Hamptons Jazz Fest Winter Series
Join us in the Lichtenstein Theater for the second concert of the Hamptons Jazz Fest Winter Series with Grammy Award Nominee Bill O’Connell with his Quartet featuring Lincoln Goines on bass, Robby Ameen on drums, and special guest saxophonist Craig Handy.
After a 40-year career that has seen him excel as a leader, soloist, arranger, musical director, and accompanist for some of the most celebrated names in jazz and Latin music, Bill O’Connell can lay claim to a track record of challenging and artistically diverse triumphs. As a recording artist, his 13 albums have drawn universal critical acclaim while his talents as a pianist and arranger have been tapped by a diverse range of noted soloists. Today, O’Connell is both a respected educator and leader of The Latin Jazz All-Stars. Bill O’Connell is nominated for the 64th Annual Grammy Awards for Best Arrangement, Instrumental and A Capella for Chopsticks.
O’Connell will be joined by saxophonist Craig Handy. Born in Oakland, CA, as a music-hungry youngster, Handy experimented on guitar, trombone, and piano before settling on his first true love, the saxophone. At the age of 11 while listening to the radio, Handy fell under the spell of the transcendent saxophone playing of jazz legend Dexter Gordon. Berkeley High School’s (CA) reputable Jazz Program soon beckoned, and Handy joined the ranks of graduating stellar saxophone talent including David Murray, Peter Apfelbaum, and Joshua Redman, to name a few. He attended North Texas State University and won the coveted Charlie Parker Scholarship which enabled his early college experience as a psychology major and front runner in the school’s exceptional One O’ Clock Jazz Ensemble.
