Ben Slater Trio

Ben Slater Trio

The Ben Slater Trio Ben Slater, saxophone Luke Schwartz, guitar Sam Heminger, bass play a summer's worth of Ben's new compositions and arrangements. $20 cover charge (cash at the door, please), byob. Students, $10; kids free. All ages. For reservations, call the shop at 415-586-3733. Born and raised in San Francisco, Ben spent time on the East Coast and New Orleans before returning to the City. Here, he's been a leading member of the band Mean to Me since 2013 and regularly plays around town as a leader and sideplayer in other small combos. On saxophone, he draws on the lyricism of Wayne Shorter and Lester Young; on saxophone, he's internalized the rhythm-centered approaches of Ahmad Jamal, Erroll Garner, Duke Ellington and Thelonious Monk. Luke, also a native, is a guitarist, bassist, pianist, composer, and arranger, who spent time in New Orleans and New York and returned to San Francisco several years ago. His playing is influenced by jazz players such as Jim Hall, Joe Pass, Wes Montgomery, Peter Bernstein & Kurt Rosenwinkel. He also draws deeply from the idioms of funk and rock music. He leads his own small jazz combos, works in groups in a variety of styles, and performs as a solo artist. Sam, another San Francisco original, has a range of influences but is drawn most to playing music with a lot of interplay and communication between musicians. He can be found locally around the Bay Area playing with a variety of bands, including Mean to Me.