Wynton Marsalis once called multi-reedist Alexa Tarantino (photo above) “a one-woman wrecking crew, an indomitable force for expression, education, and absolute excellence.” Tarantino met Marsalis when her West Hartford, CT, high school jazz band competed in Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Essentially Ellington competition.
In April 2021, Tarantino’s third Posi-Tone album, Firefly, was greeted positively by the jazz press, she appeared on the cover of Jersey Jazz in March 2022, has made several appearances as a performer with the JALC Orchestra, and is the newest member of Artemis, the all-female septet led by pianist Renee Rosnes.
At 3 p.m. on Sunday, April 7, Tarantino will lead off the April Jazz Room series at William Paterson University. She will be followed on April 14 by trumpeter Peter Nater with the William Paterson Latin Jazz Ensemble. Nater has won Grammy Awards as a member of the Spanish Harlem Orchestra and Chico O’Farrill’s Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra. The WP Latin Jazz ensemble has been led for more than 40 years by vibraphonist/pianist/percussionist Chico Mendoza.
In 1987, the late pianist Mulgrew Miller, who once served as William Paterson Director of Jazz Studies, formed a sextet called Wingspan that showcased many of his original compositions. Musicians who were members of that band will be playing in a Wingspan Reunion concert on April 28 as part of the Jazz Room Series. The band members are: vibraphonist Steve Nelson, trumpeter Duane Eubanks, saxophonist Steve Wilson, bassist Nat Reeves, drummer Carl Allen, and pianist Danny Grissett.
On Sunday, May 5, bassist Martin Wind will lead a quartet that also includes multi-reedist Scott Robinson, pianist Jim McNeely, and drummer Matt Wilson. Wind is a first-call bassist who has played with such pianists as Bill Mays and Ted Rosenthal.
The WPU Jazz Room concerts are held at the Shea Center for the Performing Arts on the university’s campus in Wayne, NJ. For more information or to order tickets, log onto wp-presents.org or call (973) 720-2371.
PHOTO BY ANNA YATSKEVICH