Cliff Bell's

David Alvarez Trio
2022-01-09 19:30 - 23:30 (America/Detroit)
Showtimes are at 7:30p & 9:30p for this performance.
(Doors open at 5pm for dinner/Seating begins at 6:15p for the first show & 9:00p for the second show)
*************************************************************************************************
David Alvarez III is a jazz drummer, composer, arranger, and music educator based in the Metro-Detroit area. The drum set was introduced to him at the age of five, growing up playing in church. At the age of nine, he started to learn how to play Jazz through a summer program called The Arts League of Michigan. Afterwards, for eight years he furthered his studies of the art form through the Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s Civic Youth Jazz Program, learning from Professors and College mentors from both Michigan State University and the University of Michigan. He has graduated from the University of Michigan in 2017 with a Bachelor’s Degree of Fine Arts in Jazz Studies with Teacher Certification. Since then, he has toured with the Benny Green Trio, and has recently joined the Clayton Brothers Quintet. He currently freelances and teachesis the Jazz Department at the University of Michigan.

DeSean Jones
2022-01-09 19:30 - 2022-01-10 09:30, 2022-01-10 19:30 - 2022-01-11 09:30, 2022-01-11 19:30 - 2022-01-12 09:30, 2022-01-12 19:30 - 2022-01-13 09:30, 2022-01-13 19:30 - 2022-01-14 09:30, 2022-01-14 19:30 - 2022-01-15 09:30, 2022-01-15 19:30 - 2022-01-16 09:30, 2022-01-16 19:30 - 2022-01-17 09:30 and 13 more dates
De’Sean Jones is a Detroit based saxophonist, billboard charting recording artist and grammy nominated arranger. Over the past 20 years De’Sean has toured the world recording or performing with music Icons like Stevie Wonder, Faith Evans, along with a host of Detroit Legends; Marcus Belgrave, The Clark Sisters, Kierra Sheard and techno pioneer Mad Mike Banks of Underground Resistance.
As a bandleader & producer Jones has curated an eclectic approach that is widely viewed as progressive and undeniably rooted in the rich history of black culture. De’Sean actively pushes the boundaries of social consciousness through music in ways that are authentic, emotionally dynamic and intellectually stimulating.

All musical projects from De’Sean Jones can be accessed through his record label KNMDK Records.

Chris Glassman Quintet
2022-01-13 19:30 - 23:00
Showtimes are at 7:30p & 9:30p for this performance.
(Doors open at 5pm for dinner/Seating begins at 6:15p for the first show & 9:00p for the second show)
************************************************************************************************

Hailed by the International Trombone Journal as someone whose “ warm sound, beautiful phrasing, and ability to perform in various styles convincingly sets him apart as a truly exceptional musician”, Chris Glassman is a rising star jazz performer on bass trombone, and Michigan based musician. He is also the Arts Entrepreneurship and Career Development Coordinator at Michigan State University’s College of Music, Instructor of Bass Trombone and Arranging/Composition at the Jazz Institute at Brevard, and the head of Low Brass at Michigan State University’s Community Music School in Detroit. Glassman’s vision is to mentor the next generation of musicians to be more passionate and skill- equipped for the modern music landscape.

He has performed and/or recorded with legendary musicians The Temptations and The Four Tops, Sarah McLachlan, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Chucho Valdez, Diane Schuur, Rene Marie, Wayne Bergeron, Rodney Whitaker, Ulysses Owens Jr., and Etienne Charles among others. His recordings with his co-led ensemble with Altin Sencalar, The Sencalar/Glassman Quintet, has recently received high acclaim from magazines like Stereophile Magazine, The International Trombone Journal, and Outside in Music. An avid arranger, Chris has had numerous commissions for arrangements and compositions by Brevard Music Center, the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, and for musicians David Sanborn, Billy Kilson, Rodney Whitaker, Randy Napoleon, Steve Davis, and Michael Dease among others. When not at MSU, performing, or teaching, Glassman enjoys expansive board games with his wife Christine, and watches old re-runs of The Simpsons while doting over his cat Muffin.

Alex Harding & Organ Nation
2022-01-16 19:30 - 23:00
Showtimes are at 7:30p & 9:30p for this performance.
(Doors open at 5pm for dinner/Seating begins at 6:15p for the first show & 9:00p for the second show)
**************************************************************************************************
Detroit-born baritone saxophonist Alex Harding first became active in jazz circles in his youth. Early on he studied with established jazz figures Yusef Lateef and Beans Bowles and was playing gigs with Donald Byrd and Wynton Marsalis before he was out of high school. Throughout the ’90s, 2000s, and 2010s, Harding toured, performed, and recorded without pause, collaborating with countless names in both jazz and pop circles that included everyone from the Marshall Allen-led Sun Ra Arkestra to work with David Lee Roth.
Harding was born in 1967 in Detroit, Michigan. After hearing Grover Washington, Jr. as a kid, he took up tenor saxophone, eventually switching over to baritone in high school. Though sax was his primary instrument, he would occasionally double on bass clarinet. He was already performing regularly around Detroit in his teenage years while studying with local jazz greats. By his early twenties he was performing internationally. He left Detroit for New York in the early ’90s, joining Julius Hemphill’s Saxophone Sextet and performing around town with Lester Bowie, Frank Lacy, Hamiet Bluiett’s Baritone Group, the Mingus Big Band, and many others. He also took part in shows and festival appearances with the Sun Ra Arkestra and the Roy Hargrove Big Band. He recorded multiple albums with longtime friend pianist Lucian Ban, including 2002’s Somethin’ Holy and a 2008 collaboration between the two friends and Romanian electronic musician Silent Strike entitled 3am. In the late 2000s he joined the Broadway production of FELA!!! both in New York and on tour. He eventually returned to Detroit, but stayed incredibly active in the studio and on the road. Harding and Ban reunited in 2019 for another collaborative album, Dark Blue.

Anthony Stanco Quartet
2022-01-21 19:30 - 23:30, 2022-01-22 19:30 - 23:30
Showtimes are at 7:30p & 9:30p for this performance.
(Doors open at 5pm for dinner/Seating begins at 6:15p for the first show & 9:00p for the second show)
**************************************************************************************************
Born in Southeast Michigan, raised in the Blues and Soul mecca of Detroit, and tutored by the community’s finest (Rodney Whitaker, Marcus Belgrave), Stanco joins a generation of jazz musicians that both reveres the roots of the music and energetically seeks its future. With a big, brilliant sound and a fearless command of the horn, Stanco brings to mind trumpet greats such as Freddie Hubbard and Dizzy Gillespie. Stanco’s band, The Crucial Elements, has built a livelihood touring the world repeatedly as intercultural ambassadors through the US State Department’s “American Music Abroad” program. They consistently receive rave reviews about their engaging live performances and equally captivating record titled “The Crucial Elements.” Stanco continues to have an active recording career and has released his second record titled “You Know The Feeling” on the Detroit Music Factory label. When not touring or recording he is the Assistant Professor of Jazz Trumpet at Michigan State University.
Hear his music and find upcoming shows here: anthonystanco.com

Zen Zadravec Group
2022-01-23 19:30 - 23:00
Showtimes are at 7:30p & 9:30p for this performance.
(Doors open at 5pm for dinner/Seating begins at 6:15p for the first show & 9:00p for the second show)
**************************************************************************************************
Zen Zadravec, jazz pianist, saxophonist, and composer views all music as a form of creative communication. The goal is to create music based on human experience. It is also to absorb as much music as possible to develop through the lens of Humanism based on the philosophies of Nichiren Buddhism. Ultimately, Zadravec strives to create music that inspires, encourages, and touches people’s hearts.
Zadravec is a musical chameleon. Whether it is jazz, R&B, funk, rock, or pop, he plays each with a freshness and confidence rarely found in someone so young. Born in Winnipeg, Canada, in 1974, Zadravec studied classical piano from the age of five. At eleven, he began studying the saxophone and the flute. Hearing Miles Davis transformed his life and influenced his decision to become a jazz musician. In 1992, Zadravec attended York University’s Jazz Program, and in 1997 he graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. During his time at York, Zadravec was also the recipient of two Oscar Peterson Awards for excellence as a jazz pianist. In 2000, he earned a Graduate’s Degree in Jazz Performance at Rutgers University.
Zadravec also has studied with some of the biggest names in jazz, such as Kenny Barron, Don Thompson, John Gittens, Vic Juris, Ted Dunbar, and Ralph Bowen. A natural innovator and leader, he runs two of his own bands: the Zen Zadravec Quartet and his fusion group Human Revolution. Zadravec has also performed or recorded with: Ron Carter, Louis Hayes, Karriem Riggins, Ali Jackson, Mike Pope, Mark Whitfield Jr., Bijon Watson, Mark Gross, Derrick Gardner, Vincent Gardner, Todd Bashore, Kenny Davis, Steve Turre, Ralph Bowen, Sean Jones, Conrad Herwig, Freddie Hendrix, Don Thompson, Lorne Lofsky, Charles Fambrough, Valery Ponomarev, Dave Watson, Darryl Dixon, Gloria Gaynor, Joan Rivers, Bob Newhart, Sally Kellerman, among others.
Versatile, creative, energetic, and dynamic, Zadravec is continuously experimenting and refining his sound and musical conception through concerts, recordings, and education. His music is always exploring beautiful melodies, interesting chord progressions, and rhythmic diversity. Zadravec’s latest CD release titled Human Revolution is a musical work supported by the Canadian Grant Organization called Factor or (The Foundation Assisting Canadian Talent on Recordings).

Marianne Solivan Quartet
2022-01-27 19:30 - 23:30, 2022-01-28 19:30 - 23:30
Showtimes are at 7:30p & 9:30p for this performance.
(Doors open at 5pm for dinner/Seating begins at 6:15p for the first show & 9:00p for the second show)
**************************************************************************************************
Solivan has made a name for herself as a hard swinging, passionate, vocalist who has a
commanding stage presence and is able to captivate audiences with her joyous exuberance and
whit. Having performed and recorded with the likes of Christian McBride, Peter Bernstein,
Jeremy Pelt, Bruce Barth, Gregory Hutchinson, Jonathan Blake, Xavier Davis, Michael Kanan,
Steve Wilson, Gene Bertoncini and Lewis Nash, Solivan has been consistently raising the bar for
singers of her generation.
Marianne is currently performing worldwide leading numerous ensembles and presenting her
unique talents with an international audience. In addition to her full performing calendar Solivan
teaches in many different situations including private lessons, group coachings and Jazz camps,
summer workshops and most recently she became the Assistant Professor of Jazz Voice at
Syracuse University in their Jazz & Commercial Music Department.

Shedrick Mitchell
2022-01-29 19:30 - 23:30
Showtimes are at 7:30p & 9:30p for this performance.
(Doors open at 5pm for dinner/Seating begins at 6:15p for the first show & 9:00p for the second show)
**************************************************************************************************

Twenty-five years. Multiple genres. Iconic superstars. It’s safe to say Shedrick Mitchell
has accomplished his dreams, and then some. Starting in a church in St. Louis where his
grandfather, and later his father, was the Pastor his first experience playing the piano
proved to be exactly what was needed. What seemed to be a chore at nine years old
became the ultimate training ground to grow into many different musical styles for the
future.
Moving to New York City presented new opportunities to study with famed pianists,
Mulgrew Miller and John Hicks who encouraged Shedrick to attend The New School
(Mannes School of Music). He thrived on the abundance of musicians who played at the
highest level: Kenny Kirkland, Oscar Peterson, Harrold Mabern and countless others.
New York City was a breeding ground of musical genius expressed through jazz music.
After the untimely passing of Kenny Kirkland, it was Mulgrew Miller who recommended
Shedrick for Kenny Garrett’s band. Touring internationally for the first time gave him a
broader perspective of jazz music and eventually led to him recording on Kenny Garrett’s
album, “Simply Said”.
Following his work with Kenny Garrett, Shedrick went on to work with many jazz greats
including Dee Dee Bridgewater, Christian McBride, Terrance Blanchard, Antonio Hart,
Johnny Griffin, Dianne Reeves and others. But, it was in 2003 that Shedrick was asked
to accompany one of the greatest voices of our time, Whitney Houston. Shedrick toured
with Ms. Houston for nine years on many different platforms including major television
award shows, The Oprah Winfrey Show and even royal audiences in many countries.
What may be equally impressive is that he continued to perform and record jazz music
and play at his local church in between tours.
Opportunities continued to pour in. Several years later, Shedrick collaborated with the
legendary Stevie Wonder, music and business mogul Jay-Z and R&B/soul star, Maxwell.
During these years, many career highlights included the Super Bowl XL half-time show
with Stevie Wonder, the American Gangster soundtrack and VH-1 special, ‘Storytellers’
with Jay-Z and co-producing Maxwell’s recordings, “Black” and “Summers,” while
currently serving as his Music Director.
Considering all of these invaluable experiences, receiving the request to accompany “The
Queen” Ms. Aretha Franklin, was nothing short of extraordinary. For two years,
Shedrick graced the stage with Ms. Franklin. Their performances included an appearance
on Late Show with David Letterman performing songs from her last recording, “Aretha
Sings the Great Diva Classics,” and one of the highest honors, performing at the White
House for President Barack Obama.
Both Whitney Houston and Aretha Franklin had a special affinity for Shedrick’s
musicianship. When he accompanied them on piano or organ, they enjoyed the freedom
his playing allowed, returning them to their gospel roots.
Twenty-five years later, having received four Grammy Awards and recorded over 200
records encompassing styles as diverse as classical, new age, rock, jazz, country, gospel,
R&B/soul and reggae, the journey continues. In June 2020, Shedrick will release his
second solo recording, “Time – Reflections – Distance”, which he hopes will speak to the
challenges we all face today.
After having achieved success as a musician, arranger and producer, Shedrick enjoys
imparting his knowledge and experience into the next generation of musicians as a
teacher, mentor and coach. In all of this, he has managed to stay grounded in his
foundation. On any given Sunday you will likely find Shedrick Mitchell at church,
playing the piano and organ, simply doing what he loves most.
