Transit Latin Jazz Ensemble
Greg Abate Quartet

We kick off the 13th Annual Thursday Summer Jazz Nights sponsored by Southwest Gastroenterology Associates, PC with a terrific double bill. Performing music ranging from Brazilian fusion to Afro Cuban salsa, The Transit Latin Jazz Ensemble features musicians from throughout the Southwest.Albuquerque musicians Ed Ulman, Rodolfo Gonzalez, and Maud Beenhouwer will be joined by Tucson based keyboardist Amilcar Guevara and Taos-based drummer, Barrett Martin. Their repertoire includes original compositions as well as music from composers Egberto Gismonte and Edu Lobo. Trombonist/composer Ed Ulman is a well-known educator and musician as well as the former director of both the Tucson Jazz Society and the New Mexico Jazz Workshop. Flutist/composer Rodolfo Gonzalez is well-known in the salsa and Latin jazz communities as the director of the groups Casa Blanca, Charanga del Valle, and Terra Plena. He has toured internationally with several salsa bands including Roberto Torres. Bassist Maud Beenhouwer has been on the Albuquerque music scene for many years playing music ranging from salsa to jazz to R&B. She has played with many national acts and enjoys a career as a music educator as well. Pianist/composer Amilcar Guevara has performed with such artists as Pete Escovedo and performs regularly on the Tucson music scene. Drummer Barrett Martin has enjoyed an active and illustrious career that has taken him around the world including Brazil, Cuba, and Africa.

Greg Abate is widely considered among jazz writers and afficionados to be one of the “best post bebop alto saxophonists out there today.” Based in Rhode Island, he is a frequent performer in New Mexico where he has worked with drummer Pete Amahl for years. A student at the Berklee College of Music in the early 1970s he went on to play lead alto with the Ray Charles Orchestra from 1973-1974 later joining the Artie Shaw Orchestra. By the end of the 1990s, Abate was one of the premier players on the East Coast. He has toured with Tony Bennet, Rosemary Clooney and has appeared at The Hollywood Bowl with Mel Torme. He was also featured in the orchestra accompanying Vic Damone. He has shared bandstands with such notables as Red Rodney, Richie Cole, Kenny Barron, Elvin Jones, Hilton Ruiz, George Mraz, Kenny Washington, James Moody, Claudio Roditi, Paquito D’Riveria, Hank Jones, Rufus Reed, Ben Riley, Nick Brignola and Jerome Richardson many of whom have ben featured on his own CDs. Tonight Abate will be accompanied by John Rangel, piano; Luis Guerra, bass; and long time New Mexico-based Abate collaborator, Pete Amahl, drums.

$12/$7 Members & Students. Available in advance, by phone or in person, at the Outpost Performance Space (268-0044)