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Since their inception, The Manhattan Transfer has refused to limit themselves to one type of music. Their signature sound is a tight four part harmony based on the voicing of the sax section in the Count Basie Orchestra.

In it's formative years, the group developed a strong cult following while playing various New York clubs. In 1975 they debuted their first recording and landed their own television show on CBS. After two more recordings their cult following and popularity increased in both the US and Europe. In 1980, the dynamic vocalists earned their first Grammy Award for "Birdland," a piece that has since become The Manhattan Transfer s signature tune. Their rise to fame had begun.

Now in their twenty-fifth year, contemporary music's premier vocal ensemble—Tim Hauser, Cheryl Bentyne, Alan Paul and Janis Siegel—continue to push the musical envelope. The Manhattan Transfer s latest CD entitled Swing pays homage to the giants of big band jazz and swing—Ella Fitzgerald, Benny Goodman, Count Basie, Jelly Roll Morton and Artie Shaw to name a few.

In 1981, The Manhattan Transfer made history by becoming the first group to win Grammys in both the pop and jazz categories in the same year. "Boy From New York City," which broke into the top 10 on the pop charts, garnered them the award for Best Pop Performance by Duo or Group, and "Until I Met You (Corner Pocket)" earned them a Grammy for Best Jazz Performance. In 1982, their rousing rendition of "Route 66" brought yet another Grammy. However, it was 1985 release of Vocalese, produced by Tim Hauser, that became known as the group's tour-de-force effort.

Vocalese is a style of music that sets lyrics to previously recorded jazz instrumental pieces. This recording included some highly complex material that ably tested the quartet s capabilities—a challenge which they met magnificently. The album became a critically acclaimed artistic triumph.

Vocalese received 12 Grammy nominations—making it second only to Michael Jackson's Thriller as the most nominated recording ever.

The subsequent recordings Brasil, The Offbeat of Avenues, The Christmas Album, and The Manhattan Transfer Meets Tubby the Tuba all received like accolades for artistic content and performance & writing ability.

Spanning 20 albums over 25 years, this quartet' s eclectic career has consistently set new standards for vocal music, in the process yielding a total of 10 Grammy Awards—with each of the six albums they ve released since 1979 winning at least one statue—and worldwide sales in the millions. Veterans of numerous sold-out world tours, they also reigned supreme as the "Best Vocal Group" for an entire decade (1980-1990) in the annual Down Beat and Playboy jazz polls—winning once again in Playboy's '92 poll.

The Manhattan Transfer continues to exemplify diversity and musical excellence—this year they were recently nominated for a Grammy in the Country music category for the song "Going Away Party" on the Compact Disc Asleep At The Wheel Featuring The Manhattan Transfer & Willie Nelson.

Tickets are on sale now for The Manhattan Transfer. All seats are reserved, $38.75, $32.75 and $28.75.

Rare is the improvising artist who reaches the wider audience without diluting his art. Rare still is such an artist who sees his audience expand apace with his musical vision. At 45, Pat Metheny—virtuoso guitarist, multi-faceted composer, innovative producer and guitar synthesizer pioneer—finds himself in a most enviable position, primarily the result of an insatiable musical intelligence and seemingly unflagging energy. "Running" aptly describes his fast-forward career.

Born August 12, 1954 in a rural exurb of Kansas City called Lee's Summit, Missouri, Pat Metheny has been a professional musician for virtually half of his life. The guitarist's credentials, even outside of the Pat Metheny Group, are most impressive. An instructor while still in his teens at both the University of Miami and Boston's Berklee College of Music, Pat joined Gary Burton's band at age 19. Pat has performed and/or recorded with some of the most innovative musicians of the past two decades: Gary Burton, Paul Bley, Sonny Rawlins, Steve Swallow, Dewey Redman, Paul Motian, Hubert Laws, Roy Haynes, Miroslav Vitous, Dave Liebman, Eberhard Weber, Julius Hemphill, Michael Brecker, Charlie Haden, Ornette Coleman, Milton Nascimento, Herbie Hancock, Joshua Redman, Bruce Hornsby, Joni Mitchell, Jaco Pastorius and Jim Hall.

Since his first release Bright Size Life in 1976, he's built a solid reputation as one of the most innovative jazz musicians and composers in the business. Pat Metheny and his bands, in various forms and creations, have consistently topped listener polls in publications such as Downbeat and Jazziz Magazines in any number of categories—Best Electric Guitar, Best Guitar Synthesizer, Best Jazz Fusion Group—the list goes on. Pat Metheny has an impressive twenty-three Grammy Awards to his credit and has been nominated for a Grammy again this year along with Chick Corea, Gary Burton and Dave Holland for the CD Like Minds. Pat Metheny will be joined by musicians Larry Grenadier and Bill Stewart.

While touring with Bill and Larry this past summer, Pat felt a chemistry and musical camaraderie that had to be preserved. They recorded in the studio the very day they ended their tour and have recently released the album Trio 99->00 on February 8th, 2000. The Pat Metheny Trio is currently on a 4 month World Tour in support of these recordings.

Terence Blanchard and JazzPlay, a spirited fund raising for the Sioux Falls Jazz & Blues Society and the Sioux Falls Community Playhouse. Held in the historic Orpheum Theatre in downtown Sioux Falls. Terence Blanchard is touring in support of his latest CD entitled Wandering Moon.

Below are pictures from his appearance at Barnes & Noble and his Saturday evening performance.

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