Harmony in Columbia: Take 6 and the Capital Jazz Fest

Capital Jazz Fest starts tonight with Herbie Hancock and “DMS” featuring George Duke, Marcus Miller, & David Sanborn headlining the show. Take 6 will play on Sunday afternoon.

With a little more than a week to go before appearing at the 19th annual Capital Jazz Fest at the Merriweather Post Pavilion, the members of Take 6 were preparing to sing for a much smaller crowd in California.

But that didn’t meant they put any less into their performance.

“It doesn’t matter if we are playing in front of thousands, hundreds or even a small room full of people. When you come to a Take 6 show, you are going to get our best and be entertained,” said Claude McKnight, a founding member of the popular group.

For more than 25 years, the a cappella group has been wowing crowds with their complex six-part harmonies and have made fans across multiple genres, including gospel, jazz, doo-wop and pop.

“We always get asked to define ourselves and we have been called everything from Christian to inspirational to gospel to jazz,” McKnight said. “We are a little R&B, a little jazz, a little gospel…but what we really are, are six singers who work hard to entertain and present the best possible music we can.”

Currently, Take 6 is comprised of McKnight, Alvin Chea, Joey Kibble, Mark Kibble, David Thomas and newcomer Khristian Dentley, who has filled in numerous times over the years.

Long-time fans of the harmonious singers may be surprised that original member Cedric Dent won’t be with them on stage, but Dent semi-retired last month and is still working behind the scenes of the group.

Take 6 got its start at Oakwood College in Huntsville, Ala., in the 1980s, when McKnight brought a group of guys together to harmonize.

“I began the group when I was a freshman at the school, which always had a rich history of a cappella groups, choirs and trios and such,” McKnight says. “Back then, they seemed to frown on instrumentation, so people went to extremes in the other direction. You had to have more and better and more intricate harmonies.”

The group burst onto the music scene in 1988 with their critically acclaimed debut album “Take 6,” which won Grammys in both the gospel and jazz categories. The album featured original gospel songs and jazzed-up renditions of traditional hymns.

“That was an exciting time for us,” said McKnight, who holds the first tenor position. “We felt what we were doing was something special, and to have people in the music industry recognize that was something very gratifying for all of us.”

Since then, they have released more than a dozen records, including three very popular Christmas albums. They have worked with some of the biggest artists in music and are often referred to as inspirations to many young men coming up in the business.

As for the upcoming performance on Sunday at the Jazz Fest, McKnight said there will be plenty of favorites from all of their albums, plus some nice surprises as well.

“We present the message in an attractive package, and hopefully the folks will leave the show humming a tune,” he said. “It’s going to be a fun time.”

Members of the group have already branched out to solo projects and other avenues, but McKnight isn’t thinking about joining Dent on the sidelines anytime soon.

“Through the years we have dealt with marriages, divorces, births, financial valleys and financial mountains,” McKnight said. “It’s brought us much closer, and honed and refined what our purpose has become.

“Keeping a group together is one of the absolute hardest things in music. You have six distinctly different wants and personalities. We’re here by the grace of God, and that’s a wonderful thing.”

For more information on who's playing the Capital Jazz Fest this weekend and when, click here.