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Big Band Master Frank Wess Brings Quintet to the Village Vanguard, April 29-May 4 Print E-mail
Written by Andrea Canter, Contributing Editor   
Saturday, 26 April 2008

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Frank Wess © Ronald K Marsh
“Frank Wess is revered as a smoothly swinging tenor saxophone player in the Lester Young tradition, as an expert alto saxophonist, and as one of the most influential, instantly recognizable flutists in jazz history.” National Endowment for the Arts, 2007

At 85, American Jazz Master saxophonist/flautist Frank Wess is hardly considering retirement. That will be quite obvious this week at the Village Vanguard (April 29-May 4) when the Basie alum brings a stellar quintet to the stage, featuring Terell Stafford (trumpet), Ilya Lushtak (guitar), Rufus Reid (bass) and Winard Harper (drums).

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Rufus Reid © Andrea Canter
Born in Kansas City, MO, Frank Wess began alto saxophone studies at age 10, playing in his father’s band. In high school he performed with the Kansas All State High School Orchestra before relocating to Washington, DC. Still in his teens, he played lunch hour jam sessions with fellow students, who included pianist Billly Taylor. For a while he played in local bands on alto and later tenor, including a group led by Blanche Calloway, before being drafted into the Army during World War II. Frank played tenor and clarinet in the Army Band and led an ensemble backing the great Josephine Baker. After his discharge, he added stints with Billy Eckstine and Lucky Millinder to his resume, and began flute studies with Wallace Mann (National Symphony) and Harold Bennett (Metropolitan Opera) in the late 40s. His big break came in 1953 when he joined the Count Basie Orchestra, first on tenor and flute, and later adding the alto sax to his duties. During his eleven years with Basie, Wess appeared on dozens of recordings and became one of the first major soloists on flute. Moving to New York City in the mid 60s, Frank Wess became a popular performer in studios on television, performing for Saturday Night Live, the Dick Cavett Show, and appeared in Broadway pit orchestras supporting Sammy Davis, Debbie Reynolds, and more; he also played with Clark Terry, Toshiko Akiyoshi, and Sir Roland Hanna. From their Basie connection, Wess and fellow tenorman Frank Foster formed a quintet, Two Franks, which performed for nearly two decades.

In the late 80s-early 90s, Frank led a successful big band in the Basie style, featuring Harry Sweets Edison, Joe Newman, Snooky Young, Al Grey, Benny Powell and other Basie alumni, and releasing recordings such as Dear Mr. Basie and Entre Nous. He also played first chair tenor sax for the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band for ten years and toured with the Dizzy Gillespie Alumni Big Band. Still maintaining an active touring schedule, Frank was named and American Jazz Master in 2007 by the National Endowment for the Arts. In addition to his quintet performance at the Village Vanguard, Frank will head a Celebration Nonet at Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola in June, featuring Ted Nash, Scott Robinson, Frank Greene, Steve Turre, Peter Washington and Cyrus Chestnut, along with Stafford and Harper.

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Terell Stafford © Andrea Canter
Terell Stafford is recognized as one of the leading trumpeters of his generation. A mainstay of the Matt Wilson Arts and Crafts quartet, Stafford leads his own quintet with Tim Warfield and Bruce Barth, teaches at Temple University, and records for MaxJazz. Russian-born guitarist Ilya Lushtak moved to San Francisco with his family when he was three. His discovery of the jazz masters led him to study and work with many living masters including guitarist Eddie Diehl, and later to the founding of the classic jazz label, Lineage Records. Originally from Chicago, bassist Rufus Reid has performed with such legendary jazz artists as Gene Ammons, Kenny Dorham, Sonny Stitt, Don Byas, Philly Joe Jones, Thad Jones, Mel Lewis, Dexter Gordon, Bill Evans, Stan Getz, Dizzy Gillespie, and Art Farmer. Today, in addition to building a reputation as a composer, Reid performs with Lee Konitz, Roni Ben-Hur, Bob Mintzer, George Cables, Billy Hart, Bill Mays, Marvin Stamm, and Rondi Charleston, as well as his own group, The Rufus Reid Quintet. Renowned leader of the Winard Harper Sextet, drummer Harper began percussion studies at age five in his native Washington, DC area. He quickly became a virtuoso performer, and has shared the stage with such luminaries as Dexter Gordon, Betty Carter, and Billy Taylor.

Bridging the big band era with a band of modern masters, the Frank Wess Quintet is a not-to-be-missed residency at the Village Vanguard, April 29-May 4.

The Village Vanguard is located at 178 Seventh Avenue South in Greenwich Village; www.villagevanguard.com

 
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