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The unmistakable chromatic harmonica of Toots Thielemans is on hundreds of soundtracks, including the Sesame Street theme. But for decades Thielemans performed as an electric guitarist, often whistling in unison with his own solos. His hauntingly beautiful improvisations are typified by “Bluesette,” a song that became a worldwide hit in 1962 and a certified jazz standard since. The NEA Jazz Master has collaborated with a range of jazz legends from Charlie Parker, Bill Evans, Ella Fitzgerald, Quincy Jones and Jaco Pastorius to pop icons like Paul Simon and Billy Joel. In recent years he has laid down the guitar, fully focused on taking the harmonica to a place it can only go in his hands. Now on the verge of his 90th birthday, emotional openness, sensitivity, and an impish sense of humor continue to shape every note he plays. “That’s what you call maturity, when all of your experiences, all your joys and pains blend together in the way you blow an instrument,” says Thielemans. No musician has been more closely associated with him over the past decade than Kenny Werner, one of the elite pianists in jazz since the 1970s. Rio-born guitarist Oscar Castro-Neves is one of the founding fathers of the early ‘60s bossa nova movement and also produced Thielemans’ star-studded Brasil Project albums. This is a historic meeting of three bona fide jazz giants, and a highlight of the season.
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