Saturday, May 24, 2025
Tuesday, May 23, 2023
ICYMI: Post Via The Winsted Citizen Blog: A Word From El Bardo The Legend
THE ASSASSIN
By LEO CONNELLAN
By LEO CONNELLAN
I am hidden within
who you think I am
--
We Treat Poets, Writers, Authors Right:
The Winsted Citizen
https://winstedcitizen.org/
Our Today’s Poets page is inspired by the late Poet Laureate of Connecticut Leo Connellan aka El Bardo The Legend, who published a column under that banner with The Register Citizen of Torrington 1994-95.
Connellan modeled his offering after that of Marcia Lee Masters, poetry editor of The Chicago Tribune. She was the daughter of "Spoon River Anthology" author Edgar Lee Masters, the trailblazing Midwesterner who also shared a law office with Clarence Darrow. "Let's run a poetry column like Marcia Lee Masters," Connellan said. "We'll get lots of readers."
Connellan compiled original works by acclaimed poets and new voices from throughout the nation. The big hitters included New York Quarterly Editor William Packard, Bollingen Prize winner Fred Chappell, Negative Capability Editor Sue Walker and Fulbright Scholars David B. Axelrod and Diana Der-Hovanessian, as well as Connecticut's own Marilyn Nelson, Franz Douskey, Vivian Shipley and Richard Telford. Promising college and high school students also saw their works published by Connellan.
The Today’s Poets page in The Winsted Citizen has published works by Franz Douskey, Kate Rushin, Jon Andersen, Samuel John Hazo, Ravi ‘I Don’t Play the Sitar’ Shankar, Elizabeth Thomas, Steve Straight, Victoria Nordlund and Sandra Bishop Ebner. The June edition will feature poems by Julia Paul and John Stanizzi. Also, please check out our advertisements featuring authors.
ENOY READ SUBSCRIBE ADVERTISE DONATE
who you think I am
--
We Treat Poets, Writers, Authors Right:
The Winsted Citizen
https://winstedcitizen.org/
Our Today’s Poets page is inspired by the late Poet Laureate of Connecticut Leo Connellan aka El Bardo The Legend, who published a column under that banner with The Register Citizen of Torrington 1994-95.
Connellan modeled his offering after that of Marcia Lee Masters, poetry editor of The Chicago Tribune. She was the daughter of "Spoon River Anthology" author Edgar Lee Masters, the trailblazing Midwesterner who also shared a law office with Clarence Darrow. "Let's run a poetry column like Marcia Lee Masters," Connellan said. "We'll get lots of readers."
Connellan compiled original works by acclaimed poets and new voices from throughout the nation. The big hitters included New York Quarterly Editor William Packard, Bollingen Prize winner Fred Chappell, Negative Capability Editor Sue Walker and Fulbright Scholars David B. Axelrod and Diana Der-Hovanessian, as well as Connecticut's own Marilyn Nelson, Franz Douskey, Vivian Shipley and Richard Telford. Promising college and high school students also saw their works published by Connellan.
The Today’s Poets page in The Winsted Citizen has published works by Franz Douskey, Kate Rushin, Jon Andersen, Samuel John Hazo, Ravi ‘I Don’t Play the Sitar’ Shankar, Elizabeth Thomas, Steve Straight, Victoria Nordlund and Sandra Bishop Ebner. The June edition will feature poems by Julia Paul and John Stanizzi. Also, please check out our advertisements featuring authors.
ENOY READ SUBSCRIBE ADVERTISE DONATE
Monday, May 22, 2023
ICYMI: Post Via The Winsted Citizen Blog: June Edition in Production / Staff Updates / We're going digital in addition to print ... Stay tuned ...
If it's important to you, it's important to us
Only those who attempt the absurd
will achieve the impossible
~ M. C. Escher
A Note From The Editor & Publisher
Dear Readers, Advertisers, Donors,
Thanks to you, we not only still exist, we are flourishing.
Our June edition – the fifth – is in production and will hit the mail and the street June 2.
As with many startups, a major constant is change. You are seeing new reporters and photographers in each edition.
Our Executive Editor Melanie Ollett has been leading the charge in recent editions, with strong support from Contributing Editor Michelle Manafy. Many readers know Melanie works as a librarian and is looking forward to enjoying the summer with her children; that is precisely what she will be doing as of July 1 while continuing to serve the paper on a limited basis as a contributing editor.
Succeeding Melanie as executive editor in July will be Doug Clement, former senior editor at Connecticut Magazine and longtime editor of The Litchfield County Times. Few people know the region and its people, especially the arts and culture scene, better than Doug.
Doug will be leading the charge into the fall and next year: Litchfield County & Beyond ...
Yes, we plan to be around for a while. You might begin to think of us as Connecticut’s premiere newsmagazine. That’s part of our vision for 2024.
We continue striving to earn your trust. Please continue to let us know how we’re doing and what you want to see in our publication. Remember: It’s Your Paper, We Work For You.
Andy Thibault, Editor & Publisher, May 12, 2023
tntcomm82@cs.com
860-690-0211
WHERE TO GET THE PAPER ON THE STREET https://winstedcitizen.org/where-to-find-the-winsted-citizen/
FOOTNOTE: We're going digital in addition to print. Stay tuned ...
ENOY READ SUBSCRIBE ADVERTISE DONATE
Sunday, April 02, 2023
Las Vegas Publisher Acquires Rights To Louis The Coin Memoir Update
Pub Date: Sometime in 2024
-
The Whole Idea Behind It
Was To Be Like A Tax Collector
Louis the Coin was a genius in metallurgy whose estimated haul from producing counterfeit slot tokens and chips easily exceeded $3 to $4 Million from casinos around the country. Some casinos admitted it, and many, most of which were in Nevada didn't.
He sat at the right hand of New England Mob Boss Raymond Patriarca – one of the most powerful gangsters in U.S. history – with direct access to his family members. Louis was a friend of theirs and talent, not a made man.
Louis was neither your average jeweler nor your average mob associate. He began his criminal career as a teenager and went on to earn a business degree from Providence College. In the years before his death, Louis attended community college in Rhode Island because he loved learning.
His expertise ranged from making jewelry and fixing printing presses to orthotics and of course, counterfeiting slot machine tokens and currency.
Colavecchio could duplicate or create almost anything made out of precious metals or stones. All he needed was a sample. The samples were analyzed professionally for content, weight and availability.
Foxwoods had been booming for about five years when Colavecchio set his sights on Connecticut; Mohegan Sun had just opened.
Colavecchio never talked about his friends – at least to police. But one of the important numbers in his personal phone directory was for Louis “Baby Shacks” Manocchio, then the reputed Mafia boss of Rhode Island. Manocchio lived in Providence’s Federal Hill neighborhood, where he once operated the Café Verdi restaurant. He was convicted of a mob hit in 1968, but that was overturned by the Rhode Island Supreme Court. In 2015 Manocchio was released from federal prison to a halfway house after serving five years for his role in an extortion plot.
Before Colavecchio could move on the casinos, he needed to do some homework. He also needed some serious equipment. Colavecchio's expert analysis revealed he needed the following: precious metals including copper, zinc and nickel; a 150-ton press from Italy; and laser-cutting tools to cut, shape and create dies to stamp out the coins. The coins were tokens, to be used in Las Vegas, Loughlin, Atlantic City and the Tribal Casinos in Connecticut.
When state police brought a sample of Colavecchio’s product to Foxwoods, the experts did not believe it was counterfeit. Some called it a masterpiece. State police advised the casino to keep track of inventory; the token counts were bound to be off because of the surplus. Meanwhile, the inventories at Atlantic City casinos were multiplying like rabbits.
“We know that he hit Vegas hard,” an investigator said. “But since many of the directors of security there were former FBI agents, they denied it. The problem did not exist. It never happened.”
Evidence mounted. A surveillance team comprised of detectives from Las Vegas, New Jersey and Connecticut waited for Colavecchio to hit New Jersey or Connecticut again. He chose New Jersey. This time he used only $100 tokens. It was easy. There were fewer machines to watch.
Colavecchio was arrested in Atlantic City in late December 1996. The pinch did not make the papers for about a week. In his car, Colavecchio had 750 pounds of counterfeit tokens, a fake police ID, disguises, a handgun, maps of casinos and various casino documents.
The FBI, Secret Service, three state police agencies and Providence police took inventory at Colavecchio’s Providence operation. The government had to rent two storage facilities to store all the loot that was seized.
Everyone took their turn arresting Colavecchio. He hired a former Rhode Island attorney general and a respected New London attorney as his lawyers.
Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun acknowledged finding a total of at least $50,000 in fake tokens. Investigators borrowed microscopes from local high schools to inspect mounds of tokens. It took them weeks just to determine that Colavecchio hit one Mohegan Sun jackpot for $2,000.
Worked out by Connecticut based detectives, Secret Service and prosecutors, Colavecchio ended up in a conference room and getting VIP treatment at Mohegan Sun. His lawyers had worked out a deal. Colavecchio showed law enforcement how he did the job, and promised to help the casino tribes and the state ward off any future raids. They say he was a hero in Providence as well. Colavecchio served a relatively short federal sentence at Fort Dix in New Jersey and did not “rat out” any of his friends.
The New York Times and Providence Journal also reported Louis was hired by the U.S. Mint upon his release from federal prison for the token scheme a couple decades ago. That was because his dies in coins were of better quality than government production. The U.S. government paid Louis about $18,000 as a consultant.
Louis died on July 6, 2020 at his daughter’s home in Cranston, RI. He had gained a compassionate release from federal prison weeks earlier after serving time for counterfeiting $100 bills. He was 78, as noted in his New York Times obituary.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/13/us/louis-colavecchio-dead.html?searchResultPosition=1
The Connecticut State Police Museum, in cooperation with The Mob Museum in Las Vegas, is developing a Louis the Coin exhibit.
He counted among his friends the detective who arrested him in Connecticut.
The Connecticut State Police Museum, in cooperation with The Mob Museum in Las Vegas, is developing a Louis the Coin exhibit.
DID LOUIS REALLY ... ???
Louis The Coin, The Poem
POEM TEXT
This video was filmed
at the CT State Police Museum
-
Theme Song,
King Louis de la Provvidenza
Performed by Rick Reyes, Asher Delerme
Sunday, March 19, 2023
UPDATED w/ Obit - #SilvioAlbino Calls Him The Shoreline’s Lighthouse: He’s My Lighthouse, Too, And Now There Is Darkness Shattered by His Light … So Long, #JohnCPeterson …
‘Beware of Straight Lines in the Jungle’
- If there is a heaven, he certainly heeded his own words. Those whom he trained, inspired and counseled look to his light … then, now, always ...
OBITUARY
John C. Peterson Cracked New London Cover-Up
In Hit-and-Run Death of College Student: Dirty Judicial Officials, Local Cops Never Held Accountable --
State's Attorney 'Lost' Grand Jury Transcripts???
https://cooljustice.blogspot.com/2020/07/43-summers-ago-july-5-1977-grand-jury.html
Tuesday, February 07, 2023
Birth of a Newspaper Followed Community Meeting: Video, Photos
#CoolJusticeBand @tortmuseum for #TheWinstedCitizen
Linda Ransom, Jen Allen, Matt Dwonszyk, Josh Bruneau,
Jonathan Barber, Kris Jensen, Jeremy Galloway
 |
DIR MELISSA BIRD OPENS PAPERBAGS @tortmuseum
- Savage Frieze PHOTO
AD & CIRC DIR ROSEMARY SCANLON ON THE STREET 2-3-23
- Reynaldo Cruz PHOTO
HOW TO SUBSCRIBE:
https://winstedcitizen.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Citizen-Subscription-Form.pdf
If you like what we do, please subscribe:
Monday, January 23, 2023
Subscribe to #TheWinstedCitizen
Subscribe to the Winsted Citizen
Select a Subscription Level
If you’re able, please subscribe at our Friend’s rate. Your help will allow us to grow more quickly.
Print Subscription
$25.00 Standard
$50.00 Friend’s Rate
For Remainder of 2023
PILOT EDITION February 2023 Free
What do I get with this subscription?
11 new print issues this year packed with original content.
Subscriber Account
Your First Name_______________________
Your Last Name_______________________
Your Email_______________________
Address
Address Line 1_______________________
Address Line 2_______________________
City_______________________
State_______________________
Zip_______________________
Please make checks payable to:
The Winsted Citizen
PO Box 1415
Litchfield, CT 06759
If you’re able, please subscribe at our Friend’s rate. Your help will allow us to grow more quickly.
Print Subscription
$25.00 Standard
$50.00 Friend’s Rate
For Remainder of 2023
PILOT EDITION February 2023 Free
What do I get with this subscription?
11 new print issues this year packed with original content.
Subscriber Account
Your First Name_______________________
Your Last Name_______________________
Your Email_______________________
Address
Address Line 1_______________________
Address Line 2_______________________
City_______________________
State_______________________
Zip_______________________
Please make checks payable to:
The Winsted Citizen
PO Box 1415
Litchfield, CT 06759
Think of us as a regional newspaper
http://cooljustice.blogspot.com/2023/01/you-can-think-of-us-as-regional-paper.html
Friday, January 20, 2023
You can think of us as a regional paper #TheWinstedCitizen
Host Tom Hill III: WATR Waterbury Interview with Ralph Nader, founder, and Andy Thibault, editor & publisher, The Winsted Citizen. Pilot edition February 2023
Editorial cartoonist Englehart,
Advertising Director Scanlon
Featured at The Laurel
Office Manager / Associate Editor, Advertising Director,
Reporter, Editorial Cartoonist Join The Winsted Citizen;
&
Torrington Daily Goes Weekly
Thursday, January 19, 2023
UPDATED: Managing Editor, Advertising & Circulation Director, Reporter, Editorial Cartoonist Join The Winsted Citizen; Torrington Daily Goes Weekly
Pilot Edition, February 2023
Managing Editor Melanie Ollett is a librarian, pastor, and freelance writer from New Hartford. She loves hearing about issues that matter to her local community while working as the children's/teen library assistant in New Hartford. She has spent more than 10 years in ministry serving churches in Washington, D.C., Western New York, and Long Island. She holds a B.A. in International Studies from American University, an M.Div from Wesley Theological Seminary, and an MLIS from Queens College. Reach her at melollett@gmail.com
Rosemary Scanlon, Advertising & Circulation Director, is a local real estate agent. A native of Colebrook, CT she has a background in small business. Reach her at: rosemaryscanlon@kw.com realtorrosemary.kw.com @realtorrosemary
Reporter Marie Bonelli's career has focused on in marketing and communications, assisting businesses and nonprofits in brand awareness, business development, and member/donor attraction and retention. She’s inspired to write about the mainstays and newcomers to the area. Marie completed a masters in journalism from Quinnipiac University and has contributed to the Hartford News, Hartford Business Journal, The Litchfield County Times, and a recent documentary for Nutmeg TV on a Torrington soccer player.
Bob Englehart was the award-winning editorial cartoonist and writer for the Hartford Courant for 35 years, leaving in October 2015. Since then, he's been drawing editorial cartoons for Caglecartoonscom and Patreon.com/Englehart. He says, "Drawing editorial cartoons and writing keeps me off of the psychiatrist's couch." His novel, Whoever Steals A Man is available on Amazon.com.
https://www.patreon.com/Englehart
Register Citizen to Publish Weekly
https://www.thelaurelct.com/register-citizen-publish-weekly/
Reporters and Photographers in the Field Hunting and Gathering for Readers of #TheWinstedCitizen at This Time
http://cooljustice.blogspot.com/2023/01/reporters-and-photographers-in-field.html
Register Citizen to Publish Weekly
https://www.thelaurelct.com/register-citizen-publish-weekly/
Reporters and Photographers in the Field Hunting and Gathering for Readers of #TheWinstedCitizen at This Time
http://cooljustice.blogspot.com/2023/01/reporters-and-photographers-in-field.html
About Reynaldo Cruz Diaz, The Winsted Citizen Reporter & Photographer, via WATR 1320 am, Waterbury, CT, 1-16-23
http://cooljustice.blogspot.com/2023/01/about-reynaldo-cruz-diaz-winsted.html
http://cooljustice.blogspot.com/2023/01/about-reynaldo-cruz-diaz-winsted.html
Wednesday, January 18, 2023
About Reynaldo Cruz Diaz, The Winsted Citizen Reporter & Photographer, via WATR 1320 am, Waterbury, CT, 1-16-23
Host Tom Hill III: Interview with Ralph Nader, founder, and Andy Thibault, editor & publisher, The Winsted Citizen. Pilot edition February 2023.
- PHOTO by ERICK CUATZO
Cuban sportswriter and photographer Reynaldo Cruz Diaz, 40, seeking political asylum in the U.S., in November told journalism students at the University of New Haven he left a government job after being censored. Diaz fled the country, he said, following a pattern of threats and harassment for his reports on independent sites about long lines and food shortages leading some to eat undesirable shark meat. He said secret police – noted for their polo shirts, Suzuki motorcycles and small satchels carrying guns – were stationed outside his house. His journey – which he said included months being hosted by Mexican and American friends before crossing the Rio Grande River into Texas in January – was featured on WNPR:
https://www.ctpublic.org/news/2022-10-20/in-connecticut-an-undocumented-cuban-baseball-journalist-awaits-word-on-political-asylum
Diaz said he found a 250-foot crossing several feet high but suffered lung damage from the frigid waters: “You have to walk; the current is so strong that if you try to swim it washes you away.” While in detention, he organized prisoners to sit, stand and sleep in two-hour shifts as some pods designed for 15 were filled with 40 people. He said Border Patrol and Texas prison officials appreciated his work as a translator as he speaks Spanish, English and French. Friends he met via sports exchange programs over several years arranged for him to fly to Connecticut from a Texas prison and establish residence near Hartford in February. His attorney Glenn Formica of New Haven, filed for asylum in November.
WFSB TV3: CT '23 w/ Eric Parker, CBS Sunday Show, Aired 1-15-23 #TheWinstedCitizen
Sunday, January 15, 2023
WFSB TV3: CT '23 w/ Eric Parker, CBS Sunday Show, Aired 1-15-23 #TheWinstedCitizen
in the Field Hunting and Gathering
for Readers of #TheWinstedCitizen at This Time
Reporters and Photographers in the Field Hunting and Gathering for Readers of #TheWinstedCitizen at This Time
NEWSROOM
Jennifer Almquist, Arts Editor
Matt Caputo, Sports Writer
Douglas P. Clement, Contributing Editor
Rand Richards Cooper
Jack Coraggio
Reynaldo Cruz Diaz
Liz Dupont-Diehl
Nancy Gottfried
Susan Granger
Susan Hansen
Michelle Manafy
Kathy Megan
Erik Ofgang
Serena Piervincenzi
Sam Scott
Andy Thibault, Editor & Publisher
Bob Thiesfield, Photographer
James Valentino, Art Director---
Ralph Nader, Founder
---
Jennifer Almquist, arts editor, studied photography at NYU and filmmaking at the Sundance Film Institute. She is former owner of the Almquist Gallery in New Preston and an independent writer and photographer. Reach her at: jalmquistphoto@gmail.com
Matt Caputo, sports writer: My journalism career began in 2003 and since then my byline has appeared in The New York Times, New York Daily News, Men’s Journal, Connecticut Magazine, The Hockey News, Bleacher Report, and Maxim. I’m a former editor for SLAM magazine and The Rockaway Wave, a 130-year-old newspaper in Rockaway Beach, New York.
Contributing Editor Douglas P. Clement is the principal of Boardwalk Media + Communications, a digital content, marketing, and branding venture in Connecticut. Previously Senior Editor and Digital Editor of Connecticut Magazine, and Executive Editor of The Litchfield County Times publishing group, he was named national Editor of the Year for North America by a leading journalism industry group in 2005, won the nation’s top award for lifestyle journalism from the University of Missouri School of Journalism seven times, and has covered arts, culture, design and theater regionally for The New York Times. Reach him at: dpaulclement@gmail.com https://twitter.com/DouglasPClement
Rand Richards Cooper has published in The New Yorker, Harper’s, GQ, Esquire, The Atlantic, and in Best American Food Writing. A longtime contributor to Bon Appétit and a former restaurant critic for the New York Times, Rand lives in Hartford with his family. He is the restaurant critic for the Hartford Courant and is a critic and essayist for Commonweal Magazine.
Reporter Liz Dupont-Diehl has worked throughout Connecticut for nonprofits focusing on workforce development, homelessness, and human services, with a focus on positive systems change. She has also worked as a reporter and opinion writer for the Journal Inquirer, CT News Junkie and other outlets including The Regional Standard of Colchester. She is the Associate Director of the CT Citizen Action Group. Reach her at: ldd001@gmail.com https://twitter.com/lddiehl
Reporter Nancy Gottfried is a former editorial producer and writer at Good Morning America, Today Show, MSNBC, Fox TV, and executive producer at the ABC Radio Networks. She has written extensively for print, most recently the Hartford Courant and Hartford Magazine. Reach her at: nancygottfried@gmail.com
Susan Granger, movie reviewer, is a product of Hollywood. Her natural father, S. Sylvan Simon, was a director and producer at M.G.M. and Columbia Pictures; her adoptive father, Armand Deutsch, produced movies at M.G.M. As a child, Susan appeared in movies with Abbott & Costello, Red Skelton, Lucille Ball, Margaret O’Brien and Lassie. She attended Mills College in California, studying journalism with Pierre Salinger, and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with highest honors in journalism. During her adult life, Susan has been on radio and television as an anchorwoman and movie/drama critic, syndicating her reviews/articles around the world. She has appeared on American Movie Classics and Turner Classic Movies. In 2017, her book 150 TIMELESS MOVIES was published by Hannacroix Creek Books. She is now the resident movie ‘guru’ at Sacred Heart University’s Community Theater in Fairfield, hosting new THE CENTURY OF CINEMA series. Her website is www.susangranger.com and she’s on Twitter @susangranger.
Susan Hansen is a freelance writer and editor specializing in law and business stories and a new resident of Winsted. Her articles have appeared in newspapers and magazines, including Bloomberg Business Week, American Lawyer, the New York Times, Columbia Journalism Review and Inc.
Erik Ofgang is the co-author of “The Good Vices: From Beer to Sex, The Surprising Truth About What’s Actually Good For You," the author of "Buzzed: Where to Enjoy the Best Craft Beverages in New England" and "Gillette Castle: A History." The former senior writer at Connecticut Magazine, his work has appeared in the Washington Post, Atlantic, Thrillist, and Associated Press. He also teaches in WCSU’s MFA in Creative and Professional Writing Program. Reach him at: erikofgang@gmail.com https://twitter.com/erikofgang
Serena Piervincenzi is a senior at The University of New Haven. She is graduating in May with a B.A. in Communications, concentration in Journalism and a minor in Visual Art. She has been a contributing writer for The University of New Haven’s Charger bulletin. She has also been the department head of Media Arts, at Appel Farm Arts camp, teaching youngsters about media. Reach her at: spier3@unh.newhaven.edu
Sam Scott, a sophomore Criminal Justice major at the University of New Haven and an offensive tackle for Charger football, is taking a year off from sports to focus on his studies and career goal of becoming a FBI agent. He also runs a business reselling brand clothing and sneakers. Scott has a 4.0 GPA and is a member of the USJ Criminal Justice Club, the University of New Haven Honors College and Alpha Lambda Delta, a certified national honor society that recognizes academic excellence in the first year at a college or university. He also tells bad jokes, a skill diminished by taking the required communication class at UNH. Reach him at: sscot4@unh.newhaven.edu
Bob Thiesfield. Born in Queens, NY, Bob spent his early years in Haiti until his family was forced to flee from the regime of Francois (Papa Doc) Duvalier. He served in Vietnam and attended the Germain School of Photography in Manhattan on his return. After more than 25 years as a freelance photographer, Thiesfield’s work is represented in corporate and private collections. His company is H. Robert Thiesfield, Photographer, in Rocky Hill. Reach him at: hrthiesfield@gmail.com
Art Director James Valentino is the owner of James Roberts Creative, Newington, for 14 years. UConn graphic design grad. Former Art Director, CT Law Tribune. To see how my solutions get results, visit www.jamesrobertcreative.com and subscribe to my e-Newsletter.
---
Ralph Nader, founder. first made headlines as a young lawyer in 1965 with his book “Unsafe at Any Speed,” a scathing indictment that lambasted the auto industry for producing unsafe vehicles. The book led to congressional hearings and the passage of a series of life-saving automobile safety laws in 1966. In his career as consumer advocate, he founded many organizations in diverse areas, including the American Museum of Tort Law in Winsted – the first law museum in America. In 2006 he was cited by The Atlantic as one of the one hundred most influential figures in American history.
---
Thursday, January 12, 2023
UPDATED #TheWinstedCitizen Invites You to a Community Meeting * BAND BIOS
6 PM Tuesday, January 24, 2023
654 Main St., Winsted, CT
The American Museum of Tort Law
Reception w/ Light Refreshments, Live Jazz / R&B: Jen Allen, Matt Dwonszyk, Linda Ransom, Josh Bruneau, Jonathan Barber, Kris Jensen, Jeremy Galloway
Short Presentation and Q&A Follow
-
The Cool Justice Band
Jen Allen is a pianist, composer, author and educator. She frequently performs in New York, the Northeast US and in venues throughout the world, as the leader of her own groups or as a member of other creative music ensembles.
Notable appearances include the Winnipeg Jazz Festival, Cambridge Festival of the Arts, Greater Hartford Monday Night Jazz Series and Wexford Performing Arts Centre (Ireland). Jen has performed with many notable artists, including Don Braden, Jimmy Greene, Kendrick Oliver, Sarah Caswell, Camille Thurman, Freddie Hendrix, Nat Reeves, Kris Allen, Ike Sturm and Antoinette Montague.
In 2011, Jen was chosen as one of only eight pianists from around the world to participate in the Mary Lou Williams Women in Jazz Workshop at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C, presenting a trio concert and working with Toshiko Akiyoshi, Lynne Arriale and Sherrie Maricle.
An active recording artist, Jen is featured on many albums including her debut, Pieces of Myself, Raise Up by collaboratively led Trio 149 as well as many albums as a sideman. Jen composes music for big bands, studio orchestras, string quartet and other smaller ensembles.
She has been commissioned to compose music for several universities and grade schools. She was a member of the prestigious BMI Jazz Composers Workshop in New York City, a colloquium of the foremost up-and-coming writers of large ensemble jazz music today.
In November of 2018 Jen was a composer-in-residence for St. Peter’s Church (NYC) Jazz Lauds and received a commission from Spark and Echo for her piece “Kurinji.” Starting in 2018 Jen has curated and produced a concert series in West Hartford, CT called “Bring It Home” that features musicians from all over the world, including Brazil, Romania and Italy in the company of local Connecticut musicians, all in collaboration with local visual artists.
In 2017, Jen was the music director and arranger for the Litchfield Jazz Festival Orchestra where she arranged seven pieces of music for a 10-piece ensemble. Jen has received degrees in performance and composition from The Hartt School and UMASS Amherst. She is currently a Visiting Assistant Professor at Trinity College in Hartford where she directs the Jazz Ensemble and teaches jazz history and music business. Jen is also Visiting Faculty at Bennington College where she directs the jazz ensemble, teaches jazz arranging and piano lessons.
Jen has also held positions at The Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts and the University of Hartford, and has presented master classes, clinics and served as a guest conductor at schools throughout the U.S. and world. Jen has been a senior teaching artist for Litchfield Performing Arts since 2010. Her first jazz piano method book was published through Alfred's Publishing entitled Sitting In: Jazz Piano (co-authored with Noah Baerman). The book was the recipient of Music Inc.Magazine's Editor's Choice Award 2015.
Born in Hartford, CT, Matt Dwonszyk started playing the electric bass at age 11. His journey into the world of jazz began at the Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts High School where he began playing the upright bass.
He also started attending the Artists Collective after school program playing in the Youth Jazz Orchestra. The Artist Collective, founded by jazz saxophone legend Jackie McLean, propelled Dwonszyk to continue his studies at the The Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz at The University of Hartford. Dwonszyk quickly developed an exceptionally strong rapport with Professor Nat Reeves and Professor Steve Davis. Reeves instilled a strong sense of swing, conviction and vocabulary upon Dwonszyk while Davis would hire Dwonszyk for gigs at local venues around the Hartford area. This schooling inside and outside of the classroom helped Dwonszyk become one of the top call bassists in Connecticut.
After graduating with a Bachelor’s of Music in Jazz Studies in 2013, Dwonszyk went on to obtain a Master’s of Music at SUNY Purchase College in New York where he studied with Professor's Todd Coolman, Doug Weiss, John Faddis and John Abercrombie. With the SUNY Purchase Big Band, Dwonszyk performed at the Blue Note featuring Terell Stafford and at Dizzy's Club Coca Cola featuring Steve Turee.
Dwonszyk would soon become a resident of Brooklyn, NY performing in some of New York's top jazz venues including Smalls, Smoke, Minton’s, Zinc Bar, Birdland and the Jazz Standard.
In 2015, Dwonszyk was accepted into the Bosyie Lowery Jazz Living Residency for his original compositions and was awarded in Down Beat Magazine for his arrangement of the jazz classic, “What A Wonderful World.” In 2018, Dwonszyk went on to record his debut record as a leader, entitled "Wonderful World," featuring the awarded arrangement as well as nine of his original compositions. He continues to perform and record with his group the "Dwonztet."
In 2018, Dwonszyk toured through Russia apart of the Rainy Days Jazz Festival and in 2019 he toured through Canada with the Oleg Butman Trio. His last tour was in 2020 with Jonathan Barber and Vision Ahead through the West Coast of the U.S.
Dwonszyk has performed at many well known festivals including the NYC Winter Jazz Festival, BRIC Jazz festival, Clifford Brown Festival, JVC Jazz Festival, the Jazz & Colors Festival at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, D.C Jazz Festival, the Kennedy Center, Ottawa Jazz Festival, Saskatoon Jazz Festival, Edmonton Jazz Festival, Litchfield Jazz Festival, Hartford Jazz Festival, Hartford Baby Grand Jazz Series, New Haven Jazz Festival and the Baikal Jazz Festival in Yakutsk, Siberia.
He has performed with numerous contemporaries as well as legendary jazz artists including Harold Mabern, Larry Willis, David Hazeltine, Anthony Wonsey, Rick Germanson, Hal Galper, Dave Kikoski, Donald Vega, Pete Malinverni, Steve Wilson, Abraham Burton, Javon Jackson, Gary Smulyan, Bill Saxton, Bennie Wallace, Wayne Escoffery, Mike Diruboo, Myron Walden, J.D. Allen, John Farnsworth, Steve Davis, Steve Turre, Joe Farnsworth, Carl Allen, Winard Harper, Herlin Riley, Willie Jones III, Joe Strasser, Dr. Eddie Henderson, Joe Magnarelli, Jeremy Pelt, Jumaane Smith, Wallace Roney, Freddie Hendrix and Duane Eubanks.
When Dwonszyk is not performing, he teaches Jazz Bass at Manchester Community College in Connecticut. He is called into coach ensembles at the University of Hartford Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz and also teaches in the summer at Litchfield Jazz Camp and Bennie Wallace’s Back Country Jazz Program.
A native of New London, Connecticut, jazz vocalist Linda Ransom moved to Atlanta where she lived for over 20 years. In 2011, Jen was chosen as one of only eight pianists from around the world to participate in the Mary Lou Williams Women in Jazz Workshop at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C, presenting a trio concert and working with Toshiko Akiyoshi, Lynne Arriale and Sherrie Maricle.
An active recording artist, Jen is featured on many albums including her debut, Pieces of Myself, Raise Up by collaboratively led Trio 149 as well as many albums as a sideman. Jen composes music for big bands, studio orchestras, string quartet and other smaller ensembles.
She has been commissioned to compose music for several universities and grade schools. She was a member of the prestigious BMI Jazz Composers Workshop in New York City, a colloquium of the foremost up-and-coming writers of large ensemble jazz music today.
In November of 2018 Jen was a composer-in-residence for St. Peter’s Church (NYC) Jazz Lauds and received a commission from Spark and Echo for her piece “Kurinji.” Starting in 2018 Jen has curated and produced a concert series in West Hartford, CT called “Bring It Home” that features musicians from all over the world, including Brazil, Romania and Italy in the company of local Connecticut musicians, all in collaboration with local visual artists.
In 2017, Jen was the music director and arranger for the Litchfield Jazz Festival Orchestra where she arranged seven pieces of music for a 10-piece ensemble. Jen has received degrees in performance and composition from The Hartt School and UMASS Amherst. She is currently a Visiting Assistant Professor at Trinity College in Hartford where she directs the Jazz Ensemble and teaches jazz history and music business. Jen is also Visiting Faculty at Bennington College where she directs the jazz ensemble, teaches jazz arranging and piano lessons.
Jen has also held positions at The Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts and the University of Hartford, and has presented master classes, clinics and served as a guest conductor at schools throughout the U.S. and world. Jen has been a senior teaching artist for Litchfield Performing Arts since 2010. Her first jazz piano method book was published through Alfred's Publishing entitled Sitting In: Jazz Piano (co-authored with Noah Baerman). The book was the recipient of Music Inc.Magazine's Editor's Choice Award 2015.
He also started attending the Artists Collective after school program playing in the Youth Jazz Orchestra. The Artist Collective, founded by jazz saxophone legend Jackie McLean, propelled Dwonszyk to continue his studies at the The Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz at The University of Hartford. Dwonszyk quickly developed an exceptionally strong rapport with Professor Nat Reeves and Professor Steve Davis. Reeves instilled a strong sense of swing, conviction and vocabulary upon Dwonszyk while Davis would hire Dwonszyk for gigs at local venues around the Hartford area. This schooling inside and outside of the classroom helped Dwonszyk become one of the top call bassists in Connecticut.
After graduating with a Bachelor’s of Music in Jazz Studies in 2013, Dwonszyk went on to obtain a Master’s of Music at SUNY Purchase College in New York where he studied with Professor's Todd Coolman, Doug Weiss, John Faddis and John Abercrombie. With the SUNY Purchase Big Band, Dwonszyk performed at the Blue Note featuring Terell Stafford and at Dizzy's Club Coca Cola featuring Steve Turee.
Dwonszyk would soon become a resident of Brooklyn, NY performing in some of New York's top jazz venues including Smalls, Smoke, Minton’s, Zinc Bar, Birdland and the Jazz Standard.
In 2015, Dwonszyk was accepted into the Bosyie Lowery Jazz Living Residency for his original compositions and was awarded in Down Beat Magazine for his arrangement of the jazz classic, “What A Wonderful World.” In 2018, Dwonszyk went on to record his debut record as a leader, entitled "Wonderful World," featuring the awarded arrangement as well as nine of his original compositions. He continues to perform and record with his group the "Dwonztet."
In 2018, Dwonszyk toured through Russia apart of the Rainy Days Jazz Festival and in 2019 he toured through Canada with the Oleg Butman Trio. His last tour was in 2020 with Jonathan Barber and Vision Ahead through the West Coast of the U.S.
Dwonszyk has performed at many well known festivals including the NYC Winter Jazz Festival, BRIC Jazz festival, Clifford Brown Festival, JVC Jazz Festival, the Jazz & Colors Festival at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, D.C Jazz Festival, the Kennedy Center, Ottawa Jazz Festival, Saskatoon Jazz Festival, Edmonton Jazz Festival, Litchfield Jazz Festival, Hartford Jazz Festival, Hartford Baby Grand Jazz Series, New Haven Jazz Festival and the Baikal Jazz Festival in Yakutsk, Siberia.
He has performed with numerous contemporaries as well as legendary jazz artists including Harold Mabern, Larry Willis, David Hazeltine, Anthony Wonsey, Rick Germanson, Hal Galper, Dave Kikoski, Donald Vega, Pete Malinverni, Steve Wilson, Abraham Burton, Javon Jackson, Gary Smulyan, Bill Saxton, Bennie Wallace, Wayne Escoffery, Mike Diruboo, Myron Walden, J.D. Allen, John Farnsworth, Steve Davis, Steve Turre, Joe Farnsworth, Carl Allen, Winard Harper, Herlin Riley, Willie Jones III, Joe Strasser, Dr. Eddie Henderson, Joe Magnarelli, Jeremy Pelt, Jumaane Smith, Wallace Roney, Freddie Hendrix and Duane Eubanks.
When Dwonszyk is not performing, he teaches Jazz Bass at Manchester Community College in Connecticut. He is called into coach ensembles at the University of Hartford Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz and also teaches in the summer at Litchfield Jazz Camp and Bennie Wallace’s Back Country Jazz Program.
In Atlanta, her career spanned a variety of talents - she was a Director at Kid's Choice Early Childcare and the Director of the summer program for The Love of My Child Foundation.
Ransom started singing professionally in the 60s, with The Peter Deutchen Orchestra and the Artie Lee Orchestra of New York. She has recorded three albums throughout her career. She now resides in Hartford and performs with her own group, as well as with with Larry Willis, Steve Davis, and Ed Fast among others. Ransom has performed in around the United States and Europe, Japan, and the Caribbean.
While she considers herself a jazz vocalist, Ransom is known for her versions of Aretha Franklin compositions as well as soothing audiences with a Judy Garland-like approach. Whatever the occasion or song, Ransom masterfully floats through her performances all the while keeping the audience totally engaged.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESn3laFn6mI
Joshua Bruneau was born in Waterbury Center, Vermont. While growing up, Josh was frequently found on the baseball field.
After seeing a Time Life commercial, he was instantly drawn to classical music. Josh asked for classical tapes and records by composers like Bach, Mozart, and Chopin. His life took a dramatic turn when he was introduced to the trumpet and subsequently, jazz.
Josh began to study the art of music and taking trumpet lessons when he 10 years old. These formative years proved very important as Josh discovered many recordings of musicians such as John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Dizzy Gillespie, and Charlie Parker. He immediately fell in love with these musicians and made a conscious decision to try to emulate these people’s playing.
He started forming his own groups and playing locally from a young age. He was soon traveling with a local big band. He honed his skills all through high school at Harwood Union High School in Duxbury, Vermont.
In the fall of 2006, Josh began his studies at the Jackie McLean Institute at the Hartt School. Josh was introduced to his two most important mentors, Nat Reeves and Steve Davis. He immediately started gigging around the Hartford area with local musicians and fellow students.
Josh received the opportunity to travel to Ireland with Nat in his freshman year. Ever since, Josh has been playing with his instructors, Nat and Steve, on a regular basis. That same year he played with Nat, Steve, Eric McPherson, Alan Palmer, and Jovan Alexandre opening for Dionne Warwick.
Because of his established relationship with his two mentors, Josh now frequents New York City to perform at world famous Jazz clubs such as Smoke and Smalls. September 2011 he played at the Detroit Jazz festival with another of his great mentors, Curtis Fuller. He has also shared the stage with artists such as Harold Mabern, Mike LeDonne, Eric Alexander, Joe Farnsworth, Carl Allen, John Webber, Ken Fowser, and Larry Willis to name a few. Now with the 2014 release of his debut album as a leader, Bright Idea (Cellar Live), Josh continues to look forward musically and push himself and his colleagues further.
New York City-based Jonathan Barber was voted the #1 Up-and-Coming Drummer of 2018 in Modern Drummer. Only 29 years old, he has already recorded and toured worldwide with such artists as Pat Metheny, Nicholas Payton, Buster Williams, Jeremy Pelt, Wallace Roney, Terrace Martin, Jennifer Holiday, Harold Mabern, Steve Davis, Stefon Harris and many more. Barber has also been called on for such significant performances as Jimmy Greene’s Ana Grace Project – with an all-star band comprised of Greene, Kenny Barron, John Patitucci, and Kurt Elling – and back-to-back sold-out concerts with the Brooklyn Philharmonic and Erykah Badu at the BAM Opera House.
In addition to his first-call status as a sideman, Barber has recently stepped forth as a composer and leader with his Vision Ahead band, featuring saxophonist Godwin Louis, guitarist Andrew Renfroe, bassist Matt Dwonszyk, and pianist Taber Gable.
In addition to his first-call status as a sideman, Barber has recently stepped forth as a composer and leader with his Vision Ahead band, featuring saxophonist Godwin Louis, guitarist Andrew Renfroe, bassist Matt Dwonszyk, and pianist Taber Gable.
Even with Barber’s history of high-profile gigs and recordings taken into consideration, DownBeat magazine calls Vision Ahead’s self-titled debut album his “greatest accomplishment to date.” Released on Rockwood Music Hall’s largest stage in May 2018, Vision Ahead is a powerful declaration of intent for a band that’s been making waves on the modern jazz scene since its debut performance at Smalls Jazz Club. The group’s blend of classic, swinging jazz with elements of gospel, rock, soul, and fusion is a compelling showcase of Barber’s broad stylistic range as a composer and performer. Jonathan Barber & Vision Ahead was featured and headline the 2018 Rainy Days Jazz Festival held in St. Petersburg and Moscow, Russia.
http://www.themusic-shop.com/kris-jensen.html
Saxophonist and multi-wind artist, composer and arranger Kris Jensen is a versatile musician who has forged a diverse musical career. A veteran sideman to legends for nearly two decades now, Jensen has performed throughout the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, Bangkok, Thailand, and Switzerland. Kris is associated with many prominent artists in jazz and rock including the Allman Brothers Band – as well as the individual members’ bands (Gregg Allman and Friends, Jaimoe’s Jasssz Band, Dickey Betts and Great Southern)- trumpet legend Maynard Ferguson, and a host of others.
In 1996, Jensen was a semi-finalist in the prestigious Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition. He has studied Jazz and African-American music at the University of Hartford, where he would later teach under the auspices of jazz saxophone legend Jackie McLean. Jensen continues to carry on the great tradition as both a performer and educator. Recent performances of particular note have included concerts or appearances with jazz legends such as trombonist Curtis Fuller, alto saxophonist Phil Woods, and pianist Larry Willis. He has appeared on New Jersey Public Television with Maynard Ferguson, on “Late Night with David Letterman” with Gregg Allman & Friends, and on stage with The Allman Brothers Band, The Dave Matthews Band, and with Warren Haynes and Govt. Mule.
Jensen keeps an active freelance performing schedule in addition to touring regularly with Jaimoe’s Jasssz Band with whom he can be seen monthly at the famous Iridium jazz club in New York City and at festivals and venues across the U.S. and beyond. He also serves on the music faculties of the Indian Mountain School, The Salisbury School, The Millbrook School, and in Hartford with the Bushnell “Jazzicians” student scholar program.
https://www.jeremygallowayguitar.com/about
Jeremy finished his master’s degree at the Hartt School of Music in May 2021, where he has studied under virtuosic musicians Nat Reeves, Rich Goldstein, Abraham Burton and many more. Coming out of the academic world as a young and ambitious guitarist and composer, he has only one goal when performing: to make people feel as happy and excited by listening to my music as he feels playing it.
THANK YOU
NORTHWEST COMMUNITY BANK
Reception Entertainment Sponsor
BACKGROUND
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)