Arts and Entertainment

Jazz bassist Ron Carter to perform Nov. 8

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Bassist Ron Carter’s career has spanned more than half a century and has included performances on more than 2,000 albums. The National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master and his trio mates, guitarist Russell Malone and pianist Donald Vega, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 8, in Penn State’s Schwab Auditorium.

The Michigan native came to fame as a member of the second renowned Miles Davis Quintet, a 1960s group that included Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock. Since then he has performed, as a leader and a sideman, with a multitude of first-rank players.

“Cool and elegant, his body contoured to the instrument, the fingers on his left hand scurrying over the neck of the bass like a tarantula, Carter is both a visual and musical delight,” wrote a critic for The International Review of Music.

Malone grew up in Georgia playing a variety of music. He eventually made jazz his focus, but he never lost his appreciation of other styles. The seminal organist Jimmy Smith hired Malone as a sideman in 1988. The guitarist went on to back Harry Connick Jr. from 1990 to 1994 and spent four years working with Verve labelmate Diana Krall. Malone, who has several albums to his credit as a headliner, has also recorded with Branford Marsalis, Roy Hargrove and Benny Green.

The Nicaraguan-born Vega’s style and virtuosity on piano, along with his composing and arranging skills, mark him as an exciting presence in jazz. His sound is said to resonate with a touch of Oscar Peterson’s versatility and Bill Evans’ elegant lyricism.

The John L. Brown Jr. and Marlynn Steele Sidehamer Endowment sponsors the presentation. An Artistic Viewpoints discussion will not be offered before the presentation, but a discussion among the musicians and audience members will follow the performance.

For more information on the Center for the Performing Arts, go to www.facebook.com/PSCPA.

Tickets for the Center for the Performing Arts presentation are $32 for an adult, $16 for a University Park student and $25 for a person 18 and younger. Tickets are available online at www.cpa.psu.edu or by phone at 814-863-0255 or 1-800-ARTS-TIX. Tickets are also available at four State College locations: Eisenhower Auditorium (8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays), Penn State Downtown Theatre Center (9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays), HUB-Robeson Center Information Desk (11 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays) and Bryce Jordan Center (10 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays). A grant from the University Park Allocation Committee makes Penn State student prices possible.

Jazz bassist Ron Carter will perform Nov. 8 with his trio. Credit: Beti NiemeyerAll Rights Reserved.

Last Updated October 16, 2012