The Fellowship Band; photo credit Erin Larkin
Chris Potter; photo credit: Dave Stapleton
Peter Erskine Trio with Bob Mintzer
Camila Meza
Jazz returns to the Athenaeum for our annual series of summer concerts in the Joan & Irwin Jacobs Music Room (at 1008 Wall Street in La Jolla). This series features both Athenaeum favorites and debuts by internationally acclaimed artists. Seating is limited—so order soon!
Wednesday, June 19, two shows, 6 PM & 8:30 PM » Brian Blade & The Fellowship Band
The summer series opens on Wednesday, June 19, with a special celebration of Juneteenth featuring Brian Blade & The Fellowship Band (note two separate shows at 6:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.). One of the world’s leading jazz drummers, Blade brings The Fellowship Band to the Athenaeum for its first local appearance. The ensemble features Jon Cowherd on piano, Melvin Butler on tenor and soprano saxophone, Myron Walden on alto saxophone and bass clarinet, and Roland Guerin on bass.
Formed in 1997, The Fellowship Band has been called “one of the most distinctive and long-running bands in jazz in the 21st century.” Originating from the meeting of Blade and Cowherd in 1988, while they were studying at Loyola University in New Orleans, the group has released seven albums ranging from Brian Blade Fellowship (1998) to 2023’s Kings Highway. From the beginning, they created a sound of its own genre, encompassing jazz, gospel and folk music that continues to uplift and inspire listeners worldwide.
A multi-Grammy-winning artist and composer, Blade has made past Athenaeum appearances with Ron Miles and Bill Frisell, Jeff Denson, and Wolfgang Muthspiel. His career includes work with artists including Wayne Shorter, Chick Corea, and Joshua Redman as well as Joni Mitchell and Bob Dylan. NPR called The Fellowship Band “an all-star lineup that functions more like a harmonious congregation, ebbing and flowing as one … jazz-inflected, gospel-rooted music suffused with a glowing consonance.”
These two concerts are generously sponsored by the Sleet Music Performance Fund in memory of San Diegans Don Sleet (jazz trumpeter), Marshall Sleet (band leader and composer), Anna Mae Sleet (vocalist), and Jeffery Sleet (concert cellist).
Sunday, June 30, 7:30 PM » Chris Potter Trio
The series continues Sunday, June 30, with another all-star band, the Chris Potter Trio, featuring Potter on tenor sax, Matt Brewer on bass, and Kendrick Scott on drums. Potter returns to the Athenaeum, having led an unforgettable set at the library in the summer of 2017 as well as prior appearances with the Dave Holland Quintet. A world-class soloist, accomplished composer, and formidable bandleader, Grammy-nominated Potter has emerged as a leading light of his generation.
Potter’s music showcases limitless creativity and a vibrant sense of swing, prompting critics, musicians, and fans alike to cite him as the one of the finest saxophonists today. The New Yorker wrote, “A tenorist who can remind you of Joe Henderson at his craftiest, [Potter] employs his considerable technique in the service of music rather than spectacle.” DownBeat called him “one of the most studied (and copied) saxophonists on the planet,” while JazzTimes identified him as “a figure of international renown.” He has performed or recorded with many of the leading names in jazz, such as Herbie Hancock, Dave Holland, John Scofield, the Mingus Big Band, Jim Hall, Paul Motian, Dave Douglas, and Ray Brown. Potter's impressive discography includes 15 albums as a leader. His latest album, Eagle’s Point, features him in a collaborative band that includes Brad Mehldau, John Patitucci, and Brian Blade.
Saturday, July 20, 7:30 PM » Peter Erskine Trio with Bob Mintzer
Next up, on Saturday, July 20, is a special reunion of the Peter Erskine Trio with special guest Bob Mintzer, featuring Erskine on drums, Alan Pasqua on piano, Darek Oles on bass, and Bob Mintzer on tenor sax. The Athenaeum has a special relationship with Erskine, Pasqua, and Oles, going back to Oles’s 1998 appearance with Charles Lloyd, Erskine’s 1999 performance with trumpet master Kenny Wheeler, and many other stellar performances.
DownBeat called the members of the trio, “jazz masters communicating in a highly evolved common language,” adding, “the group chemistry was equal parts sensitivity and combustibility, a balance of wide-open looseness and masterful precision. It all hinges on the group’s penchant to swing relentlessly while exploring a vast realm of expressive possibilities informed by each player’s considerable depth of experience. Erskine is a consistently refreshing catalyst; Oles is pitch-perfect and rock-steady; and Pasqua’s less-is-more approach to the keys provides contemporary harmonic and melodic context while leaving space for magic to unfold around him.” The Athenaeum hosted CD release concerts for the trio’s Grammy-nominated CD, Standards, and for Standards 2, which features all four of this concert’s artists.
Known widely for his 30-year stint with the Grammy-nominated band Yellowjackets and as the leader of the WDR Big Band, Mintzer has been praised by DownBeat for his “prodigious talent and ingenuity.”
Sunday, August 4, 7:30 PM » Camila Meza Trio
The series concludes Sunday, August 4, with Chilean-born guitarist-vocalist Camila Meza in her first San Diego appearance since her local debut at the Athenaeum Art Center in 2016. She will be joined by Or Bareket on bass, and Edward Simon on piano. NPR called Meza “one of the best-kept secrets in New York City,” commenting, “Camila Meza is poised to step into a broader spotlight. The Chilean-born musician’s CD Traces is a gorgeous album that features her beautiful, unorthodox compositions while showcasing her amazing vision and dexterity on voice and guitar.” The New York Times wrote, “A welcome presence in New York … Ms. Meza brings an appealing combination of lightness and depth to all the material, singing in a bright, clear voice against the agile stir of a first-rate band. Her improvising, on electric or acoustic guitar, is serious business.” DownBeat wrote, “Meza shows a decided Pat Metheny influence in her flowing legato playing while also revealing a distinct George Benson approach in her simultaneous scatting and soloing salvos … Meza has taken those towering influences and run with them, developing her own unique vocabulary. Her impressive guitar playing serves the song as she seeks a perfect balance between poignant vocals and killer chops.”
Born in Jerusalem to parents of Moroccan, Iraqi, Argentinian, and Eastern European descent, raised between Buenos Aires and Tel Aviv, and based out of Brooklyn since 2011, Or Bareket is one of the most prominent bassists of his generation, as well as a composer and bandleader with an eclectic yet meticulously cohesive style.
Edward Simon, a native of Venezuela, has made a name for himself over decades in America as a jazz improviser, composer-arranger, and bandleader. His profile has grown in recent years as he has explored the commonalities jazz can have with the folkloric sounds of Latin America.
The concerts will be in person at the Athenaeum Music & Arts Library. There are no physical tickets for these events. Your name will be on an attendee list at the front door. Doors open at 7 p.m., with the exception of the two on June 19. Seating is first-come; first-served. These events will be presented in compliance with State of California and County of San Diego health regulations as applicable at the time of each concert.