The Maiden Voyage of the Larry McDonough Monthly Sunday Classic Jazz Series at Black Dog Café
Sunday, August 18, 2019 – 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Larry McDonough Quartet (LMQ)
Larry McDonough, piano and vocals
Richard Terrill, saxes and poetry
Greg Stinson, bass
Dean White, drums
Black Dog Café
308 Prince Street at the corner of Prince (4th Street) and Broadway
Lowertown, St. Paul
Reserve your seat at (651) 228-9274.
Families and students are welcome.
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Bill Evans was born William John Evans on August 16, 1929, and was one of the most influential jazz pianists in history. His use of impressionist harmony, block chords, complex rhythms, and simultaneous improvisation of group members redefined groups, composition, and jazz pianists.
The Larry McDonough Quartet (LMQ) will feature the musical life of Bill Evans from beginning to end as the first show of the new Larry McDonough monthly Sunday Classic Jazz Series at Black Dog Café.
Jazz curator Steve Kenny called Larry the Bill Evans scholar of Minnesota. Larry grew up listening and transcribing Evans’ music, having seen his live performances in the 1970s. His shows and recordings feature the music of Evans. Larry has become friends with Evans’ widow Nenette, who supports Larry’s projects and provides him with some of Bill Evans’ manuscripts. Larry is the only Minnesotan invited to study the Bill Evans Archive at the Center for Southeast Louisiana Studies of Southeastern Louisiana University. Movie director Bruce Spiegel chose Larry to host Minnesota showings of his documentary film “Bill Evans Time Remembered.”
Larry recently released the double CD set “Alice in Stonehenge and other AcoustElectric Adventures” that includes “Alice in Wonderland,” based on the Evans’ arrangement; “Flamenco Sketches,” which Evans composed and performed with Davis on “Kind of Blue;” and “You Must Believe in Spring,” which Evans recorded with Tony Bennett. On the CD “Solitude, poetry in jazz,” Larry and saxophonist and poet Richard Terrill performed the Evans arrangement of “Some Other Time” along with Richard’s poem “Bill Evans.”
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LMQ will begin with the first known composition of Bill Evans, “Very Early,” from when he still was in music school at Southeastern Louisiana University. The first set will feature his compositions and performances from early in his career, including his most well-known tune, “Waltz for Debby” that he wrote for his young niece. The set will continue to the end of the 1950s, when he composed for and performed on the classic Miles Davis 1959 recording “Kind of Blue,” and the early 1960s when his trio with bassist Scott Lafaro and drummer Paul Motian created the form of simultaneous improvisation common in groups today, showcased on the 1961 recordings “Sunday at the Village Vanguard” and “Waltz for Debby.”
The second set follows the death of Lafaro and continues until Evans’ death in 1980. Selections include pieces from his collaborations with Jill Hall, Freddie Hubbard, Percy Heath, Philly Joe Jones, Stan Getz, Ron Carter, Elvin Jones, Eddie Gomez, Marty Morell, Tony Bennett, Marc Johnson, and Joe LaBarbera.
Sax man and award-winning poet Richard Terrill will read original poetry about Evans. Larry will add his arrangement of Happy Birthday in the style of Evans.
Larry also will present a greeting from Nenette Evans and the Bill Evans Estate.
Listen to samples of LMQ playing the music Bill Evans.
Come hear the music of Bill Evans. Whether you are new to his music or a fan for life, it will move you beyond words.
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The Larry McDonough Quartet (LMQ)
Larry McDonough is an award-winning St. Paul jazz composer, pianist, and singer, performing around the world and recording with his group LMQ as well as solo and in duos and trios. He has performed with legendary saxophonist and composer Benny Golson, trombonist Fred Wesley, and trumpeter Duane Eubanks together with a who’s who of local jazz artists. Larry was inducted into the Minnesota Rock Country Hall of Fame for his work in the group Danny’s Reasons. His awards include the American Composers Forum Showcase Award for the composition “Strait of Gibraltar.” He has released nine CDs and DVDs as a leader. “Alice in Stonehenge and other AcoustElectric Adventures” has played on radio stations and streaming services around the world and charted #18 on the Roots Music Report’s Top 50 Jazz Album Chart. “Simple Gifts” reached #29 on the CMJ Jazz Chart and has been played on hundreds of stations around the country and throughout the world. He also is a lawyer and law professor selected by William Mitchell College of Law as one of “100 Who Made a Difference” over the 100-year history of the school. Larry directs pro bono legal services for the poor at Dorsey & Whitney.
Richard Terrill, sax player, poet, and retired Minnesota State University Mankato English Professor, received the Minnesota Book Award for Poetry for his poetry compilation “Coming Late to Rachmaninoff” (University of Tampa Press, 2003). Richard has been performing with Larry McDonough since December 2001. He also has performed with guitarist Jim McGuire and with Chaz Draper’s Uptown Jazz Quartet. As a college student, Richard was a member of the award-winning University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Jazz Ensemble and performed with later-to-be Pat Metheny keyboardist Lyle Mays in the Lyle Mays Quartet, winner of small group honors at the Midwest College Jazz Festival. He also has worked with pianist Geoff Keezer.
Greg Stinson, bassist, plays in several bands around the Twin Cities. He has been the bass player in the Century College Jazz Ensemble for more than 25 years. He also plays in the CC Septet, Shorn Hortz Quintet, Paul Berger Trio, the St. Croix Jazz Ensemble, and regularly subs with the Nova Contemporary Jazz Orchestra, Classic Big Band, and Cedar Avenue Big Band. Greg spent many years playing saxophones, guitar, bass, and vocals in jazz/rock and variety bands in the area. He is an active composer/arranger with jazz charts in the books of the Century Band, Nova, CC Septet, and others. He has also written a number of choral arrangements and compositions for school and church groups. Greg was a band and choir director in public and private schools before changing to his career in telecommunications technology, now retired.
Dean White, percussion, grew up in Superior, Wisconsin, and played in various working bands while attending the University of Wisconsin, Superior. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in percussion performance, he moved to Hollywood, California, to attend Musicians Institute College of Contemporary Music. Half-way through the first year, Dean was offered a main showroom gig at the Imperial Palace in Las Vegas. He was the first drummer in the Legends in Concert Show that still performs in various incarnations across the country today. He left Las Vegas to join Tony Axtell and Toshi Hinata in Tokyo to write and play original music. Since settling back in the Twin Cities, Dean has performed with many groups, including Good, the Bad and the Funky; the Autobody Experience; Century Big Band; Nova Jazz; Big Time Jazz Orchestra; the Shorn Hortz jazz quintet; Power of 10; Jack Knife and the Sharps; Tubby Esquire; Hennessy Brothers jazz; and many others. He has also studied privately with Gordy Knudtson and his Open/Close hand technique. Dean feels blessed to be part of the rich music scene in the Twin Cities.
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Contact information:
Larry McDonough
651-398-8053
