Jerry Weldon - The Summit

"There’s so much about the heart and soul of this music that can’t be taught in a classroom. I’ve always wanted to help the younger musicians, passing on what I’ve learned just as the older musicians did for me. That’s how music continues to thrive. During the Covid lockdown, I channeled my creativity into composing and arranging for a group that existed in my imagination. While taking in late-night sets in New York and attending a weekly Emerging Artists Series in New Jersey, I encountered incredibly talented young musicians. Among them, pianist Mike Bond, bassist Jason Clotter and drummer Hank Allen-Barfield. Trumpeter Alonzo Demetrius came highly recommended by my friend, the late Ralph Peterson. I met trombonist Peter Lin through the great Slide Hampton. Drummer, Carmen Intorre I had met a few years earlier at a late-night session at Dizzy’s in New York. When the pandemic began to ease and a rehearsal space was made available nearby, I decided there was no better time to put together the sextet I had been thinking about. The pandemic had weighed down everybody and it felt like it was the right time to climb out from under and the Summit was born." - Jerry Weldon