Bard Fisher Center & Catskill Jazz Factory Present French Jazz Series and Gala Performance Celebrating 100 Years of Jazz 

ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y.— The Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College and Catskill Jazz Factory present the French Connection series, featuring three unique concerts by emerging jazz artists examining the interplay between the American and French jazz scenes. The series kick off with Django Reinhardt and the French Salon, on Saturday, February 11 at 7:30 p.m.; followed by Les Belles Chanson Françaises, on Saturday, March 18 at 7:30 p.m.; and Whisper of a Shadow: An Homage to Louis Moreau Gottschalk, on Friday, April 14 at 7:30 p.m. The French Connection series takes place in LUMA Theater, and tickets are $25-40. On Saturday, May 13 at 8 p.m., there will be a gala performance in the Sosnoff Theater: Celebrating 100 Years of Jazz. Tickets are $25-50; $100 for a gala benefit ticket which includes a pre-performance reception. A subscription package to all four jazz concerts can be purchased for $95; a $200 benefit subscription includes preferred seating and pre-performance reception. Tickets and additional information is available at fishercenter.bard.edu or by calling the box office at 845-758-7900.

French Connection I: DJANGO REINHARDT & THE FRENCH SALON
Featuring Alphonso Horne & Candice Hoyes 

Explore the roots of early Jazz, the musical influences of French Impressionism, and a fusion of the two in the virtuosic music of Paris “hot club jazz” creator Django Reinhardt.  Trumpeter Horne, vocalist Hoyes, and their ensemble will examine the links between French mélodie, jazz, and cabaret. Satie, Debussy, and Poulenc meet Ellington, Porter and beyond.
Alphonso Horne is a two-time Grammy-nominated trumpeter named by Wynton Marsalis as one of the rising stars of next jazz generation. Candice Hoyes is an  internationally acclaimed classical and jazz recording vocalist.

French Connection II: LES BELLES CHANSONS FRANçAISES
Featuring Camille Bertault & Dan Tepfer

From Edith Piaf to Yves Montand, from Serge Gainsbourg to Jacques Brel, the French Songbook enchants and charms. French vocalist Camille Bertault performs with Franco-American virtuoso pianist Dan Tepfer in their interpretation of this playful and seductive repertoire.

Paris-based Bertault, a jaw-dropping YouTube sensation who first rose to acclaim with her flawless recitations of jazz standards, and Tepfer, a genre-defying APA Cole Porter Fellow pianist equally at home in the worlds of Bach and Bud Powell, serve as a perfect musical pairing. Bertault and Tepfer will take audiences on a journey through the works of Yves Montand, Brigitte Fontaine, Patachou, Edith Piaf, Serge Gainsbourg, Jacques Brel, Jean Ferrat, Les Pierrots Parisiens, Charles Aznavour, Charles Trenet and more in this timeless and revitalizing debut.

“Camille Bertault is more than merely a sly vocal gymnast; she’s a fine composer and a singer who carefully coaxes the emotional impact out of a melody.” (Downbeat Magazine)

“Brilliant… Dan Tepfer combines superb technique with a complex set of impulses: he’s a deeply rational improviser drawn to the unknown.” (New York Times)

French Connection III: WHISPER OF A SHADOW: AN HOMAGE TO LOUIS MOREAU GOTTSCHALK
Featuring Evan Christopher and Yohan Giaume

French trumpetist and composer Yohan Giaume and New Orleans–based Evan Christopher lead a jazz nonet into a contemporary vision of the musical world of Louis Moreau Gottschalk, 19th-century New Orleans Creole composer and pianist. The music offers an exploration of the imprint of his time, examining in new compositions Gottschalk’s Afro-Creole rhythms, along with the melodies of the Crescent City and his celebrations of life, love, and death.

This project is made possible through the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation, the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region (France), and French-American Jazz Exchange, a joint program of FACE Foundation and Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, with generous funding from the Cultural Services of the French Embassy, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Florence Gould Foundation, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Institut Français, Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication, and Société des Auteurs, Compositeurs et Éditeurs de Musique (SACEM).

CELEBRATING 100 YEARS OF JAZZ
Led by Chris Washburne

Trombonist Chris Washburne and Catskill Jazz Factory all-star musicians from Sao Paulo, New Orleans, Austria and beyond, explore one hundred years of Jazz across cultures, continents and generations. This retrospective addresses the international roots and influences from traditional folk songs to early American jazz pioneers such as Joplin, WC Handy, Jelly Roll Morton, Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith.

Featuring a masterful ensemble including Creole master clarinetist Evan Christopher (“one of the world’s major clarinetists,” Wall Street Journal), vocalist Sarah Elizabeth Charles (“one of today’s most dynamic young vocalists,” Downbeat Magazine), Brazilian piano virtuoso André Mehmari (“one of Brazil’s best kept secrets,” EJazz News), and trumpeter Alphonso Horne (named a rising star of the next jazz generation by Wynton Marsalis).

High resolution photography can be downloaded here: http://fishercenter.bard.edu/press/photos/?gid=650811#a_media

Additional information is available at fishercenter.bard.edu; tickets can be ordered online at fishercenter.bard.edu or by calling the box office at 845-758-7900.

The Catskill Jazz Factory is a non-profit program founded in 2012 by Hudson Valley residents Piers and Lucy Playfair. The program offers in-school workshops and concerts, artist residencies, and performances throughout the Hudson Valley. Through this programming, the Catskill Jazz Factory supports some of today's best young jazz artists with educational, creative, and performance opportunities at diverse venues across the region. By partnering with educational facilities, arts organizations, and a variety of local non-profits and businesses, the Catskill Jazz Factory encourages audiences of all ages to participate in community building through jazz. For an ongoing list of Catskill Jazz Factory’s year-round regional jazz programming, see catskilljazzfactory.org.
 
Named for the late Richard B. Fisher, former chair of Bard’s Board of Trustees, the Fisher Center has become an influential force in performing arts programming, earning critical acclaim for innovative productions of opera, orchestral, chamber, dance, and theater programs. The Center was designed by legendary architect Frank Gehry and distinguished acoustician Yasuhisa Toyota, and has received international praise for its breathtaking architecture and superb sound.
 
Each summer the Fisher Center presents the Bard SummerScape festival, seven weeks of performing arts programs reflecting the life and times of the featured composer of the esteemed Bard Music Festival, now celebrating its 28th year. Fall and spring seasons include original productions, special one-night-only concerts, and touring artists from around the globe.
 
The Fisher Center is home to the Bard College Theater & Performance and Dance Programs, providing students access to exceptional theater facilities and opportunities to work with professional directors and dramaturges on publicly attended productions throughout the year. The Bard College Conservatory of Music and Bard College Music Program stage regular orchestral and chamber concerts.
 
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December 15, 2016
 
 
 
 

This event was last updated on 12-15-2016

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