The Kelly/Scott Jazz Quartet will perform “Jazz Stylings of Christmas Hymns & Songs” from 3 to 4:15 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 15, at St. Frances In-The-Field Church, 895 Palm Valley Road, Ponte Vedra. Doors open at 2:30 p.m.
The group consists of singer Lisa Kelly, JB Scott on trumpet, Jeff Phillips on piano/bass/guitar/strings and drummer Clyde Connor.
This uplifting afternoon of holiday music features the group’s original arrangements of classic Christmas hymns and songs in interpretive jazz styles of swing, Brazilian bossa nova, waltzes and sensitive ballads, as well as light grooves, gospel and the happy sounds of New Orleans.
Songs include “What Child is This,” “My Favorite Things,” “Winter Wonderland,” “We Three Kings,” “The Christmas Song,” “The First Noel,” “I Wonder As I Wander” and more. The program will also share a special selection by a St. Francis-In-The-Field musical group to preview the exciting Dec. 19 Music Department Charity Christmas Concert.
With notable career backgrounds that include the Larry Elgart Orchestra, the New York Pops, the St. Johns River City Band, Walt Disney World theme parks, leading the legendary Dukes of Dixieland, to drumming with the Navy Commodores in D.C., these popular artists are much followed for their exceptional, wonderfully entertaining musicianship.
They have headlined jazz clubs and renowned concert halls, major corporate events and music festivals. Together, they have toured, recorded and delighted countless audiences regionally and abroad.
Donations for the quartet will be accepted at the door.
For further information, go to stfrancispvb.org or phone 904-615-2130.
Lisa Kelly
Known for her smooth, intimate vocal tone, Lisa Kelly is a 2013 Jacksonville Jazz Festival “Hall of Fame” inductee. She was a featured vocalist with the legendary Larry Elgart Orchestra, the St. Johns River City Big Band and the UNF JE 1 big band.
Her worldwide performances have included the Vienna State Opera House, the Kennedy Center, Montreux Jazz Festival, the Pescara Jazz Festival, the Jazz Corner, the Van Wezel, the SS Norway Big Band Cruise and other major venues and jazz festivals.
She has sung with Ed Calle, Jane Monheit, Bransford Marsalis and other jazz notables. Earning her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in jazz studies, teaching music at various schools, Kelly originated the Jacksonville Jazz Festival jam session and ran it for 20 years. She now directs the multi-generational Swingin’ Summer Jazz Camp.
Kelly performs as a featured guest artist and presents jazz clinics and residencies.
JB Scott
The first graduate of the regarded UNF jazz program, JB Scott toured with the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra and with the Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus (Japan) and led the famed "Dukes of Dixieland" in New Orlean’s Mahogany Hall. He performed on the PBS recorded special, “A Salute to Jelly Roll Morton,” with Skitch Henderson and the New York Pops at Carnagie Hall, and with Al Jarreau and the Jacksonville Symphony.
Scott has performed with jazz notables Ed Calle, Jeff Hamilton, Lynn Seaton, Al Hirt and others. The 2017 Jacksonville Jazz Festival “Hall of Fame” inductee, in his 27th year as the UNF jazz trumpet professor, directs the UNF JE 1 big band, the Great American Jazz Series and is the coordinator of jazz studies.
With a bachelor’s degree from UNF and a master’s in music education from FIU, Scott is a Warburton Signature Trumpet Artist, much in demand as a performer and clinician.
Jeff Phillips
Former staff pianist for years at Walt Disney World Parks with the Grand Floridian High Society Band and the Rhythm Rascals, Jeff Phillips has toured and recorded with Bill Allred Classic Jazz Band, the Midiri Brothers, Connie Haynes, Ken Peplowski, Louis Bellson, Warren Vache’ Buddy DeFranco, Bob Draga and many other jazz luminaries.
He also plays organ and a unique keyboard-and-foot-pedal signature presentation.
Phillips has been featured on radio, TV and CD recordings and has more than 30 years of performances as a much in demand accompanist and as a group leader. He serves as a guest artist/clinician with vocalist Lisa Kelly, and as an adjudicator.
With a formal degree in tuba and music education, Phillips serves as an adjunct instructor at Harrison High SOTA in Lakeland.
Clyde Connor
A former drummer with the U.S. Navy Commodores Big Band in Washington, D.C., Clyde Connor has been featured on Bedwin, Connor, & Warner Brothers, and on other recordings of standing with Randy Brecker, Doc Severinsen, Dave Brubeck, Diane Schuur and countless others.
Connor continues to play big band, small group, symphony and “pops” concerts for jazz clubs, major venues and festivals. He was a main drummer for the St. Johns River City Big Band, the Baltimore Symphony and for the Jacksonville Jazz Festival’s piano competition.
With bachelor’s and master’s degrees in jazz, attending the University of North Texas, with completion at the University of Florida, where he has been serving on faculty since 2016 as a drum professor, band director and instructor of arranging.
