Smalls Jazz Club Celebrates a Big Talent: Curtis Fuller

Press release
Source: Jazz Promo Services

Curtis Fuller

In spontaneous, old-school fashion, Fuller and his friends put this incredible concoction of musical geniuses together at the last minute, allowing only those who are privy to see the world’s most expansive display of jazz talent together under one bohemian, Greenwich Village roof.

“The Round-Midnight Series...,” to be held at Smalls Jazz Club, located at 183 West 10th Street at 7th Avenue, is a late-night series with two sets, at midnight and 2:00 a.m., and will include a virtual who's who of jazz.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, “The Donald Walden Quintet ” will perform, featuring Detroit saxophonist Donald Walden, Steve Nelson on vibes, Robert Hurst on bass, Louis Hayes on drums, and very, very special guest Mississippian Prince of Keys pianist...

On Friday, “The Robert Hurst Trio” will play, featuring Robert Hurst on bass, Robert Glasper on piano, and Eric Harlan on drums.

On Saturday, "Curtis Fuller/Louis Hayes Rising Star" will appear, featuring Fuller on trombone, Jonathan Batiste on piano, Louis Hayes on drums, Ivan Taylor on bass, and Duane Eubanks on trumpet.

A remarkably fluent trombonist, whose impeccable sense of time and ambitious solos made him a mainstay of the hard-bop scene, Fuller was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1934. Arriving in New York at age 22, he has recorded countless albums and has played with innumerable jazz icons, including Benny Golson, Art Farmer, McCoy Tyner, Cannonball Adderley, Junior Mance, Kenny Burrell, Cedar Walton, Yusef Lateef, Clifford Jordan, Hank Mobley, Bill Washer, Stanley Clarke and John Coltrane.

Being surrounded by the talents from his days in Detroit was what gave Fuller his inspiration. “It had a lot to do with me becoming a jazz player,” Fuller reflected. “I didn’t do it on my own. I sort of got caught up into the spirit of things, and wherever they directed me, that’s the way I went.”

In more recent years, Fuller has become known nationally and internationally as a master clinician in jazz studies programs, having worked with students and young professionals at institutions including Skidmore, Harvard, Stanford, the University of Pittsburgh, Duke, the New England Conservatory of Music, and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. He holds an honorary doctorate from Berklee College of Music.

“As an American musician, performer, writer, and veteran of the Armed Services, it is the honor and privilege of a lifetime to receive the NEA Jazz Masters Award. My professional career began as a member of the United States Army Band. It is both humbling and fulfilling to be recognized by the National Endowment for the Arts,” said Fuller.