Walter Smith III CMA Premiere Ensemble

Acclaimed tenor saxophonist and composer Walter Smith III returns to Smoke, debuting a phenomenal group featuring pianist Jason Moran, guitarist Matt Stevens, bassist Matt Brewer, and drummer Bill Stewart. Smith will premiere a major new work commissioned through Chamber Music America's prestigious New Jazz Works program, supported by the Doris Duke Foundation. Selected as one of only 14 recipients nationwide, he will debut the music throughout this special week-long engagement before recording the project to complete the commission. One of the most compelling voices in contemporary jazz, Smith has spent nearly two decades at the forefront of the music as both a bandleader and sought-after collaborator. His distinctive sound has been heard alongside Roy Haynes, Terence Blanchard, Eric Harland, Ambrose Akinmusire, Jason Moran, Christian McBride, Gerald Clayton, and many others. As a composer, he continues to expand the language of modern jazz with music that is at once sophisticated, lyrical, and expressive.