Grapes of Jazz was founded in 2003 by Dave White. Unlike many jazz groups, the group explores all styles belonging to the jazz family including standards, be-bop, hard-bop, soul-jazz, fusion, and progressive rock. The group has played for clubs, weddings, corporate parties, coffee houses, and church events including Columbus Jazz & Rib Fest, Vonn Jazz, Lindey’s, and Bank One. The group tailors its set lists to suit the occasion.
Current members of the band are:
Dave White – keyboards
Michael Kahn – saxophone and flute
Mark Weaver – bass
Gary King – drums and percussion
Dave White has many years of experience both playing and recording with local artists including Gravity Jazz & Gospel, the Tommy Wade Jazz Orchestra, Jerry Loos & Stormfront, Dave Absalom, Dwight Bailey, and Adria Shahid. He contributed keyboards to Alison Kitchen’s project, “Mercy Dancing”. Dave has also played keyboards with nationally known artists Terry Butler, Carman, Brian Doerksen, and Martin Smith (of Delirious?). Dave played for worship teams at Vineyard Church of Columbus for 15 years. He currently contributes keyboards for services at Radiant Life and other local churches. During the ’80s Dave played in local progressive rock bands. For the first decade of his musical life, Dave studied classical music with Lehigh Valley, PA teacher, Frank Chesebro.
Michael Kahn has performed all over the world at venues including Disney’s West End Stage, Universal Studios, The Orange Bowl, and Joe Robbie Stadium. He has worked with many commercial artists including The Temptations, The Four Tops, and The Shirelles. He has opened for Stan Kenton, Maynard Ferguson, The Beach Boys, The Everly Brothers, The Righteous Brothers, Chubby Checker, Buddy Guy, Dion, and Najee.
Mark Weaver is a physician by day and a musician by night. He has played in bands backing artists including Bob Hope and Frank Sinatra. He has also performed at New York City’s Carnegie Hall.
Gary King has been playing drums for over 30 years for a variety of groups including J.D. Blackfoot. He has opened for Emmylou Harris, the Ozark Mountain Daredevils, and the Guess Who. During the ’80s Gary also played in local progressive rock bands including Titan.
Website: http://grapesofjazz.com/