JAZZ ROOM Special Edition: Matt Lemmler Re-imagines the Music of Stevie Wonder

Renowned New Orleans pianist, vocalist, composer Matt Lemmler and friends present his jazz-inspired arrangements of the timeless music of the great Stevie Wonder.

The JAZZ ROOM provides a casual and intimate setting with tables and a full bar, reminiscent of the classic jazz rooms of yesteryear.

“Stevie Wonder is a much-beloved American icon and an indisputable genius not only of R&B but popular music in general.  Blind virtually since birth, Wonder’s heightened awareness of sound helped him create vibrant, colorful music teeming with life and ambition,” from www.allmusic.com.

A prominent figure in popular music during the latter half of the 20th century, Wonder has recorded more than 30 U.S. top ten hits, sold over 100 million records worldwide, and won 25 Grammy Awards (the most ever won by a solo artist). In addition to the 25 Grammy Awards, as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1996, he is one of only two artists and groups who have won the Grammy for Album of the Year three times as the main credited artist.

Matt Lemmler is considered to be one of the most original musicians (piano, vocal, arranger, composer, educator, producer) to recently emerge from the birthplace of jazz. Raised just blocks away from the home of legendary New Orleans pianist/vocalist Fats Domino, Matt remembers a childhood in the Lower 9th Ward where music constantly filled the house. After earning a Bachelor of Music from Loyola University and a Master’s degree from Manhattan School of Music in NYC, Matt toured four years with Andrew Lloyd Weber’s The Phantom of the Opera. After touring, he came back to the Big Easy and sharpened his skills with some of New Orleans finest bandleaders including: Bob French and the Original Tuxedo Jazz Band (over 100 years old); Herb Tassin and the Blue Room Orchestra, and master clarinetist Pete Fountain.