The Buster Elliot Quintet grew out of a weekly music session
at the Flatiron studio of bassist Joe Solomon, who teaches jazz improvisation
to several members of the band. Solmon himself is carrying on a tradition
he inherited from the legendary pianist Lenny Tristano (and later Sal
Mosca), who deeply influenced the great saxophonists Lee Konitz and Warne
Marsh.
The band plays a mix of bebop, swing, and Latin jazz, combining standards
with more contemporary compositions. Their gigs are upbeat, relaxed affairs.
With no cover charge, no minimum, and no hype, the Buster Elliot Quintet
offers only a smart and soulful musical conversation.
On any given night, guest artists may stop by to sit in, including Joe
Solomon (bass), Alexa Fila (vocals), Richard Braithwaite (saxophone) Jay
Hatler (trombone), John Marchese (trumpet and piano), Keith Jordan (guitar),
King Downing (percussion), John Austria (piano), and Evan Ryan (bass).
Meet the band:
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A music major at City College, John was also a stellar student at the elite LaGuardia High School, winning the prestigious Milton Adolphus Award, given annually by the BMI Foundation for excellence in jazz performance. He was chosen to perform with the 2001 Monterey Jazz Festival High School All Star Big Band and won 2nd place in the Monterey Jazz Festival High School Combo Division. |
| Born in Milan and raised in Rome, Marco performs and teaches saxophone in New York City. In addition to his studies with Joe Solomon, Marco has been tutored in contemporary music by David Keberle, professor of composition and music theory at the American University in Washington, D.C., and in jazz improvisation by Dr. Barry Harris, Clifford Jordan and David Gross, among others. In 2001, he played regularly at The Half King in Chelsea with The Fabulous Mezz Riffers, a band he co-founded with BEQ bandmate Paul Keegan. |
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When he first heard Louis Armstrong play “West End Blues,” Paul suddenly realized the trumpet was not designed to play Neil Young tunes. So he began playing with the University of New Hampshire big band and later co-founded The Fabulous Mezz Riffers with BEQ saxophonist Marco Chelo. He has written a play about the trumpeter Bunny Berigan that, until it’s finally produced, he wishes he hadn’t titled, “I Can’t Get Started.” Paul is also a journalist and if you * click here * you can read his story in The New York Times magazine about buying his trumpet from the late, great Doc Cheatham. |
| Like Paul Chambers, Oscar Pettiford, and Charlie Parker, Fred made his early musical strides on baritone horn. Fred was once a member of the All North Jersey Junior High School Band and played in the first-ever Tuba Christmas at Rockerfeller Center. Before taking up the double bass, Fred played bass guitar in a number of rock bands, including Slipknot (a University of Rochester band which pre-dated its more-famous namesake), Delroy Rebop, the big huge, and Slings and Eros, the latter with Vince Warren on drums. The more deeply Fred becomes immersed in jazz the more he loves it and loves life. |
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Vince swings like crazy .......
The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) announced the appointment of its new Executive Director, Vincent Warren, an experienced civil rights litigator and human rights advocate. Mr. Warren will oversee all of the Center’s legal, advocacy and education work in protecting and advancing the rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, including the Center’s dockets on Guantánamo, Government Misconduct, International Human Rights, Racial & Economic Justice and Corporate Accountability. |
| John Buster Elliot Pratt - Band Muse |
| Buster continues to grow, musically, intellectually, emotionally, and physically. Buster's musical focus of late has been on the music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and on the music from various movies and sitcoms his sister watches on the Disney Channel. |
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