the will boyd project

**The Will Boyd Project** isn't just a band—it's a spiritual reckoning delivered through reeds and rhythm, a sonic revival where the sacred traditions of the Black church collide with the revolutionary fire of jazz. Led by multi-instrumentalist and "mad sax man" Will Boyd, this ensemble transforms every performance into a joyful noise that honors the soul sax prophets—Eddie Harris, Hank Crawford, King Curtis—while pushing the movement forward with urgent, right-now energy. From baritone sax sermons to bass clarinet benedictions, Boyd channels decades of soul tradition through every note, reimagining spirituals, hymns, and freedom songs with albums like *Freedom Soul Jazz* and *Soulful Noise*. This is music that's toured Japan, shared stages with Fred Wesley and Jeff Coffin, and graced PBS documentaries—yet still feels as intimate as a Sunday morning service in a Memphis sanctuary. For this Monday night service, Boyd assembles a congregation of mountain heavyweights: **Dr. Bill Bares** bringing scholarly soul and Harvard-trained piano poetry, **Quinn Sternberg** providing gravitational bass lines that anchor every conversation, Knoxville's **Kenneth Brown** on drums—the son of jazz visionary Donald Brown who channels Art Blakey's roaring energy—and **Alex Bradley** adding soulful trumpet sounds honed through years with Empire Strikes Brass and Electro Lust, where New Orleans second-line swagger meets Asheville eclecticism. This is bebop meeting the church pew, virtuosity serving something bigger than technique, and every song becoming a freedom song. Expect an evening where brass testifies alongside reeds, where rhythm section and horns create sacred spaces, and where the future sounds like liberation.