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On 600 plus recordings and countless live performances over the course of his 45-year career, bassist Leroy Vinnegar’s name came to be synonymous with the pulsing, rock-steady bass lines that underpin modern jazz. For its third annual Jazz Week, the Leroy Vinnegar Jazz Institute at Portland State University pays tribute to the man known as the "Master of the Walking Bass," with four days of performances spotlighting some of the West Coast’s most prolific practitioners of this jazz art.

Established statewide in 2004, with proclamations by Oregon’s governor and Portland’s mayor, Leroy Vinnegar Jazz Week honors its namesake’s musical legacy with performances, workshops and community events. This year’s schedule includes three free performances, a jazz workshop with Marcus Shelby, and concludes with a concert featuring five of the Northwest’s most esteemed bassists performing alongside the award-winning PSU Jazz Ensemble. For more information please contact Darrell Grant at 503-725-5828 or grantd@pdx.edu.

2006 Leroy Vinnegar Jazz Week Events
Thursday, May 4, 2006, Noon, Portland State Lincoln Hall, rm. 75 (1620 SW Park Ave.)
“The Mel Brown Trio plays Leroy Vinnegar,” free and open to the public.

Friday, May 5, 2006, 3 p.m., Portland State Lincoln Hall, rm. 37 (1620 SW Park Ave.)
“Jazz Workshop with Marcus Shelby,” free and open to the public.

Friday, May 5, 2006, 7 p.m., LV's Uptown (310 SW Lincoln St.)
“Marcus Shelby with Darrell Grant,” free and open to the public.

Saturday, May 6, 2006, 7 p.m., LV's Uptown (310 SW Lincoln St.)
“Marcus Shelby with Darrell Grant,” free and open to the public.

Sunday, May 7, 2006, 7:30 p.m., Portland State Lincoln Hall (1620 SW Park Ave.)
“Walking the Line: The Legacy of Leroy Vinnegar,” featuring Ed Bennett, Dave Captein, Andre St. James, Dan Schulte, Tom Wakeling, and the PSU Jazz Ensemble. Tickets are $10 in advance, $12 at the door on the day of show, and are available at the PSU box office (1825 SW Broadway), by calling 503-725-3307, or at any Ticketmaster outlet.

About The Leroy Vinnegar Jazz Institute
With the support of the Estate of Leroy Vinnegar and the jazz and arts community, the Leroy Vinnegar Jazz Institute is an independent, self-supporting institute housed within the Department of Music in PSU's School of Fine and Performing Arts. Its mission is to preserve and promote the art form, cultural heritage, and social history of jazz music in the Northwest through education, outreach and historical documentation.

About the Artists
Ed Bennett-has long been considered one of the West Coast's premiere string bass players. Originally from California, Bennett has performed and recorded with many legendary jazz figures, including Dizzy Gillespie, Joe Henderson, Sonny Stitt, Bud Shank, Anita O'Day, Ernestine Anderson and the Gerald Wilson Orchestra.

Dave Captein-a native Oregonian, Captein is an accomplished performer on both bass guitar and acoustic bass. He has appeared with such diverse artists as Richie Cole, Tal Farlow, Red Holloway, Ernestine Anderson, Marlena Shaw, Larry Coryell, Jessica Williams (appearing on 4 of her CDs) and Joey DeFrancesco. Dave is also an adjunct professor of bass at the University of Oregon.

Dan Schulte-has appeared on recordings with Blue Note pianist Andrew Hill, guitarists Jerry Hahn and John Stowell, Bert Wilson, Gordon Lee, Alan Jones Sextet and Christopher Woitach. He has appeared at the Monterey, Earshot, Mount Hood Jazz festivals and with the Oregon Symphony and Portland Opera. Schulte is adjunct professor of jazz bass at Portland State University, Lewis and Clark College and Western Oregon University.

Marcus Shelby-award winning composer and bassist, Shelby is nationally recognized for his innovative, creative and collaborative approach to combining spoken word, dance and music. His latest release is “Port Chicago,” commissioned by the Equal Justice Society. This recording is a 14-part suite for Jazz Orchestra, which pays tribute to the U.S. Naval soldiers who perished in the single worst disaster on U.S. soil during World War II.

Andre St. James-a native of Berkeley, CA, St. James relocated to Portland in 1986, and over the past twenty years has become one of the best-known and respected fixtures of Portland’s jazz scene. He has performed with jazz masters such as Harold Land, Blue Mitchell, Sonny Rollins, James Moody, Joe Pass and Bobby Hutcherson. He leads the Andre St. James/Roger Woods Nonet, and teaches at Portland’s Northwest Academy.

Tom Wakeling-has performed with a wide range of artists in jazz and pop music including Arturo Sandoval, Mel Torme, James Moody, Mose Allison and Diane Schuur. He has toured throughout the US, Canada and Europe, and can be heard on recordings with New York pianist Lynne Arriale, award winning singer Nancy King and composer/pianist Steve Christofferson. He is chair of the Music Department at Clackamas Community College.

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For Immediate Release (#06-061)

Source: Darrell Grant (503-725-5828)
Associate Professor, Jazz Studies