$12 Cover @ the Door ($10 Students) / Start 7:30pm / Doors 7pm
A dynamic Chicago based jazz piano duo makes their Boston debut!
Lara Driscoll’s “captivating style and uncluttered finesse” (COCO Jazz CKVL FM Montreal) and “magical touch...musical solos” (All About Jazz) joins forces with Chris White’s “exquisite interpretations” and “inherent interest in exploring greater depths and intersections” (Chicago Jazz Magazine) for a pairing of musical synergy and contrapuntal storytelling. The Firm Roots Duo enthralls audiences with musical creations that flirt with both playful originality and the jazz tradition.
About Chris:
Pianist Chris White grew up in Toronto, Canada. He attended Indiana University’s prestigious Jacobs School of Music and pursued his Masters degree in Jazz Studies, graduating with a Phi Kappa Lambda award (National Music Honors Society) and was elected to the Who’s Who of American College Students. Gaining valuable experience in Indianapolis, he performed with The Bloomington Symphony Orchestra, David Baker, Jamey Aebersold and Oliver Nelson, Jr. He has studied piano with Luke Gillespie, Lynne Arriale, Joanne Brackeen, Barry Harris and Andy LaVerne. Chris was invited to perform in the Steans Institute for Young Artists at Ravinia hosted by James Moody, Rufus Reid and David Baker. Chris is now a busy freelance musician in the Chicago area. He has performed with James Moody, Miguel Zenon, Joel Frahm, Russell Malone, Red Holt and the Chicago Jazz Orchestra. Notable performance venues include The Green Mill, The Jazz Showcase, Andy’s, The House of Blues, 54 Below (NYC), Feinstein’s (NYC), Cliff Bell’s (Detroit), the Coq D’or at the Drake Hotel and many more. He completed his Doctor of Musical Arts in Jazz Performance at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His albums “Young at Heart” and “Tributaries” are available through his website. Currently he is an instructor of jazz piano and theory at Lake Forest College, North Park University and North Central College.
About Lara:
Lara Driscoll is a French-American pianist, composer, accompanist and music educator from Chicago. Lara received the University of Illinois John Garvey Jazz Scholarship, North Texas Jazz Festival outstanding soloist and Union League Civic & Arts (Luminarts) 1st place Graduate Jazz Composition, Performance, and People’s Choice awards. Lara's Canadian jazz trio (Dave Laing and Remi-Jean LeBlanc) was recently invited to perform her original compositions at the Jazz Education Network Conference. Lara freelances with a diverse array of projects including her trio, Firm Roots Duo, Rachel Therrien, Bossa Nuevo, Tango Espejo, Mark O'Connor, Chris Davis, and many others. She has performed in venues such as The Jazz Showcase, Andy's Jazz Club, Chicago Symphony Center, Krannert Center, Pick-staiger Hall, Peoria Bach Festival, Bowery Poetry Club, Montreal Jazz Festival, Upstairs Jazz Bar, The LilyPad, Piano-Forte Studios and has shared the stage with artists such as Terell Stafford, Jim Pugh, Dick Oates, Chip McNeill, Larry Gray, Andre White, Joel Miller, Jean Michel Pilc and Fred Wesley. While pursuing graduate studies in jazz piano performance at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, she performed at the Montreal Jazz Festival, recorded original trio compositions, and taught as a lecturer for McGill. Lara has since joined the music faculty at Loyola University Chicago, DePaul University and Harold Washington College (Chicago City Colleges) where she teaches courses in piano, jazz, theory, non-western music, and humanities.
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