The Greg Hopkins-Dino Govoni Quintet

The Williams College Department of Music presents an evening of spectacular jazz courtesy of The Greg Hopkins-Dino Govoni Quintet on Thursday, March 10 at 8 p.m. on the MainStage of the ’62 Center for Theatre and Dance. This event, supported by the W. Ford Schumann Performing Arts Endowment, is free and open to the public but does require tickets.

Jazz fans should make plans for one of the biggest jazz events in several seasons at Williams College’s ’62 Center for Theatre and Dance. The Berkshires really got slammed this year with one of the coldest and hardest winters in memory. Here is a cure for the cabin fever and a way to feel the heat again. The maintenance crew has made sure the ice is cleared and has been adjusting the smoke detectors in advance of this event to prepare for the dance and drama of the ever-burning Hopkins-Govoni Quintet with an evening of Contemporary-Post/Hard Bop Swinging Jazz with a tinge of Latin.

Performer, composer, and arranger Greg Hopkins first picked up the trumpet as a boy in Detroit and to this day it would be hard to spot him without his horn. Hopkins plays even when caught in traffic commuting to Berklee College of Music, where he’s been teaching since 1974, the year the London Times called him “a real find” for the Buddy Rich Orchestra, according to Phillips Academy.

He has toured nationally and internationally, appearing at the Newport, Monterey, and other major jazz festivals. Hopkins has performed with Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Stevie Wonder, Joe Williams, Tony Bennett, the Supremes, Burt Bacharach, Nancy Wilson, Lou Rawls, Mitzi Gaynor, Michel Legrand, Johnny Mathis, Shirley Maclame, Marvin Hamlisch, and Lena Home, as well as with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Pops, and the Boston Brass Ensemble.

One of the most versatile contemporary saxophonists is undoubtedly Dino Govoni. Govoni learned from two tenor sax greats, Jerry Bergonzi and George Garzone, and furthered his studies by attending Berklee College of Music, studying with the late, great Joe Viola. Govoni hit the road right away with a variety of musical outfits, playing and/or recording with such diverse artists as Grover Washington Jr., Randy Brecker, Eddie Gomez, Billy Hart, Terri Lyne Carrington, Larry Goldings, Bill Stewart, Arturo Sandoval, Cindy Blackman, Oscar Stagnaro, Mark Walker, Joe Beck, Jason Miles, Prassana, Terence Trent D’Arby, Mike Clark, Robben Ford, Tom Brechtlein, Ed Spargo, Mel Tormé, the Manhattan Transfer, the Boston Pops, the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, the John Allmark Jazz Orchestra, and Frankie Valli, among others.

Govoni has two recordings under his own name to date, “Breakin’ Out” and “In the Library,” both on the Whaling City Sound label. He has also been a side man on many sessions and recordings with many well-known artists as well and many local artists in Boston and New York. In addition to his performances, Govoni is currently on the faculty at Berklee College of Music.

The quintet is rounded out by Mark Shilansky, piano; Keala Kaumeheiwa, bass; and Bob Gullotti, drums. These musicians have equally impressive pedigree playing with such greats as Jimmy Heath, Jackie McLean, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, T.S. Monk, Wynton Marsalis, Bobby Watson, Harry “Sweets” Edison, and James Moody.

This quintet of gentlemen who refer to each other as “cats,” not for effect, but because they come from that era of true jazz, offer themselves as master interpreters of the jazz canon and are surely one of the best tickets on the jazz calendar this year. Contact the ’62 Center Box Office for reservations and dress lightly – things may get hot.

Greg Hopkins, leader; Mark Shilansky, piano; Keala Kaumeheiwa, bass; Bob Gullotti, drums; and Dino Govoni, tenor sax

Greg Hopkins
Performer, composer and arranger Greg Hopkins first picked up the trumpet as a boy in Detroit, and to this day it would be hard to spot him without his horn. Hopkins plays even when caught in traffic on commute to Berklee College of Music, where he’s been teaching since 1974 the year the London Times called him “a real find” for the Buddy Rich Orchestra, according to Phillips Academy.

He has toured nationally and internationally, appearing at the Newport, Monterey, and other major jazz festivals. Hopkins has performed with Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Stevie Wonder, Joe Williams, Tony Bennett, the Supremes, Burt Bacharach, Nancy Wilson, Lou Rawls, Mitzi Gaynor, Michel Legrand, Johnny Mathis, Shirley Maclame, Marvin Hamlisch and Lena Home, as well as with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Pops and the Boston Brass Ensemble.

Dino Govoni, tenor sax
One of the most versatile contemporary saxophonists is undoubtedly Dino Govoni. Govoni learned from two tenor sax greats, Jerry Bergonzi and George Garzone, and furthered his studies by attending Berklee College of Music, studying with the late, great Joe Viola. Govoni hit the road right away with a variety of musical outfits, playing and/or recording with such diverse artists as Grover Washington Jr., Randy Brecker, Eddie Gomez, Billy Hart, Terri Lyne Carrington, Larry Goldings, Bill Stewart, Arturo Sandoval, Cindy Blackman, Oscar Stagnaro, Mark Walker, Joe Beck, Jason Miles, Prassana, Terence Trent D’Arby, Mike Clark, Robben Ford, Tom Brechtlein, Ed Spargo, Mel Tormé, the Manhattan Transfer, the Boston Pops, the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, the John Allmark Jazz Orchestra, and Frankie Valli, among others.

Govoni has two recordings under his own name to date, “Breakin’ Out” and “In the Library”, both on the Whaling City Sound label. Dino has also been a side man on many sessions and recordings with many well-known artists as well and many local artists in Boston and New York.

In addition to his performances, Govoni is currently on the faculty at Berklee College of Music (as an assistant professor of woodwinds) and lives in Franklin Massachusetts with his wife, also a musician and young daughter.

Bob Gullotti is an experienced performer and teacher with a highly successful background as a professional musician, gaining acclaim both in the U.S. and abroad for unique creativity interpretive technique, and technical performance quality. His experience includes tours of Europe, South America, Australia, Canada, the Middle East, and the United States with his own band and with such well-known artists as Gary Bartz and Eddie Henderson. Bob has performed with such jazz notables as J.J. Johnson, John Abercrombie, George Mraz, Joe Lovano, Kenny Werner, Eddie Gomez, Tom Harrell, Mike Mainieri, Mose Allison, John Medeski, John Patitucci, Bob Brookmeyer, and Miroslav Vitous. Bob performed with the rock group Phish. His band, The Fringe, is a four-time recipient of the Boston Music Awards #1 Jazz Act Award. He has over fifty recordings to his credit and currently his band has a multi-record release contract with Soul Note Records, one of the top jazz labels in the world.

Bob also has an extensive teaching background and is recognized as one of New England’s top private teachers with many working professional students. He in on the faculty of the University of Massachusetts and the Berklee College of Music, and teaches percussion to music majors at other area colleges and universities. Bob has presented lectures and classes at such schools as Dartmouth College, Harvard University, New York University, Pennsylvania State University, Adelaide Conservatory (Australia), Bogota University (South America), and Ramon School of Jazz (Israel). He was asked by the French Government to help organize and operate the “Jazz is Toulon” jazz camp, and has lectured and taught at the Switzerland Jazz Workshop. At New York University he was the percussionist instructor for the National Young Audiences concert series under grants from the National Endowment of the Arts.

Bassist Keala Kaumeheiwa has performed with Jimmy Heath, Jackie McLean, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, T.S. Monk, Wynton Marsalis, Bobby Watson, Harry “Sweets” Edison, and James Moody as part of the first graduating class of the Thelonious Monk Institute. Currently, he is teaching Jazz Combo Ensembles at MIT, and freelancing around Boston, frequently performing at Sculler’s Jazz Club, Ryles, Wally’s Jazz Cafe and the Regattabar.

Mark Shilansky is an in-demand pianist, vocalist, and composer with over 50 CDs to his credit, and appearances with such artists as the New York Voices, Luciana Souza, Rebecca Parris, Patrice Williamson, Kenny Wheeler, and the vocal jazz group Syncopation. He has released 3 CDs of his own music (“Different Songs,” “Other Voices,” and “Join the Club”) ranging from original pop songs to latin-jazz explorations. In addition to his international performing career, Mark has taught at Berklee College of Music since 1998, and is an adjunct faculty at the University of NH. http://www.markshilansky.com

Event Program