Grammy Award-Winner Pat Metheny to Perform at UB on Nov. 8

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The Center for the Arts at the University at Buffalo will present Pat Metheny Solo & Trio at 8 p.m. on Nov. 8 in the Mainstage theater in the Center for the Arts on the UB North (Amherst) Campus. The event is sponsored by WBFO.

The Grammy-Award winning Metheny has become one of the most active and popular touring acts of any kind in any genre, relentlessly playing and selling out concerts in more than 40 countries and around the world. The Pat Metheny Trio features jazz guitar great Metheny, acclaimed electric and acoustic bassist Christian McBride and drummer Antonio Sanchez.

Metheny began playing the guitar at the age of 12 and in 1974 at the age of 20, Metheny burst onto the international jazz scene. During a three-year stint with vibraphone great Gary Burton, Metheny already displayed his soon-to-become trademarked playing style, which blended loose and flexible articulation customarily reserved for horn players with an advanced rhythmic and harmonic sensibility -- a way of playing and improvising that was modern in conception, but grounded deeply in the jazz tradition of melody, swing and blues.

Throughout his career, Metheny has continued to re-define the genre by utilizing new technology and constantly working to evolve the improvisational and sonic potential of his instrument. His body of work includes compositions for solo guitar, small ensembles, electric and acoustic instruments, large orchestras and ballet pieces, with settings ranging from modern jazz to rock to classical.

Metheny has won countless polls as "best jazz guitarist" and awards, including three gold records for "(Still Life) Talking," "Letter from Home" and "Secret Story." He also has won 15 Grammy Awards spread over a variety of categories, including best rock instrumental, best contemporary jazz recording, best jazz international solo and best instrumental composition.

McBride has become one of the most acclaimed acoustic and electric bassists to emerge from the jazz world. In 1992, McBride was named Rolling Stone magazine's "hot jazz artist". In addition to numerous solo recordings, over the past decade, McBride has been featured on more than 200 recordings and has toured and/or recorded with artists such as David Sanborn, McCoy Tyner, Betty Carter, Peabo Bryson, Natalie Cole and George Benson.

Sanchez began playing the drums at the age of 5, and after only a few years began performing in a wide variety of musical situations ranging from rock to jazz and Latin to fusion with several bands in his hometown of Mexico City. Sanchez pursued his degree at the National Conservatory of Music in Mexico City, where he earned a scholarship to study jazz at Berklee College of Music in Boston. There he studied arranging, improvisation, composition, ear training and harmony, and graduated magna cum laude. Sanchez has conducted clinics and master classes in Europe, Japan and North and Latin America, and has been the recipient of numerous awards.

During the Pat Metheny Solo & Trio performance, Metheny will take stage first with a solo baritone guitar to perform introspective compositions from his critically acclaimed "One Quiet Night" CD. McBride and Sanchez then will join Metheny.

Tickets for Pat Metheny Solo & Trio are $32.50 and $27.50. Tickets are available from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday in the Center for the Arts Box Office and all Ticketmaster locations, including Kaufmann's. To charge tickets, call 852-5000; in Canada, call 1-416-870-8000. For group sales, call 645-6771. For more information, call 645-ARTS. The Center for the Arts is a TicketFast location.