Spring 2025 Brown Bag Concert featuring Jazz Streams
March 26 @ 12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Free
Admission: Free & Open to the Public
Time: Doors 11:30am | Show Noon
Audience: All Ages
Artist: Jazz Streams
Join us for a Brown Bag Concert featuring Jazz Streams, a talented ensemble known for their blend of mainstream and contemporary jazz. The concert will take place on Wednesday, March 26th from 12:00–1:00 PM in the Great Hall. Presented by Mechanics Hall and 90.5 FM WICN, the Brown Bag Concert Series has been a beloved Worcester tradition since 1983, offering free, hour-long performances by acclaimed regional and national artists. Audience members are encouraged to bring their own lunch and enjoy cabaret-style seating, available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Jazz Streams features an accomplished lineup of musicians who have made significant contributions to the New England jazz scene. Trombonist Rich Ardizzone is a classically trained performer with experience in Latin jazz, big bands, and a variety of ensembles. Guitarist Rich Falco is a seasoned performer, educator, and jazz historian with a career spanning international tours, concert productions, and numerous accolades. Bassist Jerry Wilfong is an active Boston-area musician who has worked with a wide range of jazz artists and recorded extensively. Drummer Bill MacGillivray has been a fixture in the Worcester music community for decades, performing in jazz, rock, and blues groups while also serving as a dedicated music educator.
Rich Ardizzone, trombone
is a classically trained trombonist with a bachelor’s degree in performance from Boston University and a Master of Education degree from Tufts University. He has performed with the Paul Fontaine/Jimmy Mosher Big Band, the Brass Menagerie and a variety of Salsa and Latin bands. While playing professionally in the Boston area in the early 1960’s he was a member of Conjunto Azul, a Latin Jazz ensemble that played at the legendary Paul’s Mall as the house band. He has performed over the years (so many years…) in Worcester with Sonic Explorers, the Rich Falco Quartet and JOMP Faculty. He is the retired Associate Director at Joy of Music in Worcester where he still teaches.
Rich Falco, guitar
continues to share much with the jazz world. He is a performing guitarist, a university professor on the WPI faculty as Director of Jazz Studies (retired), a jazz concert producer who presented more than 60 jazz concerts and workshops, a frequent high school clinician and presenter at regional, national and international jazz education conferences, a popular jazz festival adjudicator, Jazz Worcester Festival co-founder and executive director, a jazz historian and private guitar instructor. As a performing artist and educator, he has conducted more than a dozen international concert tours to East, Central and West Europe as well as North Africa, The Caribbean and Canada. He has been recognized with several awards including “Jazz at Sunset Performance Award”, the “Boots Mussulli Jazz Educator Award” and the prestigious “Lifetime Achievement Award” from the International Association for Jazz Education.
Jerry Wilfong, double bass
is an active Boston area freelance bassist. Jerry studied in the early seventies at Berklee College of Music, and later with bassist Joe Holovnia. He has attended master’s classes by bassists John Clayton, Jr. and Harvie S. Jerry performed regularly around New England in a variety of styles with many jazz ensembles, including groups led by Paul Broadnax, Stan Strickland, Garrison Fewell, Steve Soares, Rich Falco, Ferdinando Argenti, Jane Miller, Maggie Galloway, Monica Hatch, and Jim Porcella. He is recorded on CD’s by Sai Ghose, Steven Kirby, John Wilkins, Phill Argyris and Chris Taylor, and has toured Russia, Romania, and France. Jerry has performed with distinguished jazz artists Leni Stern, John Stowell, Richie Cole, Joe Hunt, Greg Abate, Gray Sargent, and Jon Wheatley.
Bill MacGillivray, drums
is a long-time member of the Worcester music community. After studying drum set with Fred Buda and Joe Hunt at Berklee College of Music in the early ‘70s, Bill has played with many classic Worcester rock, blues, and jazz bands including Crockett, Mitch Chakour, The Trailers, Wilbur and the Dukes, and the Russo Brothers Jazz Quintet. He has also performed with Boston artists James Montgomery, WC Handy award winners Paul Rishell and Annie Raines, the Boston Music Award winning Dennis Brennan Band, and folk artist Carol Noonan. Bill has been the percussion consultant for the Worcester Public Schools since ’87. He teaches drums and percussion at Burncoat High School and Burncoat Middle School, as well as Notre Dame Academy, and Worcester State University. He is also a coach for the Worcester Youth Symphony Orchestra.
The Brown Bag Concert Series, presented by Mechanics Hall and 90.5 FM WICN, has been a beloved tradition in Worcester since 1983. These hour-long concerts by acclaimed regional and national performers are held in the Great Hall on select Wednesdays from noon to 1pm. Bring your own “brown bag” lunch, and enjoy wonderful music while eating your lunch! Cabaret-style seating available on a first-come, first-served basis. All concerts are free, open to the public, and subject to change.
The accessible entrance to Mechanics Hall is located on Waldo Street. Elevators are located in the ground-floor lobby and provide access to the second and third floors. Please note, there is no elevator access to the balcony. All concerts take place in the Great Hall on the third floor. If you need assistance, please contact the Mechanics Hall Ticket Office, Wednesday through Friday from 11:00am-5:00pm, by calling 508-752-0888.
Whenever possible, Brown Bag Concerts are also broadcast live on WICN 90.5FM, and streamed live on WICN.org.
