COLUMBUS, Ohio—A holiday trip to Columbus over the weekend yielded more than just a couple of Christmas presents. Easton Town Center was swarming with shoppers and glittering with lights; and it was serendipity that led a shopping journalist to some talented musicians.
Inside one of the mall’s hallways, a saxophone quartet was preparing to perform. It was worth a few minutes wait for the performance by the Seasons Sax Quartet, of Class Acts of Columbus. Class Acts provides musical entertainment for a variety of venues.
The quartet has been performing at Easton for seven years, and on Christmas Eve they will perform a final season 7 p.m. performance at Atonement Lutheran Church in Upper Arlington.
The quartet includes Jim Seitz on baritone saxophone (Reynoldsburg, Ohio), Matt Adams on alto saxophone (Navarre, Ohio), Kris Keith on soprano saxophone (Hamilton, Ohio) and Kevin O’Neill on tenor saxophone (Mansfield, Ohio).
“As best as I can remember, this group started back in the fall of 2007 with a phone call from Lisa Cave at Class Acts Entertainment in Columbus. She was looking for a new and different group to add to their list of entertainers for the holiday season at the Easton Mall,” said Kris Keith.
“I immediately thought of my colleagues currently in the group,” he added, “all of them very talented musicians, willing and able to make the music really special. We have worked together in many musical environments throughout the years including groups like the “HooDoo Soul Band,” the “New Basics Brass Band,” “Honk, Wail, & Moan,” and Vaughn Weister’s Famous Jazz Orchestra to name just a few.”
Music is an integral part of the lives of the men in the quartet. They each pursue careers in music in various ways: performing, teaching, instrument repair, recording, composing, or arranging.
Seitz and Adams work as “two of the best instrument repair men in Columbus” at Buckeye Brass and Winds located outside Plain City near Dublin, noted Keith.
Mansfield’s O’Neill is an instrumental performer, playing saxophone, flute and clarinet. He also teaches music lessons.
O’Neill attended Malabar Middle School where he started playing saxophone.
“Mark Maxwell was the band director at the time,” said O’Neill, “I later attended Mansfield Senior High and performed in the marching, concert, and jazz bands under the direction of Jay Welenc and Charles Bradley. I also regularly attended the Richland Academy Jazz Camp, which was initiated by the late Dr. Thomas Croghan and was a huge inspiration to myself as well as many other young players in the area.”
O’Neill and Adams both have private studios in the Columbus area.
“I teach as an adjunct faculty member in the Jazz Department at The Ohio State University and Kevin and I both currently perform in the “HooDoo Soul Band,” which has been performing every Sunday night for nearly twenty-five years in Columbus,” said Keith.
O’Neill added, “I love playing a variety of music, honestly, more than one specific style. That being said jazz does hold a special place with me. One of the main reasons is the freedom and creativity it allows with improvisation.”
Does he practice a lot?
“Practice, in my opinion, is a lifelong part of being a musician. Music is a journey that you never really ‘finish.’ There is always room to improve. As for recording, this quartet did go into the studio once after our first year, but that recording was mainly just for family and friends. We have been playing together now for so much longer that we really look forward to seeing what happens when we record again.”
Seasons Sax Quartet is planning to record a new Holiday CD in January 2015.
