Anthony Wilson And The Curators at Kuumbwa Jazz Center

Anthony Wilson’s inventive compositions seamlessly incorporate a variety of styles— blues, jazz, bluegrass, Latin and Brazilian—into a sound that JazzTimes calls, “… audacious and engaging.” The son of composer and big band leader Gerald Wilson, Anthony grew up in a musical household, learning to play and write music at an early age. As both a guitarist and composer/arranger, Wilson has accrued an impressive resume of accomplishments. In 1995, he won the Thelonious Monk Institute International Composer’s Competition. Three years later he was commissioned to write an orchestral piece for the L.A...

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Anthony Wilson’s inventive compositions seamlessly incorporate a variety of styles— blues, jazz, bluegrass, Latin and Brazilian—into a sound that JazzTimes calls, “… audacious and engaging.” The son of composer and big band leader Gerald Wilson, Anthony grew up in a musical household, learning to play and write music at an early age. As both a guitarist and composer/arranger, Wilson has accrued an impressive resume of accomplishments. In 1995, he won the Thelonious Monk Institute International Composer’s Competition. Three years later he was commissioned to write an orchestral piece for the L.A. Philharmonic. Entitled Virgo, the composition premiered at the Hollywood Bowl. His first solo album, released in 1997, was nominated for a Grammy, and he has been on a roll ever since with over ten critically acclaimed recordings as a bandleader. Additionally, in the last two decades his guitar work has been featured with Mose Allison, Bobby Hutcherson and Joe Sample, as well as with pop artists Leon Russell, Paul McCartney, Barbra Streisand, and Willie Nelson. Since 2001, he has been the guitarist for singer/pianist Diana Krall’s quartet. Wilson’s back-up band the Curators, appears on his recent recording Frogtown, which includes earthy vocals by Wilson himself. Frogtown includes virtuosic guitar and ensemble work, well-crafted songs, and intimate vocals, rooted deeply in jazz while summoning an array of diverse influences. With Frogtown, Anthony Wilson steps confidently into the center of a vivid musical and personal portrait.

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