Angelo Versace: Tribute to Mulgrew Miller’s Wingspan

($15-$30 tickets | 7pm & 9pm) Angelo Versace, Director of Jazz Studies at the University of Arizona, leads a quintet in tribute to the late jazz pianist, Mulgrew Miller, and Wingspan, a group Mulgrew led for several decades, until his death in 2013. Brice Winston (saxophone) Chris Peña (vibes) Angelo Versace (piano) Scott Black (bass) Arthur Vint (drums)

As an homage to Charlie “Bird” Parker, Wingspan’s concept was to build upon the foundations laid by bebop and expand upon them using influences from hard bop, gospel music, and contemporary jazz styles. Mulgrew’s unique compositional voice was certainly a defining factor in the group’s original sound and positive critical reception. As Christian McBride put it, “[Mulgrew] had the touch of Oscar Peterson, the harmony of Chick Corea, the momentum of McCoy Tyner, and the writing prowess of Cedar Walton.”

Mulgrew Miller’s Wingspan released three albums. Their first, Wingspan, came out in 1987 and included Kenny Garrett, Steve Nelson, Charnett Moffett, and Tony Reedus. They recorded again in 1993 (Hand in Hand) with the addition of a trumpet voice (Eddie Henderson) alongside Mulgrew Miller, Kenny Garrett, Joe Henderson, Christian McBride, and Lewis Nash. The group’s final album, The Sequel, was released in 2002 with the same orchestration as its previous album but with some new players (Duane Eubanks, Steve Wilson, Richie Goods, Kareim Riggins, Steve Nelson, and Mulgrew Miller).

Wingspan enjoyed international success, performing and touring around the world up until Mulgrew’s passing. Additionally, Mulgrew was the Director of Jazz Studies at William Paterson University from 2006 through 2013. Angelo Versace and Arthur Vint were both students at William Paterson during that time, and were fortunate to be directly influenced by Mulgrew’s teaching.