Brian Patneaude Quartet at the Troy Music Hall
TROY, NY - With an organic blend of modern jazz styles, accessible melodies and harmonic textures that appeal to the casual listener and jazz aficionado alike, one of the best well known jazz bands in upstate New York, the Brian Patneaude Quartet, returns to the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall for the Music at Noon series on April 8.Founded in 2002, the quartet has since been repeatedly called the "Best Jazz Group" by Metroland's writers and readers. The tight-knit group lifts audiences' spirits with "a super-hip sound" that "perfectly balances inventive improvisation with slippery-smooth melodies for a sound as refreshing as it is classic" (Seven Days, Burlington, VT). Highlights include recent performances at the Kingston International Jazz Festival, Albany Riverfront Jazz Festival, Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, Guilderland Performing Arts Center, WAMC Performing Arts Studio, A Place for Jazz Concert Series, Albany's "Lark Fest", Saratoga's "Final Stretch Street Festival," and a five year weekly residency at one of the Capital District's most highly acclaimed jazz venues- Justin's. Over 50 radio stations worldwide have played tracks from the group's CDs, such as on the nationally syndicated "Jazz After Hours" with Jim Wilke, and "Listen Here!" with hosts Neil Tesser & Mark Ruffin. Their most recent release, As We Know It is the third album by the quartet following Variations (2002) and Distance (2005).
As one of the busiest musicians in the Capital District, saxophonist Brian Patneaude not only leads his own quartet, he also maintains an active performance schedule with salsa/merengue favorites and Grammy award semi-finalists Alex Torres & His Latin Orchestra and the award winning Empire Jazz Orchestra. In the fall of 1992, Brian entered The College of St. Rose in Albany, NY to study saxophone with Paul Evoskevich and earned a degree in music education. After graduating, he received a full-tuition scholarship to the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music at the University Of Cincinnati to pursue a masters degree in saxophone performance. While at the Conservatory, he studied saxophone with Rick Van Matre and Tom Walsh, and jazz improvisation with Pat Harbison. He has performed at the Montreal Jazz Festival, the Kingston International Jazz Festival, the Newport Jazz Festival Saratoga, the Albany Riverfront Jazz Festival, the Rochester International Jazz Festival and countless clubs and concert halls throughout the Northeast. Brian also teaches private saxophone lessons at Blue Sky Music Studios in Delmar, NY and maintains albanyjazz.com.
A native of Troy, guitarist George Muscatello has become a mainstay of the Capital District music scene following a period of study at Schenectady County Community College and the Manhattan School of Music in New York City. While at Manhattan, the guitarist honed his skills with Wayne Krantz and Rodney Jones while immersing himself in the music of modern classical composers such as Bela Bartok and Leo Brouwer. Muscatello has become well known throughout the Capital District for his long-standing weekly jazz series at Savannah's, the Lionheart Cafe and QE2. In addition, he has performed with a who's who of area jazz luminaries including saxophonist Nick Brignola. George brings a unique sound and compositional approach to the quartet with musical influences as varied as free jazz, contemporary classical and metal.
Saratoga bassist Mike DelPrete earned a bachelors degree from Skidmore College where he studied bass with Rich Syracuse and was a member of a Downbeat Award winning student ensemble. DelPrete recently earned a MFA degree in composition from Bennington College where he studied with Allen Shawn, Nick Brooke and Milford Graves. DelPrete is currently a faculty member at the National Guitar Workshop and an adjunct faculty member at Bennington College. He maintains an active performance schedule with a variety of musicians throughout the Northeast.
Drummer Danny Whelchel spent the majority of his life in Lafayette, Louisiana before moving to upstate New York in the fall of 1997. Since then, he has performed with a variety of musicians including Charles Neville, John Mengon, Teri Roiger, Tessa Souter, Evita Cobo, Ray Alexander, Adrian Cohen, Soul Session, Carl Landa, Amy Abdou, Jeff Gonzales, Nicole Peyrafitte, Bob Warren, Michael Jerling, Jocamo, Pangaea, Out Of Control, and the Refrigerators. Danny is currently dance accompanist at the Emma Willard School.
Throughout his professional career as a jazz pianist, Dave Payette has developed a unique and refined voice, informed by an extensive rooting in classical music and technique, but also influenced by contemporary styles. Currently a member of three working ensembles in addition to a busy solo career, Payette is a versatile musician who excels not only in the jazz idiom, but also at keyboard and organ styles in other genres including funk, R&B and pop. A former student of the Purchase College Conservatory of Music, Payette has studied with pianists Brad Mehldau and Hal Galper, saxophonists Steve Wilson and Kenny Garrett, and classical pianist Stephanie Brown.
MUSIC AT NOON
The final 2007-2008 Music at Noon performance is:
May 13, 2008 - Findlay Cockrell & the Parnas Duo
Classical Piano, Violin & Cello
Time Warner Cable is pleased to sponsor the TSBMH 2007-2008 Music at Noon Concert Series as part of its Cable in the Classroom initiative. Through their Cable in the Classroom program, TWC provides free monthly cable and a free cable modem with access to Road Runner and the Internet for educational purposes to each accredited K-12 public and private school in the communities that it serves. To learn more about Time Warner Cable's education programs and to subscribe to their free TWC Education Connection online newsletter, visit www.twalbany.com or call 518-242-8839.
Music at Noon concerts are free and open to the public and you're welcome to bring your lunch. For more information on Music at Noon, contact the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall Box Office at (518) 273-0038. Schools interested in attending should reserve seats and coordinate bus logistics through the Box Office. The Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, named a National Historic Landmark in 1989, is in use over one hundred and fifty days a year. Since it opened its doors in 1875, the Hall has hosted performances by numerous world-renowned artists including Marion Anderson, Dizzy Gillespie, Peter Seeger, Ella Fitzgerald, Isaac Stern, Yo-Yo Ma, Henri Vieuxtemps, Ignace Jan Paderewski, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Jose Iturbi, Vladimir Horowitz, Yehudi Menuhin, and Artur Rubenstein, among many others.
