Three-time Grammy Award Winner Terri Lyne Carrington Kicks Off Gardner’s RISE Music Series

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Boston, MA – Legendary Boston jazz drummer, composer, singer, educator and three-time Grammy winner Terri Lyne Carrington will take the stage at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum on Sept. 27 to kick off the fourth season of RISE, the Museum’s popular pop, rock and hip-hop series that features emerging talent and young artists. Recent Berklee College of Music graduate Jas Kayser will open the show.

Celebrating 40 years in the music industry, Carrington, a Medford, Mass. native, started her career at 10 years old and was the youngest person to receive a union card in Boston. Featured as a “kid wonder” in national publications, such as People and EBONY, she went on to receive a full scholarship at Berklee College of Music after which she worked in New York City and Los Angeles where she was a late night TV drummer for the Arsenio Hall Show and Quincy Jones’ VIBE TV show.

In the spirit of rhythm, Carrington delivers a fusion of jazz, indie rock, contemporary classical, and R&B. Throughout her career, she has worked with artists such as Herbie Hancock, Diane Reeves, Esperanza Spalding, the Yellowjackets, and countless others. In 1989, Carrington won her first Grammy for her debut album, Real Life Story. The Mosaic Project, for which she collaborated with fellow Berklee College of Music alumni and RISE co-curator Shea Rose, earned a second Grammy in 2011 for Best Jazz Vocal Album. However, the release of her eighth album, Money Jungle: Provocative In Blue, helped write history, earning her a third Grammy for Best Jazz Instrumental Album. She was the first female artist to win a Grammy in this category.

Since 2005, Carrington has been a professor at her alma mater. Currently, she holds the position of Zildjian Chair in Performance for Berklee Global Jazz Institute. She is also the Artistic Director for the Beantown Jazz Festival and Berklee Summer Jazz Workshop as well as The Carr Center in Detroit, Michigan.

Following in Carrington’s footsteps, Jas Kayser is a recipient of the Terri Lyne Carrington Scholarship established by the Avedis Zildjian Company.  She has performed at a number of festivals and venues in Boston, New York, and London, including Rockwood Music Hall, Scullers Jazz Club, Panama Jazz Festival and Next Generation Monterey Jazz Festival. This summer, she is performing and teaching at Newport Jazz Festival Summer Camp. In addition, she will release her first single with Chums, “Stupid on the Beat” feat. Niu Raza. The project, called “Jafro Beat,” features a blend of jazz, soul and Afro-beat led rhythms.

RISE concerts begin at 7 p.m. Award-winning and Boston-based DJ L’Duke (FKA LeahV) will be the house DJ for every RISE concert this season. The RISE music series is curated by musicians Shea Rose and Simone Scazzocchio.

Tickets are required for RISE and include Museum admission. Admission is $27 for adults; $24 for seniors; $17 for members; $15 students and children; and youth age 7 and under not admitted. For information or to purchase tickets in advance, visit www.gardnermuseum.org or call 617-278-5156.

Photo courtesy of: Terri Lyne Carrington