Trombonist of the Year plays Great Jazz on the Great Hill

“When we’re improvising, we’re just creating different melodies.” –Wycliffe Gordon

Wycliffe Gordon is more than a jazz trombonist from Waynesboro, GA. The multi-talented musician (trumpet, tuba, didgeridoo, piano), vocalist, Jazz Arts Program-Manhattan School of Music teacher, and author perfected a signature sound with his mastery of the plunger mute and technically proficient way around difficult straight-ahead, hard-driving jazz pieces.

In this year alone, the Downbeat Critics Poll voted him “Best in Trombone” and the Jazz Journalists Association anointed him “Trombonist of the Year” (he’s won six previous times). Every project and gig Gordon touches turns to gold, as well as critical acclaim and mass celebration (his Jazz a la Carte’s Apollo Theater show received “Top Five Best Moments in Jazz” in 2012 from the Wall Street Journal).

Wycliffe Gordon will perform as part of a select group of artists in a free Great Jazz on the Great Hill concert in New York City’s Central Park August 18. He’ll include a special tribute to Louis Armstrong. In its sixth year, the 4 p.m.-7 p.m. show is co-presented by Jazzmobile and the Central Park Conservancy.

The show also features Latin jazz percussionist Steve Kroon, R&B vocalist Alyson Williams, and Jazzmobile’s Jazz Vocal Competition Winner Brianna Thomas (2010).

Read more: http://www.examiner.com/article/trombonist-of-the-year-plays-great-jazz-on-the-great-hill
August 15, 2012