Richard Howell's Sudden Changes

Saxophonist Richard Howell brings his concept of "Bridge Music" to Mr. Tipple's with his ensemble Sudden Changes, featuring some of the Bay Area's most accomplished musicians. Howell's music celebrates diversity as it unites listeners across genres, blending contemporary jazz with funk, soul, and world music influences.

A first-call musician who has performed with jazz and R&B legends including Etta James, Ray Charles, Chaka Khan, Maurice White, Don Cherry, and Charlie Haden, Howell is known for his powerful, melodic tenor saxophone playing and spiritual approach to music. As KQED described, he's "like a Jedi master" with "this ability to focus" musicians in performance. His recent album "Our Purpose" showcases his "Joy Protocol" philosophy — a groove-based healing initiative that promotes spontaneous dancing, meaningful connection, and music-fueled liberation.

Joining Howell are multi-platinum keyboardist Frank Martin, who has collaborated with Stevie Wonder, John McLaughlin, and Herbie Hancock; versatile bassist Fred Randolph, a composer and arranger with a Master's in composition; drummer Miles Turk, who grew up in San Francisco's jazz community and performs with the funk band The Flannels; percussionist Adrian Areas, son of Santana founding member Jose Chepito Areas, skilled in timbales, bongos, and congas since age one; and multi-instrumentalist saxophonist Jesse Levitt, who leads Levitation Music and holds an M.M. from Manhattan School of Music.

This sextet configuration promises the "spirited performances that blend jazz with elements of soul, funk, and world music" that Howell is known for. Expect dynamic improvisational flights, quicksilver energy, and the kind of musical bridge-building that has made Howell a revered figure among his peers and an essential creative force in the Bay Area music scene for decades.