Jamaica native and Grammy Award-winning American jazz drummer Leonard “Lenny” White will perform an evening of jazz fusion at Flushing Town Hall on Friday, Sept. 23.
The performance, An Evening of Music with Lenny White & Friends, will feature White’s original arrangements. He will be joined by Tom Guarna (guitar), Quinton Zoto (guitar), Richie Goods (bass) and Vince Evans (piano and synthesizers).
“I first became aware of Lenny White when he played with my uncle, the great Bill Withers,” said Clyde Bullard, Flushing Town Hall’s jazz producer. “So I am personally very honored and excited to finally be able to present an evening of music with Lenny White & Friends at Flushing Town Hall — the jazz capital of Queens! This is a one-of-a-kind musical event not to be missed.”
White became interested in music at a young age. As a self-taught drummer, White began his career playing with groups in the New York jazz scene.
At the age of 19, White recorded the album “Bitches Brew” with his hero Miles Davis. White is, however, best known as one of the original members of the group Return To Forever founded in 1972 by the late Chick Corea.
In the late 1980s, White became part of the Jamaica Boys, a Queens-based funk trio including Marcus Miller on the bass and singer Dinky Bingham, who replaced Mark Stevens, the brother of Chaka Khan.
White is often described as one of the founding fathers of the jazz-rock movement and has emerged as one of the premier drummers in jazz. White has played and collaborated with music artists such as Miles Davis, Joe Henderson, Gato Barbieri, Gil Evans, Stan Getz, Ron Carter, Woody Shaw, Freddie Hubbard, Jaco Pastorius, Herbie Hancock, Cedar Walton, Carlos Santana, Chaka Khan and many more.
Today, he is sharing his music knowledge as part of the Music Adjunct Faculty at NYU Steinhard as composer-in-residence.
White has won three Grammy awards, received two more Grammy nominations, and has won one Latin Grammy award.
The concert begins at 8 p.m. on Sept. 23. For those unable to attend in person, the performance will also be live streamed online on YouTube for $10.
Tickets are $40/$32 for members and $20 for students with ID. Table packages for two with refreshments are available for $130/$110 for members. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit flushingtownhall.org/lenny-white
