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Music by the Lake To Host Patti Austin, Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band Aug. 9
9/27/2008
WILLIAMS BAY, Wis.—Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band with Patti Austin will perform in George Williams College of Aurora University’s eighth annual Music by the Lake series at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 9.
Performances are in The Ferro Pavilion at George Williams College, located on the shores of Geneva Lake at 350 Constance Blvd. in Williams Bay, Wis.
Austin was the 2008 Grammy winning artist for Jazz Vocal Album of the Year for “Avant Gershwin.” This stunning artist was also nominated for the coveted honor of Outstanding Jazz Artist at the NAACP Image Awards in February.
Founded in 2000, The Big Phat Band is a powerhouse 18-piece big band jazz ensemble made up of top flight, virtuoso studio musicians that offer a contemporary sound.
Patti Austin
Born in Harlem, New York, debuting at the famous Apollo Theater at age four, and signing her first contract with RCA records at the grand old age of five, she had a prodigious start as a singer!
In the 1960s through the 1980s, Austin was a prolific session musician and commercial jingle singer. After signing with Quincy Jones’s Qwest Records in 1980, she charted 20 R&B songs between 1969 and 1991.
Austin hit number one in 1981 with “Do You Love Me?” from “The Genie.” Her biggest mainstream hit, “Baby, Come to Me,” a duet with James Ingram peaked at number 73 on the hot 100 in early 1982. The song became the love theme on the television show “General Hospital,” then re-entered the pop chart, soaring to number one in February 1983.
She has sung duets with many great artists, including Michael Jackson, George Benson and Luther Vandross. In 1991 she recorded “You Who Brought Me Love” with Johnny Mathis, and was then invited to be a guest on the singer’s television special broadcast across North America.
Austin continues to tour year round, and recently led a new group of Raelettes for the album Ray Charles + Count Basie = Genius2.
Gordon Goodwin
Although The Big Phat Band works from legendary big band arrangements of Count Basie, Woody Herman and Stan Kenton, Goodwin mixes in rock, R&B and Latin to achieve his unique sound.
It works particularly well for high school and college groups who think “Swing Era” music must have sprung from the ice age. Half of the Big Phat Band’s live appearances are at schools and colleges, where his universal appeal impacts young musicians of the future.
Goodwin won a Grammy in 2005 for an arrangement in the movie “The Incredibles,” and followed it up with scores he wrote and conducted for “Snakes on a Plane” and “The Guardian.” Goodwin’s extraordinary skills in composing, arranging and instrumentation have resulted in collaborations with Christina Aguilera, Quincy Jones, Mel Torme, Ray Charles, Sarah Vaughn and Johnny Mathis, among others.
Released in 2000, the Big Phat Band’s debut album, “Swingin’ for the Fences,” made history as the first commercially available DVD audio title ever released, and the first to receive two Grammy nominations.
At the age of five, Goodwin began composing whole compositions, completing his first big band chart, “Hang Loose,” at the age of 13. His work in the television and film industry has garnered him three Emmy Awards and a pair of Grammy nominations.
After studying music in college, Goodwin first became a busy pianist, saxophonist and arranger at Disney theme parks and Hollywood studios. After a five-year interlude as musical director for Johnny Mathis, he won three Emmys for scoring TV cartoons.
Bigger assignments to write scores for mainstream movies like “Con Air” and “Armageddon” soon followed.
A second moment of truth came when he realized that he strayed too far from classic swing when performing, and thought he needed to produce something he could hold in his hand and say “Look! This is what I’m about.”
This performance is supported by the Arts Midwest’s Performing Arts Fund.
Ticket Information
Single tickets are available for the Aug. 9 performance in the terrace seating area for $30 and the lawn seating area for $12 each.
For tickets, visit the Web site at www.aurora.edu/mbtl or call (262) 245-8501 or (866) 843-5200, toll free. Music by the Lake guests are invited to purchase a gourmet box dinner prior to the performance. Dinners are $24.95 each and must be ordered in advance. To place orders for dinners or concert tickets, call 262-245-8501.
The 2008 Music by the Lake concert series is generously supported by presenting sponsor Keefe Real Estate; platinum sponsors AT&T, FairWyn Investment & Development, Gage Marine and Lake Geneva Cruise Line, and Scherrer Construction, Inc.; gold sponsors Aurora Health Care, Grand Geneva Resort and Spa, HGA Architects and Engineers, and Larson Sheet Metal, Inc.; and silver sponsors The Abbey Resort, Balestrieri Environmental & Development, Inc., First Banking Center, Johnson Bank, M&I Wealth Management, Sodexho Campus Services and Walworth State Bank, and Arts Midwest’s Performing Arts Fund.
Aurora University is an inclusive community dedicated to the transformative power of learning. Approximately 4,000 degree-seeking students are enrolled each year on the university’s Illinois and Wisconsin campuses, and the university is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association to award degrees at the baccalaureate, master’s and doctoral levels. The George Williams College campus offers 14 academic programs, unique conference facilities and is home to Music by the Lake and other education and enrichment programs
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