We are fortunate that the organizers of the Awakening Into The Sun Festival have again chosen the Palladium as a primary venue for the event. On March 4 we are welcoming sax powerhouse Mindi Abair, and multi-talented singer, writer and producer Seth Glier to our mainstage. We’ll have more on this great event coming up, but you can get lots more information at the website.
Here’s a quick portrait of Mindi to whet your appetite for this amazing show. Get your tickets now by following this link.
Mindi Abair
In a career spanning seven solo albums and countless collaborations in the studio and live on stage, Mindi Abair has made her mark as one of the most recognizable saxophonists in the US. You may know her as the saxophonist on American Idol, or the only saxophonist to tour with rock legends Aerosmith since 1973. You may have seen her on stage with Bruce Springsteen for a historic night at the Beacon Theater, or tuned in as she joined Paul Shaffer and the CBS Orchestra on the Late Show with David Letterman, or caught her appearance at The Grand Ole Opry.
This powerhouse saxophonist/vocalist has made scores of friends along the way and earned the respect of top-shelf artists representing just about every genre of music.Her solo work has garnered ten #1 radio hits, 6 top 5 spots and 2 #1 spots on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz album chart. Abair received a 2014 GRAMMY® nomination in the Best Pop Instrumental Album category for Summer Horns, a #1 recording with her friends Dave Koz, Gerald Albright, and Richard Elliot, and more recently received a 2015 GRAMMY® nomination for Best Contemporary Instrumental Album for her solo cd Wild Heart.
For her newest musical pursuit, she plunges headlong into vintage rock and soul territory, harkening back to the days when saxophone was as integral an instrument as the guitar in the early days of rock and soul with her newest recording, Wild Heart.
In addition to the years of hard work and dedication leading up to these successes, some of the credit is due to an impressive pedigree. Abair’s paternal grandmother was an opera singer, and her father was a saxophonist and B3 player in a band called The Entertainers – a gig that kept the whole family on the road for several years of Mindi’s childhood. By the time the band broke up and the Abair’s put down roots in St. Petersburg, Florida, five-year-old Mindi had already demonstrated musical aspirations of her own by taking up the piano.
She picked up the saxophone in the fourth grade and took part in every band program available in elementary, middle and high school. After a year at the University of North Florida, she transferred to Berklee College of Music, where she graduated magna cum laude with a degree in woodwind performance.
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