Sasha Berliner
Gillian Margot (l) and Geoffrey Keezer (r); photo credit: John Abbott
Lionel Loueke (l) & Dave Holland (r)
Melissa Aldana; photo credit: Eduardo Pavez Goye
Thursday, June 5, 7:30 PM—Sasha Berliner Quartet (at the Athenaeum)
*AT THE ATHENAEUM MUSIC & ARTS LIBRARY*
The series begins on June 5 with the Sasha Berliner Quartet, featuring Berliner on vibraphone, Javier Santiago on piano, Max Gerl on bass, and Myles Martin on drums. Berliner, who made her Athenaeum debut last fall with bassist Ben Williams, returns as the leader of her own band with music from her March 2025 release, Fantôme. Named winner of the 2020 DownBeat Critics Poll Rising Star—Vibraphone category, she was both the first woman, and at 21, the youngest individual in the poll’s history to receive the award. She has been voted one of the top 10 vibraphonists in DownBeat Readers Poll every year since 2021. Sasha has headlined venues like the Newport Jazz Festival, The Blue Note, Montreal Jazz Festival, and Monterey Jazz Festival and has recorded and performed with such renowned musicians as Tyshawn Sorey, Nicholas Payton, Christian McBride, and Cecile McLorin Salvant.
All About Jazz wrote, “Berliner is in the firmament of the here and now in modern jazz and appears likely to occupy that upper stratosphere for some time to come.” Of Fantôme, the French website Paris Move commented, "Her music is at once complex and accessible, effortlessly borrowing from pop, rock, and funk while remaining resolutely jazz—vibrant, lyrical, and imbued with a poetic sensibility. Berliner brings a rare dynamism to the vibraphone.”
Wednesday, June 11, 7:30 PM—Gillian Margot and Geoffrey Keezer (at the Athenaeum)
*AT THE ATHENAEUM MUSIC & ARTS LIBRARY*
The series continues on June 11 with former San Diego residents vocalist Gillian Margot and Geoffrey Keezer (piano), featuring music from their eponymous new duo album. For this Athenaeum date, they are joined by Ben Williams on bass and San Diego jazz hero Peter Sprague on guitar. With an exquisite voice, a disarmingly wide vocal range, and a style that is deeply rooted in the tradition of the great jazz vocalists, Margot possesses a gift of storytelling and stunning lyrical delivery. A native of Toronto, Canada, Margot studied under a generation of jazz legends including Oscar Peterson, Freddy Cole, Carol Welsman, and Norman Simmons. Keezer is a GRAMMY-winning pianist, composer, arranger, and producer based in New York City, where he first moved in 1989 to become the final pianist with the legendary Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. Keezer has toured and recorded with a galaxy of stars including Ray Brown, Roy Hargrove, Joshua Redman, Diana Krall, Wayne Shorter, Dianne Reeves, Sting, and Christian McBride.
Partners in music since 2014 and in life since 2016, both Margot and Keezer share a predisposition to address, in Margot’s words, “different styles, genres, or grooves and feels, and harmonic implications,” an attitude that accounts for the capacious range of repertoire in their performances. A spirit of freedom judiciously balanced with collective consciousness pervades their recent recording, as Keezer and Margot mind meld on a half-dozen “Standard” standards along with authoritatively interpreted songs by Hermeto Pascoal, Peter Gabriel, Chick Corea, and Donald and Dorothy Brown.
Monday, June 16, 7:30 PM—Dave Holland and Lionel Loueke (at Scripps Research)
*AT SCRIPPS RESEARCH AUDITORIUM*
June 16 (at Scripps Research) features the all-star duo of bassist Dave Holland and Lionel Loueke on guitar and voice, playing music from their forthcoming release, United. Holland makes a long-awaited return to the Athenaeum series, having last performed at the Scripps Research Hall in 2007. Holland’s passion for musical expression of all styles has propelled a career of more than 50 years and earned him top honors, including multiple GRAMMY awards and the title of NEA Jazz Master in 2017. His virtuosic technique and rhythmic feel are widely revered and in much demand. To date, his playing can be heard on hundreds of recordings, with more than 30 as a leader under his own name. Loueke last appeared at the library in summer 2023. A native of Benin, he came to the United States on a scholarship to Berklee College of Music and from there gained acceptance to the Thelonious Monk [now Herbie Hancock] Institute of Jazz in Los Angeles. Praised by his mentor Hancock as “a musical painter,” Loueke combines harmonic sophistication, soaring melody, and conventional and extended guitar techniques to create a warm and evocative sound of his own.
The duo of Holland and Loueke embodies a soulful conversation between two masters, merging their unique voices into something beautifully transcendent. The album is a profound testament to true collaboration, beautifully fusing Loueke’s rich West African roots with Holland’s profound influence on modern jazz.
Saturday, June 21, 7:30 PM—Melissa Aldana Quartet (at the Athenaeum)
*AT THE ATHENAEUM MUSIC & ARTS LIBRARY*
The series concludes on June 21 with the return of the Melissa Aldana Quartet, with Aldana on tenor sax, Glenn Zaleski on piano, Pablo Menares on bass, and Kush Abadey on drums. Aldana’s last Athenaeum performance was in March 2020, when she played music from her album Visions for Frida Kahlo, which earned her a first-ever GRAMMY nomination for Best Improvised Jazz Solo. Her program this June will feature music from her 2024 release on Blue Note Records, Echoes of the Inner Prophet. A native of Chile, Aldana moved to the United States to attend Berklee College of Music. In 2013, at age 24, she became the first female instrumentalist and the first South American musician to win the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Saxophone Competition.
Her latest album explores a fascinating paradox. As Aldana explains, it reflects her “personal journey, with an especially introspective point of view. The inner prophet is my own self, now older, who has the knowledge and the intuition and the truth about what my path should be. So, it’s this idea of connecting with that inner prophet,” she continues, “which reveals things about myself, including those things I don’t like.” At the same time, this deeply intimate, searching project is a celebration of collaboration and community. It documents the evolution of her quartet, capturing the collective insight they’ve garnered after extensive touring and travel, and arguing for their place among the most incisive working groups in jazz today.
The concerts will be in person at the Athenaeum Music & Arts Library and Scripps Research Auditorium. There are no physical tickets for these events. Your name will be on an attendee list at the front door. Doors open at 7 p.m. Seating is first-come; first-served. Priority seating will be given to Donor level members and above.
Ticket Confirmation Notice:
Your reservation is not complete until you receive an email confirmation. If you do not receive a confirmation email, your tickets have not been reserved. Please check your inbox and spam/junk folder or contact us at info@ljathenaeum.org or (858) 454-5872 to ensure your booking is finalized.
Thank you!