Quartet features Kendall Park’s Andrea Brachfeld
by Madeleine Johnson, Social Editor
A local award-winning musician will be taking the stage in this month’s Jazz Café performance.
The Andrea Brachfeld Quartet, featuring Kendall Park resident and flautist Andrea Brachfeld, will be offering its own brand of jazz tunes on Friday at 8 p.m. in the South Brunswick Municipal Complex’s Herb Eckert Auditorium, located on Ridge Road.
Ms. Brachfeld is a member of the South Brunswick Arts Commission, which sponsors the monthly concert series. Her band was asked to perform at the last minute.
”We had a mix-up with a band, so they asked me if I would be able to (play), and I said we would,” Ms. Brachfeld said.
The quartet features Ms. Brachfeld on the flute, Bob Quaranta on the piano, Diego Lopez on the drums and fill-in bassist Wilbo Wright.
Ms. Brachfeld says all who attend Friday’s concert will be treated to “a swinging band, great musicians and fun times.”
”We’re going to be playing mostly jazz and some Latin jazz. We do straight-ahead jazz, like standards,” she said. “We do a lot of original tunes, too. I write a lot of original material.”
A graduate of the Manhattan School of Music, in New York, Ms. Brachfeld has been the recipient of the Cicho O’Farrill Lifetime Achievement Award from Latin Jazz USA, as well as the Louis Armstrong Award for Outstanding Student from Jazz Interactions.
”I’ve been playing since I was 16,” she said. “I think music pursued me. It just came to me and it keeps coming to me.”
She encourages the community to come out and share her band’s love of music, stressing that aspiring musical artists might benefit from seeing a live band performance.
”Musicians are always really happy when people come out to support live music. It seems to be a lost art these days and it really needs to be encouraged, especially among young musicians and young people,” Ms. Brachfeld said. “It’s a great local night out, and you can’t get this kind of jazz in this kind of area very often.”
Admission is $5, which includes refreshments. For more information about the Jazz Café series, call 732-329-4000, ext. 7635 or e-mail [email protected]. For more information about The Andrea Brachfeld Quartet and Ms. Brachfeld’s other bands, visit www.andreabrachfeld.com.

