The Pappy Martin Legacy Jazz Collective and Burchfield Penney Art Center celebrate the birthday of one of the greatest saxophone players of all time at the annual John Coltrane jazz festival September 28 – 30, 2023! This year will be bigger and better than ever! The George Caldwell Quartet featuring Lawrence Clark will perform at the Burchfield Penney on Thursday, September 28th, and headliner Ravi Coltrane accompanied by the Curtis Lundy Trio will close out the festivities on Saturday night in the Buffalo State Performing Arts Center at Rockwell Hall. Don't miss that 'Trane and join us for an extra special music extravaganza honoring the jazz icon!

Tickets are now available online or in person at the Buffalo State PAC box office at Rockwell Hall.

Buffalo State PAC box office hours for in-person or phone sales: Tuesdays through Fridays, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Phone: 716-878-3005

SCHEDULE

THURSDAY

Opening Reception 7:00 p.m.
Burchfield Penney Art Center | Reception Space
Thursday, September 28, 2023

Kick off the John Coltrane Birthday Celebration with a toast, light refreshments, and a special performance by the Love Supreme School of Music faculty and students. All Coltrane Celebration ticket-holders are welcome to attend the opening reception at 7:00 p.m. (Burchfield Penney and Pappy Martin Legacy Jazz Society members enjoy early check-in for the reception at 6:00 p.m.) The Love Supreme School of Musicwill perform in the Second Floor Reception Space from 7:00 p.m. to 7:40 p.m.

George Caldwell Quartet 8:00 p.m.
Burchfield Penney Art Center | Auditorium
Thursday, September 28, 2023

Acclaimed pianist George Caldwell will be joined by Lawrence Clark (saxophone), Sean Jefferson(drums) Joe Goehle (bass) in this star-studded quartet!

George Caldwell is a fully tenured jazz piano legend who has served with the Count Basie Orchestra, the Duke Ellington Orchestra, as a sideman extraordinaire, and as leader of his own ensembles. Renowned as a performer, composer, band leader, and teacher, Caldwell presided over the Ivory 88s for the Basie Orchestra when the group won a “Best Large Jazz Ensemble Performance” Grammy in 1996. He’s one of the pre-eminent swing players in modern jazz and is the artistic director of the annual Coltrane celebration at the Burchfield Penney.

FRIDAY

Ron Carter: Finding the Right Notes 
Film Screening 2:00 p.m.
Burchfield Penney Art Center | Auditorium
Friday, September 29, 2023

All Coltrane Celebration ticket-holders are invited to a special screening of the documentary Ron Carter: Finding the Right Notes. 

Discover the life and music of jazz luminary Ron Carter, the most recorded bassist in history. Filmed over the course of six years, "Ron Carter: Finding the Right Notes" invites viewers to meet the gentleman behind the bass. Best known as the rhythmic force in Miles Davis's Second Great Quintet, Carter has since amassed more than 2,500 musical credits over a prolific six-decade career.

SATURDAY

Ravi Coltrane 8:00 p.m.
Performing Arts Center | Buffalo State University (Rockwell Hall)
Saturday, September 30, 2023

The celebration will culminate in a performance by Ravi Coltrane (saxophone) in the Performing Arts Center in Buffalo State University’s Rockwell Hall at 8:00 p.m. He will be joined by COLTRANE Celebration artistic directors Curtis Lundy (upright bass) and George Caldwell (piano), along with Johnathan Blake (drums).

Ravi Coltrane is a critically acclaimed Grammy™ nominated saxophonist, bandleader, and composer. In the course of a twenty-plus-year career, Mr. Coltrane has worked as a sideman to many, recorded noteworthy albums for himself and others, and founded a prominent independent record label, RKM. Born in Long Island, the second son of John Coltrane and Alice Coltrane, Ravi was named after Indian sitar legend Ravi Shankar. He was raised in Los Angeles where his family moved after his father’s death in 1967. His mother, Alice Coltrane, was a significant influence on Ravi and it was he who encouraged Alice to return to performance and the recording studio after a long absence. Subsequently, Ravi produced and played on Alice Coltrane’s powerful, Translinear Light, which was released in 2004.

Curtis Lundy is an American double bass player, composer, producer, choir director, and arranger. Lundy is best known for his work as part of jazz vocalist Betty Carter's band. Lundy has also played on other jazz artists' recordings, including albums by John Hicks, Bobby Watson, the Steve Nelson Quintet and Johnny Griffin. In the late 1980s, he briefly stepped out of the background and issued Just Be Yourself (1988). A decade later, with Justin Time Records, he released Against All Odds (1999) and Purpose (2002). Both albums feature pianists John Hicks and Anthony Wonsey. Lundy's arrangement of "Walk With Me", recorded by the ARC Gospel Choir, was sampled by rapper Kanye West and became the Grammy Award-winning hit "Jesus Walks".