AVAILABLE PROGRAMS 2008–2009:

Don Byron Plays Junior Walker
Dedicated to the music of soul legend, saxophonist and singer Junior Walker, this band features Byron on tenor saxophone, Dean Bowman on vocals, guitarist David Gilmore, George Colligan on Hammond B-3 organ, bassist Brad Jones, and Rudy Royston on drums. On Byron’s most recent CD release, “Do the Boomerang,” singer/guitarist Chris Thomas King appears as special guest on several tracks. The album and live repertoire includes covers of several of Junior Walker’s biggest hits, including “Shotgun,” Roadrunner,” and “What does it take to win your Love,” as well as a version of James Brown’s “There It Is.”

Don Byron Ivey-Divey Trio
Taking its name and much of its repertoire from Byron’s 2004 album—voted “Record of the Year” by JazzTimes, hailed as Don’s “best album in years” by The New York Times, and featuring a Grammy-nominated solo on the track “I Want to Be Happy”—the “Ivey-Divey” project extends that record’s affectionate tribute to saxophone legend Lester “Prez” Young (and specifically, to Young’s great ’40s trio with pianist Nat “King” Cole and drummer Buddy Rich). With Byron playing clarinet and tenor sax, his accompanists may vary (depending on availability), but are always stellar: pianists Jason Moran, George Colligan, or Edward Simon, and drummers Billy Hart, Jack DeJohnette, Charli Persip, or John Betsch. The Ivey-Divey Trio has performed to great acclaim at most major jazz festivals in the US and Europe and just returned from a short tour in Australia.

Don Byron Quartet
“The music I am playing continues to mine the work of Lester Young and Eddie Harris for its inspiration. I will be playing Lester young inspired compositions recently commissioned by Chamber Music America, along with more recent compositions, and include compositions by Eddie Harris and some Lester-centric pieces. At this point in my career I enjoy playing with groups of elite musicians, fashioning unusual group results. This group features three of my favorites, the pianist Edward Simon, the bassist Kenny Davis, and the legendary drummer Billy Hart. They are great at both the abstract and concrete aspects of jazz playing, and this has been the hallmark of much of the music I have made.”

Launching in the spring of 2009:

Don Byron New Gospel Quintet
featuring DK Dyson (vocal), Frank Wilkins (keyboards), Brad Jones (bass), Pheeroan akLaff (drums)
"In the past five years I have come to realize the impact and influence of Black Gospel Music. Aside from its importance as the source of all the post-Sam Cooke vocal music, the Black Church is the connecting thread between all African-American culture, the source of our common style of speech, the source of the moral strength and legal action that help change America's moral direction. In my study of Gospel Music, one figure stands out: Thomas A. Dorsey. Originally a blues musician, it was his energy that turned Black Gospel into the source of the world's most soulful singers, and his skill as a songwriter that has shaped all modern songwriting. My band's repertoire will consist of these beautiful songs such as "If You See My Savior & It's A Highway To Heaven," as well as new songs I have devised that express my own religious beliefs. DK Dyson is one of my favorite musicians, a great musician and spirit. She and Brad Jones were a part of my Symphony Space orchestra, where we explored the music of many great composers. Frank Wilkins is an old friend from my days in Boston, a soulful player and great musical personality. Pheeroan AkLaff is also a long term associate whose playing is both concrete and instinctive. I have reached a point in my life where I need to make religious music. My hero Igor Stravinsky made beautiful religious music in the latter part of his life, vocal music based on Biblical themes. I hope to carry on his tradition in my work as I face my own questions about the meaning of my own life."

Special Projects Available Upon Request

Bug Music for Juniors
For children 7 and over—and for the kid in all of us: Inspired by Byron’s best-selling 1996 Bug Music album, this fun-filled and fascinating program unites live jazz, classic cartoons, and historic film footage in a one-of-a-kind exploration of the Swing Era. Originally commissioned by the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and recently produced in a two-week run on Broadway’s New Victory Theater, “Bug Music for Juniors” spotlights works by three great composers of the Swing Era—Duke Ellington, Raymond Scott, and John Kirby —performed in razor-sharp arrangements by Byron’s stellar sextet. These classic tunes are paired with timeless ’toons from Warner Bros. 1940’s heyday, along with a wealth of other intriguing and historic visuals. Part concert, part demonstration, part Q&A, and 100% pleasure, “Bug Music for Juniors” is jazz education at its most entertaining and exciting. (Ensemble of 6 musicians; technical crew of 3)

Don Byron Plays the Music of Mickey Katz (Klezmer)
A reunion of the groundbreaking klezmer project and ensemble of nine musicians originally formed for the recording of Byron’s eponymous Nonesuch album which spearheaded the klezmer revival in the 1990s.
“There's a strong connection between Don Byron's humor and his profound musical curiosity, two qualities that distinguish him from his more conservative contemporaries. Both are much to the fore in this faithful tribute to Mickey Katz, a witty and innovative clarinetist who brought virtuosity and a compulsive comedy to the klezmer tradition, both with Spike Jones in the '40s and later on his own. Byron's interest in klezmer was hardly faddish when he recorded this 1993 date. His involvement dated back to his student years in the early 1980s when he joined Boston's Klezmer Conservatory Band, one of the most faithful practitioners of the form. Forging links between black and Jewish outsider traditions, Byron is as attracted by Katz's love of pastiche and parody as he is by the klezmer clarinet tradition, including Katz's takes on cowboy, Russian, and Hawaiian music. The band is superb…balancing contemporary musical interests with an archival re-creation of some spirited Yiddish comedy.” (amazon.com)

Don Byron and his musicians are available for residencies, clinics, workshops, and master classes.