NEJC Presents
Ethan Iverson + Walter Smith III
New England Jazz Collaborative presents pianist Ethan Iverson and saxophonist Walter Smith III in their first duo performance together. Iverson, co-founder of The Bad Plus, and Smith, Chair of Woodwinds at Berklee, are both Blue Note recording artists and major figures in contemporary jazz.
DATES AND TICKET INFO
Performance Schedule
July 31, 2026, at 7:00 PM
Buy Tickets
$33.55 In Advance
$38.70 At The Door
Ticket Prices Include All Fees
Ethan Iverson
Pianist, composer, and writer Ethan Iverson was a founding member of The Bad Plus, a game-changing collective with Reid Anderson and David King. The New York Times called TBP “Better than anyone at melding the sensibilities of post-60’s jazz and indie rock.” During his 17-year tenure, TBP performed in venues as diverse as the Village Vanguard, Carnegie Hall, and Bonnaroo; and collaborated with Joshua Redman, Bill Frisell, and the Mark Morris Dance Group.
Iverson plays in the critically-acclaimed Billy Hart quartet with Mark Turner and Ben Street, and has performed with Albert “Tootie” Heath and Ron Carter. For a decade, his blog Do the Math has been a repository of musician-to-musician interviews and analysis. Time Out New York selected Iverson as one of 25 essential New York jazz icons: “Perhaps NYC’s most thoughtful and passionate student of jazz tradition—the most admirable sort of artist-scholar.”
Walter Smith III
Walter Smith is widely recognized as an adept performer, accomplished composer, and inspired educator. Smith’s Blue Note release return to casual garnered critical acclaim as “a homecoming of sorts” and “an emphatic confirmation.” In September 2024, Smith released his sophomore Blue Note album, three of us are from Houston and Reuben is not. In March 2026, he reprises his acclaimed TWIO concept with TWIO Vol. 2.
Smith has developed under the wings of many of the music’s greats, recording and touring with the Roy Haynes Fountain of Youth Band, Terence Blanchard Quintet, Eric Harland’s Voyager, Bill Stewart Trio, Jason Moran, Ambrose Akinmusire, Christian McBride, Marquis Hill, Gerald Clayton, Christian Scott and Sean Jones. He has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Village Vanguard and the Kennedy Center, and has appeared on over 100 recordings. Originally from Houston, Smith now resides in Boston, where he is Chair of Woodwinds at Berklee College of Music.
New England Jazz Collaborative is an artist-run nonprofit collective dedicated to commissioning, presenting and documenting new music by a diverse group of living composers, and to expanding the audience for jazz and related genres.
NEJC’s programs have been featured in The Boston Globe, Boston Magazine and on WBUR’s Morning Edition, and have received support from the National Park Service, Eastern Bank, Cambridge Community Foundation and Mass Cultural Council.
This show has been made possible through the generosity of the Cambridge Community Foundation. We are extremely grateful for their partnership.