Media Contact: Robby Piazzaroli, rpiazzaroli@fairfield.edu, 203-254-4000 x2597

Live and in-person at Southport’s Pequot Library on  Wednesday, October 20, 2021 at 7:30 p.m., the Quick Center and the Pequot Library will co-host an evening with Kenny Werner, a talented musician with a world-renowned collection of compositions and recordings. 

Presented in association with Meryl Moss Media of Westport, Conn., this in-person presentation will take place at the town of Fairfield’s Pequot Library in the village of Southport, and will include a performance by the Kenny Werner Trio as well as a conversation between Werner and Brian Torff, a renowned bassist, composer, author, and Fairfield University professor.

Said Torff, “Since meeting Kenny Werner at the Berklee College of Music in the ’70s, he has blossomed into a great artist who shares his creativity in both his music and his important book, Effortless Mastery: Liberating the Master Musician Within. I will be delighted to hear him again in the intimate setting of the Pequot Library. “

Effortless Mastery, Werner’s 1996 book, has influenced artists around the world, prompting them to discover their inner “master creator” and perform at their highest levels of ability. In the book, Werner emphasizes the value of being spontaneous and fearless — in both work and life.

Born in Brooklyn, N.Y. and raised in Oceanside, Long Island, Werner’s natural affinity towards music emerged at a young age. He studied classical piano as a child, and eventually attended the Manhattan School of music as a classical piano major. His talent led him to the Berklee School of Music, where his piano teacher, Madame Chaloff, served as a driving force in his success. After Berklee, Werner traveled to Brazil where he studied with pianist Joao Assis Brasil, whose wisdom inspired Werner to write his milestone book.

Werner has experienced a multitude of highlights in his career, including a Grammy nomination in 2003 in the Best Instrumental Composition category for "Inspiration," from Toots Thielemans and Kenny Werner. In 2010, he was awarded the Guggenheim Fellowship for his seminal album titled, No Beginning, No End. This musical journey explores the realm of tragedy and loss, death and transition, and the path from one lifetime to the next.

An established, world-class pianist, Werner has worked alongside an impressive list of artists, including Randy Brecker, David Sanchez, and Miguel Zenon. Record producer and musician Quincy Jones had this to say about Werner: “Many years ago, I heard him playing with Toots Thielemans and observed that Kenny embodied many of the qualities he wrote about. There are many musicians that manifest that level of virtuosity and inspiration, but Kenny has the rare ability to explain ways of walking out of the shadows of self-limitation and into the possibilities of joy and self-expression in music.”

Kenny Werner’s Open VISIONS Forum presentation will take place live and in-person at the Pequot Library in Southport (720 Pequot Avenue), on Wednesday, October 20, 2021, at 7:30 pm. Registration is required to attend this free event: please visit quickcenter.com or call the box office at 203-254-4010 or toll free at 1-877-ARTS-396. Full, updated information about Covid-19 protocols can be found at pequotlibrary.org.

Posted On: September 29, 2021

Volume: 53 Number: 21

Fairfield University is a modern Jesuit Catholic university rooted in one of the world’s oldest intellectual and spiritual traditions. More than 5,000 undergraduate and graduate students from the U.S. and across the globe are pursuing degrees in the University’s five schools. Fairfield embraces a liberal humanistic approach to education, encouraging critical thinking, cultivating free and open inquiry, and fostering ethical and religious values. The University is located on a stunning 200-acre campus on the scenic Connecticut coast just an hour from New York City.