JAZZ@FIRST | LOVE NOTES: A JAZZ VALENTINE

Celebrate Valentine’s Day with a fresh, sophisticated and sometimes delightfully cheeky take on the songs of the heart. Acclaimed Michigan jazz artists Paul Keller and Sarah D’Angelo bring their remarkable chemistry to beloved standards, unexpected gems and irresistible heartbreakers, joined by musicians from the CCJO for an evening that moves effortlessly from swooning romance to playful mischief. With a nod to the Great American Songbook and plenty of surprises along the way, this is Valentine’s Day with a little more swing.

 

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

 

Jazz@First Series Sponsor: Al Harris

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About the Artist: Paul Keller, bass​

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String bassist Paul Keller is a Michigan jazz hero. He loves his life in Saline, where he lives with his wife and two kids and performs locally, in Detroit and across his home state of Michigan. Paul wears many jazz hats. He leads several successful and busy jazz ensembles, including his 27-year-old, 15-piece big band The Paul Keller Orchestra. He's an in-demand sideman, a prolific composer, a creative and skilled arranger, an enthusiastic and innovative jazz educator, a recording company owner and producer, and a nationally recognized recording artist. Paul can be heard every week at his home base - Zal Gaz Grotto in Ann Arbor, on Mondays with his PKO big band and on Tuesdays with the Easy Street Jazz Band. 

 

Keller spent several years on the road with guitarist Russell Malone and later with singer/pianist Diana Krall. Together with Russell and Diana, Paul recorded Diana's Grammy-nominated GRP/Impulse CD All For You. These days, Paul performs frequently with guitarist/singer and jazz superstar John Pizzarelli, with whom he has toured in Brazil. Paul travels the world to play special concerts and festivals with myriad jazz stars including Jackie Ryan, Scott Hamilton, Larry Vuckovich, Benny Green, and Warren and Alan Vache.

 

Check out Paul's website at paulkellerjazz.com.

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About the Artist: Sarah D'Angelo, vocals and clarinet​

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Sarah D'Angelo is an active Detroit-based multi-genre singer and clarinetist. Moving to Ann Arbor, Michigan to pursue her postgraduate classical studies, D'Angelo was lit on fire by the Detroit jazz, funk and gospel she encountered. Continuing her studies, she experimented with singing and found an exhilarating freedom of musical expression in jazz, blues, gospel and pop. She has since been singing, playing, writing and recording in and around Detroit and across the U.S. ever since! 

 

Sarah likes to create genuine musical and personal connections with her audiences and bandmates, bringing her personality and ideologies into careful interpretations of the music. Often choosing to highlight the compositions/arrangements of her favorite jazz, fusion and funk artists, such as Esperanza Spalding, Stevie Wonder and Cecile McLorin Salvant, she brings fresh ideas to the stage to delight and inspire her listeners.

 

Keller and D’Angelo have worked together on multiple projects, including the Paul Keller Ensemble’s Even More Christmas Songs for Jazz Lovers and their most recent collaborative album, Petrichor. Their 15-year partnership blends Keller’s big band leadership and arranging with D’Angelo’s expressive vocals and clarinet work, creating a distinctive sound in the Michigan jazz scene.

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Learn more about Sarah on her website sarahdangelogroove.com.

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About the Artist: Paul Keller, bass​

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String bassist Paul Keller is a Michigan jazz hero. He loves his life in Saline, where he lives with his wife and two kids and performs locally, in Detroit and across his home state of Michigan. Paul wears many jazz hats. He leads several successful and busy jazz ensembles, including his 27-year-old, 15-piece big band The Paul Keller Orchestra. He's an in-demand sideman, a prolific composer, a creative and skilled arranger, an enthusiastic and innovative jazz educator, a recording company owner and producer, and a nationally recognized recording artist. Paul can be heard every week at his home base - Zal Gaz Grotto in Ann Arbor, on Mondays with his PKO big band and on Tuesdays with the Easy Street Jazz Band. 

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Keller spent several years on the road with guitarist Russell Malone and later with singer/pianist Diana Krall. Together with Russell and Diana, Paul recorded Diana's GRAMMY©-nominated GRP/Impulse CD All For You. These days, Paul performs frequently with guitarist/singer and jazz superstar John Pizzarelli, with whom he has toured in Brazil. Paul travels the world to play special concerts and festivals with myriad jazz stars including Jackie Ryan, Scott Hamilton, Larry Vuckovich, Benny Green, and Warren and Alan Vache.

 

Check out Paul's website at paulkellerjazz.com.

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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.