|patuxent| |classical guitar sound samples|

recent publications featuring tom lagana

The ads for King of France Tavern let everyone know the popular nightspot "has changed its tune" well, kind of.

    For 23 years the renowned jazz club at The Maryland Inn on Church Circle has hosted some top names in the business: from Herb Ellis, McCoy Tyner and Joe Pass to its very own legend, Char­lie Byrd, who plays this weekend.

    Like Blues Alley in Georgetown, King of France has built a reputation over the years as one of the premier jazz rooms in the country.

    Also like Blues Alley, however, high prices and what some regarded as a rather stuffy  ap­proach (required reservations and little signs which say "Shhhh!") did not exactly pack the place with Annapolitans every night.

   Since ownership of Historic Inns of Annapolis changed hands over a year ago, the future of the King of France Tavern has been uncertain at times.

    One plan was to close the tavern and turn it into additional meet­ing room space for the Inn.  Fortu­nately, the current, hopefully per­manent, plan is to keep the tavern as a forum for first-rate entertain­ment and renew its ties with the community.

   The management has gone out of its way to stress the new no ­cover policy and, even more im­portant, the new focus on local talent.

Meg Murray and Jeff Muller perform Tuesdays, the Crabtown Big Band on Wednesdays and, assuming the new role as house jazz band Thursday through Sat­urday is the Tom Lagana Trio.

Although very little has physi­cally or musically changed, a breath of fresh air has been let in.  It is quite fitting in fact that a new on in the footsteps of Charlie Byrd, who, along with other regio­nal favorites like Deanna Bogart and Ron Holloway, will continue to appear every 6 to 8 weeks.

A graduate of Berklee College of Music in Boston and a native of nearby Davidsonville, Mr. Lagana is well respected in jazz circles.

   Not surprisingly, Mr Lagana first met Charlie Byrd here in Annapolis while playing at the Moon Cafe two years ago.  Mr. Byrd's daughter had heard Mr. Lagana play there and recom­mended her father go down for a listen.  "I had no idea he was there," remembered Mr. Lagana.  "After I finished playing, he came over, sat down and introduced himself.  I was floored."

"He even asked me over to his house the next day to play some more," Mr. Lagana said.

The experience packed into the past few years has enabled Mr. Lagana to hit the ground running with his present trio, comprised of Victor Dvoskin on bass and Frank Russo on drums.

A Russian, Mr. Dvoskin was a  semifinalist in the Smithsonian's Thelonious Monk Jazz Competi­tion and always receives many compliments from the audience each evening.

Mr. Russo is a member of the Navy Jazz Band and, according t Mr. Lagana, one of the best he's had the chance to play with.

"Our sound bridges the '50s, '60s bebop style of Duke Ellington and Wayne Shorter with the hard. er '60s and '70s bop sound of Joe Henderson, Miles Davis and even Chick Corea," said Mr. Lagana.  As far as listening to each other and fitting together, these guys seem to know where I'm heading before I do!"

"The beauty of it is how we are able to make improvised music in a performance sound as if it was all composed and written out ... but it's not."

The enthusiastic response at King of France has been from young and old alike.  Mr. Lagana is particularly happy to see his own generation starting, to listen to and appreciate jazz as more than just a curiosity, but as a true art form.

"It's up to us to preserve what's already been done.  Learning how to play the music correctly from people like Charlie Byrd here and Red Rodney down in Florida is the most valuable experience I could've had.  They are passing the torch.  I'm still in apprentice­ship, but honored to continue the tradition here, in nothing less than one Of the greatest jazz guitar rooms."

| home | bio | news | press | publications | calendar | sounds | pics | links |
|  merch | guestbook | lead sheets | lessons & booking | contact |