FRANK WESS TO PERFORM WITH THE WILLIAM PATERSON UNIVERSITY JAZZ ORCHESTRA IN JAZZ ROOM SERIES FINALE ON NOVEMBER 8
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Saxophonist, flutist and arranger Frank Wess, a legendary Count Basie Orchestra alumnus, will perform with the William Paterson University Jazz Orchestra, directed by David Demsey, for the final concert of the fall 2009 Jazz Room Series on Sunday, November 8, 2009. The concert will begin at 4 p.m. in the Shea Center for Performing Arts on the campus.
Wess was a longtime featured soloist and arranger with the Count Basie Orchestra for more than a decade, playing both alto and tenor saxophones and becoming known as one of the first prominent jazz flutists through his landmark solos on such Basie staples as “Cute.” In 2007, he was named a National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master.
Wess will play some of his well-known arrangements written for the Basie Orchestra and his own band when he combines forces with the University’s student jazz ensemble. Three arrangements on the concert come from the landmark late-50s Basie album “Chairman of the Board,” including Wess’ “Segue in C” and “Half Moon Street,” as well as the original, unpublished version of the late William Paterson Jazz Director Thad Jones’ composition “Counter Block,” just donated to the Thad Jones Archive at William Paterson. Other Wess favorites will include his flute features “The Midgets” and “Flute Juice,” and a beautiful ballad arrangement of “The Very Thought of You.”
Prior to the concert, Wess will be the guest for “Sittin’ In,” an informal discussion about his six-decade career, at 3 p.m. in room 101 of Shea Center. Admission is free to all Jazz Room ticketholders, with time allotted for questions from the audience.
Tickets are available in advance or on the day of the performance at $15 standard; $12 senior citizens, William Paterson faculty, staff and alumni; and $8 for non-William Paterson students. William Paterson students may attend free of charge.
Launched in 1978, 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 and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts for its innovative programming.
Funding for The Jazz Room at William Paterson University has been made possible, in part, by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State.
For tickets or information, call the Shea Center Box Office at 973-720-2371 or order online at /www.wplive.org.
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October 29, 2009
www.wpunj.edu
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