An unprecedented and historic gathering of Jazz Violinists occurred in November at Herbst Theatre, at the San Francisco Jazz festival, and other places in California. It was an incredible, rare opportunity to see all these great players together. Jazz violin is a wild uncharted territory; each player is an accomplished virtuoso in and pioneer in their field.

The tour presented each artist solo with a rhythm section, and all the violins together, in ingenious and soulful arrangements of jazz standaards by Darol Anger. Many audience members commented on how moved they were by the obvious cmaraderie and love between the "family" of fiddlers on stage. With long drives between venues over an entire week, the whole crew had a chance to bond and make music that cut deeply and left lasting good feelings for all.

A photo from the tour:

The violin masters include:

Johnny Frigo, the most senior swing fiddle representative. Frigo played violin with Jimmy Dorsey and with Herb Ellis in the 40's, but made a livelihood playing bass in Chicago's busy commercial music scene until the 1980s, when Frigo took a three year sabbatical to perfect his jazz violin playing. His sabbatical paid off when he sat in at clubs in Los Angeles with Herb Ellis, Monty Alexander and Ray Brown, leading to appearances on several Concord Jazz recordings, impromptu onstage duets with Tony Bennett, and two records to date for Chesky with Frigo as leader, one nominated for a Grammy.

Joseph Kennedy, Jr., is considered the first violinist to fully absorb bebop. His brilliant solo work is first featured on Ahmad Jamal's early recordings, for which Kennedy composed and arranged for both small group and string orchestra. Recently, Joe has performed with Benny Carter's All-Stars, Jon Faddis and the Great American Jazz Ensemble (a PBS TV special), and the Roanoke Symphony, for which he wrote a full-length jazz and gospel fantasia featuring himself as soloist.

Darol Anger, and Matt Glaser represent the current generation.
Violinist Darol Anger changed the jazz world forever with his Turtle Island String Quartet, finally proving that a string quartet can not only swing but perform any contemporary music convincingly. Working in depth with such musical luminaries as Stephane Grappelli, Mark O'Connor, Bela Fleck, David Grisman, et al.,inspired in Anger a unique perspective on string music, resulting in his inventing new string techniques for playing jazz and other styles, including his own originals.

Matt Glaser, dubbed "L'enfant Terrible of the Jazz Violin" by the Soho Weekly News, has chaired the String Department of Boston's Berklee College Of Music since 1983, building it from an incidental post to the world's most influential and respected course of jazz violin study. Glaser studied with Vassar Clements, Lee Konitz, and the late Adolphe Sandole, earned a degree in musicology from Tufts, and is a regular conributor to various Jazz encyclopedias, anthologies, NPR's All Things Considered, and many music periodicals.

Representing the youngest generation for this tour is Regina Carter.
Carter is stepping to the forefront of the modern Jazz community with her smart playing, remarkable acoustic sound and keen improvising. "Even now, I'm still trying to get past the preconceived notions some people have about the violin. It's a matter of opening minds and hearts to all the possibilities that exist for the violin and how much it has to contribute to Jazz". With much support from her mother, to whom her recent Atlantic recording "Something For Grace" is dedicated, Regina began playing at age four. After completing studies at the New England Conservatory, Carter played with the quintet Straight Ahead until 1994. After moving to New York, she collaborated with Oliver Lake, Max Roach, and played in a variety of improvising string groups, including the Uptown String Quartet and the String Trio Of New York. She debuted as a solo artist with her self-titled Atlantic Jazz recording. Carter was tapped by Wynton Marsalis to join the 1997 Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra on their international tour of Blood On The Fields, the trumpeter's acclaimed epic on American Slavery. Regina's featured solos in those performances drew critical accolades. "What I'm doing and playing is not really mine," says Carter of her work. I'm a vessel, and I have to thank God. In the end, it's about truth. And everyone has their own truth". Regina Carter continues to offer her own truth with dignity and flair.

The whole band, on tour.

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