On Thursday July 21 the Down South Jazz Club are delighted to present The Paul Dion Trio with the Fabulous Marie Wilson (multi-award winning vocalist).
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The Paul Dion Trio consists of Paul Dion on piano and vocals, George Gerontakos on bass and Ken Vatcher on drums.
Local pianist Paul Dion is well known in the area and certainly no stranger to the Down South Jazz Club. His musical journey has been a colourful and varied one. Starting out as a self-taught 14-year-old clarinettist he played his first gig in a woolshed in 1964 for ₤5.
The legendary Frank Smith, a member of the Hector Crawford Showcase Orchestra, gave him free lessons and from then on his journey took a professional turn with regular session work and engagements in Sydney as a soloist and support musician for many international stars.
Following study at the Sydney Conservatorium as a voice major he joined the then Australian Opera for five years as a tenor.
George Gerontakos’ double bass career started when he met double bass guru Bruce Cale after he returned from the USA in 1978.
He studied with Bruce and became principal bassist with ‘Ars Nova’ and ‘Orpheus Strings Chamber Orchestra’ for 10 years.
During this period George also worked as a utility bassist for local jazz trios and ensembles.
Ken is a multi-disciplined drummer, comfortable in any style of music, and complements front-line musicians with his strict time-keeping and inventiveness.
He played for many years with a show band at top venues in Melbourne prior to moving to Mallacoota, and now Pambula Beach.
Marie Wilson, a jazz vocalist whose repertoire spans the 30s, 40s and 50s, was born in Calcutta of Anglo-Indian parentage and first established herself as a jazz singer on the Indian jazz scene before emigrating to Australia in the early 1960’s.
In the early 1980s she decided to concentrate on jazz singing and quickly established herself as a leading jazz performer.
She has toured internationally and has appeared at many jazz festivals both in Australia and overseas, and has also won several awards as Australia’s jazz vocalist of the year. Back in 2008, Marie Wilson delighted the Down South Jazz Club when she appeared with the Peter Locke Trio, and many were able to listen to her again at this year’s jazz festival.
Cost is $15 for jazz club members and $20 for visitors with music commencing at Club Sapphire at 7.30pm. Bookings can be made with Aileen/Kevin Walsh 6495 9853 or will be available on the night at the door.