NORWICH – With the end of its 2014 season on the horizon, the Chenango Arts Council is setting the stage for one final performance.
Renowned clarinetist and saxophonist Don Byron and the New Gospel Quintet will round the Arts Council performance season this year, much to the delight of the local jazz scene. Byron’s music style has helped shaped the works of diverse artists the likes of Duke Ellington, Igor Stravinsky, Micky Katz, Raymond Scott, Earth Wind and Fire, and Junior Walker. The Don Byron New Gospel Quintet, featured on Byron’s newest savory jazz album, “Love, Peace, and Soul,” is the latest venture of the groundbreaking artist.
“We are very excited to have him perform here,” said Chenango Arts Council Executive Director Victoria Kappel. “He’s such a wonderful talent. People who know jazz, know Don Byron.”
The performance features a host of talent in the gospel and jazz genres, including the vocals of Carla Cook, Xavier Davis on the piano, Brad Jones playing the bass, Pheeroan akLaff on drums, and of course the unforgettable clarinet and saxophone sounds of Byron himself.
Launched in 2009, the New Gospel Quintet has played the international spotlight, earning reputable praise in Europe and the United States. Said Byron, “Black religious music is a very personal thing to me, as much if not more than any other style I have researched and performed in the past. As much as I was fascinated by other legends I have explored like Duke Ellington and Stravinsky, I feel a deep spiritual connection to Gospel that transcends just about everything else.”
In addition to performing at the Martin W. Kappel Theater at the Arts Council, Byron will also make an appearance in Norwich at the United Church of Christ the Monday prior to the show. Byron, in connection with the Arts Council and the New York State Presenters Network, will target young musicians in a unique lecture and demonstration at UCC. The goal, Kappel explained, is to have famed New York State musicians like Byron become involved with arts communities throughout the state.
