Well-known bassist and university faculty member, Brian Torff, unites once again with renowned French jazz pianist, Florence Melnotte at Fairfield University's Wien Experimental Theatre on Monday night, Oct. 1 at 7:30 p.m. Joining the duo is French master drummer, Thierry Arpino. Through the generous sponsorship of the Jamie A. Hulley Arts Foundation, the university's College of Arts and Sciences Humanities Institute and the Fairfield University Music Program, "Jazz Interpretations of Film Music" is free and the public is welcome.

This concert brings the three formidable musicians together for an evening of Melnotte's jazz arrangements of such famous movie themes as "Psycho" and "Midnight Cowboy" as well as other themes from well-known American and foreign films.

Melnotte is most known for her work with the innovative European quartet, "Four Roses." The group played their debut concert at the 1992 Montreux Jazz Festival and followed that appearance with a full touring schedule, logging more than 160 concerts since their first in Switzerland.

In 2000, Torff, Director of Fairfield University's Department of Visual and Performing Arts Jazz and Popular Music Program, began an intricate and empathic interplay working with Melnotte and through this association they formed a tight jazz piano/bass duo. Their debut recording release, "Another Great Day," preserved this newfound chemistry and ignited Melnotte's virtuosity while cementing her ethereal musical bond with Torff. As a result of this recording, the artists reached new heights together and have enjoyed many years performing in clubs, concerts and jazz festivals.

Throughout the years, the acclaimed musicians' busy schedules have occasionally synchronized with the renowned jazz drummer's, Arpino, and they have seized the opportunity to expand the duo into a trio of solid improvisation. "Jazz Interpretations of Film Music" provides them with one of these rare times to play together.

Melnotte's playing, it has been written, "opens unsuspected musical realms through her surprising, yet flowing lyricism." Torff has been acclaimed by The New York Times as "a virtuoso bassist, imaginative and distinctive in his solos, but more than that, a solid composer and arranger."

For more information, contact Brian Torff at brian@briantorff.com .

Posted On: 09-17-2007 10:09 AM

Volume: 40 Number: 45