A two-time Grammy winner, Ernie Watts has recorded and/or toured with the Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross, Steely Dan, Frank Zappa, Elton John, Pat Metheny, and James Brown.
ERNIE WATTS QUARTET
Jun 8 @7:30pm
At 13, Ernie Watts first heard John Coltrane on the album 'Kind Of Blue' with Miles Davis, and jazz became his focus in music—and in life. So though he has been onstage for over 60 years, and was a studio musician in Los Angeles for almost 40 of them, he always played live jazz on the weekends with his own bands, composing and arranging his own tunes as part of the sets. That gradually became what he chose as his direction in playing.
This is the type of music the audience will hear. It includes original pieces by Ernie, by band members, and other musicians he admires, plus some jazz classics, all played with strength, vividness, and energy, and also with beauty and peace—sometimes even humor.
Ticket Information:
$35/Performance*
*No member discounts available
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$150 Season Pass includes six live Jazz concerts - every Thursday May 11th-June 15th.
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18th Annual Muck JazzFest - Spring 2023 Season Lineup:
CSUF Jazz Orchestra with Femi Knight, Rodolfo Zuniga, and Bill Cunliffe
May 11 @7:30pm
Costa Rican jazz drummer Rodolfo Zuniga and featured vocalist Femi Knight are joined by the Fullerton Jazz Orchestra under the direction of Bill Cunliffe for an energetic program of contemporary, latin, and traditional jazz.
Joe La Barbera Quintet
May 18 @7:30pm
Join legendary drummer Joe La Barbera and his band of over 30 years for an evening of new music from their latest recording Live at Sam First.
New West Guitars
May 25 @7:30pm
New West Guitars have developed a reputation as one of the premier jazz guitar ensembles in the world. Featuring guitarists Perry Smith, John Storie, and Will Brahm, they perform exciting originals, jazz standards and popular covers. Their signature sound comes from an innovative style that highlights rhythm, beauty, and virtuosity through combining acoustic and electric guitars.
Tribute to Ray Brown with John B. Williams
Jun 1 @7:30pm
Iconic bassist John B. Williams has performed and/or recorded with Horace Silver, Hugh Masekela, Dizzy Gillespie, Kenny Burrell, Jon Hendricks, Jimmy Smith, Sir Roland Hanna, Benny Carter, Louie Bellson, Freddie Hubbard, Count Basie, Louis Armstrong, and many others. Williams was the house bassist for late night TV icons Johnny Carson and Arsenio Hall and was a member of the Nancy Wilson Trio for 25 years.
Ernie Watts Quartet
Jun 8 @7:30pm
Over his 50-plus-year career, two-time Grammy winner Ernie Watts has recorded and/or toured with the Rolling Stones, Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross, Steely Dan, Frank Zappa, Elton John, Pat Metheny, and James Brown. A versatile player, Jazz has always been his focus. This performance will feature original pieces by Watts and and his band members along with Jazz classics.
Poncho Sanchez
Jun 15 @7:30pm
For more than three decades, conguero Poncho Sanchez has stirred up a fiery stew of straightahead jazz, gritty soul music, and infectious melodies and rhythms from a variety of Latin American and South American sources. Sanchez’s reimagining of the jazz canon, as well as his own spirited original compositions, affirms his place at the forefront of Latin Jazz’s trailblazers.