Artist description The Amy Stephens Group is a jazz band which came together in 1997 to perform Amy's compositions, encompassing many different jazz styles: samba, afro-pop, fusion, bossa nova, and straight-ahead swing, just to name a few. The Amy Stephens Group's self-titled CD is their first full-length release. The CD has received generous airplay on WEMU 89.1 FM in the metro-Detroit area; and on WTPI 107.9 FM, WFIU 103.7 FM, WICR 88.7 FM, and WFHB 91.3 FM in the Indianapolis and central Indiana areas. A sample of the band's performances include: the WTPI Broad Ripple Jazz Festival, Indy's Chatterbox Tavern, the Indianapolis Artsgarden Time Warner/BRAVO Jazz Series, the Eiteljorg Museum's Jammin' at the 'Jorg, the Madame Walker Theater's Jazz on the Avenue, the Indianapolis and Bloomington Art Museums' jazz concert series, and a PBS television filming. The band is included on several compilation CDs, including Live from Bloomington 1998 and 2000, and the WTPI 107.9 FM Jazz sampler 4, a CD of Indianapolis jazz musicians released Nov. 1999. The group is currently working on their second recording of Amy's originals, to be released this year.

Music Style Traditional Jazz

Musical Influences samba, afro-pop, fusion, bossa

Group Members Amy Stephens, PianoTom Clark, Sax & FluteJeff Hiatt, BassPaul Sorowiak, DrumsKyle Quass, TrumpetMark Buselli, FluegelhornMarcos Cavalcante, GuitarTyron Cooper, GuitarWill Stephens, PercussionAndrew Lazaro, Percussion

Instruments piano, sax, flute, bass, drums, trumpet, fluegelhorn, guitar and percussion

Albums Amy Stephens Group

Press Reviews "Stephens reveals towering talents on this jazz release....her composing and arranging skills make this album soar. Amy StephensGroup gracefully straddles traditional and modern jazz styles. Exceptional playing by her ensemble is found on 'With YouAlways' and 'Gold Through Fire'.David Lindquist, Indianapolis Star "Amy Stephens is a talented and free-flowing jazz musician." Heidi Drockelman, Bloomington Independent "This is one of many artists whose music I truly believe in....I've found her music quite engaging and listenable. [It] shows great spirit, verve, and imagination. The current CD is a promising portent of things to come." -Michael G. Nastos, WEMU-FM, Ypsilanti, MI "The CD covers a lot of ground, from contemporary jazz to latin to straight ahead. The recording begins with a gentle, flowing piece called "With You Always." The composition is simple and to the point using a mantra-like vamp that opens up slowly into a high energy solo by Tom Clark. Amy's solo is a brief, moody and seductive statement that gives us some insight into her personal sensitivity as well as her substantial musical acumen. "Another highlight is 'Blue J,' a picturesque bossa nova which features the nylon string guitar of Marcos Cavalcante and Tom Clark's flute. The style is reminiscent of Clare Fischer's 'lem branches' (one of my favorite recordings). Amy's solo particularly is Fischer-like with gentle chromatic nudges that shift the tonal center briefly and create a subtle tension and release that draws the ear in for a closer listen. Also notable is Mark Buselli's crystalline flugelhorn on the latin groove 'Mary Magdalene.' "The recording is solid, the arrangements are succinct and Amy's playing is passionate and most of all, very musical. This young lady has the potential for a very bright future indeed." -Barry Kettery, Indianapolis Jazz Times "The jazz enthusiast will recognize influences of John Coltrane and Miles Davis. The unsophisticated jazz lover will just find music that is both stimulating and comfortable. In listening to her compositions, it is evident that Stephens has thoroughly absorbed the jazz idiom and is able to express her own muse with real authority in that uniquely American musical tradition...Stephens is treating [jazz] as a form and style that has matured as a structure for her own creative inspiration." -Alex Suczek, Grosse Pointe News "Her compositions are certainly not to be taken lightly. At the very least, the songs feature pleasant melodies and a variety of traditional and latin rhythms; at their best, the tunes swing with drama and color." -Scott Hall, Daily Journal "The soulful and sultry Gold Through Fire swings on the heavy side, with bass, piano, trumpet and tenor sax building on the song's dark richness. Other standouts include two Latin-flavored numbers Mary Magdalene, which benefits from the warm, round sound of Mark Buselli's flugelhorn and Marcos Cavalcante's guitar, and the bossa nova-stoked Blue J....Although many of Stephens' compositions are gentle and flowing, Quass' sharp trumpet lip and unpredictable scales lend a refreshing angularity to the arrangements, particularly on Oh, Brother! and The Other Side of the Mountain. With solid, inventive compositions and stellar musicianship, this record is a promising debut." -Lisa Sorg, Bloomington Voice "One of the pleasant surprises for me at this year's Live From Bloomington show was The Amy Stephens Group at the Waldron Arts Center. The cream-of-the-crop of Bloomington's jazz community playing Stephens' strong compositions made for a powerful set. "Now Stephens is releasing her first full-length album of original material, simply titled Amy Stephens Group, and celebrating the release with a free, all-ages show at the Waldron Arts Center Monday at 8 p.m. "The music is an uplifting collection of songs that obviously mean a lot to Stephens, as each song is dedicated to someone different. Songs like 'Oh, Brother!' and 'Gold Through Fire' (a version of which appears on the Live From Bloomington '98 disc) are propelled by Stephens' piano, and characterize the moving sound of the entire disc. "With players like Tom Clark, Kyle Quass, Marcos Cavalcate, Andrew Lazaro and many others, and praise from David Baker (who calls Stephens a 'brilliant musician, pianist and composer-arranger....these compositions of Amy's rank with the best I have heard at any level), Stephens can only move forward." -J.J. Perry, The Herald-Times

Location Bloomington, IN - USA

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