About
Joseph Block is a jazz pianist, composer, and arranger from Philadelphia, PA.
Joe currently lives and studies in New York City at Columbia University and the Juilliard School. He began playing piano at the age of 3, initially studying classical piano with Susan Starr and Harvey Wedeen before switching to jazz in middle school. He participated in many of Philadelphia’s wonderful jazz education programs, primarily at the Clef Club of Jazz and Performing Arts, the Kimmel Center’s Creative Music Program, and Temple University. He regularly performs at many venues and clubs throughout the Philadelphia area, including the Kimmel Center, the Philadelphia Clef Club, @exuberance, South Jazz Parlor, Chris’ Jazz Café, Paris Bistro, and the Mann Music Center. Joe was the 2017 YoungArts Jazz Piano National Finalist. In addition, he is a two-time alum of Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Summer Jazz Academy and a three-time alum of the annual Berklee City Music Network Summit. He is also the co-founder and leader of the Philadelphia Ambassador Big Band.
Joe currently studies privately with Frank Kimbrough at Juilliard and plans to major in American Studies at Columbia. He hopes to bring his talent and creativity to the diverse New York jazz scene.
Hailed one of “jazz’s most promising young composers” by Jazz at Lincoln Center, Joe is a skilled writer and arranger in both the jazz and classical fields.
He has been commissioned to write jazz arrangements by organizations such as Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Kimmel Center, and Harvard University. He won the 2016 J. Douglas White Essentially Ellington Composition Competition and received an Honorable Mention recognition for jazz composition by the National YoungArts Foundation. Joe has written and arranged for various professional jazz ensembles including the Philadelphia Ambassador Big Band, the Wynton Marsalis Septet, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis, and the Jazz Orchestra of Philadelphia with Terell Stafford. In addition to jazz, Joe composes music for musical theatre, film, and drama. He has previously studied classical composition with Dr. Andrew Westerhaus.
Schedule
8/17/18, 8:00 and 10:00pm
Chris’ Jazz Cafe
1421 Sansom Street, Philadelphia, PA 19110
Philadelphia Ambassador Big Band
8/20/18, 8:00pm
1867 Sanctuary
101 Scotch Road, Ewing Township, NJ 08628
Alex Laurenzi Quartet
8/24/18, 7:00pm
Philadelphia Clef Club of Jazz and Performing Arts
738 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19146
Quintet with Dylan Band, Noah Halpern, Richard Hill, and Byron Landham
8/27/18, 7:30 and 9:30pm
Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola
10 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10019
DW Jazz Orchestra
8/29/18, 8:00 – 11:00pm
Vintage Bar and Grill
1116 Old York Road, Abington, PA 19001
Michelle Lordi and Mike Boone
Past Performances
4/17 – Shrine World Music Venue – Jacob Melsha Quintet
4/21 – Columbia-Juilliard Exchange Recital – Duo with Joe Bell
4/29 – Triumph Brewing Company – Duo with Liam Sutcliffe
5/7 – Silvana – Jacob Melsha Quintet
5/10 – Bar Next Door at La Lanterna Di Vittorio – Trio with Adam Olszewski + Christian McGhee
5/11 – St. Ann’s School – Zaq Davis Senior Recital
5/17 – Sassafras – Duo with Dylan Band
5/18 – Chris’ Jazz Cafe – Philadelphia Ambassador Big Band
5/20 – Clark Park – Shyam Natarajan Sextet
5/25 – @exuberance – Joseph Block Quartet
5/28 – Del Frisco’s Steakhouse – Ben Turner Group
5/30 – Vintage Bar and Grill – Trio with Michelle Lordi and Richard Hill
6/1 – Mt. Zion Church in Devon, PA – Cedric Napoleon Trio
6/3 – Act II Playhouse – Philadelphia Ambassador Big Band
6/8 – Kimmel Center – Arranger for Jazz Orchestra of Philadelphia’s performance of Holst’s “The Planets” (movement: Venus)
6/10 – Kelsey’s – Tony Day Trio
6/14 – Messiah College – Guest Speaker at Central PA Jazz Camp
6/14 – Sassafras – Duo with Ben Turner
6/19 – La Cour – Liam Broderick Quintet
6/22 – Spangalang Brewery – Rico Jones Quartet
6/24 – Birdland – DW Jazz Orchestra with Benny Benack III
7/6 – Cedar Park – Nazir Ebo Quartet
7/7 – Hewn Spirits – Trio with Dylan Band and Dylan Reis
7/8 – Paris Bistro – Joseph Block Trio
7/12 – Spectrum – James Haddad Quintet
7/13 – Cedar Park – Quartet with Dylan Band, Rani Barlas, and Nazir Ebo
7/15 – Maxwell on Main’s – Lucas Ebeling Trio
7/25 – Chris’ Jazz Café – Brian Morris Quintet
7/27 – Chris’ Jazz Café – Joseph Block Sextet Plays Monk
7/29 – Hatboro Baptist Church – Joseph Block and Friends (Quartet)
8/4 – Telluride Jazz Festival – 2018 Telluride Jazz All-Stars
8/8 – Dazzle – Liam Broderick Quintet
8/10 – Bookstore Speakeasy – Ben Turner Group
8/11 – Manoff Market Gardens (2018 Peach Festival) – Lucas Ebeling Trio
8/12 – May The Jazz Never Stop Café – Brian Morris Quartet
Media
Pianist Joseph Block Live In the WRTI Performance StudioToday in the WRTI Performance Studio we are joined by 19 year old pianist and Philadelphia native Joseph Block. Joseph co-founded and leads the Philadelphia Ambassador Big Band and was the 2016 winner of the Essentially Ellington composition contest at Lincoln Center.
Posted by WRTI on Friday, 25 May 2018
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