Seattle Jazz Vespers

Originally from Milan, Italy, Francesco Crosara’s music melds an impressive mix of jazz improvisation, a romantic vein from his classical training, along with Latin influences. Francesco stands among the European-bred jazz greats, performing over the years with the likes of Lionel Hampton, Freddie Hubbard, Roy Hargrove, Richie Cole, Lilian Terry, and more. His recordings have featured a multicultural and international array of musicians.

“Since 2017, the Northwest can claim his talents, too, as he’s demonstrated an eagerness to contribute to the local scene. Francesco was selected to perform at the 2021 Earshot Jazz Festival in Seattle and has been featured two years in a row in the trend-setting Earshot Jazz.

Dina Blade – vocal and guitar, Hans Brehmer – piano, Osama Afifi – bass, and Robert Rushing – drums

Dina Blade is a singer with a deeply relaxed sense of time and swing who spent her early childhood watching old cartoons with jazz soundtracks and has been enthralled with the music ever since. She has graced stages in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Cuba and Brazil, singing at festivals, jazz clubs.

An effervescent performer with a devotion to the timeless songs from the 1930s and 40s Great American Songbook, Dina has created several thematic shows preserving the work of the master composers and lyricists from that era. For this concert she will be playing classic and romantic songs from Brazil and the Great American Songbook. For this reason she is a recipient of the American Masters Performance Initiative from the National Endowment for the Arts.

3-time Latin Grammy nominee Jovino Santos Neto is a master pianist, flutist, composer, arranger and conductor from Rio de Janeiro. After 15 years as a member of the legendary Hermeto Pascoal Group, he moved to Seattle in 1993. Since then, Jovino has established himself as a fascinating performer, whether playing solo piano, leading his award-winning Quinteto, or in guest appearances with ensembles and orchestras worldwide. He has shared the stage and the studio with some of the most creative musicians of our times.

Jovino’s compositions have been performed by the Seattle Symphony, NDR Big Band in Hamburg and by numerous jazz and chamber music groups. Jovino gives lectures, clinics and master classes worldwide on a variety of musical topics.

Jovino has received commissions by the Cheswatyr Foundation, IAJE, ASCAP, CMA/Doris Duke Foundation, Jack Straw Foundation, the City of Seattle, 4Culture, Artist Trust and Meet the Composer. He has been artist in residence at some of the most prestigious music schools in the world. In 2012 he was inducted into the Seattle Jazz Hall of Fame and in 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2018 the Jovino Santos Neto Quinteto won as Best Northwest Acoustic Group in the Golden Ear Awards by Earshot Jazz. He also was awarded an Artist Trust Fellowship in Music in 2012.

Come early for parking and best seating. We expect this concert to be a full house. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.

Also, we will be awarding our Shirley Cline Memorial “Young Jazz Artist Scholarship” during the interlude between sets.

Travis Ranney – tenor saxophone, Michael Van Bebber – trumpet, Clif Swiggett -trombone/bongos, Nelda Swiggett – piano/vocal, Max Wood – drums, and Michael Glynn – bass

Swingin’, well-crafted arrangements and tight ensemble work produce a rich “big band” sound from this jazz sextet’s three-horn front line. Megabopolis is led by OA2 recording artist and award-winning composer Nelda Swiggett, and performs many of her original compositions and arrangements.

Megabopolis features some of Seattle’s finest jazz musicians, passionate about their craft, who have collectively performed at many top clubs and festivals throughout the Northwest and beyond, including the Earshot Jazz Festival, the Port Townsend Jazz Festival, Bumbershoot, Dimitriou’s Jazz Alley, the North Sea Jazz Festival, the Montreux Jazz Festival, and the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., to name a few.

Larry Green – vocal, LaRoi Carter – guitar, Dale Cartlett – drums, Michael Stubblefield – bass, Jim Cochran – keyboards, and Keith Carter – tenor and alto sax

Singer, songwriter, and musician Larry Green serves up a broad range of musical styles with his original compositions and vocal performances.

Influenced by Al Jarreau, Aretha Franklin, James Taylor and Maurice White, Larry identifies as a musician in the broader sense, unconstrained by genre or label.
As a songwriter, he delights in the pairing of funk rhythms and four-part gospel harmonies infused with rock guitar lead licks. Believing that music is the universal language, he also sees music as a uniting expression of invitation. Larry led and directed a gospel choir while an undergraduate earning his pharmacy degree.

He formed and toured with a funk band while on active duty and living in Italy, and recorded two solo albums showcasing his unique, blended style of artistic expression.

Larry has performed with his band Groove Deluxe at clubs and events in the Northwest, including the Bite of Seattle as well as the Taste of Tacoma.

Scott Lindenmuth – guitar, David Pascal – bass, Chris Munroe – drums, Dwight Beckmeyer – keyboards

Scott Lindenmuth is a guitarist with few boundaries. He has been described as “One of the Pacific Northwest’s greatest instrumentalists” and a “Genre-crossing virtuoso”.

Performing with his contemporary instrumental group the Scott Lindenmuth Group, they will be playing jazz standards, Latin, funk, fusion and originals.

Lindenmuth is expanding his reputation as a cutting edge composer, creative and intuitive improviser, and master technician. A master of many styles he is one of the few guitarists in the world today that can easily transition from jazz to electric blues, classical to rock, funk, and fusion displaying fluid technique and virtuosic ability in all genres. His list of influences range from Jimi Hendrix to Wes Montgomery, Andres Segovia to Pat Metheny.

As a composer he has released four albums of original compositions with his group which received rave reviews in major publications including Down Beat, Guitar Player, Guitar World and Jazziz. They have been featured on radio stations throughout the U.S., with sales in countries around the world. He has also composed many compositions for solo guitar.

Scott Lindenmuth is regular performer on the Pacific Northwest music scene and has appeared at the region’s top venues for live music.

Greta Matassa – vocals, Brian Monroney – guitar, Clipper Anderson – bass , Mark Ivester – drums, and Alexey Nikolaev – sax