4 Cool Dudes and a Baby Grand (5pm Show)

Four acclaimed pianists. Four completely different solos and musical journeys—all culminating in one surprising and unforgettable finale.

4 Cool Dudes and a Baby Grand
Featuring four outstanding jazz pianists:
Tim Ray, Jesse Tatt, Mike Effenberger, Mark Shilansky

Sunday, September 20

4pm doors/5pm show

Reserved Seats: $23 adv./$32 day of

*Two shows are offered (5pm and 8pm). This is the ticket link for the 5pm show. For tickets to the 8pm show, go to: https://www.portsmouthnhtickets.com/e/4-cool-dudes-and-a-baby-grand-8pm

 

Get ready for a wonderful evening with four piano solos (plus one grand finale) from these truly outstanding musicians, Tim Ray, Jesse Taitt, Mike Effenberger, Mark Shilansky! Each has immense talent to perform a wide range of music, including jazz, pop, classical, R&B, and otherwise. For this show they have been asked to go their own way—whether they want to focus on a genre, artist, original work, or show a side of their music we haven't seen before. Each performance will be as different in theme, style, and music as Monk, Jobim, and Wayne Shorter. That is, until the finale when they all perform on stage together! So reserve your seats now and come ready for surprises and a great night with these 4 very cool dudes and their baby grand!

Plan to arrive when the doors open so you can put your food and drink orders in before the show starts.

This event is sponsored by the Seacoast Jazz Society, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization in New Hampshire with a threefold mission to 1) foster a love of jazz and jazz history in the community from Mass. to Maine, 2) support local jazz musicians, and 3) provide scholarships for young artists.

The Musicians...

Tim Ray
"...and that Tim Ray at the piano - he slays me every single night!" — Bonnie Raitt

"Tim surprises us on that song every night. And it's always a good surprise." — Lyle Lovett

Tim Ray’s wide-ranging skills as a soloist and accompanist have afforded him the opportunity to perform with legendary performers from all walks of music. Ray served as music director and pianist for the legendary Tony Bennett from 2016 until the singer's retirement in 2021. Before that, he performed on the road with singer-songwriter Lyle Lovett, touring for more than 15 years.

Appearing on over 100 recordings, Ray has performed in concert with an extensive list of pop-music icons, notably Aretha Franklin, Bonnie Raitt, Jane Siberry, and Soul Asylum. He regularly performs with leading figures in the jazz world, among them Terri Lyne Carrington, Gary Burton, Esperanza Spalding, Kurt Elling, George Garzone, Dave Douglas, Lewis Nash, and Brian Blade, and his classical credits include solo performances and concerts with the Boston Pops, Gunther Schuller, and the Boston Modern Orchestra Project.

He has released six albums under his own name, including 2020's Excursions & Adventures featuring Terri Lyne Carrington and John Patitucci. Ray’s busy schedule has included frequent tours throughout North America, South America, Mexico, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, and has included performances at Carnegie Hall, the White House, the Kennedy Center, and the 1992 Presidential Inauguration. He is a grant recipient from the National Endowment for the Arts and continues to be in high demand as a musical director, composer, arranger, private instructor, and clinician.

Jesse Taitt
Jesse Taitt is a multifaceted pianist, composer, arranger, and educator with a rich musical journey. He holds a dual degree in Jazz Composition and Professional Music from Berklee College of Music, where he refined his sensitivity and technical prowess.

Starting at the Boston Arts Academy, Jesse cultivated his musicality studying classical music with Boston Conservatory Professor Harriet Lundberg and Jazz under Hey Rim Jeon through the Berklee City Music Program.

Throughout his academic journey at the Arts Academy and Berklee, Jesse engaged with luminaries such as Phillip Bailey, Seymour Bernstein, Dr. Billy Taylor, Regina Carter, George Duke, Walter Beasley, Doug Johnson, Laszlo Gardony, Joanne Brackeen, En Vogue, Patrice Rushen, Geri Allen, Gavin Degraw, Mark Gross, Lou Cash, Boston Pops, Hugh Masakela, Bill Charlap, Vincent Herring, and Cecil
Bridgewater.

As an active participant in the Boston music scene, he directed Boston-based group Jazz Urbane, was the driving force behind the Jesse Taitt Trio, and earned recognition as a dedicated AmeriCorp Community Leader and Public Allies Leader.

Jesse’s impact extended beyond his performances, as he also contributed as an Artist-Educator in the Boston Arts Academy’s Alumni Creative Core program. Notably, he achieved international recognition as an International Guest Artist in Rwanda during the summer of 2013. There, he led master classes and headlined the Kigali UP Festival, collaborating with esteemed artists like Joey Blake and sharing his artistry on projects alongside the likes of George Duke, Terri Lyne Carrington, and Christian Scott.

A pursuit of excellence led Jesse to complete a master's degree in music with a focus on Jazz Arranging and Composition at William Paterson University in 2017. Today, Jesse is Assistant Professor in the Harmony and Jazz Composition Department and Lecturer of Jazz Piano at Dartmouth College.

As a skilled pianist, composer, and educator, Jesse continually ventures into new musical and philanthropic realms. With his diverse experiences, including his time as a sideman on various projects, his impact resonates across New York, Boston, and New Jersey. Keep an eye out for Jesse’s forthcoming projects that promise fresh artistic perspectives and innovative collaborations.

Mike Effenberger
Mike Effenberger is a recording and performing artist who has been living in the NH Seacoast since 2007. He received the Young Beacon in Jazz award from New School University in New York City, from which he graduated in 2005. While there, he studied with diverse artists including Jane Ira Bloom, Kenny Werner, John Hollenbeck, Reggie Workman, Fred Hersch, and Joanne Brackeen. Mike has curated an unmistakably individual voice that draws on gospel, minimalism, jazz, and 20th century music.

Mike plays throughout New England with a variety of bands including fiveighthirteen, Jazzputin and the Jug Skunks, the secular roots and gospel choir Rock My Soul, OURBIGBAND, Sad Bastards / Loose Standards, Showmen's Rest, Dan Blakeslee. He leads Weird Turn Pro, which plays his original music. When not in the northeast, Mike performs internationally with Bing and Ruth and plays throughout the east coast with Soggy Po’ Boys. Mike appears on countless recordings from independent releases to larger labels, including 4AD and RVNG Intl, and is also active as a producer.

His work has been written about in international publications including the "Paris Review" & "The Guardian," "Pitchfork," and "Downbeat," as well as appearing on nationally syndicated media including NPR's "All Things Considered" and PRX's "Echoes."

When not at a piano bench, he can typically be found in the woods.

Mark Shilansky
"Inventive, modern mainstream jazz pianist” —Jon Garelick, Boston Globe)

Mark Shilansky provides melodic improvisation and infectious compositions on his own and to a host of jazz luminaries, as well as to the classroom, as a professor at Berklee College of Music and the University of New Hampshire. Shilansky’s recordings as a leader include 2007’s “Join the Club,” a mostly Latin Jazz affair featuring David Bowie's saxist Donny McCaslin, and 2013’s “Fugue Mill,” the eponymous debut of his Jazz/Bluegrass/Celtic project, and “Greensky” (2023) an original modern jazz recording co-led with vibraphonist Rich Greenblatt, and he is featured on over 60 recordings as a
keyboardist, vocalist, composer/arranger, or producer, and in performance as band member with such artists as the New York Voices, Luciana Souza, and Sean Jones.

As an artist, he embraces the history of the styles in which he works, while seeking connections between them as a way of expressing a personal musical vision, characterized by lush harmonies, the exploration of the line between composition and improvisation, and an ever-present sense of humor. His works have been recorded by Robin McKelle, Kim Nazarian, and by Jazz All-State and College ensembles around the world. He is also President of the Board of the Seacoast Jazz Society.