SADLY CANCELED OWING TO COVID-19 LOCKDOWN.
Lamar - Vocal
Mario Lamar Benavides Jr. was born in Hawaii of Spanish, French, Hawaiian, Portuguese and English descent. Lamar’s Mother was a well-known jazz singer in Honolulu and it was not uncommon to see her “sit in” with the likes of Nat King Cole or Buddy Rich, alongside local sax legend Gabe Baltazar, from the Stan Kenton Band. Lamar took to the stage in 1983 at the world famous Polynesian Cultural Centre as an artist and MC from 1983-1998. His silky smooth voice was an essential part of the show up until 2009. Lamar grew up listening to the great jazz singers as well as many great Hawaiian artists including Hawaiian legends, The Brothers Cazimero who were also his close friends. His love of the great American Standards is a part of his DNA, and as a fan of Michael Bublè and Lamar’s recent collaboration with Ben Gilgen he can now share that love with you!
Ben Gilgen - Piano
Ben is from Hamilton but learnt his craft in jazz in the club's of Auckland playing with the legends, Andy Brown, Martin Winch and Miguel Fuentes to name a few. Having two NZ jazz albums in two consecutive years with The Power Band and Freebase instilled the love of jazz. Living in Australia from 2000-2020 gave Ben the opportunity to play with the likes of superstar blues guitarist Ray Beadle and LA wrecking crew legend Louie Shelton. In Australia Ben was also Musical Director for John Rowles and currently is MD for Howard Morrison Jnr. Based in NZ, Ben looks forward to playing even more jazz and blues wherever he can.
Alex Griffith - bass
Alex has had three decades of performance experience with National and International Touring Artists including Randy Crawford ( USA ) Miguel Fuentes ( Puerto Rico ) Rodger Fox Big Band ( NZ ) Alex is one of the most exciting innovative World Class Bass Players NZ has produced.
Ron Samson – drums
Ron was born in Canada, drummer and composer Ron Samson became a proud citizen of Aotearoa in 2018. He is the co-ordinator of jazz performance at University of Auckland, and owns five drum kits and way too much windsurfing equipment … most surprisingly, he finds time to use all of it.
Steve Sherriff Saxophone
Steve has been involved in the music industry as a music teacher and professional musician for over 30 years. Steve works as a freelance musician with a varied resume which includes theatre work playing in the shows of Wizard of Oz, Rocky Horror, Singin’ in the rain, just to mention a few. He has released an album of his own compositions and currently fronts his own 6 piece jazz group focusing on creating collaborative original compositions.
Mike Booth - Trumpet
Mike has recorded and toured with Netherworld Dancing Toys, Cats Away, Dave Dobbyn and Howard Morrison. Booth moved to Europe in 1989, where he performed with the Dutch Jazz Orchestra De Dijle (Dutch pop) and returned to New Zealand in 2007, where he founded the Auckland Jazz Orchestra in 2009.
John Gluyas - Trombone
John Gluyas (trombone) is a graduate of the Rotterdam Conservatory of Music where he studied with Jorgen van Rijen, the solo trombonist of the Concertgebouw Orchestra. He has played with the Adelaide and New Zealand Symphonies, the Auckland Philharmonia and Orchestra Victoria to name a few. John has also worked in the commercial music scene performing in musicals such as Aladdin, Wicked, Mary Poppins and The Book of Mormon, and recorded for film and TV.
Esprit Hemi – Guest vocalist
Esprit was born in Auckland and is among the flood of highly talented young people coming into the industry. Currently studying music in Hamilton her dynamic range and sweet tone will positively add to the musical experience.
Members $5
Non-members $15