Since January 2001, Connecticut-based four-piece "Stanley Maxwell" has played original music that blends (among many other influences) jazz, funk and rock with tight arrangements and intricate group improvisation. They are a no-nonsense, conservatory-trained group of musicians who share a love for playing soulful music together and making people dance. The band has built a grassroots name for themselves throughout the Northeast, and joined the Home Grown Music Network  in 2008. From colleges and festivals to nightclubs and local bars, the group is a “must see” experience. Aesthetically, they combine both the virtuosic and the simple into a visceral concoction.  The group won the "Best Jazz Band" category in the Hartford Advocate's "Grand Band Slam" three times (2010, 2009, 2007). The band celebrated their 20th anniversary in 2021 on social media with the hashtag #StanleyMaxwell20.

Stanley Maxwell's independently-produced debut album "Don't Wake The Baby!" was recorded in Bristol, Connecticut by Dan Silvia and mastered by Anthony Latt. The album included "Mousetrap", an eleven-bar blues influenced by Thelonious Monk. The band's recording of the composition by pianist Evan Green attracted international attention including "Mousetrap" winning "Best Jazz Song" in the 7th Annual Independent Music Awards (December 2007), an international program that helps indie artists and releases overcome mainstream obstacles and reach wider audiences by providing year-long promotion, marketing and distribution opportunities that place those selected in front of more than 15 million music fans and industry decision makers around the world; and winning the Relix Magazine November 2007 "JamOff" contest for unsigned artists, with "Mousetrap" featured on the November Relix CD sampler, included with over 100,000 issues of the internationally distributed magazine, dedicated to jam bands and improvisational music.

Free Lunchtime Summer Concert at Connecticut's Old State House (20th Anniversary Celebration) on Friday, August 19, 2022

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Aug19

Free Lunchtime Summer Concert at Connecticut's Old State House (20th Anniversary Celebration)

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Connecticut's Old State House, 800 Main Street , Hartford, CT 06103

Stanley Maxwell returns for their first live performance in over three years, celebrating the twentieth anniversary of their first concert at Connecticut's Old State House in August 2002 with a free summer concert at the Farmers Market from Noon to 1pm.

The band had also performed as part of the venue's annual free lunchtime summer concert series in August 2003.

Stop by at lunchtime to hear the Stanley Maxwell quartet play their brand of modern jazz on the west side of Connecticut’s Old State House. Bring your lunch and enjoy the music! Concert begins at Noon and will also be live-streamed on both the venue's Facebook page and YouTube channel. Tickets or reservations are not needed to attend.

This is the first public concert by the quartet in over five years, following their appearance at The Buttonwood Tree Performing Arts and Cultural Center in Middletown, Connecticut in May 2017.

Watch the most recent free outdoor concert by the quartet from June 2016 at the International Festival of Arts & Ideas in New Haven, Connecticut on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLWzK1ZZYEYrAS33BR6Yb-p0mi6DVPACuL

The Summer Concert Series at Connecticut's Old State House is sponsored by the Richard P. Garmany Fund of the Hartford Foundation of Public Giving and the Evelyn Preston Memorial Fund.

Stanley Maxwell also previously performed at the fourth annual Connecticut Brewfest at the Old State House in July 2005, presented by the Connecticut Historical Society Museum and Library and sponsored by the Hartford Advocate.

Alexander Svensen will be subbing for bassist Mark Crino at this performance: http://svensendoublebass.com

School Is In Session

Stanley Maxwell shows talent and restraint

Thomas Pizzola Hartford Advocate review of performance at Zen Bar in Farmington, Connecticut (6/11/04)

"The jazz/funk improvisation of Stanley Maxwell appears spontaneous and at times is exhilarating."

"The members of jazz/funk combo Stanley Maxwell do not need to use words in order to communicate. Instead, they speak to each other through their music. This musical correspondence was on display as the band grooved through a well-received set that left the people in attendance with a greater understanding of how to speak without using words."

"This musical communication helps the band gel as a unit, and it shows. The four-piece -- keyboardist Evan Green, saxophone player Eric DellaVecchia, bassist Mark Crino and drummer Andy Chatfield -- did an excellent job with their mainly vocals-free, jazz/funk hybrid. They have an uncanny ability to vibe off each other with some real neat improvisational passages. Fortunately, the improv doesn't smack of self-indulgence."

"Stanley Maxwell has found a way to avoid that trap. The songs are written ahead of time, but the band always leaves spots for improvisation. This is usually accomplished through musical cues in the song, or through hand signals. Each member has a chance to improvise if they feel like it."

"Most of the time they do. Each member displayed his chops as a soloist at least once during the set. These moments proved exhilarating as the musician just went for it. But thankfully, the band knew when not to milk it. They had an inherent ability to rein it in, which cut down on the aforementioned self-indulgence that usually wrecks a band like this."

"While each member of the band is talented in his own right, I was impressed with the rhythm section, particularly the drumming of Chatfield, whose playing style was a nice mixture of precision and understated power. He and bassist Crino work well in tandem providing a solid foundation for the rest of the band."

Great day for a wonderful band.” - Chet, audience member (Connecticut's Old State House, August 2022)

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