Jeff Fuller & Friends inaugurate 2026

Ellington Jazz Series at Yale School of Music

Bassist and composer Jeff Fuller will be leading his jazz group — Jeff Fuller & Friends — on Friday, September 18, 2026, 7:30 pm, at the Ellington Jazz Series at Yale’s Morse Recital Hall.   Fuller’s seven musicians are a distinguished blend of established and emerging artists, and they will perform a program of his originals, noted jazz compositions, and newly arranged standards from the Great American Song Book.

Fuller is just the third Yale graduate (BA ’67, MM ’69) to be individually celebrated during the 54-year run of the Series.  Of the many legendary artists who have been awarded the Ellington Medal, Fuller has played with seventeen of them, including such notables as Papa Jo Jones, Dizzy Gillespie and Lou Donaldson.

Ticket are available at the following web page: https://music-tickets.yale.edu/980/27367

 

CONTACT INFO: Jeff Fuller jefffuller@snet.net

Jeff Fuller & Friends

 

Jeff Fuller, bass, composer

Darren Litzie, piano

Ben Bilello, drums

Naomi Wharry, trombone, vocals

Nigel Regan, alto & tenor saxophones

Haneef N. Nelson, trumpet

Paul Lieberman, flute, percussion

 

Jeff Fuller (bass, composer, Yale BA ’67, MMus ‘69) brings great joy and a wealth of experience to his musical endeavors whether performing, teaching or composing.  A highly sought after jazz bassist, his career has found him working both as leader and sideman with diverse groups in all styles of jazz.  Fuller has toured worldwide and recorded with saxophonists Lou Donaldson and Paquito D’Rivera, and has played with jazz masters from all eras, including such historic artists as Dizzy Gillespie, Mose Allison, “Papa” Jo Jones, Gerry Mulligan, and Clark Terry.  His trio, featuring Darren Litzie on piano and Ben Bilello on drums, has released five CDs of original music and standards.  In 2014, he received the Jazz Haven Award, “For all you have done in presenting and preserving the culture and music of jazz.”  In 2023, Jeff’s “Afro-Cuban Suite” was premiered by the Yale Concert Band, directed by Tom Duffy.  His Latin jazz arrangements, published by Three-Two Music, are frequently performed by college and professional ensembles.  Fuller plays a custom Upton Concord bass, made in Mystic, CT.

Pianist Darren Litzie holds a Master of Music in Jazz Studies from The Hartt School’s Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz and a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Performance Degree from Western Connecticut State University.  He has performed and recorded with artists such as John Riley, Dave Santoro, Mike DiRubbo, Jeff Fuller, Frank Basile, Harvie S, Phil Palombi, Marlene VerPlanck, and Tom Melito.  An avid composer, Darren completed a three-year stint as a member of New York’s prestigious BMI Jazz Composers Workshop, in which several of his works were selected to be premiered in concert by the BMI Jazz Orchestra.  As a recording artist, Darren has appeared on six records as a sideman, and has released two albums on Summit Records as a leader: My Horizon (2022) and On My Own Time (2026).  Since 2013, Darren has served as an Adjunct Professor of Music at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, CT, where he teaches music classes and piano lessons.

Ben Bilello (drums) studied percussion at the Hartt School of Music with Glen Velez, Michael Carvin, and Tony Leone. Since graduating, Ben has performed and recorded with Mulgrew Miller, Eddie Henderson, Curtis Fuller, Joe Wilder, Branford Marsalis, Anthony Braxton, Javon Jackson, Charles Flores, Steve Davis, Jimmy Greene, Josh Evans, Wayne Escoffery, and Dezron Douglas/New Jazz Workshop, among many others. At this time, Ben can be seen performing with his own trio, Earl MacDonald’s Yankee Gumbo Ensemble, Atla & Matt DeChamplain, bassist Jeff Fuller, and many others Ben has been an active educator for over twenty years. He is a former faculty member of the Artists Collective, Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts, and the Litchfield Jazz Camp. Ben has given clinics and lectured at many of New England’s high schools, colleges, and universities. Currently, Ben is a faculty member at Choate Rosemary Hall and Manchester Community College.

Naomi Wharry (Yale MMus ’26) is a multi-faceted trombonist and vocalist who received her degree in Classical Trombone from the Yale School of Music in June, studying with Scott Hartman.  Originally from Oklahoma, Naomi is currently principal trombonist for the Boston Ballet Orchestra.  She enjoys playing both classical and jazz music, believing that beautiful music comes from everywhere and should be explored freely. She has shared the stage with artists such as Noah Kahan, Andrea Bocelli, John Daversa, Patrick Bartley, and many others. As a jazz musician in Oklahoma City, she brought regular jazz shows to the city including gigs with her quartet as well as her tribute to Billie Holiday.  Her musical influences include Ella Fitzgerald, Nancy Wilson, Frank Rosolino, JJ Johnson, and many others.

Nigel Regan is a saxophonist, composer, and educator born and raised in the New Haven area. After receiving a Bachelor of Music in jazz studies from the Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz, Hartt School of Music, Nigel received his Master of Music in jazz studies from the University of North Texas, where he was a Teaching Fellow and played lead alto saxophone in the internationally renowned, 7-time Grammy nominated One O’Clock Lab Band. He is featured on flute, alto and soprano saxophone on their album “Lab/24.” Nigel has played with Miguel Zenon, Helen Sung and Steve Davis, among others, and is currently a teaching artist at New Haven’s Neighborhood Music School, where he began his jazz journey as an outstanding soloist with Jeff Fuller’s Premier Jazz Ensemble and frequently played with celebrated percussionist Jesse Hameen II.

Haneef N. Nelson (trumpet) is a performer, educator, and composer/arranger based in Hartford, CT. He continues to make his mark in jazz and beyond as an arts advocate and concert producer. Haneef currently serves as the Professor of Jazz Trumpet at UMass Amherst and Western Connecticut State University, Vice President of the Board of Directors of the Greater Hartford Arts Council, and has been managing the Jazz Jam Session at Black Eyed Sally’s for over a decade. He has performed with various musicians and groups including: Charles Tolliver, Bill Saxton, William Cepeda, Wilson “Chembo” Corniel, Nat Reeves, Steve Davis, Jesse Hameen, Helen Sung, Wayne Escoffrey, Kris Allen, Abraham Burton, E.J. Strickland, Brandee Younger, Dezron Douglas, Stacey Dillard, Zaccai Curtis, Luques Curtis, Jimmy Greene, Danton Boller, Justin Robinson, Jeremey Manasia, Gary Smulyan, Josh Evans, Doobie Powell, Billy “Church Boy” Powell, Kevin Powell, Ace Livingstone, and Musiq Soulchild among others. Haneef N. Nelson is a Bach Artist.

Paul Lieberman (flute, percussion, Yale ’78) spent two years living and touring with Brazilian jazz legends Airto Moreira and Flora Purim — making his Lincoln Center debut with them — and ten years touring with Allman Brothers co-founder Jaimoe.  He spent 4 years in Rio de Janeiro as Brazil’s first-call, recording on over fifty albums for CBS, Warner, and others.  Paul has performed or recorded with Pat Metheny, George Benson, David Sanborn, Jaco Pastorius, Paquito D’Rivera, The Allman Brothers Band, and a wide range of Brazilian stars including Djavan, Roberto Carlos, and Chico Buarque.  His 2011 CD Ibeji — nominated for Latin Jazz Flutist and Brazilian Jazz Album of the Year and a John Lennon Songwriting Competition winner — drew praise for Paul’s soulful mastery and formidable composing.  He is currently Artist in Residence at the Noble & Greenough School in Massachusetts, directing concert bands and jazz bands, which he recently led on a cultural and musical exchange in Cuba.