Derrick Michaels is an inexorable force in the creative music community, whose sonorous tenor saxophone tone and dedication to narrative improvisation have landed him on stage with some of the nation’s foremost improvising musicians, including Billy Hart, Michael Formanek, Dave Ballou, Susan Alcorn, and Ellery Eskelin. Born and raised in Baltimore, Michaels evokes the rich history of the tenor saxophone. His music is rooted deeply in the present moment, while reaching into the future. The essence of jazz is imbued with a unique exploration of timbre, phrasing, and technique, which is most often found in classical traditions....
read more
Derrick Michaels is an inexorable force in the creative music community, whose sonorous tenor saxophone tone and dedication to narrative improvisation have landed him on stage with some of the nation’s foremost improvising musicians, including Billy Hart, Michael Formanek, Dave Ballou, Susan Alcorn, and Ellery Eskelin. Born and raised in Baltimore, Michaels evokes the rich history of the tenor saxophone. His music is rooted deeply in the present moment, while reaching into the future. The essence of jazz is imbued with a unique exploration of timbre, phrasing, and technique, which is most often found in classical traditions.
Brandishing both an unabashed romanticism and a reckless abandon, Michaels aims to communicate the most vital energy of the human experience through his horn. With an affinity for assembling highly synergistic ensembles, Michaels aims to bring listeners into the process of the music as it unfolds into the present moment.
Baltimore-based musician Erin Connelly began playing trumpet age of 10, and began her jazz studies at Litchfield Jazz Camp at 16, where she studied with acclaimed trumpeters Russ Johnson and Claudio Roditi. Erin began jazz studies in high school, after she unwittingly purchased “Chet Baker Sings” from the dollar bin in her local record shop - the beauty, vulnerability and romance of the music immediately compelled her to pursue trumpet as a vehicle for her own self-expression. She earned a degree in Jazz trumpet performance in 2016 from Towson University, where she studied under esteemed trumpeter Dave Ballou, with further studies in improvisation, jazz repertoire and arranging with Jim McFalls, Tim Murphy, and Jeff Reed. As part of the Bill and Helen Murray Jazz Residency program, Erin was privileged to partake in private lessons and clinics with Ellery Eskelin, Drew Gress, Matt Wilson, Jeff Lederer, Ralph Alessi, Tony Malaby, Ingrid Laubrock, Kris Davis, Mary Halverson, and David Liebman. Erin earned a Bachelor’s degree in Jazz/Commercial Trumpet Performance from Towson University in 2016.
Trombonist and improviser Nicole Connelly grew up in the small rural town of Tolland, CT. From a non-musical family, Nicole, alongside her twin sister Erin, started to develop a relationship with music at Tolland High School and the Litchfield Jazz Camp. Starting in 2012, as a Jazz and Commercial Music Major at Towson University, Nicole was immersed in the world of improvisation and found refuge in creative music, the “avant-garde”. While still in school, Nicole founded the Creative Music Consortium, now co-curated with Baltimore-based drummer Asher Herzog, to provide musicians in the surrounding area with a creative musical outlet. Nicole graduated from Towson University in 2016 with a Bachelor’s degree in Jazz/Commercial Music. After spending a year playing trombone professionally in Baltimore full-time, she now resides in New York City where she continues her creative and professional journey.
Over the years, Nicole has studied with Alan Raph, Jim McFalls, Dave Ballou, Marshall Gilkes and Ryan Keberle, among many others
Andrew Hadro is a professional musician, composer, and bandleader in Brooklyn, NY. Hadro’s primary instrument is baritone saxophone, though he also performs on bass clarinet, Bb clarinet, and flute, and is one of the only working musicians in New York City to play the bass saxophone. Recently, Hadro has been presenting compositions by current living composers through his ongoing project "For Us, The Living," An effort to honor tradition through innovation. Hadro has performed and recorded two albums for this series, with the most recent released in April 2018.
$15 in advance/$18 at door/$10 full-time students with ID
show less
