By Chung Ah-young
Staff Reporter
Jazz trumpeter Roy Hargrove, who masters in improvisational performance, and his band, will perform at LG Arts Center in southern Seoul on Sept. 3.
Often dubbed a ``young lion'' in the world of jazz for the 21st century, Hargrove will entertain Korean jazz buffs with his quintet.
He visited Korea along with jazz masters Herbie Hancock, Michael Brecker and John Patitucci in 2003 for the performance titled ``Directions in Music 2003.''
But this time, he will perform with his own quintet consisting of Gerald Clayton, piano, Danton Boller, bass, Justin Robinson, alto saxophone and Montez Coleman, drums.
The concert is part of the quintet's world tours to promote their latest release, ``Nothing Serious,'' which came out last year. The album is traditional jazz tinged with Latin music.
Hargrove and his band will showcase improvisational and acoustic jazz live performances. Hargrove began playing cornet at the age of 9 and later was discovered by jazz master Wynton Marsalis during Marsalis' visit to his high school. After that, Hargrove joined Marsalis' band, collaborating with world-class musicians with the help of Marsalis.
He was greatly influenced by saxophone player David Fathead Newman, who played with the Ray Charles Band at Hargrove's junior high school.
Hargrove's sounds have drawn inspiration from Freddie Hubbard, Fats Navarro, Miles Davis, Lee Morgan, and Clifford Brown.
Hargrove spent one year (1988-1989) studying at Boston's Berklee College of Music and took part in New York City jam sessions before finally transferring to New York's The New School.
He officially debuted with ``Diamond in the Rough'' in 1990. He won a Grammy Award in 1998 for the album Habana with his Afro-Cuban band, Crisol.
He is also versatile in playing various instruments such as fluegelhorn, piano and keyboards.
Tickets for the show range from 30,000 to 70,000 won. For more information, call (02) 2005-0114 or visit www.lgart.com.