The acclaimed jazz bassist is in town under the auspices of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation. The concert will happen Friday evening (2/10) at the George and Joyce Wein Jazz & Heritage Center at 1225 N. Rampart Street. The free clinic will be held at the same location for bass players and other rhythm section musicians at 4:30 PM today (2/9). To register for the clinic in advance (required) go here.
The free concerts, which have been happening regularly since the center named for the legendary producer of the Jazz Fest opened, are supported by the dollars you spend at Jazz Fest every spring. Seating is extremely limited in the intimate, state of the art acoustic space. Doors open at 7:30 PM and the band will play two sets at 8 and 9 PM.
Speaking of the band—McBride will be backed by an all-star group of New Orleans musicians featuring David Torkanowsky on piano, Johnny Vidacovich on drums, and Detroit Brooks on guitar.
Christian McBride is a Four-time Grammy-winning jazz bassist. The Philadelphia native bound onto the jazz scene in New York City as a classical studies student at Julliard in 1989. Veteran jazz saxophonist Bobby Watson promptly recruited him—and the rest is history.
After a decade on the road and hundreds of recording sessions, he formed his first band in 2000. Since then he has developed into a musical force of nature powered by a relentless energy and a boundless love of swing. He is also one of the most esteemed jazz educators in the world. Full disclosure—my nephew is one of the students at Jazz House Kids, the nationally recognized community arts organization founded by his wife, vocalist Melissa Walker.
McBride’s resume is vast, featuring artists from virtually every genre including jazz—Freddie Hubbard, Sonny Rollins, McCoy Tyner, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, and Pat Metheny; R&B—Isaac Hayes, Chaka Khan, Natalie Cole, and the one and only Godfather of Soul himself, James Brown; pop/rock—Sting, Paul McCartney, Carly Simon, Don Henley, and Bruce Hornsby; hip-hop/neo-soul—The Roots, D’Angelo, and Queen Latifah; and classical—Kathleen Battle, Edgar Meyer, Shanghai Quartet, and Sonus Quartet.
This concert is a chance to see one of the greats of our era in a setting specifically designed for jazz. I have seen several performances in the space and it is acoustically perfect. Get there early, because it’s bound to be packed.
