| THE PAUL PERESS PROJECT | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Paul Peress |
| Genres | Contemporary Jazz Brazilian Latin Jazz World Music |
| Occupations | Drummer Producer Bandleader Composer |
| Instruments | Drums Keys |
| Years active | 1988 to present |
| Labels | Indie |
| Members | |
| Lew Soloff - trumpet Glenn Alexander - guitar John Tropea - guitar Anthony Jackson - bass Clifford Carter - keys |
|
| Past members | |
| Helio Alves, Lincoln Goines, Brandon Fields | |
Paul Peress is an American drummer, composer and producer, based in New York City.
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Paul Peress grew up in Corpus Christi, Texas, and also lived in Kansas City, Missouri for his last 2 years of high school. He has a B.A. in Economics from Columbia University, and attended the Masters program at the Aaron Copland School of Music in Queens, NY.[1]
Peress has worked as drummer/music director with Moby, The B-52's, Brenda Russell, Regina Belle, Deniece Williams, Tom Scott, Guy Davis, Jimmy Heath, Candido, Stephen Bishop, Jeff Golub, Michael Paulo, Eileen Ivers...
His band, the Paul Peress Project, has appeared internationally at many festivals, including: St. Kitts Music Festival, Saint Lucia Jazz Festival, Jamaica Jazz and Blues Festival, Berkeley Jazz Festival, Heineken Jazz Festival, Kaslo Jazz Etc. Festival, Puerto Rico's Festival Internacional de Jazz Latino, and Lincoln Center Out-of-Doors Festival. Additionally, Peress has lent his services to such causes as Foundation Fighting Blindness' - Humanitarian Award Dinner in New York City, Farm Sanctuary, In Defense of Animals, and Humane USA, performing with such notables as Moby, B-52's, Stephen Bishop, Eileen Ivers...[2][3][4]
New-York Historical Society: Peress produced four concerts in 2005 and 2006 paralleling NYHS's groundbreaking exhibit, "Slavery in New York". The 2005 concerts were coined, "The Influence of Enslaved Peoples on Music in and About the Americas", and featured Arturo O'Farrill, Candido Camero, David Amram, and Guy Davis. In 2006, the series continued with two more concerts, one featuring Jimmy Heath, and the other, a return of Candido Camero. All four concerts were designed to show the evolution of the respective genres - Afro-Cuban Music, Latin Jazz, Blues, and Jazz - and demonstrated the music's development from its earliest forms to the present.[8]
Lincoln Center: Paul Peress, Guy Davis, Michael Hill (Michael Hill's Blues Mob), and Paul Ossola were featured in a "Routes of the Blues" concert at Lincoln Center Out of Doors Festival, demonstrating the history of the Blues.[9]
Merkin Concert Hall: Peress was commissioned by Donald Maggin in 2007 to co-produce a concert titled, "Jazz, The Religious Roots". It featured Carla Cook, Arturo O'Farrill, and Paul Peress, with special guests, Michael Mossman, and Chembo Corniel.[10]
Concert for Haiti: Peress performed at the Hard Rock Hotel Punta Cana on April 30, 2011, in a concert benefiting Wyclef Jean's Yéle Haiti Foundation, to raise funds for Haitian earthquake victims. Special guests with the Paul Peress Project included Gerald Veasley,[11] the Manhattans lead singer, Lee Williams, and grammy winner Deniece Williams.[12][13]
His band has featured several prominent jazz artists, including Tom Scott, Jeff Golub, Gerald Veasley, Phil Perry, Michael Paulo, John Tropea, Russell Ferrante, and Lew Soloff.[5]