The triple-stacked show will make a stop at the Rose Music Center on Thursday, June 19.
Not only does this tour merge two of the top musicians in the world, it also merges two musical genres: jazz and pop.
Foster, known for producing culture-permeating songs, like Celine Dion’s “The Power of Love” and Josh Groban’s “You Raise Me Up,” has his fingerprints on more major moments in popular music than almost any other producer. He’s created pop hits for Barbra Streisand, Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Madonna, and many others in what he calls a “submarine environment”: decades in the studio, pounding out music to send into the ether.
“The artists that I work with… they take the songs that we wrote or I produced or both, and they get to enjoy the fruits of our labor with a live audience. I never got that feeling,” Foster said. “I just kept making music for other people. So this was a way for me to sort of get that feeling of what they felt. And I’ve got to tell you, it’s a great feeling.”
Foster and Botti performed together for two special events last year. They had so much fun they decided to join forces for a US tour.
Botti, whose latest contemporary jazz record “Vol. 1” was produced by Foster, found a way to open the genre to the masses, just as Herbie Hancock and Miles Davis did before him. As Foster said, “he’s found a way to make you like it.” The 2024 album gets back to the essence of jazz, without being too introspective and heady, and features beautiful balladic renditions of standards as interpreted by his main instrument.
His trumpet pokes through, like a lead voice amongst the ensemble, but it’s a feature that doesn’t overshadow the rest of the band.
“A singer has a certain quality that’s special, or something unique about the timbre of the voice that’s not any different than Chris Botti,” said Katharine McPhee, who was a runner-up on season five of “American Idol.” “The sound that comes out of his body and into that instrument is a unique and soulful sound, and that’s why it has so much resonance with people.”
The upcoming Foster/Botti show is billed as a musical experience watching two of the most gifted artists of our time create together on stage. It’s a storytelling show, too, filled with banter, charisma, emotional depth, and irreverence alongside the music.
“Working with the legendary David Foster has been one of the greatest journeys of my musical career,” Botti said. “He is the most celebrated and talented producer, truly deserving of every accolade he has earned. Beyond that, he’s a dear friend, and I’m thrilled to be hitting the road with him this summer.”
As a frequent performer at the 100-seater Blue Note in New York City, Botti is also adept at bringing a sense of intimacy to his shows, despite perhaps the larger venues on this tour.
“Playing those smaller rooms, those very intimate rooms, teaches us how to play a big room,” McPhee said. “If you connect to the people in the front, you’re gonna also connect to the people in the back.”
The show will feature alternating collaborations between Botti, Foster, and McPhee, and will explore genres from throughout each of their careers — from the hits to the lesser known songs.
Because both Botti and Foster have collaborated with some of the greatest musicians, I asked Foster what it was like to play with each other.
“This is not a hyperbole: Chris is so superior to me, musician-wise,” Foster said. “He’s much more than just a jazz musician. He thinks in a different stratosphere. He’s just a phenomenal person. We have a bromance. I compete with Sting on the bromance because they’re super tight. This is just going to be fun. It is my deep honor and privilege to share the stage with this gifted monster talent.”
Brandon Berry writes about the Dayton and Southwest Ohio music and art scene. Have a story idea for him? Email branberry100@gmail.com.
HOW TO GO
What: David Foster and Chris Botti, featuring Katharine McPhee
When: 7 p.m., June 19
Where: Rose Music Center, 6800 Executive Blvd., Huber Heights
Cost: $48.50 - $104.50
Tickets: rosemusiccenter.com
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