The Steve Wilson Quartet

We are honored to present a spectacular one-off night of music featuring the one and only Steve Wilson. One of the most prolific sidemen of the last several decades, Wilson's career as a performer, bandleader, and educator has made him a leading voice in modern jazz. He will be joined by an all-star group of musicians and educators from the Front Range: Dana Landry (piano), Jim White (drums), and Erik Applegate (bass). 

Steve Wilson has attained ubiquitous status in the studio and on the stage with the greatest names in jazz. A bandleader in his own right, Jazz Times calls him “the consummate saxophonist-composer and one of the finest alto and soprano saxophonists of our time.” A musician’s musician, Wilson has brought his distinctive sound to more than 175 recordings led by such celebrated and wide-ranging artists as Chick Corea, Christian McBride, George Duke, Michael Brecker, Dave Holland, Dianne Reeves, Bill Bruford, Gerald Wilson, Maria Schneider, Joe Henderson, Charlie Byrd, Billy Childs, Karrin Allyson, Don Byron, Bill Stewart, James Williams, and Mulgrew Miller among many others. Wilson has nine recordings under his own name, leading and collaborating with a list of who’s who in jazz.

Starting his formal training on saxophone in his native Hampton, Virginia, Wilson also played oboe and drums in school bands while performing in various R&B/funk bands throughout his teens. After a year-long stint with singer Stephanie Mills, he decided to major in music at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, where he performed and/or studied with Jimmy and Percy Heath, Jon Hendricks, Jaki Byard, John Hicks, Frank Foster, and Ellis Marsalis. During those years, he was also in constant demand for recording studio work and as a backing musician for touring shows such as The Four Tops and Sophisticated Ladies. Landing a chair with O.T.B. (Out of the Blue), a sextet of promising young players recording on Blue Note Records, Wilson moved to New York in 1987 and the following year toured the U.S. and Europe with Lionel Hampton. Becoming a first-call choice for veteran and emerging artists alike, Wilson was the subject of a New York Times profile “A Sideman’s Life”, highlighting his work with Ralph Peterson, Jr., Michele Rosewoman, Renee Rosnes, Marvin “Smitty” Smith, Joanne Brackeen, The American Jazz Orchestra, The Mingus Big Band, The Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra, Leon Parker, and Buster Williams’ Quintet “Something More”. In 1996, he joined the acclaimed Dave Holland Quintet, and from 1998 to 2001, he was a member of Chick Corea’s Grammy-winning sextet “Origin”.

TICKETS Set One: 6:30 - 7:45 pm |   Set Two: 9:00 - 10:30 pm