CONTACT: Mary Beth Zeman, 973-720-2444 zemanm@wpunj.edu

April 5, 2006

Saxophonist Kenny Garrett to Perform with the William Paterson University Jazz Ensemble in the Season Finale of the Spring 2006 Jazz Room Series on Sunday, May 7
—Jazz Ensemble will premiere new arrangements of Garrett’s well-known works developed by William Paterson students for the concert

Kenny Garrett

Kenny Garrett, one of the most inspiring alto/soprano saxophone forces in jazz will perform with the William Paterson University Jazz Ensemble, directed by David Demsey, for the final concert of the Spring 2006 Jazz Room Series on Sunday, May 7, 2006. The event, originally scheduled for March 26, was postponed due to illness.

The concert will begin at 4 p.m. in the Shea Center for Performing Arts on the University’s campus in Wayne, NJ. Tickets are available in advance or on the day of the performance at $15 standard and $12 for senior citizens, non-William Paterson students and William Paterson faculty, staff and alumni. William Paterson students may attend free of charge.

Prior to the concert, Garrett will be the guest for “Sittin In,” an informal discussion about jazz, at 3 p.m. in room 101 of Shea Center. Admission is free to all Jazz Room ticket holders.

Born in Detroit, Garrett was introduced to the saxophone at an early age by his father, who played tenor. In 1978, Garrett was offered a slot in the Duke Ellington Orchestra, then under the direction of Duke's son, Mercer. Three years later, Garrett moved to New York and played with The Mel Lewis Orchestra, absorbing the charts of Thad Jones, and the Dannie Richmond Quintet, playing the music of Charles Mingus.

He released his first album as a leader, Introducing Kenny Garrett, in 1984 on the Criss Cross label while also working with Art Blakey, Freddie Hubbard, and Woody Shaw.  Garrett’s work with trumpeter Miles Davis developed into a five-year association that left an indelible imprint on his life and career. Garrett recorded a string of distinguished albums in the 1990s that showed his strength and individuality. He has worked with many major figures, including guitarists Pat Metheny and John Scofield, and his own groups have often included pianist Mulgrew Miller, William Paterson’s new director of Jazz Studies, and bassist Charnett Moffett.

The Jazz Room performance will include arrangements from Garrett’s time spent in the saxophone section of the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis band.  (Thad Jones was the first full-time jazz faculty member at William Paterson and served as director from 1972 to 1979. His teaching expertise, name and reputation attracted the first serious jazz students to the institution, which led to the establishment of its now internationally recognized Jazz Studies Program.) The jazz ensemble will premiere new arrangements of four of Garrett's well-known tunes, arranged by masters’ degree students Mariel Berger, Ethan Herr, Brian McCarthy, and Zac Zenovic for this concert.

Now in its 28th year of exciting performances, The Jazz Room is one of the largest and most prestigious college-sponsored jazz events in the country. Performers include renowned professionals who encompass the complete spectrum of jazz, from practitioners of traditional jazz to avant-garde to bebop to swing to Afro-Latin jazz as well as William Paterson’s own student ensembles. The series has won numerous grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts for its innovative programming.

For more information, call Shea Center for Performing Arts Box Office at 973-720-2371.

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