The St. John School of the Arts will present a jazz concert featuring Victor Provost, Alex Brown and others on Friday, March 28 at 6:30 p.m.
This will be the 10th time that steelpan virtuoso Victor Provost and Grammy Award-winning pianist Alex Brown have performed as part of the Sis Frank Concert Series at the school’s intimate Cruz Bay performance space. Tickets are $50 and are available on the school’s website or by calling the school at 340-779-4322.
Provost and Brown are returning with members of a band that first played together on St. John nine years ago. Zach Brown– Alex’s brother – is on bass, and Billy Williams is on drums.
This year they will primarily be playing original music composed by Alex Brown and Victor Provost from their new album entitled “Island to Island.”
The title refers to their “home” islands – St. John for Provost, where he was born and raised, and Manhattan for Brown, where his jazz career is now based. But it also refers to the early years of their collaboration that began during the pandemic “when we were in our own little personal islands,” Provost said.
Tracks for the album were recorded over the years in diverse locations ranging from Anguilla (where St. Thomas bass player Reuben Rogers was staying during the pandemic) to Santa Cruz, Calif.
During Friday’s concert, the band will also be playing some selections by the Beatles and Jobim that are familiar to listeners. “As composers we have our ‘art,’ but as performers we like to create fellowship with our audiences, and we all have memories that tie in with certain songs,” Provost said.
Provost has been performing for more than 30 years at the St. John School of the Arts where he began studying steel pan in 1992 with Rudy Wells, the director of Steel Unlimited II. Even after decades of performing, he says his heart still races when he gets up on stage, except when he is at the School of the Arts. “I feel like I can do anything – speak my mind, play whatever I want musically. It’s literally a homecoming.”
Provost returns frequently to his home community through Dion Parson’s United Jazz Foundation, mentoring young musicians and promoting artistic growth throughout the Virgin Islands.
Currently an adjunct professor of music at George Mason University, Provost also conducts masterclasses and residencies throughout the U.S. and Caribbean. For more information on Provost, visit his website.
Provost and Brown met 12 years ago at a gig when Brown was performing and Provost was invited to sit in with his steel pan. Brown, who was then already touring with renowned saxophonist Paquito D’Rivera, later recommended Provost to fill in with the Caribbean Jazz Project when another pan player wasn’t available; the two soon became close friends and musical collaborators.
An award-winning pianist and composer, Alex Brown is an adept jazz improviser whose work touches upon post-bop, fusion, Latin, and classical traditions. He is now on the faculty of the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore.
Born in 1987, Brown grew up in Maryland where he played piano from a young age. After high school, he earned his Bachelor of Music degree in jazz performance from the New England Conservatory and, later, his Master of Music from the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music. In 2007, he joined saxophonist Paquito D’Rivera‘s group, touring and recording several albums, including 2009’s Grammy-nominated Jazz-Class. He has also worked on projects with an array of performers, such as Yo-Yo Ma, Cho-Liang Lin, David Sanchez, New York Voices, and Miguel Zenon. For further information on Brown, visit his website.
A limited number of tickets are available for a “Dinner with the Stars,” a prix fixe fine-dining experience at the STJ Speakeasy, following the concert. Tickets can be purchased here.
