Thu Nov 7
Brandon Sanders "Recording Release Celebration"
7PM / $35 | $7 Fees Get Tickets
Brandon Sanders
Warren Wolf on vibes
Tim Green on alto sax
Allyn Johnosn on piano
Blake Meister on Bass
Brandon Sanders on drums
Brandon Sanders had the stars aligned for a life in jazz. Born February 20, 1971, in Kansas City, Kansas to a violinist mother and a trombonist father, he moved to Los Angeles as a toddler but came back every summer to visit his grandmother, who operated a renowned jazz club in Kansas City. By his teen years he was obsessed with the music. However, it wasn’t initially his life’s plan. Sanders earned degrees in communication and social work from the University of Kansas (where he was also a walk-on practice player for the basketball team) and laid the groundwork for a long and successful career as a social worker. It wasn’t until he was 25 that he began learning to play the drums. Yet he threw himself into it, to the point that he went back to school at Boston’s prestigious Berklee College of Music.
Moving to New York in 2004, Sanders soon found himself a regular participant in the city’s busy jazz scene, creating a formidable reputation while working with the likes of Joe Lovano, Jeremy Pelt, and Esperanza Spalding. His friend the great drummer Lewis Nash invited him to stay with him in his Harlem apartment. Sanders, who now lives in the Bed-Stuy section of Brooklyn, began playing gigs with standout New Yorkers including pianist and organist Mike LeDonne and guitarist Peter Bernstein. He went on to accompany a long list of leading artists including Joe Lovano, Jeremy Pelt, Esperanza Spalding, Walter Smith III, and Billy Pierce while still “practicing, practicing, trying to develop my craft.”
Compton’s Finest, named for the town in which Sanders came of age, includes two original tunes by him. The bluesy title track reveals his deep streak of humanism in striving to rescue the image of Compton from its portrayal in films and rap songs. “When people think of Compton, they think negative thoughts, right? I wanted to show that there is a positivity in Compton, that people have come out of there and one positive things.”
Are there ways that his work as a jazz musician and a social worker coincide? “Jazz has always had a kind of spiritual quality,” he says. “I’m a heart person. I have a big heart, and when I play for people, it’s not about me. I want to lift people up.”
7PM / $35 | $7 Fees Get Tickets
1. Final sale, no refunds, not transferable.
2. $15 food/beverage minimum per person not included in ticket price.
3. Seating first come at the door. Doors open 6 PM & 8:45 PM respectively.
4. Photography or Recording of any kind is prohibited during the performance.
5. Keep conversation to a minimum during the performance.