Jack Kilby And The Front Line at The Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church

The Charlottesville Jazz Society and WTJU are pleased welcome drummer/composer Jack Kilby and his band, The Front Line, for a concert at Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church Sunday April 28th at 7:00 pm.

Jack Kilby and the Front Line was formed in 2014 in New York City and includes members from New York, Washington DC, and Virginia while also spanning several generations of musicians. Kilby, age 29, and bassist Kris Monson, 26, attended the University of Virginia where they met veteran trumpeter John D’earth who directs the UVA Jazz Ensemble. There they also met tenor saxophonist Charles Owens who grew up in northern Virginia and went on to spend a dozen years in New York City performing with some of the world’s finest musicians. During their time in Charlottesville, Kilby and Monson’s relationships with D’earth and Owens blossomed from teacher-student to a brotherhood bound by their love of music. The group’s sextet formation was solidified upon Kilby meeting trombonist Elad Cohen (29) in New York, another kindred spirit who shared his love for Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. Washington D.C. native and master pianist Allyn Johnson rounds out the rhythm section for the band’s first studio recording. ...

read more

The Charlottesville Jazz Society and WTJU are pleased welcome drummer/composer Jack Kilby and his band, The Front Line, for a concert at Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church Sunday April 28th at 7:00 pm.

Jack Kilby and the Front Line was formed in 2014 in New York City and includes members from New York, Washington DC, and Virginia while also spanning several generations of musicians. Kilby, age 29, and bassist Kris Monson, 26, attended the University of Virginia where they met veteran trumpeter John D’earth who directs the UVA Jazz Ensemble. There they also met tenor saxophonist Charles Owens who grew up in northern Virginia and went on to spend a dozen years in New York City performing with some of the world’s finest musicians. During their time in Charlottesville, Kilby and Monson’s relationships with D’earth and Owens blossomed from teacher-student to a brotherhood bound by their love of music. The group’s sextet formation was solidified upon Kilby meeting trombonist Elad Cohen (29) in New York, another kindred spirit who shared his love for Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. Washington D.C. native and master pianist Allyn Johnson rounds out the rhythm section for the band’s first studio recording.

The band’s new album, “Love is a Song Anyone Can Sing,” just won the 2019 Washington Area Music Award (Whammie) for best jazz album. The album spent 10 weeks on the jazz charts, peaking at #2.

In addition to Jack on drums, the very special edition of The Front Line for this Charlottesville performance includes John D’earth on trumpet, Charles Owens on saxophone, Kris Monson on bass, Bob Hallahan on piano, Elad Cohen on trombone, and guest soloist Jeff Decker on sax.

Tickets to see Jack Kilby and The Front Line at Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church on Sunday April 28th at 7:00 pm are available in advance at Frontline.Brownpapertickets.com. General admission is $20. Paid supporters of The Charlottesville Jazz Society are $15. All students pay $10. Any tickets remaining at the door will be $25. For more information visit cvillejazz.org, or call (434) 249-6191. And be sure to listen to The Front Line’s music on WTJU-FM

show less