Berklee Announces Fall 2017 Signature Series

The Signature Series at Berklee presents a new season of performances by Berklee students, faculty, and alumni, in addition to world-renowned musicians. The fall 2017 half of the series will include a benefit concert for the Fred Taylor Scholarship featuring an array of jazz heavy hitters; a special Michael Gibbs concert with the Only Chrome Waterfall Orchestra; a performance by Toninho Horta, world-renowned composer, vocalist, and guitarist; and a singers showcase.

All concerts will take place at the Berklee Performance Center (BPC). The BPC is located at 136 Massachusetts Avenue in Boston. Tickets are available at berklee.edu/bpc or at the BPC box office; call 617-747-2261 for more information. The venue is wheelchair accessible.

All-Star Fred Taylor Scholarship Fund Benefit Concert

Tuesday, September 12, 7:30 p.m.

This all-star concert celebrates Boston music icon Fred Taylor and establishes an endowed scholarship for Berklee students in his name. In addition to a special appearance by Pat Metheny, award-winning jazz guitarist, composer, and former Berklee faculty member, the lineup includes leading jazz luminaries Terri Lyne Carrington B.M. ’83, Kurt Elling, Danilo Pérez B.M. ’88, John Patitucci, Catherine Russell, Grace Kelly B.M. ’11, Monty Alexander, Jason Palmer, Kat Edmonson, Bo Winiker, and James Montgomery. The event will be hosted WBUR-FM’s Robin Young, along with Kelly.

Michael Gibbs Directs the Only Chrome Waterfall Orchestra

Featuring Gary Burton, Bill Frisell, Jim Odgren, and the Berklee Concert Jazz Orchestra, conducted by Greg Hopkins

Thursday, October 19, 8:00 p.m.

Celebrated composer and arranger Michael Gibbs ’63 has worked with Pat Metheny ’96H, John McLaughlin, Joni Mitchell, John Scofield, Michael Mantler, Whitney Houston, and Peter Gabriel, in addition to releasing a series of celebrated recordings under his own name. As a faculty member at Berklee in the 1970s, he led a groundbreaking ensemble—the Only Chrome Waterfall Orchestra—that has influenced composers and performers for generations. Longtime associates Gary Burton ’62 ’89H, Bill Frisell, and Jim Odgren B.M. ’76 are featured performers in this career-spanning concert with jazz composition professor Greg Hopkins and the Berklee Concert Jazz Orchestra.

Toninho Horta Meets Berklee

Thursday, November 2,  8:00 p.m.

The music of legendary guitarist, composer, and vocalist Toninho Horta, a founding pillar of música popular brasileira (MPB), will be performed by a large student orchestra, joined by Horta himself, in this Berklee Signature Series concert. Recognized as one of the world’s top guitarists, Horta has been making music for more than 50 years and has been nominated for Latin Grammys for Best MPB Album for his 2005 album Com O Pé No Forró, which he released on his own Minas label, and for his 2010 release, Toninho Horta: Harmonia & Vozes. He has collaborated with artists such as Antônio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim, Milton Nascimento '16H, Joyce Moreno, Luciana Souza B.M. '88, and Herbie Hancock ‘86H, among many more.

Singers Showcase

Thursday, November 30, 8:00 p.m.

The Singers Showcase will feature some of Berklee’s top student vocalists performing a variety of musical styles accompanied by some of Berklee’s finest instrumentalists and backing vocalists. The concert will end with a musical celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Beatles' classic album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Since 1983, the annual Singers Showcase concerts have presented some of Berklee’s most exceptional lead vocalists. Alumnae Susan Tedeschi B.M. ’91, Paula Cole B.M. ’90, Gillian Welch B.M. ’92, Lalah Hathaway B.M. ’94, and Robin McKelle B.M. ’99 performed in the showcase as students.

Shreya Ghoshal Meets Berklee

Thursday, December 7, 8:00 p.m.

India’s premier Bollywood playback singer, Shreya Ghoshal, joins the Berklee Indian Ensemble in a celebration of her remarkable musical journey. The Berklee Indian Ensemble is world renowned through its stunning YouTube videos, reaching more than 25 million people around the globe. Together, Ghoshal and the Berklee Indian Ensemble will bring magic to the stage with their spirited and uplifting performance.