Before his induction into the Buffalo Music Hall of Fame, Art Meets Jazz offers an intimate look at the artistry behind the recognition.
Sometimes an honor gives us an opportunity to stop and appreciate a musical journey that has been unfolding around us for decades.
For Buffalo guitarist Rick Strauss, this is one of those moments.
On October 7, Rick will be inducted into the Buffalo Music Hall of Fame, joining the long list of musicians whose artistry and contributions have helped shape the musical history of Western New York.
But before that happens, we’ll have an opportunity to celebrate Rick in perhaps the most appropriate way possible.
By hearing him play.
On Wednesday, September 23, Rick will lead a trio with pianist Lisa Hasselback and bassist Ed Croft for Art Meets Jazz at Beebe’s on the Square—an intimate evening that gives us the chance to experience a musician whose career stretches from an important chapter in Buffalo’s jazz history to the music he continues making today.
A Buffalo Connection to a Landmark Jazz Album
Many people know the name Spyro Gyra. Fewer may know just how deeply the early story of the internationally successful jazz-fusion group is connected to Buffalo—or Rick Strauss’s place in that story.
Rick’s musical explorations began in the 1970s with Flight, a group of young Western New York musicians experimenting with the boundaries between jazz, rock, and world music. Those explorations became part of the musical environment from which Spyro Gyra emerged.
Rick went on to contribute to the group’s landmark 1979 album, Morning Dance. And his contribution was significant.
He played guitar on “Rasul” and “Little Linda,” and played electric and 12-string guitar on the album’s closing track, “End of Romanticism,” which he also composed.
Morning Dance would become the breakthrough recording that took the Buffalo-born group to an international audience and eventually achieved platinum status.
It’s an important chapter not only in Rick’s story, but in Buffalo’s jazz history.
A Musical Life That Didn’t Stop There
It would be easy to make the Spyro Gyra connection the headline of Rick’s career.
But that would leave out much of the story.
Rick developed his own voice as a guitarist, composer, arranger, and producer. His internationally released album Jump Start reached the upper reaches of Billboard’s contemporary jazz chart, while his follow-up Body Lines also received national radio and chart recognition.
His playing has never fit neatly into one box. Bebop, contemporary jazz, blues, fusion, acoustic music—Rick has moved comfortably among them while maintaining a sound and musical personality of his own.
Along the way, he has performed with artists including Dianne Reeves, Dave Brubeck, Don Menza, Bobby Militello, John Dankworth, and Bobby Short, as well as appearing with the Buffalo and Rochester Philharmonic Orchestras. His music has taken him across the United States and to stages in Europe and Canada.
Yet an important part of Rick’s musical life has remained right here in Buffalo.
He earned his master’s degree at Buffalo State. He spent years teaching at the Buffalo Academy for Visual and Performing Arts, helping develop young musicians while continuing his own work as a performer and composer.
That combination matters.
A musical community isn’t built only by the artists who leave and achieve recognition elsewhere. It’s also built by accomplished musicians who continue to play, teach, collaborate, and contribute where their musical journey began.
Rick Strauss has done both.
Why This Art Meets Jazz Evening Matters
That’s what makes September 23 more than another night of jazz.
Art Meets Jazz was created around the idea of experiencing artists differently—up close, surrounded by visual art, conversation, and community. Beebe’s gives us the kind of intimate environment where you don’t simply watch a musician from across a large room. You experience the nuances of the playing and the interaction between musicians.
And Rick will be joined by two musicians who make this an especially special trio: pianist Lisa Hasselback and bassist Ed Croft.
Three accomplished musicians. An intimate room. And an opportunity to celebrate Rick just two weeks before one of the significant honors of his musical life.
There are moments when recognition gives us a reason to stop and appreciate an artist who has been part of our musical community for years.
This is one of those moments.
On September 23, we’ll have the opportunity not simply to congratulate Rick Strauss on his upcoming induction into the Buffalo Music Hall of Fame.
We’ll have the opportunity to do what matters most:
Hear the music that brought him there.
Art Meets Jazz: Celebrating Rick Strauss
Wednesday, September 23 | 6:00–8:30 PM
Beebe’s on the Square
Rick Strauss, guitar | Lisa Hasselback, piano | Ed Croft, bass
Reserve at this link or checkout below: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/art-meets-jazz-celebrating-rick-strauss-tickets-1998816070674?aff=oddtdtcreator
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