Award-Winning Jazz Artist Batiste Performs at SU Monday, September 24

SALISBURY, MD---Renowned jazz pianist and melodica player Jon Batiste has worked with Spike Lee, taken center court with Harry Connick Jr. and performed by invitation at Carnegie Hall.

Now, he comes to Salisbury University.

Batiste and his Stay Human Band perform 7 p.m. Monday, September 24, in Holloway Hall Auditorium.

The Movado Future Legend Award recipient and Steinway Performing Artist was introduced to music at age 8 as a drummer in his family’s group, the Batiste Brothers Band. By age 12, he was the band’s pianist. At age 17, he released his first album, Times in New Orleans.

While studying at the Julliard School, the Louisiana native released his second album, Live in New York: At the Rubin Museum of Art. In 2006, he embarked on a concert tour through South Africa, London, Lisbon, Spain and Paris, as well as the United States.

In 2007, he conducted master classes and music clinics at inner-city schools throughout Holland and produced his own show for Amsterdam’s prestigious Concertgebouw. As a result, he was invited to produce and perform a show at Carnegie Hall, in which he featured six of the young musicians he met in the Netherlands.

The next year, he was a featured member of the NBA All-Star Game halftime show, playing alongside jazz legends Connick and Dr. John, among others. He has recorded and performed with other well-known artists, including Wynton Marsalis, Prince, Lenny Kravitz and Jimmy Buffett. His most recent albums include In the Night (2008), The Amazing Jon Batiste! (2009) and MY NY (2011), the latter a collection of impromptu performances recorded in New York’s subways.

Batiste also has ventured into the world of acting, with roles in the HBO series Treme and Lee’s Red Hook Summer, for which he also composed a portion of the score.

Since 2005, he has performed with the Stay Human Band, comprised of fellow Julliard alumni Phil Kuehn (bass) and Joe Saylor (drums), as well as alto saxophonist Eddie Barbash and tuba player Ibanda Ruhumbika. Earlier this year, he was appointed associate artistic director at the National Jazz Museum in Harlem, NY.

Sponsored by the Office of Cultural Affairs, admission to his performance is free and the public is invited. For more information call 410-543-6271 or visit the SU Web site at www.salisbury.edu.