The jazz program of the Missouri Western State University Department of Music will present its Spring Jazz Concert at 7:30 p.m. Monday, April 13 in the Potter Hall Theater. The concert is free and open to the public.
The concert will showcase the Jazz Lab Band, Vocal Jazz and the Jazz Ensemble. In addition, guest artists Rob Scheps (saxophone, flute) and Jason Jackson (trombone) will perform.
Rob Scheps has taught at some of the leading schools in the United States. He graduated from the New England Conservatory of Music with honors in performance in 1986. While in Boston, he led his own groups, most notably the True Colors Big Band. In 1988 he made the move to New York City where he formed the Rob Scheps Core-tet, which still performs. Rob tours across the country collaborating with great icons of the New York music scene. He has performed and recorded with such notable musicians and groups such as John Abercrombie, Eddie Henderson, Nancy King, Dianne Reeves, Buddy Rich and the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra.
Jason Jackson has been one of the busiest and most respected trombone players in New York City since settling there 21 years ago. In addition to the two years he spent touring the world with Ray Charles, he has been lead trombonist in the Dizzy Gillespie All Star Big Band for the past decade. He is also lead trombonist in orchestras led by Roy Hargrove and Charles Tolliver. On Mondays, when not playing in leading Broadway productions such as Wonderful Town and Motown the Musical, he performs as a member of the famed Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, of which he has been a member of for the past 10 years.
The public is invited to come enjoy an evening of great jazz. For more information please call the Missouri Western music office at 816-271-4420, or Bob Long, director of jazz studies at 816-271-4430.
Missouri Western State University is a comprehensive regional university providing a blend of traditional liberal arts and professional degree programs. The university offers student-centered, high quality instruction that focuses on experience-based learning, community service, and state-of-the-art technology. Missouri Western is located in St. Joseph, Mo., and is committed to the educational, economic, cultural and social development of the region it serves. Visit www.missouriwestern.edu.