Over the years, the Rimon School of Music in Ramat Hasharon has made a habit of bringing in some heavyweight professionals from overseas to work with its jazz department students. This year the school has gone for a member of the younger generation, with American composer, orchestrator, and tenor saxophonist Tivon Pennicott due to impart some of the experience he has accumulated during his decade and half-long career in New York to date, at a master class at the school later today. That will be followed by a concert at the school this evening (6:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. respectively).
Pennicott certainly has the credentials to do the business with the students and in the subsequent performance with jazz institute head, pianist Ronen Shmueli and fellow professionals trombonist Jonathan Volchock, bass player Yoav Ganor and drummer Roni Kaspi.
Who is the acclaimed jazzman Tivon Pennicott?
The American reedman has contributed to three Grammy wins, one with stellar bassist Esperanza Spalding and two with popular vocalist Gregory Porter. He also placed second in the prestigious Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz competition in 2013.
The following year he released his debut recording, “Lover of Nature,” in tandem with the Sound Quartet he formed five years earlier, with pianist Mike Battaglia, bassist Spencer Murphy, and drummer Kenneth Salters. His sophomore album, Spirit Garden which came out in 2020, is a much grander affair. Pennicott composed, orchestrated, and produced the record, playing on it with a sextet backed by a 26-piece orchestra.
Pennicott did get some studio time before he embarked on his own project-leading recordings, including a spot on the still-active 92-year-old guitarist Kenny Burrell’s 2010 release “Be Yourself” and continues to work with him. Other notable gigs in the Pennicott bio include collaborations with drummer Ari Hoenig and with late trumpeter Roy Hargrove.
The saxman has appeared on many of the world’s leading stages, including the Royal Albert Hall, Berliner Philharmonie, and Carnegie Hall. He has also reached wider audiences as a member of the house band of the popular CBS The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
He also brings impressive educational collateral with him to the Rimon School engagement, as a faculty member at New York University.
For more information: rimonschool.co.il/en/
