Sachal Vasandani
Featuring Romain Collin
Saturday, April 8, 2023
Sachal Vasandani - Vocals
Romain Collins - Piano
Sherwin Williams - Saxophone
TBA - Bass
Dion Parson - Drums
“Sachal Vasandani’s singing reveals emotion and intellect…consistent and unique.”
– Wynton Marsalis
Ticket Pricing
Adults - $30 Teachers - $10 Students - $5 Children - Free of charge
7:00pm - Courtyard open with small meals by Amalia Café & Live Music
8:00pm - Start of the concert
To purchase your ticket, click the link below:
Sachal Vasandani
Sachal Vasandani is recognized for his singular voice, with a tone and unique phrasing that mark him as one of the most compelling artists on the scene today.
A native of Chicago, Vasandani attracted attention in 1999 when he was named Down Beat magazine's Collegiate Jazz Vocalist of the Year. He has worked with Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. His debut album was Eyes Wide Open. He has performed consistently worldwide since his first release on Mack Avenue Records in 2007. His second album, We Move (2009), was a New York Times Critics' Pick. He has collaborated with many of the prominent jazz artists of his generation and those of earlier generations, including Jon Hendricks, Wynton Marsalis, Bill Charlap, Bobby McFerrin, JOhn Clayton, Stefon Harris, Gerald Clayton, Taylor Eigsti, Gretchen Parlato, Becca Stevens, Camila Meza, and others.
He is a graduate of the University of Michigan, where he studied jazz and classical music.
Thoroughly rooted in jazz & classical music, Sachal has the swagger to front the most swinging big bands and the vulnerability to present definitive takes of classic ballads. His deeply creative approach to improvisation across lyrics, melodic changes and time signatures is always soulful, and he has come to be regarded as one of the eminent vocal improvisers of his generation.
Sachal’s 2018 release, Shadow Train (GSI), celebrates twin themes of romance and respect with an open spirit. Songs like Abbey Lincoln’s “Throw it Away” highlight this: Sachal’s performance is equal parts virility and empathy. The Nat “King” Cole classic, Unforgettable, is honored with a spare, haunting style, and is revered by listeners with nearly a million streams across platforms since its release in 2019. Shadow Train is also a showcase of intuitive, organic musicianship at the highest level. Never stifled by tradition, Eric Harland (drums), Taylor Eigsti (piano), Nir Felder (guitar), Dayna Stephens (sax), and Reuben Rogers (bass), focus their collective energy, seducing and enlightening listeners at the same time.
Sachal’s groundbreaking 2015 release Slow Motion Miracles (produced by Steely Dan’s Michael Leonhart for Sony/OKeh), highlights his original compositions - fantastic melodies in a fresh style inflected with popular music. He has recorded three albums as a leader on the Mack Avenue label; his 2011 release, Hi-Fly, reached #1 on the iTunes Jazz charts. Hi-Fly was produced by John Clayton and features vocal legend Jon Hendricks.
Sachal has performed to enthusiastic audiences at all major festivals, theaters, and clubs across the world.
He performs with artists of all styles, and has sung alongside musicians such as Wynton Marsalis, Bobby McFerrin, Milton Nascimento, Bill Charlap, Natalia LaFourcade and Michael Feinstein. He is also an in-demand lyricist and composer and has collaborated with artists across genres; his singing and writing was featured on Gerald Clayton’s Grammy-nominated album, Life Forum (2013). A preeminent educator, Sachal bridges a strong technical foundation and disciplined, immersive jazz study with a fundamentally open spirit. Through his workshops, classes, and lessons at multiple institutions around the globe, he has honed a style of teaching that is as encouraging as it is thorough.
Program
First set: Duet Vocal-Piano with Sachal Vasandani & Damien Collin
Second set: Quintet with Sachal Vasandani – voals, Damien Collin-Piano, Saxophone, Bass & Drum
Romain Collin
Grammy-nominated pianist and composer Romain Collin has been described by NPR as “a visionary composer” and touted by the Boston Globe as being “among the leading lights of a new breed of jazz players”.
Romain, originally born in France, attended Berklee College of Music (’04), where he majored in Music Synthesis. In 2007, Collin graduated from the prestigious Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz where he held a Full Scholarship as the pianist of an ensemble handpicked by Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter and Terence Blanchard. During this time, Romain toured internationally with Hancock and Shorter, shared the stage with Marcus Miller, Jimmy Heath, and Terence Blanchard, and studied with the likes of Larry Goldings, Russell Ferrante, Ron Carter, Charlie Haden, Mulgrew Miller and Wynton Marsalis.
While carving his career as a leader, Romain co-leads a group with harmonica virtuoso Gregoire Maret, that features guitarist Bill Frisell- the trio recorded Americana (ACT, 2019). Collin is also set to release a duo record with Bergur Thorisson (Bjork’s long-time engineer and music director), as well as a project with singer Sachal Vasandani, Midnight Shelter (Edition Records, 2021).
Dion Parson
Dion Parson is an educator, composer, and one of New York's finest Grammy-award-winning drummers. Born on June 11, 1967, on St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands, Parson's musical foundation ranges from classical, reggae, calypso, jazz, African, and pop music. While his first musical instrument was the trombone, at age 15, Parson discovered he had a greater interest in the drums.
After graduation, Parson moved to New York where he quickly became part of the jazz scene, playing with a wide variety of artists, such as: Milt Jackson, Monty Alexander, Ernest Ranglin, Ray Anderson, Jon Faddis (since 1993), Steve Turre, Baaba Maal, Geri Allen, Lee Konitz, Dianne Reeves, Wynton Marsalis, Bill Saxton, Wycliffe Gordon, Cyrus Chestnut, and many more. Parson has performed globally in Asia, Europe, Canada, the West Indies, Africa, and the Middle East, and recorded on several major labels, including Columbia, Sony, Gramavision, Arabesque, Blue Note, High Five, Verve, Enja, Koch Records, and Concord Records.
Dion Parson is President of United Jazz Foundation, Chair of the Communication & Performance Arts Department of the UVI, and leader of the 21st Century Band.