Trumpet Legend Marvin Stamm (Bill Evans, Wes Montgomery, George Benson)

Seating and dinner orders will be taken beginning at 6pm. Please arrive at 6pm or earlier to be seated and to your order taken. Showtime begins at 7pm after dinner.

Please respect that this is a performance by seasoned, professional musicians. Many with Grammy and other awards to their credit. It's important out of respect for the performers and other patrons that there is no talking during the performance.

Tickets: Very Limited Occupancy. Tables seating 2, 4, 5 guests, with tables for 6, 8, 12 available upon request. Single, general admission tickets are also available. See The Attached Seating Chart. Admission Is $15.00 - $20.00 Per Person, Ticket prices may be higher for special performances.. Have problems with the ticketing system? Call 203-247-4273

Parking: Please park in LaZingara's lot or on Greenwood Ave. or School Street. Please avoid parking in P.T. Barnum Square.

Marvin Stamm - Trumpet

Throughout his distinguished career, Marvin Stamm has been praised for both the art and the craft of trumpet playing. Leonard Feather stated that “Mr. Stamm is an accomplished performer whose technical skill is used as a means to stimulating original ends.”

While attending North Texas State University, a school noted for its innovative lab bands, Mr. Stamm was discovered by Stan Kenton. Upon graduating, he performed with the Kenton’s orchestra as his jazz trumpet soloist 1961-1962, recording five albums with the orchestra. In 1965-1966, he toured worldwide with Woody Herman.

Marvin Stamm settled in New York City in late 1966, quickly establishing himself as a busy jazz and studio trumpeter. New York was bustling with jazz activity during that period, and Stamm performed at key venues with many of the significant players in the business. He gained considerable recognition for his playing with the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra (1966-1972) and the Duke Pearson Big Band (1967-1970), as well as performing with Frank Sinatra (1973-1974) and the Benny Goodman Sextet (1974-1975), among others.

Stamm was also a recognized first-call studio player (1966-1989). Some of the jazz artists with whom he recorded include Bill Evans, Quincy Jones, Oliver Nelson, Duke Pearson, Thad Jones, Wes Montgomery, Freddie Hubbard, Stanley Turrentine, Patrick Williams, Michel Legrand, Lena Horne, Frank Foster, Paul Desmond, George Benson, and many other popular artists of the period as well.

Eschewing the lucrative studio scene in the late 80s, Mr. Stamm has focused his attention on his first love, playing jazz. Over his career, he has been a member of John Lewis’ American Jazz Orchestra, the Bob Mintzer Band, the George Gruntz Concert Jazz Band, Louis Bellson’s big band and/or quintet and, on a number of occasions, performed with the big band of composer Maria Schneider.

Currently, Mr. Stamm spends much of the year touring. His activities include performing as a soloist, touring with his jazz quartet, and playing in duo with pianist Bill Mays. Stamm and Mays recently formed and are touring with a new group, the Inventions Trio, which includes cellist Alisa Horn. Stamm performs with symphony orchestras throughout the country and maintains his ties with the George Gruntz Concert Jazz Band.

At home, Mr. Stamm participates and performs with the Westchester Jazz Orchestra, a big band made up of some of the finest jazz musicians in the New York area, all living in Westchester County. Led by composer/arranger Mike Holober, the band includes trumpeters Tony Kadlack, Craig Johnson, Marvin, and Jim Rotondi; trombonists Keith O’Quinn, Larry Farrell, Bruce Eidem, and George Flynn; saxophonists Jay Brandford, David Brandom, Ralph Lalama, Jason Rigby, and Eddie Xiques; pianist Ted Rosenthal, bassist Harvie S, and drummer Andy Watson.

Marvin Stamm’s first solo album, Machinations, was composed and arranged by jazz legend, John Carisi. After touring for several years with Frank Sinatra, Marvin recorded Stammpede in 1982, an album heralding his rededication to a solo jazz career. In 1991, Stamm released Bop Boy, a quintet CD featuring tenor saxophonist Bob Mintzer, drummer Terry Clarke, pianist Phil Markowitz, and bassist Lincoln Goines. A follow-up, Mystery Man, was released in 1993, again featuring Mintzer and Clarke, but this time in the company of pianist Bill Charlap, bassist Mike Richmond, and saxophonist Bob Malach.

In November 2000, Mr. Stamm released two new CDs on his newly-formed Marstam Music label. The first, a duo CD, By Ourselves, documents Stamm’s long-time collaboration with pianist Bill Mays. The second CD, The Stamm/Soph Project, is a quartet setting created with drummer Ed Soph that features bassist Rufus Reid and pianist Bill Mays. Saxophonist Dave Liebman guests on three tracks. Both CDs garnered excellent critical response.

November 2001 saw the release of Elegance, a quartet CD featuring the remarkable young pianist from Sweden, Stefan Karlsson, along with bassist Tom Warrington and drummer Eliot Zigmund.

In March 2005, The Stamm/Soph Project – Live at Birdland was released on the JazzedMedia label. Again co-led with Ed Soph, this CD also features Stamm’s working quartet with long-time bandmates pianist Bill Mays and bassist Rufus Reid. Guitarist John Abercrombie guests on four tracks. Recorded in the famous New York City jazz club, this CD showcases the quartet in “live” performance rather than a studio setting. Stamm says, “Working with these musicians as a group – Ed, Bill, and Rufus – always produces very special moments. None of us takes these events for granted or looks upon them as just another gig. Each of us really comes to play!” For me, performing with this group is a pinnacle of sorts because these are the guys with whom I want to play; they are my choice!”

Three recordings were released in 2007: Alone Together, a DVD/CD set, featuring his quartet with pianist Bill Mays, bassist Rufus Reid, and drummer Ed Soph; Fantasy, the first recording by the Inventions Trio, released on Palmetto Records; The Nearness of Two, a duo performance of Mr. Stamm and pianist/vocalist Dena DeRose, recorded “live” at the Ancona Jazz Festival in Ancona, Italy. In September, 2008, the Inventions Trio released its second CD, The Delaware River Suite.

The critical response to Stamm’s work has been highly enthusiastic. Downbeat reported that “Stamm has a gorgeous tone on the trumpet and flugelhorn, and he flies through the changes”. JazzTimes said that “the Memphis native has chops and talent in abundance. He can burn on bebop changes, or mellow out on a ballad, all the time maintaining the lucid consistency that enthusiasm and experience engenders.” Jazz Review states, “It is a pleasure listening to the work of Marvin Stamm, anytime! Stamm is a musician’s musician, performing flawlessly on his trumpet and flugelhorn.”

Consciously acknowledging his debt to the influence and guidance of former teachers and fellow musicians, Marvin Stamm also commits a good deal of his time and energies to helping young music students develop their own voices. His involvement in jazz education takes him to universities and high schools across the U.S. and abroad as a performer, clinician and mentor, perpetuating the traditions of excitement and innovation that jazz represents.

Mike Holober

Pianist / Composer / Arranger / Conductor / Educator

Described by DownBeat Magazine as “one of the finest modern composer/arrangers of our time,” Mike Holober was awarded the 2022 American Academy of Arts and Letters Andrew Imbrie Award in Music. His 2019 release “Mike Holober and the Gotham Jazz Orchestra: Hiding Out” was nominated for a GRAMMY® (“Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album) and features two of his extended works for jazz orchestra. DownBeat Magazine proclaimed the recording a “long anticipated, epic work,” while others praised the composer’s “daring compositional voice,” “powerful orchestral magic,” and “profound artistic vision,” confirming his place in “the front rank of the most accomplished and inventive composers in jazz.”

In addition to leading his own band, Mike has served has served at the helm of some of the world’s most renowned large ensembles as composer, arranger, and conductor. He was Artistic Director of the critically acclaimed Westchester Jazz Orchestra, and he has worked extensively overseas, writing and conducting for the hr-Big Band (Frankfurt, Germany) and the WDR Big Band (Cologne, Germany). Upcoming engagements include residencies at the Jazzcampus in Basel, Switzerland, and the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts (in cooperation with the hr-Big Band). In November 2024 he will be arranging poem settings by Omer Klein for vocalist Becca Stevens with the hr-Big Band, and in July 2025 he will be writing a project for the WDR Big Band, featuring saxophonist Chris Potter.

Trained as a classical pianist, Mike has released seven recordings as a leader, and can be heard on over 70 recordings as a sideman. His small group projects include The Mike Holober Quintet, Balancing Act (a jazz octet with voice), and most recently The Marvin Stamm/Mike Holober Quartet and the Marvin Stamm/Mike Holober duo project.

Amongst his honors, Mike is the recipient of a prestigious Chamber Music America New Jazz Works commission for “Don’t Let Go,” a song-cycle written for “Balancing Act,” his jazz octet with voice. He was named the inaugural Stuart Z. Katz Professor in the Humanities and the Arts at The City College of New York in 2017, and he has enjoyed multiple artist residencies at MacDowell (2003; 2004; 2005; 2006; 2009; 2020), The Brush Creek Foundation for the Arts (2019), The Ucross Foundation (2007; 2019), and Yaddo (2005).

Mike is a full Professor at The City College of New York, and teaches composing and arranging at The Manhattan School of Music. He was Associate Director of the BMI Jazz Composer’s Workshop from 2007 - 2015, where he taught with Director Jim McNeely, and he is an active member of the International Society of Jazz Arrangers and Composers (ISJAC), frequently featured as a presenter alongside luminaries such as Anat Cohen, John Clayton, Jim McNeely, and Danilo Perez.

Dennis Mackrel - Drummer

Dennis Mackrel is a jazz drummer whose has recorded and/or performed with Count Basie and his Orchestra, the Dizzy Gillespie All Star Big Band, the American Jazz Orchestra, the Carla Bley Very Large Band, the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, the Maria Schneider Orchestra, and many others. He is the recipient of numerous awards including Who’s Who in Music, A

National Endowment for the Arts grant for composition, and Outstanding Alumni from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

In addition to being a seasoned musician, Dennis is also a highly respected composer/arranger whose works have been recorded by the United States Military Academy at West Point's Jazz Knights Big Band, the Temple University Jazz Ensemble, the University of North Texas “One O’clock” Big Band, theColumbus Jazz Orchestra and, most notably, the McCoy Tyner Big Band whose Grammy winning CDs "The Turning Point" and "Journey" included four of Dennis's

arrangements.

Dennis's transition from sideman to leader continued with his frequent trips to Europe as a conductor, arranger and/or soloist for such outstanding ensembles as the Kluvers Big Band in Aarhus, Denmark, the Danish Radio Big Band in Copenhagen, Denmark and the WDR Big Band in Koln, Germany. In 2010, he returned to the Count Basie Orchestra where he served as its leader until 2013 and in 2015, he was named chief conductor of the Jazz Orchestra of the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Holland.

In 2019, the orchestra was awarded the prestigious "Edison Award" for their double CD "Crossroads", Dennis toured extensively with the orchestra conducting performances in Europe, China, Russia, Indonesia, and the United

States until the global pandemic of 2020. He is an experienced jazz educator who conducts master classes, seminars, and workshops internationally. From 2002-2003, Dennis served as a guest professor at the Royal Conservatory in Aarhus, Denmark and from 2012-2013, he was the Visiting Artist in Jazz Studies at the prestigious Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. Currently he is an assistant chair and the director of jazz studies at the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College in Flushing, NY.

Dennis "...is already a good drummer, and one day he's really actually going to be a monster" - Count Basie

"If I ever have a record date coming up that calls for a drummer and Dennis is not available, I'll postpone the session. He's that good." - George Shearing

“I think Dennis is one of the finest young drummers I've ever heard. He is extremely knowledgeable and he is also a very accomplished writer..." - Thad Jones

"Mackrel's drumming, especially well-displayed in his brushwork solos on ballads, was illuminated by his far-ranging experience and his skills as a composer and arranger" - LA Times

Mike McGuirk - Bassist

Bassist Mike McGuirk grew up in Portland, Oregon. At age eleven he began playing the electric bass and, while in high school, devoted his attention to the acoustic bass. He went on to study at the University of North Texas with Jeff Bradetich, where he received a bachelor's degree in Jazz Studies.

In 1997, he won the International Society of Bassists jazz bass competition. Since arriving in New York he has played and/or recorded with John Abercrombie, Marc Copland, David Liebman, Tim Hagans, Don Friedman, Joey Baron, Andy Laverne, Eliot Zigmund, Adam Nussbaum, Bennie Wallace, Mulgrew Miller, Billy Drummond, Renee Rosnes, Walt Weiskopf and Eddie Henderson among others.

Recently, he can be heard on Marc Copland's Lunar featuring David Liebman, and Jed Levy's Round and Round on Steeplechase records.

We're sorry, there are no refunds after tickets have been purchased. In the event of rain, snow, or other forms of weather which prohibit a performance, the performance date will be postponed and rescheduled for another date within a reasonable amount of time. If the new date is postponed, a future alternate date will be picked at the discretion of Bethel Jazz and the musical artist. The ticket holder will be notified of postponements, cancellations, and rescheduled dates via email. Tickets are non-refundable and may be transferred to another person in the event a purchaser can not make the rescheduled date. In the event, an artist cancels a date, and Bethel Jazz is unable to reschedule the artist, Bethel Jazz reserves the right to provide a substitute performer of equal quality without notice to the ticket purchaser. If a date is canceled and not rescheduled, Bethel Jazz will provide a refund (in some cases minus the Eventbrite fee) or credit for another performance at the choice of the ticket holder. Bethel Jazz will always do its best to accommodate for changes in seating, table sizes, or changes to tickets. Bethel Jazz can not make refunds because of illness.

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