Trumpeter Rick Savage was influenced by Miles Davis and Freddie Hubbard and has played with baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan, drummer Mel Lewis, and trumpeter Randy Brecker, among others. According to AllAboutJazz, Savage, “brings a sound & soul to jazz not commonly heard today.”
At 7 p.m. on Saturday, August 20, at the UpFront Gallery in Port Jervis, NY, Savage (pictured above) will lead a quartet with three seasoned veterans: drummer Elliot Zigmund, pianist David Janeway, and bassist Steve LaSpina. To me, this is the highlight of the four-day Hudson Valley Jazz Festival, being held in various locations from August 18-21.
When AllAboutJazz’s Dan McClenaghan reviewed Janeway’s 2021 SteepleChase album, Distant Voices, he compared Janeway to a jazz giant. “In a blindfold test of Distant Voices,” McClenaghan wrote, “the name Hank Jones might come up. Jones and Janeway share similar styles, with the crisp display of single notes in the melodies, the lush chords.” Janeway studied under the late Albert Dailey and has performed or recorded with trumpeters Art Farmer and Tom Harrell, and vocalist Dakota Staton.
Zigmund and LaSpina both were sidemen with tenor saxophonist Stan Getz and guitarist Jim Hall. LaSpina has also performed with tenor saxophonists Al Cohn and Zoot Sims and trombonist Bob Brookmeyer. Zigmund’s resume includes appearances with pianist Bill Evans and saxophonist Benny Golson.
LaSpina, who teaches at William Paterson University, told JazzTimes’ Bill Milkowski that Charles Mingus “is the whole reason I decided to get into jazz and play the bass for a living. His record, Mingus Presents Mingus, was one of the first jazz albums I heard. Man, it blew me away!” New York City Jazz Record once called Zigmund, “a musician’s musician. The drummer has played with many of jazz’ biggest names, and his time and taste have made him the perfect accompanist and more.”
For a complete schedule of the Hudson Valley Jazz Festival, held in such other towns as Woodstock, Warwick, and Port Chester, NY, log onto www.hudsonvalleyjazzfest.org. –SANFORD JOSEPHSON