The Debbie Gifford Quartet presents “Sizzlin’ Summer Jazz”

Jazz-Up your Summer Afternoon with Internationally renowned Jazz Vocalist Debbie Gifford and her All-Star Ensemble as she returns to the BOP STOP stage with jazz standards, blues, pop, funk, Latin and lots more! Tickets to attend in person are $15 each. This event will also be livestreamed on BOP STOP's Facebook page at showtime. Accessing the stream is free but donations are encouraged and can be made at www.givebutter.com/SizzlinJazz

“Gifford’s voice is both smooth and engulfing, wrapping itself around every note and mesmerizing the listener with subtle charm. Her sensual style of phrasing and timing are the very essence of her creativity. Debbie is spellbinding - she holds the audience in the palm of her hand” -LA Jazz Scene Magazine

Featuring:

• Debbie Gifford – Vocals
• Ben Maloney – Piano
• Roger Hines – Bass
• Eric Everett - Drums

Debbie Gifford, vocalist, composer & lyricist, has been nominated “Jazz Musician of the Year, “Jazz Band of the Year”, and “Vocalist of the Year” in the Annual Free Times Music Awards. Her first solo performance was at age 4 and she continued her love of music in performance and education by earning a Bachelor of Science in Music Education and a Masters of Music in Vocal Performance at Cleveland State University. Launching her international notoriety in 2004, Gifford has continued to perform annually at festival, club and concert venues in Europe, Canada, Asia and the USA. A partial listing of Debbie’s worldwide performance venues include: France; "Annual Festival International de Musique en Catalogne – Ceret”, Italy; Rome: Foundazione Adkins Chiti “Donne in Musica: ControCanto -Donne in Jazz” Concert Series, Palermo: Villa Filippina in Jazz, Porticello: Festival of Jazz, Ustica: The Alianto Club Jazz Festival, Cefalu: Summer Jazz Fest & Taormina: Metropole Jazz Nights. Asia; JZ Jazz Concert Series Shanghai Cultural Arts Center, JZ Jazz Clubs - Shanghai & Hangzhou. She has shared the stage with jazz greats: Marcus Belgrave, Bobby Watson, Joe Lovano, Sherrie Maricle and Dominick Farinacci. She is the only woman singer to perform with the Birdland Big Band, under the director of Tommy Igoe, at the famous Birdland Jazz Club, New York. Debbie’s discography includes: “You Taught My Heart to Sing”, “So Many Songs About Love”, Double Live CD set “Open Airs” recorded live at the Palace of the King of Majorca, France , "One Day At A Time" - all original music written by songwriting team Debbie Gifford & John Trzcinski. Gifford’s latest CD Release is “Changes” is a compilation of Pop favorites & Jazz standards with a new twist. www.debbiegifford.com

Benjamin Maloney is a pianist, composer, arranger and educator based in Columbus, Ohio. He has shared the stage with notable jazz greats such as Shawn and Darden Purcell, Gilad Atzmon, Vic Juris, Michael Cox, Shawn Dobbins, Bobby Sanabria, and many others. Born in Toledo, Ohio (also home to the legendary jazz pianist from the 1930s, Art Tatum), Ben was motivated and drawn to music early in life, beginning piano lessons at the age of six. This early musical intuition led Ben to explore improvisation and Jazz. He developed his craft within the University of Toledo Music Department, graduating with a Bachelor's degree in music performance with a Jazz concentration. During his time at University of Toledo, Ben had the opportunity to be mentored by and play with acclaimed Jazz and Classical musicians including Claude Black, Tim Whalen, Gunnar Mossblad, Jon Hendricks, and Tad Weed. Since graduating in 2015, Ben has been active in the Greater Toledo and Columbus music scenes as both a bandleader and an accompanist. Notably, he has been featured twice at the Jazz Master’s Concert Series at the Kerrytown Concert House in Ann Arbor, and was a finalist in the 2013 ASCAP Young Jazz Composers Competition. Ben has toured extensively with the creative music group Talking Ear and is the pianist and band co-leader for the Latin jazz collective Waves de Aché. Ben’s compositions can be heard on Talking Ear’s “On Creating EP” and “Talking Ear” (released on Marmite Records) as well as Wave de Aché’s self released album “Forward Motion.”

Roger Hines, bassist, has logged many miles on the road during his 30 year career as a musician. From 1980-1987 Roger toured and recorded exclusively as bassist for legendary singer Ray Charles. This close relationship with “The Genius of Soul” continued until Brother Ray’s passing in 2004. Hines also toured as musical director and bassist for Grammy Award-winning jazz vocalist Diane Schuur from 1988 to present. He teamed up with Ms. Schuur as an artist in residence and educational clinician at many colleges and other educational venues throughout the U.S. and abroad. Hines has also performed with many other well-known artists and ensembles including Louie Bellson, the Cab Calloway Orchestra, Ann Hampton Callaway, Johnny Coles, the Count Basie Orchestra, Rosemary Clooney, Eddie Daniels, Billy Eckstine, the Duke Ellington Orchestra, Frank Foster, Sir Roland Hanna, Eddie Jefferson, Hank Marr, Zoot Sims, and Ernie Watts. In addition to performing, Roger also taught bass at the Ohio State University School of Music as a jazz studies faculty member for many years. He is currently a professor in the Conservatory of Music at Capital University. Roger received a B.M. in Music Theory/Composition and a M.A. in String Pedagogy from The Ohio State University.

Eric Everett, Drums, has four decades of drumming experience, studying privately at Baldwin Wallace Conservatory and performing in Case Western Reserve University’s small group Jazz and Big Band ensembles. Since 2012, Eric Everett Jazz Productions is a recognized brand for delivering high quality musical entertainment and has performed at numerous popular venues in Cleveland and Akron. Eric leads the "Firelands Trio" and "Elation” R&B band, and performs as a sideman with the Cliff Habian Trio and George Foley Quartet. Eric has performed at Nighttown, Bop Stop, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and more.