The Simons Sessions

Musician's Biography

Mark Whitfield
Guitarist

Mark Whitfield graduated from Boston’s prestigious Berklee College of Music, the world’s foremost institution for the study of Jazz and modern American music in the spring of 1987. Shortly thereafter, he returned to his to his native New York to embark on a career as a Jazz Guitarist that afforded him the opportunity to collaborate with legendary artists including Dizzy Gillespie, Art Blakey, Quincy Jones, Ray Charles, Herbie Hancock, Carmen McRae, Gladys Knight, Burt Bacharach, Jimmy Smith, Clark Terry, Shirley Horn, Wynton Marsalis, Branford Marsalis, Joe Williams, Stanley Turrentine and his greatest teacher and mentor George Benson. In 1990 the New York Times dubbed Whitfield “The Best Young Guitarist in the Business”. Later that year, Warner Bros. released his debut album “The Marksman”. The success of his debut release led to a recording career that has produced a total of 14 solo recordings and a myriad of collaborative efforts with some of the most important artists in recent years; Sting, Steven Tyler, D’Angelo, Mary J. Blige, John Mayer, Chaka Khan, Jill Scott, Diana Krall, Christian McBride, Chris Botti, Roy Hargrove and Nicholas Payton. Along the way the “Whitfield Family Band” was born, literally. In 1994 The Mark Whitfield Quartet appeared on the Thanksgiving Day broadcast of Good Morning America. This performance featured a very special guest drummer, 4 year old Mark Whitfield Jr. It was obvious even then that he was destined for greatness. Following in his father’s footsteps he attended the Berklee College of Music and graduated in 2011 with honors. He went on to study for his Masters Degree at the Manhattan School of Music while simultaneously embarking on a career as a drummer extraordinaire. He has quickly earned a reputation as one of the best young drummers in Jazz and was nominated for a Grammy in 2014 as part of the ensemble featured on Kenny Garrett’s 2013 release “Pushing the World Away”. Not to be outdone by his older brother, Davis Whitfield, a prodigious pianist, earned a Presidential Scholarship and graduated from the Berklee College of Music with honors in 2014. In February of 2017 the “Whitfield Family Band” released its debut recording, “Grace”, to rave reviews. We just recorded the music we had been playing together since they were little boys. We had some help, bassist extraordinaire, Yasushi Nakamura and the co-writer and singer of the title song, our cousin Sy Smith. “Grace” spent almost 3 months in the top 10 on the jazz radio charts and we’re still receiving rave reviews around the world. In September 2017, Chesky Records released a live recording I made for them earlier in the year in the trio format featuring Billy Drummond on drums and Ben Allison on bass. This recording was equally well received at jazz radio and by the jazz press. I have one more trio recording yet to be released which features the amazing Jeff “Tain” Watts on drums and the incomparable Robert Hurst on the bass. All I can say is hold on to your seats!! “Selected Discography” The Marksman ............. Warner Bros  Take the Ride .............. Verve Patrice ........................ Warner Bros    Soul Conversation ........ Transparent Mark Whitfield .............. Warner Bros       Raw .......................... Transparent True Blue .................... Verve Trio Paradise .............. Vega 7th Ave Stroll ............... Verve The Groove Masters ..... Vega Forever Love ............... Verve Panther ...................... Dirty Soap Fingerpainting .............. Verve Songs of Wonder ......... Marksman

 

---

 

Santi Debriano
Bassist

Santi Debriano is acclaimed as one of the most interesting and original voices on the international jazz scene today.  As a soloist, he has performed at many of the world’s most renowned festivals and concert halls, often presenting his own compositions with his band. His jazz group, Flash of the Spirit, is a band of virtuoso musicians who perform regularly on the New York jazz scene. The band moves easily through modern jazz, latin jazz and the avant garde jazz idioms. He has realized concerts and albums with such diverse jazz masters as Kenny Clarke, Mal Waldron, Archie Shepp, Kirk Lightsey, Chico Freeman, Arthur Blythe, David Murray, Attila Zoller, Lee Konitz, Oliver Lake, Baikida Carrol, Cecil Taylor, Sam Rivers, Hank Jones, Elvin Jones, Randy Weston, Roy Hanes and many others. His two instruction books of Jazz Bass Studies, The Bass Players Toolbox 1 and 2, are for sale on amazon.com. Santi has recorded CDs for Highnote, Savant, Freelance, Jazzheads and Motema Records. Several of his concerts have been broadcast by WBGO, WNYC and National Public Radio. Panamanian by birth, Santi was raised in New York City. He currently lives on Staten Island.  "The depth of his performances and his energy [are] an inspiration for his colleagues and his audiences." - Jabali Billy Hart "In my estimation he is a living jazz master." - Mike Longo