With an infusion of star power, this Jazz & Strings concert features the celebrated guitarist Mike Stern, a six-time Grammy nominee, in a concert paying homage to guitarist Wes Montgomery's 1963 album "Fusion!" — the iconic guitarist's first release with string section accompaniment.
Stern, the concert's symbolic stand-in for Montgomery (1923-1968), was born in Boston in 1953 and got his start with Blood, Sweat & Tears at 22. After playing briefly with Billy Cobham's fusion band, he surged to the forefront through his prominent role in Miles Davis' famous comeback band of 1981. Regarded as one of the top jazz-fusion and jazz guitarists of his generation, he's performed, recorded and toured worldwide through the years as a bandleader, sideman and guitarist/composer.
The concert will feature an onstage jam session with soloist Mike Stern and promising young jazz guitarists from local high school jazz programs.