“These two critically-acclaimed musicians put on a master class with stunningly beautiful and cerebral offerings of a wide range of genres and styles.” — BroadwayWorld Award-winning vocalist Ben Jones and Grammy Award-winning pianist Laurence Hobgood join forces for a concert experience that is at once raw, refined, and transcendent. Jones and Hobgood strip beloved songs down to their essence — just voice and piano, in seamless, uninterrupted flow. Each performance is a high-wire act of intimacy and virtuosity: no band, no filler, no fourth wall. Whether they’re reinventing a jazz standard or daring to reframe a pop hit, these two artists meet in the moment to create something unrepeatable and unforgettable...
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“These two critically-acclaimed musicians put on a master class with stunningly beautiful and cerebral offerings of a wide range of genres and styles.” — BroadwayWorld Award-winning vocalist Ben Jones and Grammy Award-winning pianist Laurence Hobgood join forces for a concert experience that is at once raw, refined, and transcendent. Jones and Hobgood strip beloved songs down to their essence — just voice and piano, in seamless, uninterrupted flow. Each performance is a high-wire act of intimacy and virtuosity: no band, no filler, no fourth wall. Whether they’re reinventing a jazz standard or daring to reframe a pop hit, these two artists meet in the moment to create something unrepeatable and unforgettable. The setlist includes reimagined classics from jazz, Broadway, and pop, woven together by improvised transitions that create a singular, uninterrupted arc. Ben Jones was most recently seen Off-Broadway in productions of Lissa Levin and Ron Abel's Twist of Fate and Ray Roderick and Joseph Baker’s Brooklyn's Bridge. An alumnus of both Chanticleer and Beach Blanket Babylon, Jones is an award-winning actor, singer, comedian and storyteller who has performed leading roles in over 20 productions, including Show Boat, The Soldier’s Tale, The Pajama Game, Tommy, Chicago and Sweeney Todd. He trained in acting, dance and music at the University of Illinois before completing graduate studies at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. As a soloist, Ben has shared the stage with Rita Moreno, Michael Tilson Thomas, Frederica Von Stade, Nathan Gunn, Isabel Leonard and the Bang on a Can All-Stars. His versatile voice has been featured on A Prairie Home Companion, on video games including Halo and Civilization, and on Carnegie Hall’s 2021 Voices of Hope Festival. With his one-man shows, Ben has headlined at clubs around the globe. Jazz pianist, composer, arranger, producer, Yamaha® artist and Grammy® winner Laurence Hobgood has enjoyed a 30+year career, including three consecutive Fellowships to the Aspen Music Festival (1990 - 92), being chosen as a 1995 Chicagoan of the Year in the Arts, a 2003 Deems Taylor Award given by ASCAP for the year’s outstanding music journalism, multiple Grammy® nominations and a 2010 Grammy® Award. He's played at many of the world’s most prestigious venues including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the White House, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Tanglewood, Hollywood Bowl, and the Sydney Opera House. For almost 20 years he served as pianist/arranger/collaborator/co-producer for singer Kurt Elling during which time he wrote virtually all of the material on Elling's first ten albums, all of which received Grammy® nominations.
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