Jazz at the Chimes - Hal Stein Quartet June 17, 2007

MARY D’ORAZI EMAIL: mdorazi@lifemarkgroup.com

4499 Piedmont Ave. - Oakland, CA 94611 - Ph: 510/ 228-3218

For immediate release

WHAT: “JAZZ AT THE CHIMES”
Featuring the Hal Stein Quartet in concert

WHEN: JUNE 17 - Sunday 2 pm
WHERE: Chapel of the Chimes, 4499 Piedmont Ave. Oakland

TICKETS: $10 general admission for concert and reception.
Limited seating.
Purchase tickets at the door. Cash only.
Ticket sales begin at 12:30 pm.

For more info about the concert or the jazz jam: 510/ 228-3218

Website: http://www.lifemarkgroup.com/oakland/special_events.asp

Oakland - San Francisco – Local jazz legend Hal Stein, who spent his early years on the NYC bebop scene playing with the likes of Artie Shaw, Phil Woods and Joe Henderson, brings his quintessential quartet to perform at Jazz at the Chimes as part of a special Father’s Day celebration, to include a Jazz Jam for dads. Stein’s music will transport you to back in time and get your toes tappin’. He will be joined by Lee Bloom on piano, John Wiitala on bass and Danny Spencer on drums.

“Jazz at the Chimes” is a monthly series sponsored by the Lifemark Group Arts program that features Bay Area talent. Concerts are held at the Chapel of the Chimes in Oakland – a designated City of Oakland Landmark designed by Julia Morgan. The Chapel provides a wonderful visual backdrop and acoustic listening venue for live music in a setting like no other.

Reviews of Stein’s recent CD “Spirit” (2006)

“…He hasn't lost that spirit he absorbed playing in New York in the heyday of 52nd Street and bebop. Add to this the depth acquired in a lifetime of playing. The repertoire, ranging from Herbie Nichols and Billy Strayhorn to a mixture of originals and well-known and more obscure standards suits him to a tee and he presents them righteously. I raise my stein to Hal!”
—Ira Gitler author of "Masters of Bebop", former editor of Downbeat

“…No one can accuse Berkeley saxophonist Hal Stein of rushing into the recording studio. At 77, he's just released "Spirit!" his first album as a bandleader in five decades, and it's the work of an artist who hasn't lost a step.” —Andrew Gilbert KQED Radio, Contra Costa Times

“God, it's good to have Hal Stein back on disc! He was on the scene during the early days of bebop, and, more than a half century later, his passion is unabated. His tone on tenor saxophone is fat and his conception is mature, the product of a lifetime spent in the jazz trenches." 
—Lee Hildebrand freelance jazz writer

Biographical Information:

Hal Stein was born in Weehawken, New Jersey, on September 5, 1928. Since he was eleven, the veteran saxophonist has lived and breathed music. At fifteen, Hal performed on tenor saxophone with Don Byas at New York's town Hall. The list of musicians and bands he has played with since the 1940's is truly phenomenal, and we are blessed to have such an accomplished, creative, and encyclopedic musician in our midst. 


A brief listing of who he has performed with over the years will present an idea of the breadth of Hal's experience as a living musician: 



Big Bands: Gene Krupa, Buddy Morrow, Joe Henderson Artie Shaw, Charlie Spivak, Benny Carter,Les and Larry Elgart, Vaughn Monroe, Claude Thornhill, Georgie Auld, Toshiko Akioshi, and Hampton Hawes. 



Small Bands: Charlie Mingus, Gerry Mulligan, Tony Scott,Teddy Charles, Roy Haynes ,Teddy Wilson, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Kenny Dorham, Phil Woods, Elvin Jones , Kenny Drew, J.C. Heard, Joe Farrel, Trummy Young , Lenny McBrown Bill Evans, Henry Red Allen, Pete Brown, Chick Corea , Plank 'n' Stein, Graham Connah, Lavay Smith and the Red hot Skillet Lickers.

For more information:
www.halsteinjazz.com

Official Website: http://www.halsteinjazz.com