The Heath Brothers Quartet performs at concerts, festivals, clubs and educational venues world-wide. As The New York Times' chief jazz critic has written, "their sets offer a glimpse of great experience filtered through great gentleness; they're a real shot of joy." The quartet was founded in 1976 by Jimmy, Percy and Albert "Tootie" Heath -- one of the most distinguished families in jazz. The Heath Brothers have made 7 recordings, and their latest is due out soon. Percy Heath was the bassist for the Modern Jazz Quartet for more than 40 years and a NEA Jazz Master. Since his death in 2005, Jimmy and Tootie have introduced new songs, while preserving the band's original trademark of relaxed, funky, swinging bop.
Jimmy Heath • Tenor and Soprano Saxophones. The middle brother of the Heath jazz family and the leader of the quartet, Jimmy is a NEA Jazz Master and was a professor at the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College for 10 years. Awarded 3 Grammy nominations and 3 honorary doctorates, Jimmy was the first jazz artist to receive a doctorate from the Julliard School of Music. He has played and recorded with many of his legendary contemporaries including John Coltrane, Miles Davis and Dizzy Gillespie. He is a respected arranger and is credited with 130 compositions and 12 cds as a leader. Jimmy’s compositions have been played and recorded by Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Ahmad Jamal, Cannonball Adderley, Chet Baker, Clark Terry, Dexter Gordon, Milt Jackson, Yusef Lateef, Blue Mitchell and Jazz @ Lincoln Center Orchestra. He is also leader of the Jimmy Heath Big Band. www.jimmyheath.com
Albert “Tootie” Heath • Drums. The youngest of the Heath brothers and drummer for the quartet, Tootie is a recipient of Yale University's Duke Ellington Fellowship Medal. He was the drummer on John Coltrane’s first recording as a leader and the last drummer for the Modern Jazz Quartet. Tootie has played and recorded with Don Cherry, Art Farmer, Benny Golson, Frederic Gulda, Tommy Flanagan, Dexter Gordon, Nina Simone, Herbie Hancock, J.J. Johnson, Yusef Lateef, Sonny Rollins, Bobby Timmons, Lester Young, Cedar Walton and Ben Webster. He was a featured performer in the recent documentary Between a Smile and a Tear, by the filmmaker and pianist Niels Lan Doky, which revisited the glory years of Copenhagen's famed Club Montmartre where Tootie was house drummer. He is also the leader of the Whole Drum Truth ensemble, which performs innovative all-percussion concerts with a rotating roster of the foremost jazz drummers. www.thewholedrumtruth.com
Jeb Patton • Piano. A protege of the late Sir Roland Hanna, Jeb has been a member of the Heath Brothers Quartet for more than a decade. While a student at The Aaron Copland School of Music, he received The ASCAP Foundation's Louis Armstrong Award for Composition. Jeb may be heard on the Heath Brothers' recording Jazz Family and on Percy Heath's album A Love Song. His debut recording as a leader is titled A Lovesome Thing. Jeb has also performed with Etta Jones, Jackie McLean, James Moody, Frank Wess and Lewis Nash. www.jebpatton.com
David Wong • Bass. A graduate of the Julliard School of Music, David has studied with Ron Carter and Ben Wolfe, and was a member of the Eric Reed Trio. In addition to touring with the Heath Brothers, he is the regular bassist for Roy Haynes' Fountain of Youth band and performs with leading contemporary jazz artists, including Wynton Marsalis, Christian McBride, Carla Cook and Paula West.