Wheelhouse Tom Tallitsch

• 1 Wheelhouse 06:09
• 2 Schlep City 04:25
• 3 Outnumbered 06:00
• 4 Red Eye 05:15
• 5 Paulus Hook 05:59
• 6 River 05:31
• 7 The Crusher 04:31
• 8 One For Jonny 06:23
• 9 Gas Station Hot Dog 06:00
• 10 Propellerhead 05:59
• Total Runtime 56:12

Info for Wheelhouse

Saxophonist Tom Tallitsch returns to the scene with steadfast earnestness and spotlights his strengths as a songwriter on his latest release "Wheelhouse." Prepare to be delighted, as Tallitsch unveils a captivating program of new compositions featuring the suitably swinging assistance of his label-mates Jon Davis on piano, Peter Brendler on bass, Vinnie Sperrazza on drums and Josh Lawrence on trumpet. Tallitsch continues to demonstrate a strong and well refined artistic vision for his own music as a leader that is both emotionally engaging, uplifting, and entertaining. With a delicate balance of modernity and classic aesthetics, "Wheelhouse" is insightfully straight forward, refreshingly melodic and full of bright moments for the ears of jazz fans everywhere.

"The music features beautifully crafted arrangements of beguiling variety and sensuousness, in every lovingly crafted phrase, not only by Mr Tallitsch, but also by pianist Jon Davis and by trumpeter Josh Lawrence. Listening to the way in which each man seductively bends the notes of “Red Eye” and “River” is quite breathtaking. And the manner in which Mr Tallitsch glides his way through the rippling grooves of “One for Jonny” it’s clear that there’s not a single semiquaver that hasn’t been fastidiously considered. The album also featured bassist Peter Brendler and drummer Vinnie Sperrazza, both of who are also completely attuned to Mr Tallitsch’s vision and artistry. And make no mistake; the leader has a lot to offer on this fine record." (Raul Da Gama, jazzdagama.com)

Tom Tallitsch, saxophone
Josh Lawrence, trumpet
Jon Davis, piano
Peter Brendler, bass
Vinnie Sperrazza, drums

Tom Tallitsch
performs at jazz clubs and in NYC, Philadelphia, and throughout the east coast. Venues include: Smalls Jazz Club, The 55 Bar, Birdland, Minton’s, The Sidedoor, Chris’ Jazz Cafe, Arts Council Of Princeton, WhyNot Jazz Room, Cornelia Street Cafe, The Garage, Bar Next Door, Paris Bistro, South Jazz Club, and many more. He regularly and tours throughout the United States as a leader and sideman.

In addition to having his compositions and arrangements played by vocalists and musicians throughout New York and Philadelphia, Tom’s works have been performed by individual dancers from the Martha Graham Dance Company at various choreographer showcase venues.

He is musical director, and composer for the multi-media dance company Big Sky Project, founded by his wife Carrie Ellmore-Tallitsch. Big Skyʼs mission is: “Grassroots Community Fellowship. Gathering community and all of the resources and skills available for barter, thus creating commerce, self-sufficiency, and art with in a village. One project and location at a time, Big Skyʼs mission is to initiate the healing of the environment in which we all live, through imaginative, innovative, experimental, artistic, and inspired philosophy.”

Tom owns a highly recommended music tutoring business in Princeton, NJ and is a popular jazz educator and clinician. He works as a piano teacher to students on the autism spectrum at The Princeton Child Development Institute and teaches piano and woodwinds (Saxophone, Clarinet, and Flute) at The Princeton Junior School.

He was the founding director of The Central NJ Homeschool Bands and was Artist Faculty at Mercer County Community College. He has taught at The Westminster Conservatory, Philadelphia Clef Club, Creative Music Studios, The Groove Academy, and many more. He is a gifted music educator who has given lectures and clinics at many top high schools including The Lawrenceville School and The Pennington School. He has had students continue on to pursue professional careers at conservatories throughout the country.

Tom is the host of The Modern Jazz Radio Show on the Mercer County Jazz Station WWFM Jazzon2 89.1 HD2 every Thursday from Noon to 1pm He returned to the show on 8/9/18 after a break for a few years. Tom hosted the show every week from 2007 until 2012.

He currently resides in Hopewell, NJ, and is originally from Cleveland, Ohio. He has also lived in Cincinnati, Philadelphia, and Hamilton, NJ, and holds a Bachelors of Music in Jazz Studies from the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music (CCM).

This album contains no booklet.