The Rhythm Road programme, an initiative of the US Department of State's Bureau of Cultural and Educational Affairs, featured American musicians Paul Beaudry and his band Pathways at Queen's Hall in Port-of-Spain last month. The programme is conducted in partnership with the Lincoln Center, and produces an annual series of international tours for ten American ensembles performing jazz, urban, or other American roots music at venues outside of the US. The patrons of Queen's Hall, a voluntary organisation with a mission to promote the performing arts in T&T, partnered with the US Embassy in Port-of-Spain to present the Rhythm Road programme to local jazz enthusiasts. Beaudry, a bassist, composer, vocalist, producer and teacher was featured.
He is originally from San Fransisco, California, but now resides in New York, where he teaches at Teacher's College of Columbia University. Beaudry has performed throughout North America, the Middle East, and Europe, and was a participant in The Rhythm Road 2007 with Alvin Atkinson and the Sound Merchants in a tour to the Middle East. As an educator, Beaudry stated his aim was to "maintain music's high art level, while sustaining its irresistibility." He recently released his first recording as a bandleader: Paul Beaudry and Adam Rafferty–New Tomorrows. The programme also featured Tim Armacost on tenor sax and alto flute, Tony Jefferson on drums and Bennett Paster on keyboards.
Armacost started playing the clarinet while living in Tokyo in the 1970s, and switched to tenor saxophone at the age of 15. He moved to New York in 1993, and later recorded several albums and releases as both leader and sideman. New York native Tony Jefferson has played in clubs, shows, and festivals the world over. He is known not only for his drumming, but also for his passion for woodwind instruments, and his singing. He often steps out from behind the drums to show off his vocal skills–a move that generated a positive and enthusiastic response from his Trinidadian audience at Queen's Hall. A graduate of the Berklee College of Music, Jefferson leads his own band, and performs as a guest vocalist at clubs in New York.