The Michael Jefry Steven Jazz Trio, hot off the jazz circuit, will be performing on the adventure Theater Stage of the Cumberland County Playhouse Fri., June 3.
On the Adventure Theater Stage of the Cumberland County Playhouse, Fri., June 3 at 8 p.m., the Michael Jefry Steven Jazz Trio, hot on the major jazz circuit in New York and Europe, lands on country and bluegrass soil to play jazz for those who love it and to introduce jazz to those who don’t know much about it. Michael Jefry Stevens seems to be the man for the job. “I’m just somebody who believes in jazz,” Stevens says. “If people had more of an opportunity to hear it, they might like it.”
Last year Stevens moved to Memphis from New York City according to Ed Hicks of the Memphis Business Journal. In a lengthy interview Hicks reported that as a composer, Stevens takes a larger view of jazz. “Jazz is 100 years behind classical music,” said Stevens.
Though he wasn’t even five years old, “I heard a piano on the radio, and I wanted to play it,” said Stevens. “By the time I was 5, we had a piano in the house,” he said. Stevens studied classical music until he was 17 years old and discovered jazz and jazz composition. Now he is considered a leader in the world of jazz, internationally.
“It is such an honor to have Michael Jefry Stevens perform on our stage,” said Buster Irvin, concert administrator of the Playhouse. “For young people who love music of all kinds, jazz is a ‘big find’ for them. It encompasses everything. And that night, regardless who you are or how old you are, you’re going to hear some of the best jazz in the world,” he said.
Tickets are on sale now at the Playhouse, 931-484-5000. www.ccplayhouse.com
Upcoming concerts:
Toe Roasters, June 24—Three modern day cowboys play great campfire music, tell tall tales and reminisce. As Harold Reid of the Statler Brothers said, “Modern day Mark Twain meets Will Rogers meets Roger Miller.”
Mr. Jack Daniel Original Silver Cornet Band, July 1 —”It’s more than a concert. It’s like the town of Lynchburg has come to call.” A brilliant reconstruction of the actual band founded by Lynchburg’s famous distiller himself, Mr. Jack Daniels.
