Lee Ritenour & Dave Grusin and Kirk Whalum

After several years of trying, the Berks Jazz Fest is thrilled to be presenting the Lee Ritenour & Dave Grusin show.

Guitarist Ritenour, born in 1952 in Los Angeles, Calif., started playing guitar at age 8, and by 16 he was playing on a recording session with The Mamas & The Papas.

At 17, he worked with Lena Horne and Tony Bennett. He studied classical guitar at the University of Southern California but was influenced by jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery.

During his career, he was an innovator of 1970s fusion, a star on the 1980s pop charts, played Brazilian jazz, and toured with the 1990s supergroup Fourplay.

The Grammy winner (and 16-time nominee) has released 45 albums, the most recent of which is “Dreamcatcher” (2020), his first instrumental solo album. And he has worked with many legends, including Frank Sinatra, Pink Floyd, B.B. King, and, of course, Dave Grusin.

At 89, Grusin -- composer/arranger/producer/pianist -- is still touring.

His film scores have won many awards, including an Oscar and 10 Grammy Awards. He has scored films like “Divorce American Style” and “The Graduate” (1967), “Three Days of the Condor” (1975), “Tootsie” (1982) and “The Firm” (1993) -- about 100 in all. He created many TV scores as well, including themes for “Maude,” “Good Times,” “Baretta” and “St. Elsewhere.”

Grusin founded GRP Records with Larry Rosen, which produced some of the first digital recordings.

From 2000 to 2011, Grusin concentrated on writing classical and jazz compositions, and touring and recording with collaborators, including jazz singer and lyricist Lorraine Feather and Ritenour.

Grusin and Ritenour’s album “Harlequin” won a Grammy Award in 1985. They were nominated for Grammies for their classical crossover albums, “Two Worlds” (2000) and “Amparo” (2008).

Soulful tenor saxophonist Kirk Whalum will be performing three times during the fest.

Whalum and his band will be part of this amazing co-bill with Lee Ritenour and Dave Grusin on Saturday, April 6

Whalum’s Gospel According to Jazz concert is set for Sunday, April 7. He will also be headlining guest for the Remembering Grover Washington Jr. concert on Friday, April 12.

Whalum’s distinctive sound comes from his gospel roots in Memphis, Tenn., where he was born in 1958, and the Houston nightclub scene where he paid his dues as a sideman before forming his own band during the 1980s and touring with pianist Bob James.

He started recording albums, and his fifth, “Cache” (1993) reached No. 1. His collaboration with James, “Joined at the Hip” (1996), received a Grammy nomination.

After moving to Los Angeles, Whalum became a popular session player for Barbara Streisand, Al Jarreau, Quincy Jones and others. He can be heard playing the sax solo on Whitney Houston’s 1992 “I Will Always Love You,” one of the greatest singles of all time.

Whalum has released more than 25 solo recordings, aside from his acclaimed “Gospel According to Jazz” series in four chapters. He is an ordained minister, with an M.A. in religion. He is a 12-time Grammy nominee, and won a Grammy in 2011, along with for Best Gospel Song, along with songwriter Jerry Peters, for “It’s What I Do,” featuring Lalah Hathaway.

Find the artists online: Lee Ritenour(opens in a new tab)(opens in a new tab) Dave Grusin(opens in a new tab) Kirk Whalum(opens in a new tab)(opens in a new tab)