The Brubeck Room will be filled with the sounds of jazz guitarist Mimi Fox when she returns to Wilton Library on Sunday, April 15, from 4 to 5:30 p.m. in a Hot & Cool: Jazz at the Brubeck Room concert. The Mimi Fox Duo includes Mike Asetta who also will be returning to the library to accompany Fox on bass.
Fox, an internationally-renowned guitarist/composer/recording artist, has been named a winner in six consecutive Downbeat Magazine international critic’s polls and has been recognized by writers and colleagues alike as one of the most eloquent jazz guitarists of today.
Born in New York City, Mimi started playing drums at nine and guitar when she was ten. She was inspired by the wide variety of music enjoyed by her family–show tunes, classical, Dixieland, Motown–and her own youthful inclination towards pop, folk, and R&B. When she was fourteen she bought her first jazz album. That album, John Coltrane’s classic Giant Steps, changed the course of her musical life. She began touring right out of high school and eventually settled in the San Francisco Bay area where she became a sought-after player. Whether delivering “jaw-dropping solo sets, performing dazzling duets with sympathetic partners, or leading a hard-charging combo, Mimi is a consummate improviser who seizes the imagination of her listeners with her passion, soul, and unerring ear for beauty.”
As a composer, Mimi has written and performed original scores for orchestras, documentary films, and dance projects while receiving grants from prestigious funders such as Meet the Composer and the California Arts Council. As a devoted educator and clinician, Mimi has taught master classes worldwide while serving as head of the guitar program at the Jazz School in Berkeley and Adjunct Professor at New York University.
Immersed in jazz and a love of music at a very early age within his family home, Asetta was captivated by the playing of Clifford Brown and chose the trumpet as his first primary instrument. As a teenager in the jazz fusion/rock era he gravitated to the electric bass and ultimately was captivated by the upright bass, and so began his musical odyssey on the double bass that the Wilton audience will hear in this concert. After a stint in the military, Mike returned to the US to pursue a classical music certificate at Yale School of Music, while continuing to perform jazz daily. He has performed with rock/pop artists Josh Groban, Earth Wind & and Fire, Peter Frampton, Yes, Electric Light Orchestra, Dinah Shore, Kansas, Lou Rawls, Peter Cetera, Zack Starkey and show bands/orchestras: Irish Tenors, Martin Short, Regis Philbin, Ben E. King, the late Don Rickles, and Marilyn King. Added to that list is the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, and of course, Mimi Fox. Now residing in Connecticut, he leads jazz groups at concerts, private events, and clubs throughout Southern New England and the New York area, showcasing the Great American Songbook along with the best of today’s popular songs interpreted in jazz.
An informal reception follows the concert where CDs will be available for purchase and signing. The suggested donation for this world-class concert is $10 per person. Hot & Cool concerts are funded by William and Karen Tell Foundation with special thanks to Ed and Catherine Romer and Chris and Tish Brubeck. Advance registration is strongly recommended for this very popular performance series. Pre-registrants should arrive by 3:50 p.m. to be guaranteed seating; wait-listed and walk-in registrants will be admitted after 3:50 p.m. if space is available. Wilton Library is located at 137 Old Ridgefield Rd..