The wedding day
Ceremony, cocktail hour and reception, all in one space. Solo violin with his own sound. He is not counting your hours — he is holding the day.
$1,500Solo · one space
Chicago · Est. 1986
Chicago’sjazz violinist.
Samuel “Savoirfaire” Williams. Forty years on the instrument, sixteen records, elected to the AACM. Ceremonies, receptions and private events across Chicago.
SavoirfaireJazz Violin
Chicago, ILL.
40Years playing
16Records
2000AACM elected
4Ensembles
40+Weddings a year
The Player
Side A · The player
A living Chicago
A living Chicago
urban legend.
His words, not ours. He first played Orchestra Hall at five as one of Betty Haag's Suzuki prodigies, led the principal viola desk at sixteen, and turned to jazz after sitting in with Milt Jackson at Interlochen.
Wynton Marsalis told him to study jazz violin properly. Johnny Frigo took him under his wing. In 2000 the AACM voted him in. Since then: Delmark, the Art Ensemble of Chicago, Kenny Burrell, Billy Bang, and a film credit.
Start here
What is
What is
the occasion?
One answer and you are already a step in. If the evening is spoken for you will know today — along with two other names in Chicago worth calling.
Side A · Track 01
The player.
Named for the cartoon mouse — an affectionate nod to a knack for finding ways for his musicians to earn enough to focus on the craft. It stuck.
On the jobHe was three when he started playing at his parents' church, and five when he first walked onto the stage at Chicago's Orchestra Hall — one of a small group of Suzuki prodigies under Betty Haag, on a public television broadcast that became an annual event for over thirty-five years.
He studied at the Merit Music School: theory, the youth orchestras, private violin with Joseph Williams. At sixteen, conductor Frank Winkler invited him to lead the principal viola desk of the City Youth String ensemble. A Merit grant sent him to Interlochen for classical viola.
It was at Interlochen, sitting in at a jazz workshop with Milt Jackson, that the direction changed. Years later, working at Symphony Center, he played for Wynton Marsalis — who told him to go and study jazz violin properly. Johnny Frigo took him under his wing.
In 2000, the Chicago chapter of the AACM voted him in.
Chronology
The record.
- 1986
Orchestra Hall, age five
First performance with Betty Haag's Suzuki prodigies, broadcast on public television.
- 1997
Principal viola, City Youth Strings
Invited by conductor Frank Winkler to lead the desk at sixteen.
- 2000
Elected to the AACM
Voted into the Chicago chapter for exhibiting exemplary musical flexibility.
- 2004
Running Out of Time
Released on Delmark Records, one of Chicago's most storied jazz and blues labels.
- 2005
Proof
Principal violinist with the Renascent String Quartet in the film with Gwyneth Paltrow and Anthony Hopkins.
- Now
The company he keeps
Roscoe Mitchell · the Art Ensemble of Chicago · Kenny Burrell · Billy Bang · Hamid Drake · Nicole Mitchell's Black Earth Ensemble · Renee Baker. Session work for Otis Clay and R. Kelly.
Side A · Track 02
Engagements
Engagements
& rates.
Solo violin for a ceremony. A duo through cocktails. The quartet when the room is large and the night is long. He will tell you which one your room needs — including when that is the cheaper answer.
Corporate & gala
Receptions, openings, donor evenings, holiday parties. Up to two hours on site, breaks included. Three hours $1,750, four hours $2,000.
$1,500Solo · to two hoursA second space
A garden ceremony and a ballroom reception means a second sound system carried in and set up. Each additional space is its own setup.
+$500Per extra spaceA larger room
Past about 150 guests his own system is not enough. A larger rig, and an engineer to run it so he can play.
+$1,000Over 150 guestsA bigger band
Add a player on piano, guitar or harp, or bring a DJ. Or go all the way: a full rhythm section — piano, bass and drums — for $6,000.
+$2,000Piano, guitar or harp · DJ $1,000One rule underneath all of itHe charges for a day and a setup, not for hours. That is why a second room costs the same whether the music there lasts twenty minutes or two hours — it is a second system carried in and set up. Half the total holds your date and is non-refundable; the balance is due the week of the event.
Included
What comes with him.
Sound
A QSC 1000-watt system covering a room of roughly a hundred without a house engineer. Stands, cabling, the lot.
Travel
Anywhere inside Chicagoland. Beyond that quoted honestly and separately — never buried in the rate.
Your music
Up to ten requests, arranged for violin and recorded in advance so you hear the aisle before you walk it.
Presence
Formal attire, on site forty-five minutes early, forty years of knowing when to play and when to stop.
Quoted with your dateTravel beyond Chicagoland. Tell him where the event is and he will price the trip separately — never buried in the rate.
Side A · Track 03
Sixteen records
Sixteen records
and counting.
Delmark on one end, self-released live sessions on the other. Four working ensembles, each with a different reason to exist.
Chicago Gypsy Project · Gypsy Jazz SeriesThe bandsFour groups,
Four groups,
four different rooms.
The Jazz Quartet and the Chicago Gypsy Project are booked separately, through their own pages. What is on this site is Samuel himself.
Savoirfaire Jazz Quartet
The working band. Standards, originals, and whatever the night turns into.
Chicago Gypsy Project
Django-rooted swing — the reason the Tuesday residency exists. The record is We Swing.
Renascent String Quartet
Classical strings for ceremonies and film work. The quartet from Proof.
Savoirfaire Organ Trio
Hammond-grounded, late-night. Built for small rooms and long sets.
The catalogue
Tracklist.
- 01Ran Out of Time The full version — the record as he made it2003Buy
- 02Running Out of Time The same sessions, edited by the label for its official releaseDelmark · 2004
- 03Chicago Gypsy Project — We SwingAlbumBuy
- 04Come Alone2013Buy
- 05Simple Classical Melodies2012Buy
- 06HuazztecoAlbumBuy
- 07Live in Verona, ItalyLiveBuy
- 08Live at Beat KitchenLiveBuy
- 09Live at the Shark BarLiveBuy
- 10Radiant Darling EP1EPBuy
- 11Radiant Darling EP2EPBuy
- 12This Just InAlbumBuy
- 13ThreadsAlbumBuy
- 14The Only Other OptionAlbumBuy
- 15Baddigo Recording SessionsSessionsBuy
- 16HeatAlbumBuy
Press Play to hear any record without leaving the page — every track streams in full. Buy opens his Bandcamp store.
Side A · Track 04
Tuesdays,
Tuesdays,
and elsewhere.
The residency runs weekly at Katalyst. Everything else is by arrangement.
Residency
The Jazz Series.
- 20OctWeekly
Katalyst Coffee & Music Gallery
Chicago · Tuesday · 7:00 PM · Free admission, $20 suggested donation
- 27OctWeekly
Katalyst Coffee & Music Gallery
Chicago · Tuesday · 7:00 PM · Free admission, $20 suggested donation
- 03NovWeekly
Katalyst Coffee & Music Gallery
Chicago · Tuesday · 7:00 PM · Free admission, $20 suggested donation
- 10NovWeekly
Katalyst Coffee & Music Gallery
Chicago · Tuesday · 7:00 PM · Free admission, $20 suggested donation
- 17NovWeekly
Katalyst Coffee & Music Gallery
Chicago · Tuesday · 7:00 PM · Free admission, $20 suggested donation
- 24NovWeekly
Katalyst Coffee & Music Gallery
Chicago · Tuesday · 7:00 PM · Free admission, $20 suggested donation
- 01DecWeekly
Katalyst Coffee & Music Gallery
Chicago · Tuesday · 7:00 PM · Free admission, $20 suggested donation
- 08DecWeekly
Katalyst Coffee & Music Gallery
Chicago · Tuesday · 7:00 PM · Free admission, $20 suggested donation
- 15DecWeekly
Katalyst Coffee & Music Gallery
Chicago · Tuesday · 7:00 PM · Free admission, $20 suggested donation
- 22DecWeekly
Katalyst Coffee & Music Gallery
Chicago · Tuesday · 7:00 PM · Free admission, $20 suggested donation
- 29DecWeekly
Katalyst Coffee & Music Gallery
Chicago · Tuesday · 7:00 PM · Free admission, $20 suggested donation
Side A · Track 05
Liner notes.
CBS News Chicago · Video
He plays for travelers passing through O’Hare
Voyage MichiganMeet Samuel Williams of Chicago
Chicago ReaderMusic People: Savoir Faire is everywhere!
Rolling OutHe makes his violin his mistress for a good cause
PlanetSinger“We Swing” — exclusive review
Skope MagazineSavoirfaire presents the Chicago Gypsy Project
WikipediaSamuel “Savoirfaire” Williams
Side A · Track 06
The Universal
The Universal
Violin.
He drew the mark in 1998 — a violin built from symbols borrowed from several cultures at once, so the instrument reads as belonging to everybody. It is on the records, and it is on everything below. Wear it and the idea travels: violin is for everyone.
AccessoriesThe Signature Watch
Vintage black leather strap. His signature and the Universal Violin on the dial.
Shop →
MugsSignature Mug
Two-tone, with his signature and the Universal Violin.
Shop →
MugsViolinist Nutrition Facts
A nutrition label for violinists. For the string player in your life.
Shop →
MugsWindow into the Heart
“Violin is a window into the heart.” Two-tone mug.
Shop →
ShirtsViolin Scrolls Tee
Dark tee with a violin-scroll illustration.
Shop →
ShirtsRaglan Tee
Three-quarter sleeves, the mark up front.
Shop →
ShirtsLong Sleeve · Black
The Universal Violin in white on black.
Shop →
ShirtsLong Sleeve · White
The Universal Violin in black on white.
Shop →
AccessoriesCrew Socks
The Universal Violin, ankle to calf.
Shop →Made to order, shipped to your doorEvery piece is printed on demand by Zazzle and ships direct — sizes, colours and checkout happen there.
Side A · Track 07 · The tip jar
Keep the
Keep the
music playing.
Heard him at Katalyst, at O’Hare Airport, at your cousin’s wedding? Drop something in the case. Every tip goes straight to the musician.
Zelle312 · 973 · 6024
Open your bank app, choose Zelle, and send to this number.
On a phone? Tap a button. At a gig? Point your camera at a code.
Want more than a tip?
Side B · Booking
Book a date.
A few short questions, and a price at the end of them. Every enquiry gets a real answer the same day — and if the date is gone you will hear that today, along with two other names in Chicago worth calling.
312 · 973 · 6024