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Description
4 WOMEN OF JAZZ
October 17, 2026
$30 Tickets | $3 Service fee applies for any credit card
Iva Jean Ambush
Jazz Vocalist Iva Jean Ambush, the scat lady, is the recent winner of the coveted Billie Holiday Competition. She has performed at Birdland (NYC), the DC Jazz Festival, Keystone Korner - Baltimore, the Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival, Alice's Jazz and Cultural Society, Blues Alley, Le Duc des Lombards, Bethesda Blues and Jazz Club, International Association of Jazz Educators Conferences, Frederick - In The Streets Festival, the Billy Strayhorn 100th Birthday Celebration, WPFW 89.3 Live @ 5, Conservatorium van Amsterdam, Jazz Night @Westminster DC, Amherst Fine Arts Center, Ritz Carlton Pentagon, Frederick's Baker Park 4th of July Celebration (multiple years), the East Coast Jazz Festival, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and more. Iva enjoys exploring the concepts of jazz phrasing and rhythms with the help of jazz legends, Sheila Jordan, Dr. Horace Boyer, and Ronnie Wells. Some of her other influences include Dr. Frederick Tillis, Prof. Charles Ellison and the late Dr. Billy Taylor and Dr. Bro. Yusef Lateef.
She has a family full of Jazz Musicians which include on the maternal side, late trumpeter Lester Bowie, the late Byron Bowie (saxophonist/composer/arranger), Defunkt's founder Joe Bowie, guitarist Jonathan Townes and on the paternal side, bassist Scott Ambush (Spyro Gyra [and Formerly with Stanley Turrentine]), and pianist Allen Ambush. There are a host of others too numerous to name.
Ms. Ambush is working on her next CD, I Am Jazz, which is a homage to her family with a Jazz fusion of Gospel, Funk and Soul. Through music written by the pioneers, Iva Jean Ambush, will demonstrate why the "Voice" remains the epitome of communication via syncopation --
Elevating the Instrument, the Language, the Conversation.
Petra Martin
Colie Aziza
Gigi
BAND:
PETE FRASSRAND
Pete Frassrand, born in Detroit, grew up in a family of musicians and teachers, and he is proud to continue that legacy as both a musician and educator. He first learned piano from his mother, who was the music minister at their local church. After playing piano on and off for years, Pete moved to the Washington, DC area in 1995 and decided to pursue music seriously. He is grateful to have studied with esteemed area players like Robert Redd, Charles Covington, Greg Hatza, and Tim Murphy. In 2000, Pete received his music education degree from Towson University and now shares his passion for jazz with young people as a music teacher.
Over the years, Pete has honed his performance skills in numerous DC area clubs, including Twins, Bohemian Caverns, Jojo’s, Utopia, Mr. Henry's, and Columbia Station. He has also performed in churches such as Westminster Presbyterian, All Souls Unitarian, Metropolitan AME, and Wesley United Methodist, as well as prestigious institutions like the National Museum of African American History, the Kennedy Center, the National Press Club, American University, and Nationals Park. His performances have been featured on TV (NBC4, Voice of America Africa), radio (WPFW Live at Five, WAMU, WOWD Takoma Park), and live streams hosted by An Die Musik concert venue in Baltimore.
Since 2011, Pete has served as the pianist for the Greater U Street Jazz Collective, making appearances at events such as the DC Jazz Festival, the National Cherry Blossom Festival, the Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival, and the Congressional Black Caucus. He also maintains long-standing associations with respected area musicians like David Cole and Main Street Blues, Iva Ambush, and Charles Rahmat Woods. Pete deeply appreciates the knowledge, friendship, support, and opportunities he has received from these individuals and many others in the local music community. He considers himself extremely fortunate to be able to pursue his passion in an area with such a rich musical and cultural history.
DAVID COLES
EMORY DIGGS
FRANK WILLIAMS, IV
Venue Details
El Golfo Restaurant (124 Assigned Seating)
8739 Flower AvenueSilver Spring, Maryland 20901
