Jazz up your Spring at
Skidompha Library!

April 25, 2013  7-9:30pm

   Trumpeter Mike Mitchell  and bassist, Herb Maine improvise on a jazz theme with the Novel Jazz Septet.  NJS will be performing classic jazz at Skidompha Public Library, Damariscotta, ME, on Thursday 25 April, 2012, 7PM to 9:30PM.  The performance will also feature Barney Balch (trombone), Mickey Felder (piano), David Clarke (guitar), Mark Macksoud (drums) and special guest Bryan Jones on alto saxophone.  This evening begins the 9th year of Novel Jazz concerts at Skidompha, bringing live jazz to mid-coast audiences.  Admission is $14 for adults, $12 for seniors, $6 for young adults 12-18, under 12 accompanied by a parent go free.  (Photo by Michael Hearn)

The Novel Jazz Septet will return to Skidompha Public Library, Main Street, Damariscotta on Thursday, 25 April 2013, from 7-9:30 PM for a special evening of jazz in the library’s atrium.  This begins the band’s 9th year of concerts at Skidompha, which began with the observation that lovers of books often are lovers of jazz.  Moreover, the superb acoustics of Skidompha’s atrium, plus the seating “in the round”, make it a superior place to see and hear the performance, all in a relaxed, informal atmosphere.  The musicians of this group have been playing straight-ahead jazz for audiences throughout Maine (and beyond) for several decades. 

Powering the rhythm section will be Dave Clarke (guitar), Herb Maine (bass), Mickey Felder (piano) and Mark Macksoud (percussion).  Performing  in the horn section will be Barney Balch (soprano, alto and tenor trombones), Mike Mitchell (trumpet and flugelhorn) and special guest, Bryan Jones (alto saxophone and flute). 

Bryan has had a long career on reeds.  He started formerly playing sax at age 12 and played in stage bands through secondary school and college years.  He studied with Phil Woods, Jackie McLean, and Joe Allard (Juilliard reeds professors), and composition and improvisation at Manhattan School of Music.  He led a jazz quintet for four years in the New York area, followed by several years in a commercial band.  More recently, he played with Ted Curson (Mingus alumnus) in a session band for about five years, including performances at Dizzy Gillespie's Bahai Center in N.Y.C. Since moving to Maine in 2011, he’s been sitting-in with local area musicians and concentrating on composing and arranging for his current project, "One Live Man Band." 

Admission is $14 for adults, $12 for seniors, $6 for young adults 12-18, under 12 accompanied by a parent go free. We encourage parents to bring their children, the future of this art form.  The library is located on Main Street in downtown Damariscotta.    Call 207-563-5513 during business hours for more information.  

 Don’t miss the Novel Jazz Septet at Skidompha Library… hot jazz to warm your toes on a crisp spring night!