TICKETS are $12 General/$6 Student. One-Set  concert - End time is around 9:00.

Bill Boris - guitar

Thomas Gunther  - keyboard

Tyrone Blair - drums

Bill Boris is a prolific jazz guitarist who performs throughout the Chicago area. Bill attended Berklee College of Music and received his B.A. from Notre Dame University. He has performed or recorded with David “Fat Head” Newman, Fred Wesley, Tony Monaco, Marco Pignataro, Geof Bradfield, Arthur Prysock, Eric Alexander, Charles Earland, Irene Reid, Manfredo Fest, and Robert Irving III. He played on the Mike Frost Project C.D., “Comin’ Straight at You”, which was nominated for a Grammy in 2007. Bill released his debut C.D. “Hold Back” in 1999 and “Bright Moments” in 2018. Both recordings feature original compositions. He has performed at the Chicago Jazz Festival, the Barbados Jazz Festival, the Kaunas Jazz Festival in Lithuania, the Szczecin Jazz Festival in Poland, the Pescara Jazz Fest in Italy, and the South Shore Jazz Festival in Chicago. He has also appeared at the Jazz Showcase, the Green Mill in Chicago and Catalina’s in Los Angeles. Bill contributed a chapter focusing on the role of the guitar in a big band for "Jazz Zone", the first lesson-plan based jazz curriculum, published in 2020.

Bill is the Coordinator of Guitar and Bass Studies, director of the Fusion Ensemble, and associate chair of the Music Department at Columbia College Chicago. The Fusion Ensemble has received numerous awards in Student Music Awards in DownBeat.

Born in Germany, Thomas Gunther is a versatile internationally active jazz pianist/keyboardist, music producer, and music educator. After moving to Chicago, he soon becomes the principle pianist with the Chicago Jazz Ensemble let by Stan Kanton's music arranger and composer William Russo, performing with world renown guest artists such as Randy Brecker, Body DiFranco, Archie Sheep, Jon Faddis, Cassandra Wilson, Orbert Davis, etc. He is an integrated part of the Chicago music scene performing with groups as sideman and leader. He leads the The Thomas Gunther Trio Plus and toured Germany with the Thomas Gunther’s Taste Of Chicago Band. He has produced, arranged, and recorded lots of music as a leader and sideman. He also offers music arranging and orchestration services. Thomas currently serves as adjunct Professor of instruction at Columbia College Chicago. Find out more about Thomas and his music at https://www.ThomasGunther.com

Drummer, Tyrone Blair is proficient with acoustic and electronic drums, programming for recordings, and development of original material for film scores and recordings.    

*Educational Background:  AMERICAN CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC - Chicago, Illinois  Majored in Percussion/Drumset

*TOURS:  U.S. ARMED FORCES PROFESSIONAL ENTERTAINMENT PROGRAM  Toured Europe, Greenland, and the United States.

*CD/RECORDINGS:  Bill Boris – Bright Moments, Hassan Khan’s – Funkmasters of the Universe, Derrick Bounds – Night Rhythms, Mr. Zelion - Miracle Mastersonic Records - Brazilian Guitarist Murilo Romano  SouthPort Records - Beaky Johnston's SPEAK BEAK  ROOTS ROCK SOCIETY "Riddim to Riddim RRS International Records    

*FILM/TELEVISION PROJECTS:  Composed music used in the film:  Daryl Roberts' film "HOW DO U LIKE ME NOW?"  Performed on the soundtrack and appeared in:  Universal Pictures "THE BABE" starring John Goodman & Kelly McGillis  HBO SPECIAL "live" - with comedians Martin Lawrence and Chris Rock.

*LIVE PERFORMANCES:  Performed in concert with Rock & Roll Hall of Famer JERRY BUTLER.  Filmed Jazz Panorama concert with Contemporary American Music Program Director WILLIAM RUSSO.

Opened in concert for BeBe and CeCe Winans at THE AUDITORIUM THEATER.  Opened in concert for GRP recording artists, The Rippingtons, with Reginald T. McCants  Performed in concert with CHARLES EARLAND.  THE CHICAGO JAZZ FESTIVAL with the PHIL COHRAN ENSEMBLE.

Concerts and events made possible, in part, with support from the Wells Fargo Philanthropic Services Private Trust Foundations, which include grants from the Stanley A. and Flora P. Clark Memorial Community Trust Foundation (2020-2021; 2022-2023 seasons), the John, Anna, and Martha Jane Fields Memorial Trust Foundation (2021-2022; 2022-2023 seasons), and the Florence V. Carroll Charitable Trust (2021-2022; 2022-2023 season). Special concert event support provided by the Arts Midwest Grow, Invest, Gather (GIG) Fund grant (2022-2023 season). Activities are made possible in part by the Arts Organization Support (AOS), Indiana Arts Commission, a state agency, and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency (2023-2024 season).

Concerts and events made possible, in part, with support from The Esther and George Jaruga Charitable Foundation (2020-2023 seasons). The Student and Home Grown Series concerts made possible, in part, with support from the ArtsEverywhere Grant from the Community Foundation of St. Joseph County, and the Arts Project Support Grant and the Arts Recovery Grant through the Indiana Arts Commission.

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