Paula Byrne | Schedule



	Saturday 12/6/25		Paula Byrne Sings ! @ Wilf's Restaurant 600 NW 6th Avenue Portland, Oregon featuring Paula Byrne, vocals Steve Christofferson, piano Eric Gruber, bass Jason Palmer, drums 7:00 - 9:30 pm Steve Christofferson has been described as "one of the Northwest's most inventive pianists," (Willamette Week) with "a deft, lyrical touch and fevered imagination." (Victoria Times-Colonist) His trio is "focused, a very cohesive group capable of exploring standards and lesser-known jazz pieces with a soul and drive that hearkens all the way back to Monk, Garner and Bud Powell." (Cadence Magazine) His originals are "among the best compositions you'll hear on the local scene," (Dan DePrez) and David Frishberg says "Steve gets a great sound and plays with real authority and impeccable taste; he's one of my favorite piano players." West coast based Eric Gruber, is a highly sought after bassist in many genres. Gruber was classically trained from a young age but later turned to the dark side of Jazz where he has flourished. With his earlier roots in Bluegrass, solid time and rhythm came easy, and have allowed many paths throughout his career. He can be seen playing with local luminaries including Darrell Grant, Devin Phillips, and the Northwest based Folk/Americana group "Skybound Blue". Drummer Jason Palmer is a percussionist and educator who is active throughout Oregon, the United States, and internationally. His performances include appearances at St. Peter's Church and the Knitting Factory in New York, the Rochester Jazz Festival, the High Sierra Music Festival, The Sitka Jazz Festival, and Jazz Festival Calgary. Regionally, he has performed at The Waterfront Blues Festival, the Cathedral Park Jazz Festival, the Portland Jazz Festival, and the Oregon Festival of American Music. Since 1995, Jason has performed and recorded with such artists as Danilo Perez, John Clayton, Ben Monder, Ron Miles, Dave Frishberg, Bucky Pizzarelli, John Zorn, Steve Wilson, Lizz Wright, Sheryl Bailey, Chuck Redd, Dick Hyman, Ken Peplowski, Randy Porter, and George Colligan. His recordings have been reviewed in Cadence, All About Jazz, and the All Music Guide. He attended the University of Oregon, where he received both a Bachelor's degree and a Master's degree in Music. As a student, Jason had the opportunity to perform in a variety of student ensembles as well as with guest artists such as Nancy King, Bobby Shew, John Hollenbeck, and Gary Versace. His pop and rock music experience includes work with Allen Toussaint, Mason Williams, Sonny Turner of the Coasters, Ruth Brown, and Satin Love Orchestra. Active in education, Jason is currently the Department Chair of Music, Dance, and Theater at Portland Community College's Rock Creek Campus in Oregon. Recently, he has also taught at Western Oregon University, Umpqua Community College, and Lane Community College.


	Saturday 12/13/25		Paula Byrne Jazz Private Event 7:00 pm


	Wednesday 12/17/25		Paula Byrne Sings ! @ Wilf's Restaurant 600 NW 6th Avenue Portland, Oregon featuring Paula Byrne, vocals Patrick Carr, piano Perry Thoorsell, bass Kurt Deutscher, drums 7:00 - 9:00 pm Patrick studied jazz at the University of North Texas, where he taught and directed medium and large ensembles as a teaching fellow. He now lives in Portland, Oregon where he performs regularly with Ron Steen, the Rivkah Ross quartet, and many other local jazz musicians. Performances or recordings with Smith Dobson, Jessica Williams, Larry Vuckovich, Eddie Henderson, Sonny Simmons, Mark Levine, Joe Henderson, Jamie Davis, Marvin Stamm, Kurt Elling and Tootie Heath. Live shows accompanying Bobby Rydell, Dick Contino, Julius LaRosa, Rita Moreno, Anna Maria Alberghetti, Pete Barbutti, Jim Baily, Jerry Vale, Diahann Carroll and Frankie Laine. Musical Theater credits include "Stardust," "By George," "Godspell," "In the Heights," and "Camelot." Festival performances include PDXJazz Festival, San Jose Jazz Festival, San Francisco Jazz Festival, Aarhus Jazz Festival (Denmark), Stanford Jazz Festival. Kurt Deutscher has been recording and performing music professionally for over 35+ years. Best known for his four years of service with the United States Marine Corps Band and twelve years as a founder and drummer of Tall Jazz, Kurt now records and performs with a number of Northwest artists.


	Saturday 1/17/26		Paula Byrne Quartet @ Christo's Lounge featuring Brandon Nelson, piano Tim Gilson, bass Brent Follis, drums Christo's Lounge 1108 Broadway St., NE Salem, Oregon USA 7:00 pm Tickets $18 -- Reservations Highly Recommended Brandon Nelson began his piano studies at the age of 12 in Mount Vernon, WA. He graduated from Washington State University in 2016 with a degree in Piano Performance with a Jazz Emphasis. During his studies, Brandon studied directly from renowned musicians Brian Ward, Gerald Berthiaume, and Greg Yasinitsky. Brandon is a prizewinner in multiple competitions, including the Washington State Music Teachers Association's District One Recital (2011), Phase I Scholarship Competition (2012-2016), and The Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival (2015 and 2016). In 2016, Brandon was also selected as the pianist to play at Hamp's Club. Currently a working musician, Brandon is playing with jazz and rock groups around Vancouver and Portland. Tim Gilson has been a mainstay in the Northwest for many years. In 1985 he joined the Mel Brown Quintet with which he recorded the award winning 'Gordon Bleu' CD. During this time Tim had the opportunity to play with many nationally acclaimed artists including Mose Allison, Ritchie Cole, Bud Shank, Herb Ellis, Julian Priester, John Handy, Ernestine Anderson and many others. In 1988 Tim won 2nd place in an international bass competition in Los Angeles and shortly thereafter substituted for John Clayton with 'Slide Hampton and the New Jazz Masters' in a concert in Sacramento. He toured Japan in 1993 with the Mel Brown Quintet with special guest artist Chuck Findley on trumpet; then in 1994 he moved to Madison Wisconsin where he served as Principal Bassist with the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra and substituted on a regular basis with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. Since returning to Portland in 2002 Tim plays regularly with the Oregon Symphony backing guest artist such as Dee Daniels, Byron Stripling and Herbie Hancock. Tim has also accompanied several guest artists including Wycliff Gordon, Antonio Hart, Matt Wilson, Ingrid Jensen and Wynton Marsalis during their tours of the Pacific Northwest. Raised on a farm in Southern Illinois, the first thing Brent Follis can remember is picking up a pair of wooden spoons, and tapping out rhythms on some old popcorn tins. Since then, his journey has led him cross country and around the globe, performing music for thousands of people, while in search of inspiration and culture. After receiving his degree in Advertising and music performance from Southern Illinois University, he transplanted himself in the fertile soil of the Pacific Northwest. After receiving a call from a friend and musical writing partner on the East Coast, and needing to fulfill his yearning for diversity, culture, and thin crust pizza, he moved to New York City. After a decade of performing, traveling, and immersing himself deep within the trenches of NYC, he made the sojourn back to the Rose City, where he maintains a busy recording and performance schedule, and can be found backing up many talented singer-songwriters, jazz and pop artists.


	Wednesday 3/4/26		Paula Byrne Sings! @ Arrivederci featuring Steve Christofferson, Piano Bill Athens, Bass Todd Strait, Drums 17023 SE McLoughlin Blvd. Milwaukie, Oregon USA 7:00 - 9:00 pm $9 cover Steve Christofferson has been described as "one of the Northwest's most inventive pianists," (Willamette Week) with "a deft, lyrical touch and fevered imagination." (Victoria Times-Colonist) His trio is "focused, a very cohesive group capable of exploring standards and lesser-known jazz pieces with a soul and drive that hearkens all the way back to Monk, Garner and Bud Powell." (Cadence Magazine) His originals are "among the best compositions you'll hear on the local scene," (Dan DePrez) and David Frishberg says "Steve gets a great sound and plays with real authority and impeccable taste; he's one of my favorite piano players." Bill Athens is an accomplished performer on both double bass and electric bass, having worked as a professional musician for over 15 years in the Pacific Northwest. He studied with Ken Baldwin (Oregon Symphony), Glen Moore (Oregon, The Band), and Dan Schulte (Jazz Bassist). Bill is a music graduate of Portland State University. He has performed in a diverse range of genres, from Classical and Jazz to Rock and studio recording. Bill has performed Internationally with Blues legend Earl Thomas and with Jazz power trio Trio Subtonic. He has performed with the Rose City Chamber Orchestra, the Tacoma Symphony, Bel Canto Northwest, and as a soloist with The Oregon Sinfonietta debuting a new work by local composer Don Appert. He performed with local Jazz luminaries such as: Mel Brown, Nancy King, Shirley Nanette, and Dan Balmer. as well international Jazz artists: Ben Wendell, Seamus Blake, Byron Stripling, Dominique Eade, and Dave Pietro. He has been a long time music instructor, teaching at Clark Community College, George Fox University, and The Great Basin Jazz Camp. Over Todd's 40 year career, he has spent 10 years in New York City playing with Marian McPartland, Tal Farlow, a brief tour with Woody Herman's Thundering Herd, followed by a relocation to Kansas City working with Interstring, PBT Trio among many others. During this time in Kansas City, Todd met Eldar, Karrin Allyson, and Kevin Mahagony leading to national and international travel with each over a 20 year period. His history and experience have brought forth over a 100 recordings as a sideman, most notably receiving two Grammy Nominations with Karrin Allyson, one with Eldar, and one with Randy Porter and Nancy King. In 2017, Todd released his debut album as a leader, "There'll Be Some Changes Made", featuring Bill Mays, Bob Bowman, and Danny Embrey. Now based in Kansas City, Todd's schedule is focused locally with occasional tours. He can be found playing nightly in the Kansas City area with multiple groups.


	Friday 3/13/26		Paula Byrne Jazz Private Event 6:00 pm


	Friday 3/27/26		Paula Byrne Jazz Private Event 7:30 pm

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