Chestnut to Perform in Baltimore

Jazz pianist Cyrus Chestnut will play a free concert at Baltimore’s Goucher College on Feb. 20. The one-hour concert marks the 45th anniversary of Goucher’s annual Henry and Ruth Blaustein Rosenberg Lecture-Performance and will be followed by a question and answer session moderated by Tom Hall, director of the Baltimore Choral Arts Society. Chestnut, a Baltimore native, will be joined by his trio featuring bassist Michael Hawkins and drummer Neal Smith.

Chestnut, a critically acclaimed performer, was educated at the Peabody Institute and Boston’s Berklee College of Music. He has performed and recorded with Wynton Marsalis, Jon Hendricks, McCoy Tyner and Dizzy Gillespie, among others. Chestnut’s latest release, You Are My Sunshine, is his first on the Warner Bros. label.

For nearly five decades, Goucher’s annual event has featured prominent musicians such as Marilyn Horne, Isaac Stern, Yo-Yo Ma and Aaron Copland. The concert-lecture series was established in 1959 with a gift from the Louis and Henrietta Blaustein Foundation.

Although the concert is free to the public, seats must be reserved in advance. Tickets are available in-person at the college box office, by calling 410-337-6333, or by sending a self-addressed, stamped envelope to the Goucher College Box Office, 1021 Dulaney Valley Road, Baltimore, MD 21204.

Originally Published February 14, 2005