The Donny McCaslin Jazz Quartet will perform at Hope College on Friday, Oct. 24, at 7:30 p.m. at the Knickerbocker Theatre in downtown Holland.

The public is invited.  Admission is free.

Grammy-nominated jazz saxophonist Donny McCaslin started playing tenor saxophone at age 12, and quickly progressed, touring Europe, and participating in the prestigious Monterey Jazz Festival’s California All-Star band while in high school. After attending the Berklee College of Music, McCaslin joined The Gary Burton Quintet, with whom he toured for four years.

In 1991, McCaslin moved to New York, working with bassist Eddie Gomez, and then joining the group Steps Ahead, with whom he made the 1995 disc “Vibe,” on NYC Records. His solo work in larger ensembles has included Ken Schaphorst’s Big Band and the acclaimed Maria Schneider Orchestra, where his performance on the album “Concert in the Garden” received a Grammy nomination in 2004 for “Best Jazz Instrumental Solo.”

Other groups McCaslin has worked with include the pianoless quartet LanXang, and a quintet led by the widely lionized trumpeter Dave Douglas, who added McCaslin to his band in 2005.

In 2006, McCaslin received a Doris Duke Grant for new jazz composition from Chamber Music America, writing and recording the album “In Pursuit.”  In both 2008 and 2009, he won the “Downbeat Critics Poll” for "Rising Star on the Tenor Saxophone". His 2008 release, “Recommended Tools,” on Greenleaf Music, was in many critics’ top-10 lists for jazz record of the year.  McCaslin released the album “Declaration” on Sunnyside in 2009, which features a brass quartet.

The Knickerbocker Theatre is located at 86 E. Eighth St.