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Barry Sames

Barry Sames personifies the very essence of versatility through music that motivates listeners to embrace the fullness and freedom of creativity. A seasoned pianist/composer & producer, Barry is a "musician's musician" who articulates familiar feelings, creating music that is spiritual, soulful, yet progressive minded. He has taken his music around the world, and sees music as a bridge to cultural understanding and peace.

The New Jersey native graduated Temple University's School of music, and shortly thereafter joined Philadelphia-based ethno-fusion group, The Arpeggio Jazz Ensemble, recording and performing original compositions. As time went on, Barry became a highly sought after accompanist for some of Philadelphia's most noted jazz and blues vocal talents. Mr. Sames spent the next few years developing his sound, traveling to Europe and Japan with Philadelphia artists Cornell Rochester, Nathan Ingram and the late Keisa Brown. Barry co-founded an original five-piece fusion band INSYNK, which featured saxophonist Chris Hunter (Michel Camillo) and Drummer Ishmael Wilburn (Weather Report), performing & recording his first CD.

About the same time, Barry brought his jazz music into the church, composing and arranging for jazz vespers concerts, performing in churches nationwide. His ensemble was selected to perform for the National Lutheran Church-wide Assembly. This laid the foundation for "Awaiting the Spirit", a gospel/jazz CD that Sames released in 1998 that was highly praised in the music industry. Barry was also jazz artist-in-residence at First United Methodist Church in Philadelphia (1997-2000). While in the residency, he was able to write original works for choir and various ensembles including jazz, gospel, Brazilian, African and Latin, and utilized musical talent from Philadelphia (Doc Gibbs, John Blake, Marlon Simon, Monette Sudler) as well as New York jazz talent (Chris Hunter, Dwayne Eubanks, Abu Mboup, Sam Newsome, William Cepeda, etc.) While in this residency, Mr. Sames began to explore combining strings with various ethnic musical genres, and also incorporated various choirs and jazz vocal soloists from Philadelphia. Barry began working with violin virtuoso Meg Okura. The duo worked an 8-city tour of Japan, and then concerts in U.S. churches, including Robert Schuller's Crystal Cathedral in Orange County, CA. Mr. Sames also co-produced Ms. Okura's gospel CD "Never Alone". That same year, he was commissioned by the Methodist church to write and perform a sacred concert for jazz orchestra and choir. This concert was a feature of the Fels Planetarium’s "Jazz Under the Stars" series in Philadelphia. He later performed his sacred Christmas concert at the Kimmel Center's Verizon Hall. In 2003 Barry Recorded a 3rd CD, "Celebrate" which included many of his jazz Christmas arrangements for singers and large ensemble.

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