w/ Steve Nelson, vibes, Rick Germanson, piano, Charles Goold, drums, Kiyoshi Kitagawa, bass
1:45, Saturday July 29
Steve Nelson is “…one of the most extraordinary musicians in jazz…His solo …made you not want to breathe until it was done.” Ben Ratliff, jazz critic
Steve Nelson, born in 1954 in Pittsburgh, received his music education at Rutgers University. After an undergrad stint with guitarist Grant Green, he performed and recorded with James Spaulding and Kenny Barron and then landed a spot in David “Fathead” Newman’s Quintet. Now in the 5th decade of a stellar career as a vibist of choice for artists like Johnny Griffin, Jackie McLean, Bobby Watson, Curtis Lundy, James Williams, and Lewis Nash, he shows few signs of slowing down.
Along the way, Nelson became a veteran member of the Dave Holland Quintet and Big Band, the George Shearing Quintet and Mulgrew Miller’s Wingspan with which he appeared in 2003 on the Litchfield Stage, followed by a 2007 performance with Karrin Allyson. Steve Nelson has played clubs and festivals worldwide at Newport, Montreux, Montreal, the Netherlands and across America. He tours and records with Donald Brown, Renee Rosnes, Geoffrey Keezer, Jeremy Pelt, and others.
He has more than 35 recordings as a leader and sideman to his credit, his most recent a 2017 release Brothers Under the Sun (HighNote). Steve is a dedicated educator who has taught at Princeton, William Paterson, and Conservatorium van Amsterdam. He was selected as a 2021 artist-educator for Chamber Music America’s Performance Plus program mentoring women-led jazz ensembles.
We are pleased to welcome Steve back to the Litchfield Jazz Festival stage with his latest quartet, with Rick Germanson on piano, Charles Goold on drums and Kiyoshi Kitagawa on bass.
This is Rick Germanson’s third time at Litchfield: in 2004 he played with the Mike DiRubbo Quartet and in 2013, with Papo Vasquez. Rick toured for many years with Pat Martino and continues to tour with the Cannonball Legacy Band. He is the pianist for guitarist Russell Malone, bassist Kyle Eastwood and trombonist Papo Vasquez. He serves on the faculty of Hartt School of Music.
Charles Goold, who makes his Litchfield debut this year, graduated from Juilliard on a full scholarship after making his way on the NYC scene through hard work, teaching and performing. He has melded the influences inherited from his American jazz saxophonist father and Haitian mother to form the sound of his working group, Nubopcity.
Born in Osaka, Japan, Kiyoshi Kitagawa moved to New York City in 1958. He joined the Harper Brothers band and in the ensuing years played with Kenny Barron, Andy Bey, Jon Faddis, Kenny Garrett, Jimmy Heath, Susannah McCorkle, Makoto Ozone, Ben Riley, Terrell Stafford, Brian Blade, Danny Grissett, Regina Carter and Charles McPherson. This is his first appearance on the Litchfield stage.