Hard bop tenor sax player Eric Alexander, named 2003 artist of the year by JazzWeek, has garnered a large following with his warm, finely burnished tone and a robust melodic and harmonic imagination. A prolific sideman, it's his role as bandleader that has fans and musicians effusing about an artist who has established his own voice on the horn and become one of the brightest stars in jazz today.

Owen McNally of the Hartford Courant says “you immediately hear what makes Alexander the conqueror of mellow ballads and smoking up-tempo fare. His strong sense of swing comes shining through right from the opening track....” Eric is equally bold on standards, Monk workouts, original bop and Latin jazz. His own projects include the group One for All and his employers have included Mel Rhyne, Jimmy Scott, Jimmy McGriff, Charles Earland, Pat Martino, Freddy Cole . . . you get the idea.

World-class locally-grown rhythm section features Chris Lomheim on piano, Billy Peterson on bass and Kenny Horst on drums.

Reservations available online until 5p.m. today at: http://www.artistsquarter.com/Reservations.html at 7p.m. tickets are available at the door.