisco, Drummond became a first-call bassist in New York, and over the years worked with Betty Carter, The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra, Stan Getz, Kenny Burrell, Wynton Marsalis, Woody Shaw, Hank Jones, Jon Faddis, Milt Jackson, Johnny Griffin, Kenny Barron, Pharoah Sanders, and George Coleman. He’s appeared on over 300 recordings and today performs with such diverse artists as Kenny Barron, Phil Woods, Joe Locke, Paul Bollenback, Jessica Williams and Jeanie Bryson. With husband/wife team of Billy Drummond (no relation) and Rene Rosness, he also performs and records as The Drummonds. Currently he is on the faculty of California State University Monterey Bay.

Veteran drummer Ben Riley is a long-time compatriot of many of the jazz legends of the past fifty years, including Thelonious Monk, Alice Coltrane, Ahmad Jamal, Eddie Lockjaw Davis and more. A native of Savannah, Georgia, Riley moved to New York as a youngster, where his early cohorts included Sonny Rollins, Billy Taylor, Jimmy Cobb, and Roy Haynes, the latter who became a key mentor. Philly Jo Jones and Ed Thigpen also became significant influences on Riley’s style, and his four years touring with Thelonious Monk set his career on star trajectory. Riley enjoyed long-standing collaborations with Mary Lou Williams, Randy Weston, Ron Carter, Buster Williams and Kenny Barron, among others. With Buster Williams, Barron and Charlie Rouse, Riley formed Sphere, which continued until Rouse’s death. Riley’s latest project, with Don Strickler, is a piano-less group, the Monk Legacy Septet.

Jazz Standard is located at 116 E. 27^th Street in Manhattan; www.jazzstandard.com. Two sets each night at 7:30 and 9:30 pm, with a third set at 11:30 on Friday and Saturday. Steve Wilson’s Generations Quartet will be in residence April 26-29.