Album by Wilson ’78 Featured in Downbeat Magazine

Cynthia RockwellMarch 1, 20113min
Dave Wilson ’78

Spiral, a CD by the Dave Wilson [’78] Quartet received a three-and-a-half star review in the November issue of Downbeat magazine. Released last June on Summit Records, Spiral features six original compositions by Wilson and arrangements of three contemporary classics, including the Grateful Dead’s “Friend of the Devil. ”

“With a crack band in pianist Phil Markowitz, bassist Tony Marino and Adam Nussbaum on drums, saxophonist Dave Wilson knows how to pick them and the music,” writes critic John Ephland of Downbeat.

Additionally, in a review in the December issue of JazzTimes Magazine, critic Bill Milkowski observed that “Pennsylvania-based saxophonist-educator Dave Wilson elevates his game and blows with authority on this collection of originals and smartly plucked covers. “

Says Wilson about the music on the album: “These songs, including the original compositions and the ‘cover’ tunes, are all, for various reasons, close to my heart. They are like personal statements of where I am at in my life, musically and otherwise. When I make and play music like this I am trying to communicate such heartfelt sentiments to the listener, whether they are in the club, the concert hall, or listening to the recording.”

A philosophy major at Wesleyan, he also holds a BS in music education from Lebanon Valley College. He resides in the Lancaster, Pa., area and teaches private music lessons on woodwinds and continues to write, record, and play music in the Mid-Atlantic area and at jazz festivals around the country.

To learn more about upcoming performances, go to http://davewilsonmusic.org/