Oct. 23, 2013: Vocalist Alayne Faraone, along with the jazz trio of Michika Fukumori on piano, Paul Francis on drums, and Aidan O’Donnell on bass, and special guest vocalist David Coss will perform in the sanctuary at West Center Congregational Church at 101 Pondfield Road West on Friday, October 25, at 7:30 pm. 

The concert, "All God's Chillun Got Swing," will feature the cool tunes of Johnny Mercer, Cole Porter, George Gershwin, and more. The quartet will perform such favorites as "God Bless the Child" by Billie Holiday and Arthur Herzog, "Day In, Day Out" by Rube Boom and Johnny Mercer, "I Got Rhythm" by George Gershwin, "In the Still of the Night" by Cole Porter, "All God's Chillun Got Swing" by Walter Jurmann, Gus Kahn, and Bronislaw Kaper, and other jazz songs and standards. 

A wine and hors d'oeuvres reception will follow the concert, which is to benefit the Gomoa Akwamu District Assembly Basic School in Swedru, Ghana, and West Center Congregational Church.

Alayne Faraone has been praised in Opera News for her "powerful soprano" and has performed extensively in opera and on the concert stage. She made her debut as Musetta in La Bohème with the El Paso Opera and has also appeared with the Los Angeles Opera, the San Diego Opera Ensemble, the Pacific Repertory Opera, the Taconic Opera, and others. Faraone has been featured as a soloist with the Manhattan Chamber Orchestra and Chorale at Carnegie Hall as well as with the award-winning Debussy Trio and the Halcyon Trio. A graduate of the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington, with a bachelor of music degree, Ms. Faraone also has a master of music degree from USC. She returns to her music roots in jazz with this concert and is a section leader in West Center’s chancel choir.

Michika Fukumori started playing the piano at the age of three in her native Japan and three years later was composing and performing her own music. She studied classical composition at the Aichi Prefectual University of Fine Arts and Music and has worked in a number of jazz clubs in the Tokyo area. She moved to the USA in 2000, where she received her master's degree from City College. Ms. Fukumori has played many of Manhattan’s prestigious jazz clubs, including the Blue Note, the Lenox Lounge, and the Beekman Tower Hotel. She recorded her first album, Infinite Thoughts, in 2004.  She is currently performing in Manhattan with her trio at the Garage, Cleopatra's Needle, and the Kitano.

Drummer Paul Francis has recorded and performed with some of the world's greatest musicians, including Tony Bennett, The Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra, Lady Gaga, Frank Sinatra, and Jon Faddis. He has appeared in shows airing on HBO, ABC, and MTV and is on the soundtrack for the film Friends With Kids. He also teaches privately in his own studio and is on the faculty at the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music. Mr. Francis is a graduate of The Ohio State University and holds a master of music degree from SUNY Purchase.

Aidan O’Donnell received his degree from Birmingham Conservatoire, studying jazz bass. He has performed in his native Scotland and in the United Kingdom and has appeared on six albums as a sideman.      

The Gomoa Akwamu District Assembly Basic School was started in 1951 by the Gomoa Akwamu Youth Association and has since become a public school. It currently has 599 students enrolled in grades one through nine in a building that houses 10 classrooms with 17 teachers. 

The students are eager to learn but have many challenges. Most don't have lunch during the day, and the building is in need of expansion and major repairs, including replacing a leaky roof and building toilet facilities. In spite of this, the students have performed well in academics, sports, and games. The school receives money from government grants and welcomes contributions that would go toward improving academic standings and repairing and renovating the building.

There is a suggested donation of $15 to benefit the school and church. The sanctuary is accessible to wheelchairs and strollers, and there is parking available on the street. 

For further information, please call the church office in the morning at 914-337-3829, send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or go to its website, www.westcentercc-ucc.org.         

Pictured here: West Center Congregational Church on West Pondfield Road.

Photo by A. Warner