JAZZ@FIRST | A BRAZILIAN CHRISTMAS

Experience the holiday season through a Brazilian lens as Phil DeGreg’s Brasilia brings South American rhythms, vibrant jazz improvisation and infectious energy to beloved Christmas favorites. Featuring vibraphonist Rusty Burge and trumpeter Kim Pensyl, two of Cincinnati’s finest musical talents, this festive concert offers a fresh and exhilarating take on the sounds of the season. Hear “Jingle Bells”—and the holidays themselves—in a whole new light.

 

A complimentary wine and cheese intermission is included with your ticket.

 

Jazz@First Series Sponsor: Al Harris

​

​​​​​​​

​

__________________________________

​

About the Artist: Brasilia

​

Brasilia performs regularly throughout Cincinnati and across the Midwest, bringing together an exceptional group of musicians with deep roots in jazz and Brazilian music. The band features pianist and University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music Professor Emeritus Phil DeGreg, and CCM professors trumpeter Kim Pensyl, vibraphonist Rusty Burge and bassist Aaron Jacobs. Dayton-based drummer John Taylor is a sought-after freelance musician throughout southern Ohio.

​

Brasilia was formed in 2008 following Phil DeGreg’s four-month Fulbright Fellowship residency at the University of Campinas near São Paulo, Brazil. The group performs classic Brazilian repertoire alongside original compositions, blending samba, bossa nova, choro, baião and frevo with plenty of room for improvisation. Their repertoire includes works by Antonio Carlos Jobim, Edu Lobo, João Donato, Hermeto Pascoal and others.

​

Over the years, Brasilia has performed at venues and events including the Jazz Educators Network Convention, Paramount Theatre in Huntington, West Virginia, University of Evansville, Xavier University’s Master’s of Swing concert series, Louisville Jazz Society, Cincinnati’s Blue Wisp Jazz Club, the It’s Commonly Jazz series in Eden Park, The Thompson House and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Their 2014 CD, Brazilian People, features two tracks with guest Brazilian guitarist Bruno Mangueira, a top-tier player from São Paulo.

​

__________________________________

​

About the Artist: Phil DeGreg, piano

 

Phil DeGreg began playing the piano in his childhood and now performs as a jazz pianist internationally. His earliest jazz influences were Bud Powell and Bill Evans, but he is accomplished and comfortable in a wide range of jazz styles, ranging from mainstream to bebop to Brazilian jazz. A graduate of Yale and the University of North Texas, he toured with the Woody Herman Orchestra in the 1980s and has 10 CDs to his credit as a leader. For 13 years he accompanied many national and international jazz artists in the house trio in Cincinnati’s famous Blue Wisp Jazz Club. He has been on staff with the renowned Jamey Aebersold Summer Jazz Workshops since 1983, and has performed and taught in Europe and South America.

 

Phil DeGreg is the retired Professor of Jazz Studies at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and is the recipient of two National Endowment for the Arts study grants. In 2008 he was awarded a 4-month Fulbright Fellowship as a lecturer in Brazil.

 

His text “Jazz Keyboard Harmony” is a practical text for teaching jazz harmony for all musicians, and is used all over the world in universities and for private study.

 

Learn more about Phil DeGreg on his website phildegreg.com.