Jazz Evening at the Hilton – 21/03 at 20:00

After the 70th birthday celebration tour of the acclaimed Kansas City artist, a new European tour is scheduled for March 2024, with performances in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Italy. The quintet will be composed of emerging talents such as Wallace Roney Jr., son of the renowned trumpeter and the late great pianist Geri Allen. Along with him, the young Philadelphia pianist Jordan Williams and the experienced long-time collaborators Curtis Lundy on bass and Victor Jones on drums.

Watson’s concerts are known for their extraordinary energy: the Kansas City saxophonist never disappoints his audience, thanks to his exceptional technique and, above all, his great communicative ability that engages the audience with energy and fun. Following in the footsteps of his mentor, Art Blakey, of whom he was music director from 1977 to 1981, Bobby Watson was appointed Global Jazz Ambassador by the Kansas City Conservatory and is the Director of the Jazz Department.

This assignment will take the saxophonist around the world to perform with different musicians, with the aim of spreading the message of Art Blakey. Emerging from Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, Watson developed one of the most personal styles of alto sax from the 1980s to the present. Born in 1953 in Lawrence (Kansas) but raised in Kansas City, Watson has deeply assimilated the influence of the great jazz school of his city. After attending the University of Miami (where he had fellow students Pat Metheny and Jaco Pastorius), the saxophonist moved to New York in 1975. In 1977 he began to distinguish himself within the Jazz Messengers of Art Blakey, even assuming the role of music director. 

This group has been a real hotbed of young talent in modern jazz, and when Watson left the band in 1982, he did not miss opportunities to collaborate with top artists, including Max Roach, Louis Hayes, George Coleman, Branford Marsalis, Sam Rivers and Wynton Marsalis.

The first important occasions in which he was a leader in recording came from Italy: in 1985, the Milanese Red Records produced two studio albums that are still among his best works, “Appointment in Milano” and “Round Trip”. Later, major labels such as Blue Note and Sony/Columbia showed interest in his music.

In recent years, Watson has focused primarily on his quartet and has produced a magnificent tribute to Martin Luther King’s famous speech, “I Have a Dream”, titled “Check Cashing Day”, under the Rat Pack Music label. He has also worked on broader orchestrations and much of his work has been in the education sector, thanks to his prestigious position as director of the jazz department at the University of Missouri, Kansas City.

Recently, it has been rare to see him in Italy, but the opportunity to review him and listen to him at the helm of the quartet with which he recently recorded “Made in America” for the Smoke label in New York will definitely be an invigorating experience.

For more information, please contact Maria Teresa Vannini, Italian tour agent: teresa@nadirmusic.net