Jon Batiste Jazzes Up Park City Tonight

As spicy and richly textured as his native N'Orleans, jazzman Jon Batiste and his New York City-based band of Julliard contemporaries dish out a steamy concoction of everything from ragtime to funk. The licks, grooves and stompin' beats sizzle in The Eccles Center spotlight tonight, February 8. The Jon Batiste & Stay Human concert starts at 7:30 p.m.

With "a mission of bringing the joy of jazz to the masses" (New York Daily News) the 27 year-old Batiste and his band don't just play the music; they live it, breathe it and, most importantly, share it... even on the subway (where they created a self-produced album). It's a sound described by a Washington Post reviewer as "... pounding rhythms and lively melodies, deceptively finessed and firmly steeped in gospel and the blues."

Born and raised in a culture and family of jazz - and educated at the prestigious New Orleans Center for Creative Arts as well as the Juilliard School - Batiste comes to the stage with innate artistry as well has fine-tuned technique. His heritage is deeply rooted in New Orleans; his family's connection to the music of the Crescent City was part of the inspiration for the HBO documentary Treme in which he appeared. Yet, he has also fused his musical background with the sounds and influences of a decade of living in the Big Apple. A New York Times reviewer, who caught Batiste's act at this summer's Newport Jazz Festival, described him as "fast-tracking toward heroism." Already, he has collaborated with everyone from Prince to Wynton Marsalis.

The band, Stay Human, includes Batiste (on piano, vocals and melodica, which he has renamed the harmonaboard); Eddie Barbash on alto saxophone; Ibanda Ruhumbika on tuba; and Joe Saylor on drums. Jon Batiste & Stay Human's most recent release, Social Music, hit the airwaves this fall.

"If you missed Jon Batiste's impromptu parade alongside Mayor Williams down Main Street during last year's Sundance Film Festival, this is an opportunity to catch an incredible talent, a musician who is truly making jazz and its sister genres relevant for a new generation," says PCI executive director Teri Orr. "Jon Batiste is to harmonaboard what Jimi Hendrix was to guitar. And his band is just as jaw-dropping in its sheer artistry and ability to entertain."

Park City Institute presents Jon Batiste & Stay Human on Saturday, February 8. The concert takes place at The George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Center for the Performing Arts (1750 Kearns Blvd., Park City). Show starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets range from $20 to $69 with a 20-percent discount for seniors; ½ price tickets for children ages 16 and under; $5 seats available in the Copper Section for Summit County students (K-12). Tickets and information are available at The Eccles Center box office, 435-655-3114 or www.ecclescenter.org.

Park City Institute is a non-profit organization, dedicated to bringing world-class performances and new ideas to the community. Since 1998, PCI has presented internationally renowned and cutting edge musicians, actors, authors, comedians, dancers, speakers and film at The George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Center for the Performing Arts (a joint-use facility with the Park City School District). The organization will present its 11th season of headliner concerts at Deer Valley Resort in the summer of 2014. PCI is dedicated to introducing young people to the arts through free student outreach workshops, shows and demonstrations. They proudly launched the Mega Genius Supply Store and IQ HQ - an after school literacy program and very thinky retail store - in January 2010. And the organization continues to illuminate with TEDx events and Curiosities evenings.