'Song's Nothing Conservatory About It' Concert Series At Berklee Begins October 14 With 'The Three Tenors'

BOSTON -- Berklee College of Music kicks off its “Song's Nothing Conservatory About It" concert series on Tuesday, October 14, with “The Three Tenors, “ featuring faculty saxophonists Greg Badolato, George Garzone, and Frank Tiberi. The event begins at 8:15 p.m. in the Berklee Performance Center, 136 Massachusetts Avenue, in Boston. Tickets are $20 for general seating, $30 preferred seating ($15 and $22.50 for seniors). For ticket information, call 617-747-2261.

The three tenor saxophone masters will perform several arrangements from Tiberi's three tenors outing Tiberian Mode, which he recorded a few years ago with Garzone and Joe Lovano.

Song, Delta Airlines' new low-fare subsidiary, and Berklee announced the launch of the series at a press reception earlier this month, where Song's president, John Selvaggio, surprised the attendees by joining a top Berklee student band onstage with his trumpet. The innovative airline and the pioneering “MIT of pop" announced an eight-concert schedule, encompassing jazz, pop, blues, gospel, Latin, folk, and several other shades and genres of contemporary music. At each of the eight concerts, two roundtrip airline tickets to anywhere Song flies will be given away.

The Three Tenors
An accomplished saxophonist, Greg Badolato has performed in the Broadway shows “Promises, Promises" and “Grease," and as a featured soloist in jazz festivals and clubs in the U.S., Europe, South America, and Asia. His numerous recording credits include Last Trip's Up with 'da Funk, Greg Hopkins16-Piece Jazz Orchestra's Okavongo, and Milan Svoboda Quartet and Big Band's The Boston Concert.

The former chair of Berklee's Ear Training Department, Badolato currently is the assistant vice president for international programs. He has traveled extensively for the college as a musical and educational representative to various parts of the world.

For nearly thirty years saxophonist George Garzone has enjoyed international renown, having collaborated with such standouts as Michael Brecker, Joe Lovano, Dave Liebman, George Russell, and Joshua Redman, as well as his former teacher, Joseph Viola. His achievements as a recording artist include more than twenty albums, both as a leader and sideman, perhaps most notably on Lovano's Grammy-winning 52nd Street Themes.

In 1972 Garzone formed The Fringe with bassist John Lockwood and drummer Bob Gulotti, and the world-class trio has since become the centerpiece of his musical activities. The three have recorded several CDs together, highlighted by 2000's The Fringe in New York and the 1996 disc Four's and Two's, both of which received high praise from Down Beat magazine.

Frank Tiberi began playing saxophone in clubs when he was just 13 years old. Best known as a featured soloist in Woody Herman's orchestra, Tiberi also performed in bands led by Bob Chester, Benny Goodman, and Dizzy Gillespie before joining Herman's group in 1969. After Herman's death in 1987, Tiberi took over leadership of the band, guiding the group into the 21st century, while preserving many of Herman's signature arrangements.

A partial discography of recordings on which Tiberi has appeared includes the Herman classics, Thundering Herd, Giant Steps, Road Farther, and Herd at Montreux. Frank has also recorded as a leader of small groups, including Coincidence with Tom Harrell, Harold Danko, Rufus Reid, and Tiberian Mode, a three tenors CD he recorded with Joe Lovano and George Garzone.

Song's Nothing Conservatory About It
This unique concert series will pair masters of contemporary music, such as Pat Metheny and Michel Camilo, with the musical giants of tomorrow, students with the skills and star power to hold their own with the best of them. The surprise of discovering a freshly minted talent, playing alongside a living legend, will make the Song's Nothing Conservatory About It concert series an intriguing new entry on the Boston cultural scene.

The series also will feature the formidable talents of the Berklee faculty, not only the world's most accomplished contemporary music educators, but outstanding performers in their own right.

Season tickets to the eight-concert series are $100 for general admission, $150 for preferred seating ($75 and $112.50 for seniors). Individual tickets may be purchased to all shows, except the Pat Metheny concert on April 30. Admission to the Metheny show is available to season ticket holders only. Season ticket packages may be purchased at the Berklee Performance Center Box Office and are on sale now. Tickets for individual shows will go on sale two weeks prior to the performance. For more information on the entire series, visit .

Berklee College of Music was founded on the revolutionary principle that the best way to prepare students for careers in music was through the study and practice of contemporary music. For over half a century, the college has evolved constantly to reflect the state of the art of music and the music business. With over a dozen performance and nonperformance majors, a diverse and talented student body representing 70 plus countries, and a music industry “who's who" of alumni, Berklee is the world's premier learning lab for the music of today and tomorrow.

The series' media sponsor is WGBH-FM 89.7.