2022 Charleston Jazz Orchestra Season 14 Announced

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Press Release

Charleston Jazz is excited to announce Season 14 for the Charleston Jazz Orchestra (CJO). 2022 CJO Season 14 will feature a lineup of performances to include an exploration of Ellington Suites, The Music of Chick Corea and the Charleston Jazz tradition Holiday Swing. Guest artists for Season 14 will include jazz double-threat Camille Thurman, the Buena Vista Legacy Band for a Cuban Carnival and living-legend Sean Jones for a Tribute to Miles Davis.

Season Subscriptions, Trio Passes, and Individual Tickets are on sale now at www.charlestonjazz.com or call the Charleston Jazz box office at 843-641-0011. Individual ticket prices range from $25 – $64. Senior rates for 65 and older. $10 for students and children. Save 10% off individual tickets prices with a Season Subscription. Save 5% off individual ticket prices with a Trio Pass.

“I am extremely excited for Season 14,” said Music Director Robert Lewis, who released the following statement:

“We've got a wonderful slate of shows lined up. First, we are bringing in some outstanding guest artists. Camille Thurman is a rising star in the jazz world, renowned for her incredible tenor saxophone playing, and equally praised for her singing. It is very rare to have such a strong double-threat, and we are proud to be able to showcase her so early in her career. Later in the season, trumpet virtuoso Sean Jones will join us for a concert celebrating Miles Davis. Mr. Jones brings astonishing technique paired with sensitive musicality to everything he does, and it will be a joy to work with him on this material.

“Sticking closer to home, we will be collaborating with Gino Castillo and his Buena Vista Legacy ensemble. This group adds world-class Cuban musicians to his fantastic locally-based rhythm section. Putting this group together with the CJO will be quite a party! In another show, we will be celebrating the music and musicianship of Chick Corea. We will be inviting several amazing local pianists to join us in exploring Chick's repertoire of original compositions. And finally, the traditional ending to our season, Holiday Swing. Familiar holiday tunes done in fresh jazz styles, always a great time!”

Here’s the schedule:

February 26, 2022 – EASY TO LOVE Camille Thurman + Charleston Jazz Orchestra On February 26, 2022, it will be EASY TO LOVE and easy to remember the name Camille Thurman, as she joins your Charleston Jazz Orchestra for the Season 14 opener at the Charleston Music Hall. For Camille Thurman, “the horn is a voice, and the voice is a horn.” Fluid and powerful on the tenor saxophone and highly inventive as a vocalist, her rich sax sounds have been compared to Joe Henderson and Dexter Gordon, while her vocal approach – including an impressive scatting ability – has been classified alongside those of Ella Fitzgerald and Betty Carter.

As a composer, multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, educator and unique interpreter of the jazz tradition, she is quickly becoming one of the standard bearers for the art form, making a considerable and dynamic contribution to the legacy of jazz while paying tribute to its heroes. You will want to get the best seat in the house to witness the rising jazz talent of Camille Thurman, as she brings her soulful and warm sound to Charleston for an evening of beautiful jazz!

March 26, 2022 – THE ‘SUITE' SOUNDS OF ELLINGTON The New Orleans and Far East Suites As one of the most influential figures in jazz, Duke Ellington created a distinctive big band sound, continuing to play what he called “American music” until shortly before his death in 1974. In the words of Ellington, “music is how I live, why I live and how I will be remembered.” Throughout his 50-year career, Ellington wrote a few long-form multi-movement works, using the suite format to give his jazz a more empowering meaning, resonance and purpose. On March 26, 2022, your Charleston Jazz Orchestra will showcase two memorable, vital and innovative suites from Ellington's late career – The New Orleans Suite and The Far East Suite. Join your CJO for an evening dedicated to one of the major creative forces in the music of the twentieth century.

May 14, 2022 – EYE OF THE BEHOLDER The Music of Chick Corea As a pianist of incomparable skill, Chick Corea broadened the scope of jazz during a career spanning more than five decades. With limitless range, Corea was an inventive composer-bandleader who never shied away from new ideas, exploring sounds ranging from fusion to classical. According to Corea, “Great art is made when the artist is free to try whatever techniques he wants, and combine things any way he wants.” On May 14, 2022, several prominent Charleston jazz pianists will have the freedom to create their own arrangements and perform them with your Charleston Jazz Orchestra, celebrating and honoring Chick Corea's many contributions to the genre of jazz.

September 17, 2022 – CUBAN CARNIVAL Featuring the Buena Vista Legacy Band What do you get when you place a loose collective of mostly retired musicians spanning several generations in a run-down Egrem recording studio in Havana in 1996? A unique musical experience, an exciting mixture of Cuban musical tradition, and an experience known around the world as the Buena Vista Social Club. On September 17, 2022, your Charleston Jazz Orchestra and the Buena Vista Legacy Band will honor the collaborative spirit of the original Buena Vista Social Club with CUBAN CARNIVAL, creating a once in a lifetime experience at the Charleston Music Hall!

As a collaboration between old friends from Charleston and La Habana, the Buena Vista Legacy Band originated to perform a tribute to the iconic band immortalized in Wim Wender's 1999 Documentary film Buena Vista Social Club. The band incorporates several young Cuban musicians who have performed with some of the original members of Buena Vista and who are recognized as new legends on the Island. The Buena Vista Legacy Band features several talented musicians from Cuba, including Yusa on the Cuban tres and vocals, Oliver Valdes on drums, and Julito Padron on trumpet and vocals. From Charleston, the band brings musical director Abdiel Iriarte on piano, Gino Castillo on vocals and percussion, Jake Holwenger on upright bass and Jorge Garcia on guitar. Together, the group aims to serve as an instrument carrying the old Cuban music to a new generation.

October 15, 2022 – MILES AHEAD Musings for Miles Davis featuring Sean Jones As one of the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz, Miles Davis shaped the course of modern improvisational music more than a half-dozen times over his fifty-year career, becoming the standard bearer for successive generations of musicians. After receiving two Miles Davis albums (Kind of Blue and Tutu), Sean Jones developed an interest in jazz music. Years later, Jones says, “Davis's overall vision, the way he changed with the times, the purity of the sound is probably the single most powerful influence on me as an artist.” On October 15, 2022, your Charleston Jazz Orchestra welcomes trumpeter Sean Jones to the Charleston Music Hall stage to reflect on and guide the audience through the legacy of Miles Davis.

Sean Jones is a musical chameleon and is comfortable in any musical setting no matter what the role or the genre. Sean has been prominently featured with a number of artists, recording and/or performing with many major figures in jazz, including Illinois Jacquet, Jimmy Heath, Frank Foster, Nancy Wilson, Dianne Reeves, Gerald Wilson and Marcus Miller. Sean was selected by Miller, Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter for their Tribute to Miles tour in 2011. Your CJO is excited to welcome trumpeter, bandleader, composer and educator, Sean Jones to Charleston for a Miles Davis tribute Charleston Jazz style.

December 3, 2021 – HOLIDAY SWING: A Charleston Jazz Tradition Maestro Robert Lewis and your Charleston Jazz Orchestra will swing you into the holiday spirit with big band arrangements of winter classics and holiday favorites. Gather together with your friends and family at the Charleston Music Hall on December 3, 2022 to add some jazz to your holiday cheer with this Charleston Jazz tradition.