Gualala Arts Promoting public interest and participation in the arts since 1961
“A mature artist with large heartfelt visions and sensitivity. He is a spectacularly fine drummer. He makes beautiful sounds, he plays for the comfort of the band. He knows dynamics and timbres, and he swings no matter what the tempo.”
— Michael Steinmann, JAZZLIVES
Gualala Arts is proud to present Benny Amón’s New Orleans Pearls as part of the Whale & Jazz Series Concert on Saturday, June 20 at 4 p.m. at the Gualala Arts Center. Tickets are $25 in advance for general admission, +$5 at the door, and $100 sponsor tickets with select seating are available online only. Tickets can be purchased at Gualala Arts, the Dolphin Gallery, and online at GualalaArts.org.
Founded in 2018 after years of living and performing in New Orleans, Benny Amón’s New Orleans Pearls quickly earned international acclaim, with their self-titled CD debuting to sold-out audiences at Preservation Hall and the New Orleans Jazz Museum in 2019. Since returning to his native San Francisco Bay Area, Amón has continued to delight audiences with his ensemble at swing dances and listening rooms including Bird & Beckett Books and Mr. Tipples Jazz Club.
For this special Whale & Jazz Series performance, the quartet version of Benny Amón’s New Orleans Pearls will highlight early material associated with legendary figures such as Sidney Bechet, Louis Armstrong, King Oliver, Jelly Roll Morton, AJ Piron, and Tony Jackson. Audiences can expect world-class, authentic New Orleans Jazz performed by some of the finest living exponents of America’s most original art form, with a repertoire spanning rags, marches, waltzes, quadrilles, pop tunes, spirituals, and blues.
Joining Benny Amón are three distinguished musicians: Jeff Hamilton, a world-class classic jazz and swing drummer and pianist who spent years performing with the greats of Preservation Hall and has toured internationally as both sideman and bandleader; Nathan Tokunaga, a prodigious young talent from Belmont, California and current student at the New School Conservatory in New York City; and Marc Caparone, a stalwart of the Los Angeles and Bay Area traditional jazz scenes who continues to run his family winery in Paso Robles while performing widely.
This concert promises an unforgettable celebration of New Orleans Jazz, bringing the vibrant spirit of America’s musical heritage to the Mendonoma coast.