Paul Carr & The Eric Byrd Trio

Paul Carr, saxophone
Eric Byrd, piano
Will Hazel, bass
Alphonso Young, Jr., drums

Saxophonist, educator, and director Paul Carr has been an extraordinary jazz ambassador for decades. Known for his hard-charging and soulful post-bop style, he has dedicated his professional career to performing and promoting Jazz through education and community outreach. In 2002, he founded the Jazz Academy of Music, which hosts summer camps and jazz ensembles for kids throughout the year. Paul also serves the Director of the Gettysburg College Jazz Ensemble. Paul has changed the lives of hundreds of his students by selflessly sharing his knowledge of music and life. In March 2014, Paul received the prestigious, Howard University, “Benny Golson Jazz Master Award”, for his outstanding work as a performer, presenter and educator.

The Eric Byrd Trio (EBT), pianist/vocalist Eric Byrd, bassist Will Hazel, and drummer Alphonso Young, Jr., have traveled the world as enthusiastic ambassadors of jazz for over 20 years. Rooted in swing and bebop, The Trio also embraces gospel and the blues as core elements of their expansive performance style. Their body of work spans seven unique studio and live recordings on which they shine as a Trio and as collaborators with an expanded 8-piece ensemble they call The Eric Byrd Trio: Brother Ray Band, in tribute to The Genius of Soul icon Ray Charles. On each recording, they take a rigorous, modern approach to standards as well as original compositions, playing with great acuity within the broad and rich jazz tradition. The Trio has played with countless artists including Wynton Marsalis, Terell Stafford, Randy Brecker, Charlie Byrd, Mike Stern, Bob Berg, Buck Hill, David “Fathead” Newman, Tim Warfield, Cecil Payne, George Colligan, Kenny Drew, Jr., Sonny Fortune, Gary Thomas, Ira Sullivan, Othello Molineaux, Warren Wolf, Jeff Majors, Vanessa Rubin, Rebecca Parris, Yolanda Adams, and Jon Secada.