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Jazz pianist Skip Wilkins, assistant professor of music, will perform with the Skip Wilkins Quintet, featuring Philadelphia legends Larry McKenna and John Swana, 8 p.m-midnight Saturday, Feb. 21, at the Deer Head Inn, 5 Main St. (Route 611), Delaware Water Gap.
The quintet’s lineup is Wilkins, piano; McKenna, tenor saxophone; Swana, trumpet; Roy Cumming, bass; and Glenn Davis, drums.
“This will be Larry’s first performance at the Deer Head, itself a legendary place,” says Wilkins. “The legends meet! This is something that you won’t want to miss.”
Admission is $7. For more information, see http://www.deerheadinn.com.
Wilkins also will appear with guitarist Tom Kozic 7-11 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 19, at the Blue Orchid Inn, 1565 State Street, Mertztown, Pa.
Wilkins and Kozic, who typically perform together about every three months, will work out ideas for a new recording that they plan to do together.Wilkins normally performs at Blue Orchid Inn on the last Thursday of the month, but will appear one week earlier in February and March. His next dates there are Thursday, March 18, and Thursday, April 29. For more information, see http://www.blueorchidinn.com.
In addition, Wilkins will perform with the Gary Rissmiller Trio 9 p.m.-12:30 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 24, at Indulge, 570 Union Blvd., Allentown. The cover charge is $3, and musicians are welcome to sit in after the first set. The band is comprised of Rissmiller, drums; Wilkins, piano; and Tony Marino, bass.
For more than 25 years, Wilkins has enjoyed performing with many accomplished musicians, including saxophonists David Liebman, Stanley Turrentine, Bobby Watson, and Plas Johnson; vocalists Jill Allen and Mark Murphy; trumpeters Clark Terry and Conte Candoli; trombonist Al Grey; bassist Milt Hinton; and drummers Bob Moses, Joe Hunt, and Peter Erskine.
In 2001, Wilkins and Allen released Petty Theft on Cathexis Records. Featuring the Wilkins & Allen Quartet and Grammy-nominated saxophonist David Liebman, the CD received significant airplay and positive reviews nationwide, including a three-star review from Karl Stark in the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Previously, Wilkins & Allen released Two Much Fun! on Eaglear Records. Some of their highlight performances together include New York’s Tavern on the Green and The Wichita Jazz Festival, and tours around the United States.
Wilkins teaches courses in music theory and jazz at Lafayette. Previously, he taught at University of Northern Colorado, spending many of his eight years there in the nationally acclaimed Jazz Studies program. He earned a bachelor’s degree from College of the Holy Cross and a master’s degree from University of Northern Colorado. He also studied jazz composition and arrangement with Herb Pomeroy at Berklee College of Music in Boston, and is a former faculty member at Berklee.
Wilkins is a 2001 fellowship recipient from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, receiving an award for excellence in jazz composition. Many of the compositions for which he was recognized are included on Petty Theft.