Kennesaw State University School of Music presents Jazz Faculty and Percussion Ensemble.https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/musicprograms/1889/thumbnail.jp

Lawless, John

Skelton, Sam

English

DigitalCommons@Kennesaw State University

      Department of Music  presents    Kennesaw State University  Jazz Faculty  and Percussion Ensemble  “A Joint Venture”    Monday, November 12, 2007 8:00 pm Dr. Bobbie Bailey and Family Performance Center Concert Hall       Fourteenth concert of the 2007-2008 seasonKennesaw State University  Sam Skelton, Director, Jazz Faculty John Lawless, Director, Percussion Ensemble   November 12, 2007 8:00 pm Dr. Bobbie Bailey and Family Performance Center Concert Hall    PROGRAM    Jazz Faculty    My Shining Hour Arlen/Mercer  Out of This World Arlen/Mercer  Might As Well Be Spring (waltz)  Rodgers/Hammerstein  Blues Randy Hoexter   This Guy’s In Love With You Bacharach/David  Control Trey Wright  Rhythm A Ning Thelonious Monk    INTERMISSION Kennesaw State University Upcoming Music Events    Tuesday, November 13 Kennesaw State University Mixed Student Chamber Music Concert 8:00 pm • Bailey Performance Center Concert Hall   Wednesday, November 14 Kennesaw State University Wind Ensemble 8:00 pm • Bailey Performance Center Concert Hall   Thursday, November 15 Kennesaw State University Jazz Combos 8:00 pm • Bailey Performance Center Concert Hall   Saturday, November 17 Kennesaw State University Opera Gala 8:00 pm • Bailey Performance Center Concert Hall   Sunday, November 18 Kennesaw State University Guitar Ensemble 8:00 pm • Bailey Performance Center Concert Hall   Tuesday, November 20 Kennesaw State University Jazz Ensemble 8:00 pm • Bailey Performance Center Concert Hall    For the most current information, please visit http://www.kennesaw.edu/arts/events/  Gordon Vernick______________________________________________  Dr. Gordon Vernick is associate professor of music and coordinator of Jazz Studies at Georgia State University. He holds a Bachelor of Music from Ithaca College, Ithaca, NY; a Master of Music in Education from the University of Miami, and a Doctor of Arts in Trumpet  Performance and Jazz Pedagogy from the University of Northern  Colorado, Greeley.  As a professional trumpet player, he has performed in all musical   mediums from symphony orchestra to jazz quartet and has freelanced in   Miami, New York, Denver, Kansas City and the Caribbean Islands. He is   currently active in the southeastern United States as a clinician,   adjudicator and freelance trumpet player.  As a jazz educator he is the past president of the Georgia   Association of Jazz Educators, past chair of the International   Association of Jazz Educators Curriculum Committee, and was recently   appointed as the Southeast Coordinator of that organization. He was   the Director of the NARAS Georgia Grammy High School Jazz Band from  1994 to 1999. He is the co-editor of the book Teaching Jazz: A Course Of Study, published by MENC. He recently co-wrote the college   textbook, Jazz History Overview, published by Kendall-Hunt, which has   been adopted by numerous universities around the country.  He is director of the GSU Faculty Jazztet which performs regularly in   Atlanta area schools and has appeared at the Atlanta Jazz Festival,   the Brasstown Music Festival, Oxford University Music Series and many   other venues in the southeast. He has performed with such world   renown jazz artists as Kenny Werner, Clare Fischer, John Hart, Kevin   Hays, Conrad Herwig, Marc Copland, Randy Brecker, Paul McCandless and  many others. The Jazztet was twice invited to perform in San Jose,   Costa Rica by the Centro Cultural Costarricense-Norteamericano.   During the summer of 2001 the Jazztet performed in Moscow, Russia at   the Tribute to Willis Conover Jazz Festival and in March 2003   performed at Capitol University in Beijing, China. The group was   invited to perform in November 2004 in Florianopolis, Brazil at the   Curso e Colegio Bardal.       Percussion Ensemble     African Introduction Traditional  It Came From The Garage James Armstrong  D. L. A. G. Ensemble  Metamorphosis Kevin Lepper       Kennesaw State University Jazz Faculty  Sam Skelton  John  Lawless Trey Wright  Wes Funderburk  and Friends  Gordon Vernick - Georgia State University Justin Varnes - Georgia State University Randy Hoexter - LaGrange College Marc Miller - LaGrange College     Kennesaw State University Percussion Ensemble   Jeremy Black Pershaud Bolt Ryan Goodwin Jonathon Kitchel Brian Palat Zac Poore Kristen Riddick Greg Roman Michael Wentworth John Lawless, director  Sam Skelton  A native of Conyers, Georgia, Sam Skelton has been active on the Atlanta music scene for well over a decade.  Mr. Skelton graduated summa cum laude from Georgia State University and the private studio of Tony Carere with a degree in Jazz Studies. During his course of study at GSU, he was a Montgomery Music Scholar and a two-time fellowship recipient to the Aspen Music Festival.    He continued his saxophone studies with Kenneth Radnofsky at Boston University in 1991.  Mr. Skelton has performed and/or soloed with The London Symphony Orchestra, The Atlanta Symphony, The Atlanta Pops, The Peachtree Pops, The Atlanta Ballet Orchestra and The Cobb Symphony Orchestra as well as numerous local high school and civic ensembles. World Premiers include James Oliverio’s Children of A Common Mother, Lee Johnson’s Ora Pro Mi: Concerto for Winds Soloist (clarinet, flute and soprano saxophone) and Seaside Symphony (clarinet and soprano saxophone soloist). He also played the premier recording of Ora Pro Mi and Seaside Symphony with the London Symphony Orchestra.    As a sideman on over 150 compact discs, Mr. Skelton remains very active in the studio and can be heard on recordings by such artists as: Elton John, Grammy nominee Howard Tate, Matchbox 20, Train, Edwin McCain, The Gap Band and The Ohio Players.  Television and radio jingles include The Weather Channel, The Travel Channel, Ford, The Cartoon Network, CNN, Nature’s Own, Popeye’s, Papa John’s and Turner South.  Television appearances include In the Heat of the Night, Savannah and Sinbad’s Summer Jam II on HBO.         Mr. Skelton is currently Director of Jazz Studies and Lecturer in Saxophone at Kennesaw State University. He served as Professor of Saxophone at Georgia State University from 1991 to 2004 and was Jazz Ensemble Director at Georgia Tech from 2002-2004 and was Artist-in-Residence at The University Of Georgia for the Jazz Department. Mr. Skelton served as Visiting Professor of Saxophone at Furman University for the 2001-02 academic year.  Professional associations include: Georgia Music Educators Association, Georgia Association of Jazz Educators, International Association of Jazz Educators, National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (voting member) and the American Federation of Musicians.          Randy Hoexter___________________________________________________  Pianist/composer Randy Hoexter has been at the top of Atlanta's jazz  scene for more than fifteen years. Randy's distinctive work can be   heard on countless records and commercials; his talents have been   sought by artists as diverse as guitarists Jimmy Herring, Bill Hart   and Shane Theriot, drummers Rod Morgenstein, Sonny Emory and Jeff   Sipe, bassist Adam Nitti, saxophonist George Howard, gospel group   "NewSong," and others.  Randy's critically acclaimed debut CD "Radiant," features new and   original jazz compositions for piano, rhythm section and horns, and   includes performances by such talents as Mike Stern, Dave Weckl, Sam   Skelton, Tom Knight and Adam Nitti. Hailed by Modern Drummer as   "...outstanding...a welcome breath of fresh air," "Radiant" was   recently chosen to be featured on the internationally syndicated   "Jazzsouth" radio program in November 2001.  As a commercial composer, Randy writes and produces music for Bank of America, IBM, PBS Television, 615 Music, The Sunshine Network and   many others, and produces records for many local and regional artists.  Also an educator, Randy has taught Theory, Jazz Improvisation and Composition at the Atlanta Institute of Music since 1988. In that capacity, he has worked with many notable artists,  including Peter Erskine, John Scofield, Robben Ford, Victor Wooten  and Scott Henderson.             Justin Varnes____________________________________________________  Born in Jacksonville, Florida, Justin Varnes studied music at the   University of North Florida. After a brief stint with the Noel   Freidline Quintet, Mr. Varnes relocated to New York City to pursue a   master's degree in jazz studies at the New School. In New York,   Justin toured for six years with vocalist Phoebe Snow, with whom he   performed on the Roseanne Barr Show, as well as National Public   Radio's "World Cafe" (he would later perform on "World Cafe" with pop   group "Five for Fighting"). He also performed with Phoebe at Madison   Square Garden, where he played alongside singers Jewel and Paula Cole.  Mr. Varnes has performed with several jazz greats in New York,   including: Ben Wolfe (Harry Connick, Jr.), Aaron Goldberg (Joshua   Redman), Wessell Anderson, Wycliffe Gordon, Marcus Printup, Steve   Kirby (Cyrus Chestnut), Peter Bernstein, and Eric Lewis (Wynton   Marsalis).  Currently residing in Atlanta, Mr. Varnes performs regularly with the   Christian Tamburr Quartet, as well as Bob Reynolds, Kevin Bales, Joe   Gransden and Gary Motley. Justin is also a top call sideman for   touring artists through Atlanta. He has performed with Vincent   Herring, Kevin Hays, Victor Goines and recently has been tapped for some work with Earl Klugh.              John Lawless____________________________________________________ John Lawless became Director of Percussion Studies at Kennesaw State University in 2004. Principal Timpanist of the Atlanta Opera since 1979, Mr. Lawless was appointed as Principal Timpanist with the Chattanooga Symphony and Opera Orchestra in 1986. Since 1978, Mr. Lawless has performed and recorded as an extra with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra while maintaining a thriving freelance career as studio and pit percussionist. A founding member of the Atlanta Percussion Trio, Mr. Lawless performs more than 600 school concerts a year for audiences totaling 300,000 annually. In 2004 the Atlanta Percussion Trio performed as concerto soloists with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra in “The Glory and the Grandeur” by Russell Peck. A graduate of Georgia State University, Mr. Lawless’ teachers include Tom Float, Jack Bell, Cloyd Duff, Paul Yancich, Bill Wilder, and Mark Yancich. Mr. Lawless’ previous faculty appointments include those at Georgia State University, Clark Atlanta University, and West Georgia State University.                            Trey Wright  Trey Wright joined the faculty at Kennesaw State University in 2005.  Mr. Wright is cofounder of the Athens/Atlanta based jazz band Squat, a four-time winner of the Best Jazz Award at the Flagpole Athens Music Awards, and featured artists at the Atlanta Jazz Festival, the Twilight Athens Jazz Festival, and Harvest Midtown.  Squat has performed with Medeski, Martin, and Wood; the B-52’s; Maceo Parker; Maynard Ferguson; the Squirrel Nut Zippers; the Derek Trucks Band; the Sting Cheese Incident; Sector 9; and the Charlie Hunter Trio.  Along with managing Squat and producing five independent CD releases, Mr. Wright plays guitar and piano with the group touring throughout the southeast.   Mr. Wright has also performed with upright and electric bassist John Patitucci, Jimmy Haslip,  Grammy winning saxophonist Joe Lovano, Tim Armacost, Tim Hagens and Mel Bay Records artist Corey Christiansen.  With the Steve Dancz Quartet and the University of Georgia Jazz Band, Mr. Wright has performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival, Jazz A Vienne, and the World Sacred Music Festival in Bangalore, India.  As a solo guitarist and with his trio, Mr. Wright has been a featured performer at the Athens Music and Arts Festival, the Lake Oconee Jazz Festival, and the Atlanta Jazz Festival.                           Wes Funderburk  Wes Funderburk joined the faculty at Kennesaw State University in 2007. He has performed across the United States and Europe and is an active trombonist in Atlanta and the Southeast. He is the author of Funderbone.com and the inventor of Blog Songs!—an award-winning music blog and podcast. Mr. Funderburk has performed and recorded with a wide array of internationally renowned artists including Natalie Cole, Co-Ed, Gloria Lynne, Peter Noone, Freda Payne, India Arie, Slide Hampton, Herbie Hancock, Kenny Garrett, Rich Matteson, Toshiko Akyoshi and Cecil Welch. He has performed throughout Atlanta at venues such as Churchill Grounds, Symphony Hall, Spivey Hall, The Georgia Dome, the Variety Playhouse and The Fox Theater as well as the famous Apollo Theater in New York. He has also been a featured performer at The Atlanta Dogwood Festival, Atlanta Jazz Festival, Atlanta Black Arts Festival, Jacksonville Jazz Festival, Montreux-Atlanta Jazz Festival, Montreux Jazz Festival and the North Sea Jazz Festival.  Mr. Funderburk’s recording credits include Verve Records, Universal Records, Arista Records, the Cartoon Network and the Weather Channel. His arranging credits include music for Natalie Cole, The Georgia Brass Band, Georgia State University, Joe Gransden and The Piedmont Trombone Society. Mr. Funderburk is also the leader of the Funderbone Jazz Quintet and the Funderhorns—a freelance commercial horn section working closely with Dallas Austin’s DARP studio among others.  As an educator Mr. Funderburk has given clinics and master classes at the University of North Florida, Georgia State University, Columbus State University, the Mars Hill Low Brass Retreat, Tanglewood Music Center and numerous high schools across the Southeast. He maintains an active private studio for students of all ages and was a director of the 2005 Atlanta Youth Jazz Orchestra and assistant director of the 2005 University of North Florida Music Camp. He earned degrees in trombone performance from the University of North Florida and Georgia State University.              

Jazz Faculty and Percussion Ensemble  A Joint Venture

https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1889&context=musicprograms

Jazz Faculty and Percussion Ensemble A Joint Venture

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