Five-time Grammy Award winner Dianne Reeves, the pre-eminent jazz vocalist in the world, makes her William Paterson University Jazz Room series debut on Sunday, April 16, 2023, joined by the virtuoso guitarist Romero Lubambo.
The concert, a joint presentation of the University’s spring 2023 WP Presents! series and spring 2023 Jazz Room series, is the Annual Woody Shapiro Concert, funded by the Woody Shapiro Jazz Room Endowment, made possible through a generous estate gift. The performance begins at 3 p.m. in the Shea Center for Performing Arts on campus.
Reeves is known for her breathtaking virtuosity, improvisational prowess, and unique jazz and R&B stylings. She received the Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Performance for three consecutive recordings—a Grammy first in any vocal category.
Featured in George Clooney’s six-time Academy Award-nominated film Good Night, and Good Luck, Reeves won the Best Jazz Vocal Grammy for the film's soundtrack. She has recorded and performed with Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, recorded with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra conducted by Daniel Barenboim, and was a featured soloist with Sir Simon Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic. Reeves was the first Creative Chair for Jazz for the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the first vocalist to ever perform at the famed Walt Disney Concert Hall.
Her most recent release Beautiful Life, featuring Gregory Porter, Robert Glasper, Lalah Hathaway, and Esperanza Spalding, won the 2015 Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Performance. In recent years she has toured the world in a variety of contexts including “Sing the Truth,” a musical celebration of Nina Simone which also featured Lizz Wright and Angelique Kidjo. She has performed at the White House on multiple occasions and in 2018, the National Endowment for the Arts designated Reeves a Jazz Master, the highest honor the United States bestows on jazz artists.
Romero Lubambo’s guitar playing unites the styles and rhythms of his native Brazilian musical heritage with his fluency in the American jazz tradition to form a distinctive sound. After arriving in New York City in 1985, Lubambo quickly established himself as a "first call" session and touring guitarist in demand not only for his authentic Brazilian sound, but also for his command with a variety of styles.In addition to Dianne Reeves, he has performed and recorded with a range of artists, including Billie Eilish, Angelique Kidjo, Michael Brecker, Yo-Yo Ma, Kathleen Battle, Diana Krall, Herbie Mann, and Wynton Marsalis, among numerous others. He has also established himself as a composer and performer on his own critically acclaimed recording projects as well as on those of Trio Da Paz, the Grammy-nominated Brazilian jazz trio Lubambo formed with Nilson Matta and Duduka da Fonseca
The concert will be preceded by “Sittin’ In,” the Jazz Room’s accompanying “meet the artist” concert preview featuring interviews with jazz artists and guest speakers. This informal discussion, free to all Jazz Room ticketholders, begins at 2 p.m. in the Shea Recital Hall.
William Paterson University’s Jazz Room series is the longest-running program of its kind in the United States. Launched in 1978, the Jazz Room has welcomed more than 500 jazz legends to the stage, including Sonny Rollins, Wynton Marsalis, Wayne Shorter, Joe Williams, Marian McPartland, Slide Hampton, Kenny Burrell, Joe Lovano, Kenny Garrett, Clark Terry, Michael and Randy Brecker, the Vanguard Orchestra, and more. Concerts have encompassed the entire spectrum of jazz, from early jazz and swing to avant garde, and from intimate solo performances to big bands. The performance series provides support for the University’s internationally renowned Jazz Studies Program, founded in 1973, which draws students from across the United States and abroad under the current direction of pianist Bill Charlap.
Tickets are $65 for Gold Circle, $55 for orchestra/front loge and $45 for rear loge. A 10 percent discount is available for students, faculty, staff, and alumni. Tickets are an additional $5 if purchased on show day. For tickets or additional information, visit wp-presents.org, or contact the Shea Center Box Office at 973.720.2371 or boxoffice@wpunj.edu.
The Jazz Room at William Paterson University has been made possible, in part, by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.
William Paterson University
300 Pompton Road
Wayne, New Jersey 07470
973-720-2000
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