Owen Broder Quintet – Hodges: Front & Center

Dinner Special:
Red Wine Braised Chicken with Olives, Tomatoes & Capers
Olive Oil Mashed Potatoes
House Salad & Baguette
*meat & veggie chili will be available to order at the counter

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“If more [tribute concerts] were idiosyncratic labors of love like alto saxophonist Owen Broder’s “Hodges: Front & Center,” well, the scene would be a whole lot more fun.” (Andrew Gilbert, San Francisco Classical Voice)

Owen Broder’s Hodges: Front & Center honors Johnny Hodges, the lead alto saxophonist of the Duke Ellington Jazz Orchestra, as a band leader in his own right. Originally conceived to celebrate the 60th anniversary of albums Back to Back and Side by Side, the expanded program presents repertoire from Hodges’ collaborations with Ben Webster, Clark Terry, Gerry Mulligan, and of course Duke Ellington, integrated with historical and biographical background on the iconic saxophonist. Hodges: Front and Center is hardly an exercise in nostalgia. On his acclaimed 2018 debut, Heritage, Broder offered striking new interpretations of American roots music from Appalachian folk to early blues, spirituals to bluegrass. He takes a similar approach to Hodges’ music here; the interpretations are not radically altered, but Broder’s insightful arrangements honor the beauty and elegance of the originals while lending them a deeply felt modern vibrancy.

Broder will be joined on this concert date by trumpeter Noah Simpson, pianist Carmen Staaf, bassist Emiliano Lasansky, and drummer Bryan Carter.

Owen Broder Website
(Ticket Includes 5% City of Santa Cruz Admission Tax)