Australian Pianist Matt Baker to Close Out January Thaw Musical Festival, 1/30

Australian Pianist Matt Baker has performed at jazz festivals, clubs and concert halls in Australia, Europe, USA and the Pacific. Aside from performing as a solo artist, he is fast becoming one of the most sought after accompanists, sidemen and Musical Directors on the New York scene. Now he joins Centenary Stage Company to close out the January Thaw Musical Festival with 'An Oscar Moment' on Saturday, January 30 at 8pm in the Lackland Center.

The concert will showcase Baker's interpretations of Oscar Peterson's greatest work, celebrating his life, greatest hits, and some of his beautiful original compositions, honoring his legacy as a pianist and timeless, world-class composer. The two met in 2002 at the Blue Note in NYC, which was the start of a friendship and mentorship that lasted until Peterson's death in 2007. The show includes Peterson's original work, including some previously unrecorded compositions given to Baker by the Peterson estate. The quartet goes on a musical journey revisiting some classic moments in Peterson's career such as accompanying Jazz legends Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. The show features the hits "Satin Doll", "Tenderly", "Chicago" and many other classics from the Great American songbook.

Matt regularly plays all over New York, including engagements at Birdland, Smalls Jazz Club, The Zinc Bar, The Iridium, The Kitano, Le Cirque, Bemelmans Bar in The Carlyle Hotel, Tomi Jazz, The Garage, Somethin' Jazz and Cleopatra's Needle. He performs professionally with some of New York's top musicians including Gregory Hutchinson, Hassan JJ Shakur, Marco Panascia, Jim Cammack, Jerome Jennings, Dayna Stephens, Tony Middleton, Christine Ebersole and The Artie Shaw Orchestra, and once performed an impromptu duo set with trumpet legend Roy Hargrove at Smalls Jazz Club. Matt has also toured as Pianist and Musical Director for multi-platinum recording artist Patrizio Buanne.

In March 2011, Baker recorded a new album in New York entitled 'Underground' featuring Gregory Hutchinson, Joe Sanders, Jeremy Pelt and Dayna Stephens. The album, which received wonderful reviews in Downbeat, Jazz Times and Jazz Wise UK, features a selection of brand new original work alongside some classic jazz standards, inspired from living the New York underground jazz scene: endless nights of clubs & jam sessions. Baker tied fifth place in the 2003 Montreux International Solo Jazz Piano competition and was a semi-finalist in 2004 and 2005. The Montreux Jazz Festival also engaged The Matt Baker Trio as their exclusive in-house band 2 years straight, where they performed 17 nights in the Montreux Festival Jazz Club, accompanying and supporting many of the festivals headlining artists.

Tickets for 'An Oscar Moment' with the Matt Baker Quartet are $22.50 for adults and $15.00 for children under 12 in advance. As with all concerts, jazz and special events all ticket orders increase $5.00 on the day of the performance. CSC is also offering $5.00 tickets to middle/high school band and music students. All ticket sales are final. 'An Oscar Moment' with the Matt Baker Quartet will be held in the Sitnik Theater of the Lackland Center on Saturday, January 30 at 8pm.

For more information or to purchase tickets visit centenarystageco.org or call the box office at (908) 979 - 0900. The Centenary Stage Company box office is open Monday through Friday from 1 - 5pm and two hours prior to every performance. The box office is located in the David and Carol Lackland Center at 715 Grand Ave. Hackettstown, NJ 07840.

The 2015-16 season of performing arts events at the Centenary Stage Company is made possible through the generous support of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the NJ State Council on the Arts, the Shubert Foundation, the Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation, the Sandra Kupperman Foundation, and CSC corporate sponsors, including Premier Season Sponsor Heath Village Retirement Community, Silver Sponsors Hackettstown Regional Medical Center, Home Instead Senior Care (Washington), The Holiday Inn in Budd Lake, and Fulton Bank of New Jersey, and Centenary Stage Company members and supporters.

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