Troesh center welcomes noted L.A. vocalist Dwight Trible

Trible will perform Wednesday, June 26 at 7 p.m. in La Sierra’s Zapara School of Business Troesh center for Pierce Street Jazz, an ongoing series celebrating America's original art form. Admission is free and seating is general admission.

A backup trio of music industry veterans will accompany Trible -- bassist Henry “the Skipper” Franklin, pianist Theo Saunders, and drummer Yayo Morales.

The performance will be dedicated to the late Ramon Banda, a dedicated and accomplished musician who passed away on May 30 following an illness. Banda played drums for most of the Pierce Street Jazz concerts since the series’ inception in summer 2009. He was a longtime friend and music colleague of series organizer Franklin and pianist Saunders. A Southern California native and widely acclaimed in jazz and Latin music circles for his skill on drums and timbales, Banda was a former 24-year member of the Grammy-winning Poncho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band. He also performed as a bandmember with organist Joey DeFranceso and pianist Bill Cunliffe. According to WorldMusicCentral.org, Banda appeared on more than 250 recordings, several of which won Grammy awards. His latest project involved performance on a Joe Strummer album in 2018.

Trible, a native of Cincinnati, moved to Los Angeles in 1978 and came under the instruction of legendary pianist and band leader Horace Tapscott. Trible eventually directed the acclaimed Horace Tapscott Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra and after Tapscott’s death recorded a tribute album for his mentor. An album in 2004,“Living Water,” garnered Trible a nomination from BBC Radio One for Worldwide Album of the Year and recognition from L.A. Weekly as Artist of the Year, according to a biography on Allmusic.com. More recent noted recordings include lead vocals on Kamasai Washington’s 2015 album “The Epic,” and a collaborative album with Matthew Halsall, “Inspirations,” in 2017 under Gondwana Records.

Trible’s credits include work with such famed acts as Kenny Burrell, Oscar Brown, Jr., Harry Belafonte, Della Reese and L.A. Reid. His musical activities are central to his humanitarian goals and efforts which have garnered awards. Through his music Trible aims to “bring people together, to bridge the gap between the races, and to heal the human heart,” he states in his bio. 

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.

The Zapara School of Business at La Sierra University is located at 4500 Riverwalk Parkway, Riverside, Calif., 92505. For further information call 951-785-2148. A campus map is available at https://lasierra.edu/campus-map/.