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January 15, 2025
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Spencertown Academy Presents Michael Benedict Jazz Vibes February 22
Spencertown, New York–Spencertown Academy Roots & Shoots Concerts Series presents Michael Benedict Jazz Vibes on Saturday, February 22 at 7:30pm at the Academy’s Blanche Grubin Auditorium. The acclaimed quartet features vibraphonist Benedict with Joe Finn on guitar, Pete Toigo on bass, and Pete Sweeney on drums. Their repertoire includes straight ahead jazz standards, Latin-American songs, and original material. General admission tickets ($25 public, $20 Academy members) are available via www.spencertownacademy.org.
“In addition to being a fantastic musician, Michael Benedict is a highly regarded educator. This concert isn’t just for longtime jazz aficionados—it’s also for anyone who wants to learn more about this wonderful music,” says Mike Zdeb, member of the Academy Music Committee. “Michael brings jazz standards to life—from Monk and Miles to Ellington and Mingus—and illuminates how they fit in the development of different jazz idioms.”
As a vibraphonist and drummer, Benedict is currently the leader of two ensembles, Jazz Vibes and Bopitude. He has released six recordings to date, including “Five and One,” which Downbeat Magazine named one of the best albums of the year and “Circulation: The Music of Gary McFarland,” which was an editor’s pick in Downbeat Magazine and listed as one of the year’s best jazz albums by National Public Radio. His latest album, “1-2-3 GO,” earned him the Nippertown Local Hero Award for best local/regional release and WCDB SUNY Albany 90.9FM Radio recently voted him “Best Jazz Musician.”
Benedict has performed and/or recorded with jazz luminaries Gary Smulyan, Harry Allen, Dick Oatts, Ralph Lalama, Bruce Barth, Joe Locke, Renee Fleming, and Gene Bertoncini. He was a member of the Spike Jones Orchestra and the Paragon Ragtime Orchestra. He received a bachelor’s degree in Music Education from the Crane School of Music at SUNY Potsdam and a master’s degree in Jazz Studies from Rutgers University.
Roots & Shoots Concerts is an ongoing Academy series that showcases artists who reach back to earlier traditions in music (Americana, jazz, blues, rock, and world music) for inspiration while incorporating more recent forms and influences of the present.
This program is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
Founded in 1972, Spencertown Academy Arts Center is a cultural center and community resource serving Columbia County, the Berkshires, and the Capital region. Housed in a landmark 1847 Greek Revival schoolhouse, the Academy is located at 790 State Route 203 in Spencertown, New York. For more information, please contact info@spencertownacademy.org.