National Press Club presents Jazz & Journalism: the music of trumpet legend Chet Baker, March 19

The National Press Club is pleased to present an exclusive, live jazz concert celebrating the music of legendary jazz trumpeter Chet Baker, on Thursday, March 19 at 7:00 p.m., in the Club’s Fourth Estate Restaurant. Trumpeter Stan Engle, who hails from Baker’s home state of Oklahoma, will headline a quartet featuring acclaimed D.C. jazz musicians including bassist Herman Burney, Jr., pianist Peter Edelman and drummer Kelton Norris.

The jam session is open to members and one guest for $8 each and to the general public for $20, which includes a heavy hors d’oeuvres buffet and soft drinks.  There will be a cash bar, featuring the Chet Baker drink, in honor of the Jazz trumpet legend. Seating is limited, so reserve your seat right away. Please click here to register for what is likely to be limited seating.

Originally from Abilene, Kansas, but currently living in Oklahoma City, Engle has performed jazz trumpet for three decades in 35 countries, including five tours in China and four in Cuba, where he completed his recent visit this past January. He has performed alongside such jazz luminaries as saxophonist Bobby Watson, trumpeters Ira Sullivan and Cuba’s Arturo Sandoval and Bobby Carcasses, and Cuban jazz flautist Orlando “Maraca” Valle. A devotee of Baker’s music, Engle says that like Chet, he “loves to improvise and sing the jazz standards without referring to the sheet music as much as the music that comes from the heart and soul.”

Bassist Burney, Jr., has performed internationally and with such notable jazz and popular musicians including Natalie Cole, the Marsalis family (Ellis, Wynton and Bradford), and pianist/educator Marcus Roberts, has been described by Grammy-winning bassist John Clayton as having “the complete package … he is extremely talented, he possesses a reverence for the music, technical ability, and (to top it off) he is a genuinely fine person.”

Born in Paris and raised in Northern Virginia, Edelman has been playing blues and jazz piano and composing since age 14. A fixture of the D.C. jazz scene for decades, Edelman has performed with several famed jazz artists including trumpeter Wallace Roney, drummer Winard Harper and baritone saxophonist Cecil Payne. He has performed at the Bohemian Caverns, the Smithsonian, Tabard Inn and currently plays at Normandie Farm Inn.

Proclaimed as “Best Drummer” in 2016 by Washington City Paper, Norris has been described by the paper as having “sharp ears and joyful rhythmic precision.” Norris has performed at highly-regarded venues including Chicago’s Jazz Showcase, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York, Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage, Bohemian Caverns, Blues Alley, and many other venues throughout the D.C. metro area.

Baker, heralded as “The Prince of Cool” for his rendition of “My Funny Valentine” and scores of romantic ballads and West Coast cool jazz compositions, started performing at the height of the bebop era in the early 1950s, joining the bands of pioneering jazz saxophonists Charlie Parker and Stan Getz, and gaining greater fame with his collaborations with baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan. As a band leader, he grained greater notoriety from his more-than 100 albums and performances throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia until his untimely death in 1988. Although known for his struggles with addiction, Baker is celebrated throughout the music world for his uniquely restrained, yet intimately cool, romantic sound and his ability to swing with impeccable timing.

For more information, please contact Marc Wojno at [email protected].