Subject to schedules and the indulgence of various wives, girlfriends, and parole officers, the Tall Granite Jazz Band frequently features the performers pictured below. Performers also include Jock Irvine, Craig Fahey, Dave Pereira, and BJ Steinberg.
Jim Cameron (tenor and soprano saxophones) has been a jazz musician and teacher around the Boston area since studying at the Berklee College of Music in the late ‘60s. When not performing with the Tall Granite Jazz Band, Jim's a regular in the New Hampshire Jazz Orchestra, and the North Shore's Pocket Big Band and Special Edition Big Band. From home in southern NH, Jim tours extensively with pianist Ron Hadley and has performed in clubs and jazz festivals in London, Tokyo, and Vancouver. He toured Italy in 2007 and tours Japan frequently with Ron Hadley and friends. Jim ranks tenor great Sonny Rollins high among his numerous jazz influences and collects and plays classic Conn saxophones from the mid-1920s. He can be heard on CDs released by Sea Breeze, Brownstone, and GM.
David A. Dustin (trombone, leader) lived and performed in Texas, where the space shuttle program supported his jazz habit. He studied jazz performance with bandleader and alto sax virtuoso Mark Holter (The Bopmeisters) and the late trombonist John Warner (Les Brown), playing in big bands in Houston and Dallas. Returning home to New Hampshire he became a regular with Concord’s J’Walkn Jazz and a founding member/manager of the Fountain Square Ramblers trad-jazz band. Dusty’s inspirations include composer-bandleader Duke Ellington and trombonists Jack Teagarden, Tom Artin and Delfeayo Marsalis. He’s a consultant in federal contracts management and married to the polymer clay artist Kathleen Dustin.
Kurt Ekstrom (drums) is another veteran of Concord’s J’Walkn Jazz quintet and a member of the rock group October Sons when not letting his jazz dogs out. Kurt works for the state in Concord and plays and collects classic Ludwig drumsets. He's particularly proud of his early “Ray Bauduc” set, which he used to good effect as another founding member of the Fountain Square Ramblers.
Sonny Feliciano (bass) is a well-known figure on the Concord music scene. A Brooklyn native, Sonny studied there at the Muse School of Music. He has performed in rock or jazz ensembles for most of his life and is another veteran of Concord's J’Walkn Jazz quintet. When not playing with his trio or other groups, Sonny works for the post office in Concord.
Bob Maccini (arranger, trumpet, trombone) holds a BA in music from Rhode Island College and studied arranging with Hal Crook, formerly of NBC’s Tonight Show Band. After playing in the Rhode Island jazz and rock scene, he took a long hiatus from music in favor of career and family pursuits, acquiring a Ph.D. in the process, but is now busy again arranging and performing jazz, pop, and sacred music. Bob, who lives in Henniker, NH, studied trumpet with the legendary Doc Reinhardt and now continues with Doc’s disciple and teaching heir, Dave Sheetz. Grab Bob’s iPod on any given day, and you may hear almost anything — Brahms, Clifford Brown, Jerry Douglas, Cab Calloway, the Squirrel Nut Zippers, Blind Faith. When not arranging for the Tall Granite Jazz Band or leading his own sacred-jazz band (The Prodigals), Bob works as an editor, is married to a Congregationalist pastor, has three adopted Russian daughters, and is owned by his cat.
Whit Symmes (piano) earned a BFA in Jazz Performance at Seattle’s Cornish College of the Arts, studying with Randy Halberstadt, James Knapp, and former Duke Ellington trombonist Julian Priester. He performed regularly on the Seattle jazz scene in the ‘80s and ‘90s before moving to Concord in 1998. Whit has worked as a music teacher and leads small jazz groups in local venues when not anchoring the Tall Granite Jazz Band. He’s particularly inspired by the music of composers Hoagy Carmichael and John Lennon. For his day gig, Whit's a partner in SpellDoctor, an educational software firm.
Tim Wildman (trumpet and flugelhorn) moonlights as a pastoral counselor and psychotherapist in Concord, NH, when not studying or playing jazz. Jazz runs in his blood, as his father played trumpet with the great Red Nichols until yielding his chair to a New Orleans upstart named Louis Prima. Tim counts Wild Bill Davison and Chet Baker among his trumpet influences and is especially fond of “hot” jazz as performed by the bands of Davison and Eddie Condon. Inspired by his long-time teacher Sai Ghose, Tim is also a jazz pianist and appears around Concord leading duo and trio units, and in New York City where he and Whit gig in a quintet led by his trombonist brother Jim Wildman.
Rob Daisy (tenor & soprano saxophone, clarinet) got his start in Pittsburgh where he earned his BFA in Performance at Carnegie Mellon University, performing with the Pittsburgh Symphony while appearing with jazz, latin, and funk groups on the local club scene. His musical career has taken him to pit orchestras in Germany, to show bands on cruise lines, and to Hawaii where he played for 3 years with the award-winning Hula Joe & the Hut Jumpers and the Royal Hawaiian Band. When not appearing with the Tall Granite Jazz Band or other groups, Rob directs the Windham Swing Band, teaches woodwinds, and is a sought-after contract and session player based in Merrimack, NH.Satin Doll (full length, featuring Jim Cameron, tenor sax)
Song For My Father (excerpt)
Four (excerpt)
A Nonni's medley (excerpts)