Curtis Taylor making impact on San Diego jazz scene

Equally steeped in jazz and gospel music, trumpet dynamo Curtis Taylor is a relatively new addition to the San Diego scene, having moved here less than three years ago. During that time, he has become an increasingly visible contributor to various area bands, both large and small, from the Rob Thorsen Quartet to Joe Garrison & Night People.

Armed with a master’s degree in music from Rutgers University, Taylor is currently a guest lecturer at Cal State San Marcos. Best known for his work with singer Gregory Porter, saxophonist James Carter and pianist Cyrus Chestnut, the Ohio-bred trumpeter is a formidable band leader in his own right.

His Thursday concert at the all-ages La Jolla Athenaeum teams him with top San Diego drummer Richard Sellers, former Wynton Marsalis pianist Eric Reed and New Zealand bassist Ben Shepherd, not to be confused with the Soundgarden bassist of the same name.

Sellers is featured on a 2013 live recording that teams him and Taylor with bassist Antar Martin and saxophonist Kamau Kenyatta, the producer of Grammy Award-winning singer (and former SDSU football scholarship student) Gregory Porter’s two most recent albums. You can access the recording, and more information, about Taylor online at curtistaylor.net