Louis Van Taylor, a saxophonist and former Kool & The Gang featured soloist returned to the Pierce Street Jazz stage at La Sierra University.
Van Taylor, who also plays piccolo, flute, clarinet and other woodwinds has performed recently with Pierce Street band Henry “the Skipper” Franklin on bass, Theo Saunders on piano and Yayo Morales on drums.
Van Taylor last performed for the Pierce Street series in 2015 the same year he toured and soloed with rhythm and blues band Kool & The Gang. The woodwinds master has amassed a long roster of credits performing and recording with some of music’s famous acts including most recently on Beyoncé’s 2016 Grammy-winning visual album “Lemonade,” with Mary J. Blige, and with the Ray Charles Alumni Band featuring Maceo Parker.
He has also performed with such musical powerhouses as Mariah Carey, Glenn Frey, the Gerald Wilson Orchestra, Kenny Burrell, Jimmy Witherspoon, The Temptations, The Gap Band, and many others. His talents can be heard on soundtracks for major feature films including “The Nutty Professor,” “Battlestar Galactica,” “Coneheads” and others, as well as on many television shows including “Night Court,” “Full House,” “Touched by an Angel,” and “Seinfeld.”
A native of Salt Lake City, Utah, Van Taylor began his foray into the world of music when his family moved to Los Angeles where he began learning the clarinet in junior high school. He later became interested in the tenor saxophone and over time, developed a high level of skill with all types of saxophones and other woodwind instruments. His musical style melds traditional jazz with a variety of genre including Brazilian, Afro-Caribbean, funk and blues.
In addition to his performance career, Van Taylor is a music educator. He taught for seven years at the U.S.C. Thornton School of Music and for 12 years with the Los Angeles Jazz Society Jazz in Schools program.
Franklin has organized the Pierce Street Jazz concerts at La Sierra University since their inception as a summer jazz series in 2009. He has recorded and produced more than 150 albums and compact discs including gold releases. He has performed with many headline artists and was part of the legendary Hugh Masekela's band during the late 1960s.
Saunders has performed in many of the world’s most prestigious jazz festivals and concert halls with distinguished artists including Freddie Hubbard, Carla Bley, David “Fathead” Newman, Gladys Knight, and many others. He has directed music for opera productions and international musical theatre. He also has numerous compositions to his credit as well as original scores for theatre, radio and multimedia production.
Morales, a native of Bolivia, earned a diploma from the Escuela de Música Creativa in Madrid, Spain, and also received a European professional music diploma in Belgium, his bio states. He plays a wide range of styles including jazz, Latin jazz, Brazilian jazz, Flamenco and rock, and has toured around the world with such notable artists as Rita Marley, La Calle Caliente, Benn Clatworthy, Steve Cotter, Pierce Street’s Franklin and many others. He has taught at various schools and was invited in 2013 by the Bolivian Department of Education to design and implement a new drum program at the National Conservatoire of Music.