His first studio experience came with Hubert Laws in the recording of the album
Remembers the Unforgettable Nat. King Cole, an apt start for a young man who,
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WELLS FARGO JAZZ
GREGORY PORTER College of Charleston Cistern Yard
May 24 at 8:30pm; May 25 at 9:00pm
SPONSORED BY WELLS FARGO Gregory Porter, voice with Yosuke Sato, saxophone Chip Crawford, piano Aaron James, double bass Emanuel Harrold, drums
GREGORY PORTER was born in Los Angeles, raised in Bakersfield, California, and now lives in the Bedford-
Stuyvesant area of Brooklyn. He got his start singing in small jazz clubs in San Diego, where he attended San Diego State University on a football scholarship as an outside linebacker until a shoulder injury sidelined his athletic career. His first studio experience came with Hubert Laws in the recording of the album Remembers the Unforgettable Nat King Cole, an apt start for a young man who, as a child, not only sang along with the Nat King Cole records his mother would play, but who would also go on to impress theater audiences with a deeply personal one-man show, Nat King Cole and Me. That show, which ran for two months at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, was preceded by Porter’s work in the play It Ain’t Nothin’ But the Blues. Though he’d only had minimal theatrical experience, Porter was cast in one of eight lead roles when it opened in San Diego, and eventually followed it to Off-Broadway and then Broadway theater, where The New York Times, in its 1999 rave review, mentioned Porter among the show’s “powerhouse line up of singers.” It Ain’t Nothin’ But the Blues went on to earn both Tony and Drama Desk Award nominations that year. Porter’s debut album, Water (2010), gained considerable attention from critics in the U.S. and abroad, including the BBC which said he “has a voice and musicality to be reckoned with.” But his second album, Be Good (2012), has eclipsed the acclaim for its predecessor. Along with earning a Grammy nomination, Be Good has put Porter’s name on an extraordinary number of “Best of 2012” lists, including those published by NPR, iTunes, and Soul Train. In a few words, Downbeat Magazine summed up the critical consensus: “A major jazz talent,” the magazine wrote, and “a must have disc.” His alternately tender and powerful baritone accounts for part of his connection with audiences, but it is his song writing that marks him as a new force in jazz. Few before him have written their repertoire and then delivered it with such emotive power. These performances are made possible in part through funds from the Spoleto Festival USA Endowment, generously supported by BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina. Piano generously provided by Steinway & Sons.
IIRO RANTALA Simons Center Recital Hall at College of Charleston
May 26 and 27 at 5:00pm; May 28 at 5:00pm and 7:00pm; May 29 at 7:00pm; May 30 at 5:00pm
SPONSORED BY WELLS FARGO Iiro Rantala, piano
IIRO RANTALA is a thoroughly 21st-century musician who, without intent or design, has left the categories and
labels of the 20th century behind him in the pursuit of music that speaks to him most deeply, and now speaks to audiences worldwide. His musical life began in earnest in his native Helsinki’s Cantores Minores boys choir, singing the music of J.S. Bach. He went on to study in the Oulunkylän Pop and Jazz Conservatory, the jazz department of the Sibelius Academy, and Manhattan School of Music. After eighteen years and more than 2,000 concerts with the innovative Trio Töykeät, Rantala struck out on a solo career in 2011 with style. His album Lost Heroes simultaneously and unprecedentedly won two of Europe’s most prestigious awards—Germany’s equivalent of the Grammy, the Deutche Phono-Akamemie’s ECHO award for pianist of the year, and the Preis der Deutschen Schallplatten Kritik (German record critics’ award). He followed it with My History of Jazz (2012), an album with both solo and trio performances whose release has also been met with critical acclaim. In addition to performing solo, Rantala has formed a new trio with violinist Adam Baldych and cellist Asja Valcic. This past June, he cohosted a thirteen-hour program named Midsummer Train, a live TV broadcast from a Helsinki-to-Rovaniemi train, including solo piano performances and interviews throughout the journey. His TV series, Iiro Irti, will begin its third season next year on the Finnish TEEMA channel. His jazz piano festival—Kansi Auki—will have its third edition in November in Helsinki, and features some the world’s finest pianists in solo performances and in duo with Rantala. The upcoming edition includes Italy’s Stefano Bollani, America’s Craig Taborn, and Sweden’s Bobo Stenson. And his Christmas Oratorium for the Cantores Minores boy’s choir, orchestra and soloists brings him full circle with its recording in May 2013 and in performance the following Christmas. These performances are made possible in part through funds from the Spoleto Festival USA Endowment, generously supported by BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina. 96
