Gracie's Monday Jazz Jam w/ Host David Halliday and the JVQ

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The Jazz Vespers Quartet In 2011, the Jazz Vespers Quartet became the house band for Jazz Vespers, a concert series under the direction of Rev. Tom Goldsmith that has been running for 25 years on the eight Sundays before Christmas at the First Unitarian Church in Salt Lake City. Led by co-musical directors David Halliday and Courtney Smith, the JVQ has performed jazz tributes to over twenty different artists including: the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles, Led Zeppelin, Aretha Franklin, and Bob Dylan, featuring original arrangements by Halliday and Smith. The JVQ's energy, outstanding musicianship, and passionate, soulful performances ensure packed houses every Sunday night. In summer of 2014, Gracie's in downtown Salt Lake began featuring the JVQ as the house band of their Monday Night Jazz Jam. David Halliday is the first-call saxophonist in Salt Lake City and has opened for Diana Krall, B.B. King, George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic, and Karl Denson's Tiny Universe. His performance credits include Ben Folds, Josh Groban, the Temptations, Doc Serverinsen, and the Utah Symphony. He currently directs the jazz program at Westminster College, teaches private saxophone at Snow College in Ephraim, Utah, and is an Associate Adjunct Professor of Saxophone at the University of Utah. His original compositions appear on numerous television shows, films, and commercials in the U.S, as well as nineteen different countries around the world. www.davidhallidaymusic.com Courtney Smith was born in Salt Lake City in 1983. He began playing piano at age three. Smith played in the East High School orchestra until graduating in 2002. In fall of that year he attended the University of Utah where he studied composition with Steve Roens, Morris Rozensweig, and Igor Iachimcuic, jazz piano with Steve Keen and Dan Waldis, and orchestration (jazz and classical) with Henry Wolking. Smith graduated from the U of U in 2010. That year, Reverend Tom Goldsmith of the First Unitarian Church of Salt Lake City appointed Courtney a co-musical director (along with David Halliday) of the Jazz Vespers series. Joining forces with Denson Angulo and Steve Lyman, the Jazz Vespers Quartet (JVQ) was born and continues to expand and conjoin the worlds of pop and jazz. Courtney has a BM in Composition from the U of U and, in addition to keyboards, plays organ, drums, and bass. Three of Courtney’s original gospel compositions are featured on the Salt Lake City Mass Choir album All Praise, which is the first gospel music album recorded in Salt Lake City featuring only people from the greater Salt Lake Valley. Denson Angulo is one of the most sought-after bassists in the Salt Lake City metro area. With a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in classical performance and jazz studies, and skills in an abundance of music styles, Denson has worked extensively as an educator and free-lance professional playing electric bass, acoustic jazz, and classical double bass. His credentials include international tours to China, Taiwan, Australia, and most of Europe; performances with jazz greats Bob Mintzer, Bob Berg, Randy Brecker, Victor Wooten, Nicholas Payton, Bob Shepard, Jamie Aebersold, Wycliffe Gordon, Dennis DiBlasio, Kathy Kosins, Tom Scott, Shelly Berg, Bobby Shew, Gregg Bissonette, Carl Allen and many others. As a classical musician, he has recorded for ESPN, ABC, NBC television, DreamWorks Pictures, and LDS motion pictures, and performed solo bass repertoire with the Honolulu Symphony. As an educator he has maintained private bass studios for over 20 years. He has traveled the inter-mountain west as an adjudicator and clinician and has been a full-time professor at Brigham Young University Idaho coordinating their Classical/Jazz bass studio, running their jazz combo program, and teaching jazz history. He also taught at Snow College in Ephraim, UT working with classical and jazz bass students and teaching jazz improvisation. Denson also free-lances and teaches all over Utah and throughout the United States. Steve Lyman is a drummer, composer, bandleader, author and educator. He has shared the stage with many of today’s top jazz artists including Aaron Parks, Nir Felder, José James, George Garzone, and Jaleel Shaw. He has performed at the Blue Note and Smalls jazz clubs in New York as both a leader and a sideman, as well as at BBC Studios London, Blue Note Milan, New Morning Paris, and other venues in Spain, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, France, South America, and the UK. Lyman appears on José James’ record The Dreamer which was voted #21 on JazzTimes magazine’s top 50 albums of 2008. His debut record as a leader, Revolver, received five out of five stars in All about Jazz magazine. Lyman is the author of A New Approach to Odd Times for Drumset (Mel Bay) 2013. Lyman has taught master classes at Utah State, Brigham Young, and the University of New Mexico at Santa Fe. In 2007 Lyman co-led a drumset masterclass alongside jazz drumming legend Billy Hart at Montclair State University. He taught combos at the University of Utah from 2010-2012. Lyman holds degrees from the New School and the University of Utah and is currently the percussion teacher at American Preparatory Academy.