Smooth Sounds of Summer: Branford Jazz Series

Bridgeport native Walter Duda was inspired by rock n roll vocalists Dion and Bobby Darin. He then became a fan of the vocal harmony arrangements of Brian Wilson (Beach Boys), The Beatles and The Hollies. While in Detroit, he was introduced to the rhythm and grooves of The Motown Sound. Next, progressive rock groups King Crimson and Yes caught his imagination. Eventually hearing jazz fusion keyboardists Brian Auger and George Duke inspired him to switch from playing guitar to piano.

As a songwriter, he has been influenced by many artists, including Michael Franks, Mose Allison and Bobby Caldwell. You'll hear those influences first hand as Walter Duda opens the 2010 Branford Jazz on the Green Series!

Chris Geith is a keyboardist, composer, music producer, and has collaborated with some of the top music production companies in the USA. His most recent deals have been with "Universal Music" as part of the latest "Weather Channel CD II," and "Top2 Music" in Singapore to expand into the Asian market. Geith's first single "Waves Of Life," from his album "Timeless World," was named Number 1 most added on Smooth Jazz radio in January 08. His music can be heard extensively on the "Weather Channel," "Music Choice" cable, and "Sirius" satellite radio. Geith's latest album, "Island of a Thousand Dreams," will be released in May 2010.

Blue Plate Radio features many of Geith's tracks and we expect he will be featuring many of those tracks from his new CD at the second show of the Branford Jazz on the Green Series!

The Gary Grippo Quintet features an amazing line-up of Cafe 9 jazz jam all-stars including his very favorite partners in crime, Esdras Lubin on bass and Justin Octaviano on drums. Grippo's guitar will be front and center but it's going to be fun to see who his very special all-star guests will be! We want to see more than just those smiling faces on the Branford Town Green!

Arti Dixson has played with Janis Ian, Larry Coryell, Randy Brecker, Bill Evans, Ahmad Jamal, Marion Meadows, Joe Melotti, Eartha Kitt, Michael Bolton, and many more. He has also worked as the house drummer for Foxwoods Casino and backed up many touring bands including Harry Connick and Nelson Riddle's Orchestra. Dixson hosts an annual Toys for Tots fundraiser that benefits many local area charities and includes a performance by an all-star jazz band featuring members of Ahmad Jamal's and Smokey Robinson's band. Expect some of those same all-stars to show up on the Branford Green!

Vocalist, pianist, percussionist, composer and arranger Susan Pereira, a New York native, has been one of the most versatile musicians on that city's Brazilian music scene since 1983. She is a cum laude graduate of Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT, where she earned a B.A. in Music and English with High Honors in Music. Since its inception Sabor Brasil has appeared at many of New York's leading clubs including Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, Iridium, B.B. King's, Birdland, Smoke, Zinc Bar, The Kitano, 55 Bar and Enzo's, among others. The band has also appeared at a variety of festivals and special events including the Rochester International Jazz Festival, the Savannah Jazz Festival; the Hartford Jazz Festival; New Jersey Performing Arts Center's "Sounds of the City" Festival; the Wall St. Festival in Kingston, NY; the Jazz and Roses Festival at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden; the Mayfair Festival; Riverside Park's "Sunset Concerts" series; the Hudson River Museum's festival "Summer Sounds Goes Global;" and the Central Park/Harlem Meer Music Festival. We're pleased to bring Susan and her band to the 2010 Branford Jazz on the Green Series!

Matt Marshak's live shows overflow with passion, energy, crowd interaction and intensity, as the guitarist throws a series of blues, rock, soul and jazz licks. Now, one of the freshest faces on the contemporary jazz scene has captured the flavor of his popular live shows with his fourth major release, The Family Funktion.

A native of Long Island, Marshak grew up on rock 'n' roll music in a home full of musicians. Passing guitarists inspired his muse, and in high school he honed his chops with three well-respected teachers: Joseph "Joey" Casciano, Mike Orioles and Richard Rabatin. They all inspired in him a lifelong commitment to his craft, while Rabatin in particular turned him on to the contemporary jazz and blues guitar sounds of Larry Carlton, George Benson and Robben Ford. While attending college at SUNY Geneseo, Matt had the opportunity to play with a blues and R&B group, as well as connecting and improvising with straight-ahead jazz saxophonist Joseph Yoon. Once out of college, Marshak performed a variety of musical styles with New York's top original bands and artists, even drawing praise from Deep Purple's lege

New York-based Paula Atherton has opened for the likes of Chuck Loeb, Patti Austin, Tito Puente and saxophonist Najee. In 2004 her debut CD 'Let Me Inside Your Love' made its mark on the national contemporary jazz charts, and in 2006 a cut from this album, 'I Long For Your Love' was included on the compilation 'Ladies of Jazz,' which also featured Natalie Cole, Candy Dulfer and Eliane Elias. Her television work includes appearances on the 'Today' show, Good Morning America, and as bandleader for the Lifetime network show, 'Girl's Night Out'. In addition, Atherton performed at fundraisers during Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign and in 2002 wrote the score for the independent film 'The Definition of Insanity'.

Paula Atherton's sensational new CD, "Groove With Me," features eleven original compositions plus one well-chosen cover, with the perfect blend of instrumental and vocal cuts, oozing quality throughout. Tracks from "Groove With Me" can be heard frequently on Blue Plate Radio. We expect to hear quite a few of them at the 2010 Branford Jazz Series on the Green!

Even as he's dazzled audiences around the world with his high energy soloing over the funky beats of U.K. jazz groove sensations Down To The Bone, Paul "Shilts" Weimar just wants to be known as "an approachable boy from London who wants to have a laugh…a cheeky cockney chappy." Part of the fun for the charismatic saxophonist is getting people up and dancing--and if they're listening to him blow from the car stereo, he hopes as they travel down the open road that they'll be up for some serious HeadBoppin, the name of his highly anticipated debut on ARTizen Music Group.

"I've always liked to play in the high energy style of the band [Down to the Bone]," Shilts says, "but it's all groove and style. With my own material, I write for my sax as if it were a vocal instrument. It's more melody than riff based, and the goal is to create songs that listeners can't get out of their heads. I want it to reflect the sense of joy I get being around people, getting to know them and having fun."

Shilts second solo CD, "Jigsaw Life," has received heavy airplay on Blue Plate Radio. Tracks from this CD, his previous solo effort "Headboppin'," and from his Down to the Bone days are sure to make the set list for the second to the last show of the 2010 Branford Jazz on the Green Series!

Chieli Minucci and Special EFX featuring Jay Rowe, Lionel Cordew, Jerry Brooks, and Phil Hamilton will be closing the 2010 Branford Jazz Series Thursday night, August 26, 6:30pm!

Join Special EFX in celebrating their 25th Anniversary and the release of their live DVD recorded at their 2009 Java Jazz show in Jakarta, Indonesia. CD's and DVD's will be on sale throughout the show and the band will be available for autographs after their performance. Click here for an official clip from their Indonesia performance!