Hart Community Performing Arts Series celebrates milestone with Sunday concert

Lauren Henderson

Hart Community Performing Arts Series celebrates milestone with Sunday concert

HART — The Hart Community Performing Arts Series will celebrate a milestone with a concert Sunday afternoon, Feb. 19.

“The series is proud to have presented 150 concerts and brought hundreds of fine artists to the Hart stage since its inception in the fall of 1999,” said Series Artistic Director Tom Kirk.

The Lauren Henderson Trio will perform Sunday at 3 p.m. in the Hart Public Schools Auditorium. Henderson was originally scheduled to appear on stage beside Benny Benack III last November, but was unable to reach Hart in time for the concert due to travel restrictions caused by the November snowstorm. This concert will take the place of the previously scheduled concert by the Tom Knific Quartet. The Knific group will be rescheduled for 2023-2024. Tickets will be available at the door. For further information, contact Kirk at tomkirk@hartseries.org.

Described as “somewhere between a comforting whisper and a cogent declaration” by The New York Times, Henderson, paints reflective and impassioned stories with her haunting voice and enchanting compositions. Recognized as one of 10 Jazz Artists Blending and Expanding The Sounds Of Latin America by the Recording Academy, her music and artistic contributions are featured on Grammy.com. Recently the cover of the Spotify Vocal Jazz Playlist, her music resonates with listeners around the world, captivating a broad audience of music aficionados.

Featured in the Financial Times, breaking the Jazz Charts Top 5, and the Year End Jazz Week Top 40 (2021) as the 38th most played record of the year, Henderson’s eclectic vocal influences spread across genres producing a distinct yet versatile sound.

Her original music is featured in Sky Rojo (Netflix), The Drowning, (starring Julia Stiles and Tracie Thoms), El Juego de Las Llaves, (Ela Velden, Maite Perroni, and Marimar Vega), and Romeo y Julieta (starring Lupita Nyong’o and Juan Castano), scored by one of Henderson’s musical partners, Michael Thurber. Henderson uncovers the layers of her diverse background in English and Spanish. Her compositions paint stories reflecting journeys imposed through the African Diaspora in connection to Henderson’s Panamanian, Montserratian, and vast Caribbean roots as they interplay with her North American upbringing.

Jazz, Latin Jazz, Flamenco, R&B and Soul roots aid in an exploration of culture, society, race, love and the complexities encountered as we navigate life’s obstacles.  

Henderson began to study piano at an early age. She grew up singing in church and school choirs, as well as listening to jazz records her parents and grandparents played in the house. Timid as a young musician, she was always reluctant to sing solos, until given a gentle push by mentors shortly before heading to Wheaton College (MA) to receive her bachelor of arts. At Wheaton, she discovered her voice, becoming the musical director of VUJ, a member of jazz band, studying classical voice and musical theatre, as well as finding inspiration from her professors and master classes with artists like Paquito D’Rivera, Take6, and the legendary Barry Harris at the Barry Harris Workshop.

Having earned degrees in both music and Hispanic studies, Henderson combined her love of music and culture while living in Puebla, Mexico. In Mexico, she studied the traditional music of the Yucatán and popular music throughout the country at Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla. Through her international piano and voice studies, she worked on developing her musicianship. In Córdoba, España she studied flamenco and its connections to jazz at La Universidad de Córdoba. As the founder and CEO of Brontosaurus Records, Henderson graduated with an executive MBA from Brown University (RI) and the IE Business School (Madrid) in May of 2019.

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