‘An Evening with Kenny Werner’

BETHEL, NY — The Bethel Woods Center for the Arts will present “An Evening with Kenny Werner,” a special solo performance in the Event Gallery At 7:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 14.

Born in 1951, Kenny Werner got an early start as a pianist. At the age of 11, he recorded a single with a 15-piece orchestra and appeared on television playing stride piano. He attended the Manhattan School of Music while still in high school, and later the Berklee School of Music when he felt the pull of jazz.

His first jazz recording, in 1977, featured the music of Bix Beiderbecke, Duke Ellington, James P. Johnson and George Gershwin, and later that year he recorded with Charles Mingus on “Something Like a Bird.” In 1981, he released his first album of original work, “Beyond the Forest of Mirkwood,” followed by “298 Bridge Street” a year later.

He toured extensively in the early ‘80s, later forming his first and lasting trio with bassist Ratzo Harris and drummer Tom Rainey, resulting in four albums. In the mid ‘90s he joined the Mel Lewis Orchestra, performing with and writing for the group later known as the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra. He’s also written for the Cologne Radio Jazz Orchestra, the Danish Radio Jazz Orchestra, The Metropole Orchestra and the Umo Jazz Orchestra. In 2002 he was nominated for a Grammy for best instrumental composition for a duo with Thielmans. In 2007, Werner wrote an extended composition for the MIT wind ensemble and an entire evening with Betty Buckley and the Seattle Symphony, which he will record this year.

Reserved seats are on sale now for $25 in advance, $30 on the day of the show. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. Tickets are available through the Bethel Woods Box Office or Ticketmaster at BethelWoodsCenter.org

For more information visit BethelWoodsCenter.org.