From Terry MacDonald - Host of Jazz Straighahead (Wednesdays 6-9 AM), Board Member of Seacoast Jazz Society, Liaison to the Seacoast Jazz Appreciation Project:

Hi, everybody! 

I’m pleased to announce the next session of the Seacoast Jazz Appreciation Project (SJAP), coming up this Sunday, February 13th. The great guitarist Peter Bernstein will be performing with a quartet that evening, starting at 6 pm, at The Press Room. But from 4:30 to 5:45, Peter will be performing for you and, most importantly, engaging with you, the audience, in an informal conversation about the music, the musicians, and whatever else might come up.

The SJAP is a special initiative of the Seacoast Jazz Society. Its objective is to enhance the appreciation of this great American music for listeners at all levels of musical sophistication, and to de-mystify jazz for the newest listeners. It’s a chance to “hang” with some outstanding jazz musicians, to hear their music, and about their music, in a casual environment.

Both music students and fans of all ages who have attended previous sessions have enjoyed the experience thoroughly. If you haven’t been to one of these sessions, please make this your first one!

Details of our upcoming session are below.
Hope to see you there… Terry MacDonald

The Seacoast Jazz Appreciation Project
Sunday, February 13th, 4:30-5:45 pm
The Press Room, 77 Daniel Street, Portsmouth, NH
Guitarist Peter Bernstein +3
Note: This is a free event! However, if you wish to stay for the evening performance
from 6 to 9 pm, the normal Press Room cover charge of $10 ($5 for students) applies.

The Performers/Presenters:

Peter Bernstein: One of the most in-demand guitarists in jazz today, Peter was born in New York City in 1967 and has been  part of the jazz scene there and abroad since 1989. Coming up, he studied with the legendary guitarist Jim Hall, one of his mentors and main influences, and has joined Hall in duo performances throughout his career. Early on, Peter was discovered by alto saxophonist Lou Donaldson, recorded with him, and was a member of his group throughout the 1990s. He has also played with  Jimmy Cobb, Larry Goldings, Lee Konitz, Diana Krall, Nicholas Payton and Eric Alexander, among many others. Jim Hall described Peter as “one of the most impressive young guitarists I’ve heard,” declaring that “he plays the best of them all for swing, logic, feel and taste.”

Ryan Parker: Pianist Parker is well known to Seacoast audiences as the pianist of The Press Room Trio. A graduate of both UNH (Music Education)and New England Conservatory, Ryan is a remarkable jazz pianist who has performed with many of today’s best-known musicians.

Will Slater: A recent graduate of the New England Conservatory, bassist Slater is a sought-after Boston-area player.  He has
studied with Jerry Bergonzi, Danilo Perez, Oscar Stagnaro, John Lockwood, Cecil McBee, and John McNeil and has performed with Bergonzi, Mark Zaleski, Phil Grenadier, Greg Hopkins, Jason Palmer, Tim Ray,  Joe Delaney, and Steve Langone, among others. Most recently, Will traveled to the 2008 Panama Jazz Festival with the great pianist Danilo Perez, where he was a featured artist and teaching bass master.

Brooke Sofferman: A native of Colchester, Vermont, drummer Sofferman moved to Boston to further his musical education as the New England Conservatory of Music. While at NEC, Brooke learned at the feet of such jazz legends as George Russell, Bob Moses, Danilo Perez, Jerry Bergonzi, George Garzone, Cecil McBee and John Abercrombie. He is himself a faculty member at the Conservatory today, leader of the group “The Sofferman Perspective,” and a respected composer.