featuring George Mitchell, piano
Tim Gilson, bass
Tim Rapp, drums
529 SW 4th Avenue
Portland, Oregon USA
8:00 - 10:30 pm
$10 Advance
$15 @ Door (cash only)
www.PaulaByrneMusic.com
Paula Byrne's voice is like chilled champagne on a hot summer day. She moves easily between songs that are lush and beautiful to highly rhythmic, wild rides. Her sense of humor, revival of obscure songs and new twists on old standards keeps the audience engaged and enraptured.
Paula is eclectic in her choice of musicians with whom to perform, including many of Portland's best: Randy Porter, Gordon Lee, George Mitchell, Craig Bidondo, Joe Millward, Ron Steen, Dennis Caiazza, Rich Turnoy, Glenn Holstrom, Andrea Niemiec, Kevin Dietz, Christopher Woitach and Darin Clendenin, Matt Tabor, Craig Snazelle, Dave Captein, Vince Frates, Dan Gaynor, John Gilmore, Mike Horsfall, Greg Goebel, Dan Presley, Carlton Jackson, Gordon Lee, Todd Marston.
Born to a jazz drummer (father) and figure skater (mother), she has been a lover of music and movement since birth. Paula teaches dance locally and internationally, and has been a moving force in the dance scene in Portland since 1996. She is the creator of the Wild Grace™ and DanceQuest™ movement meditations, and is Founder of SomaSpace ~ Studio of Movement Arts in NE PDX.
Paula was an Oracle software developer in the corporate high-tech field for 20 years. She left that career in 2005 to devote herself full-time to her soul-work in assisting people to remember and reconnect to the body as a source of wisdom, pleasure and joy in the present moment.
In 2009, George Mitchell performed with a 40-piece orchestra at the extravagant Symphonica in Rosso at the Gelredome, in Arnhem, Netherlands. He played at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremonies in Oslo, Norway, in 2008, and at a command concert for Prince Charles in Hyde Park, London, in 2002. He was one of several performers at the 2001 private benefit and farewell salute to Bill Clinton in Los Angeles; earlier that year at a private concert, honoring Motown founder Berry Gordy; in 2000 at the VH1 Divas Live from Madison Square Garden, New York; and got soaked as thunderstorms poured on Miss Ross’ 1983 Live in Central Park mega concert before a massive crowd of 400,000 fans.
Mitchell’s keyboard talents were featured in command performances for the Queen of England, and more recently at Super Concerts in Taipei and Tokyo with Ms. Ross and renowned opera singers Jose Carreras and Placido Domingo.
Most recently, Mitchell was a guest keyboardist on Wicked: The Musical at Keller Auditorium, during its 2012 Portland run; and at the prestigious 10 Grands Concerts at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, in Portland, from 2005 to 2010.
He has appeared many times as an ensemble player on top-rated television shows, including: Oprah, The Tonight Show, Late Night with David Letterman, the TODAY Show, and the Arsenio Hall Show.
Tim Gilson has been a mainstay in the Northwest for many years. In 1985 he joined the Mel Brown Quintet with which he recorded the award winning 'Gordon Bleu' CD. During this time Tim had the opportunity to play with many nationally acclaimed artists including Mose Allison, Ritchie Cole, Bud Shank, Herb Ellis, Julian Priester, John Handy, Ernestine Anderson and many others. In 1988 Tim won 2nd place in an international bass competition in Los Angeles and shortly thereafter substituted for John Clayton with 'Slide Hampton and the New Jazz Masters' in a concert in Sacramento. He toured Japan in 1993 with the Mel Brown Quintet with special guest artist Chuck Findley on trumpet; then in 1994 he moved to Madison Wisconsin where he served as Principal Bassist with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra and substituted on a regular basis with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. Since returning to Portland in 2002 Tim plays regularly with the Oregon Symphony backing guest artist such as Dee Daniels, Byron Stripling and Herbie Hancock. Tim has also accompanied several guest artists including Wycliff Gordon, Antonio Hart, Matt Wilson, Ingrid Jensen and Wynton Marsalis during their tours of the Pacific Northwest.
Drummer Timothy Rap grew up in the Pacific Northwest playing with and learning from some of the region's finest musicians, including Shirley Nanette, Nancy King, John Stowell, and Obo Addy. After studying at Berklee College of Music in Boston, he returned to Portland and has maintained a busy schedule as a performer and educator. Tim is a longtime member of the Tony Pacini Trio, and can also be heard playing with the Ed Bennett Quintet, the Ben Graves Trio/Quartet featuring Andre St James and Eddie Skip Parente, Dan Schulte's Strange Pilgrims, and many other groups. He is an adjunct faculty member of West Linn High School and Mt Hood Community College where he teaches percussion and jazz drum set.
