The Jazz Studies department announces the fall 2019 Jazz Seminar Series. These sessions are held at 3 p.m. on Fridays in Armstrong Hall, Room 39. These events are free and open to the public; however, seating is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis with preference given to current Shenandoah Conservatory students.
September 6 | Greg Boyer, Trombone
Greg Boyer has performed with George Clinton and Parliament/Funkadelic as trombonist and arranger, as well as Prince, Chuck Brown, Maceo Parker, George Duke, Bootsy Collins, Stanley Clarke, Graham Central Station, Lalah Hathaway, Sheila E, Robben Ford, Alex Bugnon, Kirk Whalum, David Sanborn, Stokely Williams, Maysa, Jonathan Butler, Eric Benét, David Murray, Mike Phillips, Third World, Richard Smallwood, Brian Culbertson and more. Visit www.gregboyer.net to learn more.
September 27 | Brian MacDonald, Trumpet
Brian MacDonald, lead trumpet for the U.S. Air Force Airmen of Note, has performed with Maynard Ferguson and Woody Herman and is a onetime student of both Bobby Shew and Roger Ingram. October 18 | Donato Soviero, Guitar
Donato Soviero has played at The Kennedy Center, Blues Alley, The One Step Down, Corcoran’s Hammer Auditorium, Twins Jazz, Bohemian Caverns and The Smithsonian’s Imax Jazz Cafe. At the Carter Barron Amphitheater, Soviero opened for Poncho Sanchez and Tito Puente with a program of all-original Latin music composed for the occasion. He has appeared with national artists at Wolf Trap, the Convention Center and Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium. Soviero has also played for U.S. presidents and at the U.S. State Department for the Thelonious Monk Institute. Visit www.donatosoviero.com to learn more.
October 25 | Chris Ziemba, Piano
Chris Ziemba holds performance degrees from the Eastman School of Music and The Juilliard School. Ziemba appeared on Marian McPartland’s iconic radio program on NPR Piano Jazz in 2009, and in 2011, won first place in the Jacksonville Jazz Piano Competition. In New York, Ziemba worked to become an in-demand pianist at clubs and performance venues throughout the city. In 2013, he recorded “Chakra,” a seven-movement suite composed for big band by Jazz at Lincoln Center saxophonist Ted Nash. Other highlights of his time in New York include performances with Kurt Elling, Carl Allen, Marcus Printup, Ron Blake, Karrin Allyson and Ryan Truesdell’s Grammy Award-winning Gil Evans Project, among others. Ziemba released his debut album, “Manhattan Lullaby,” in 2016. In 2017, Ziemba became the pianist for the Airmen of Note, the premier jazz ensemble of the United States Air Force Band, based in Washington, D.C. Visit www.chrisziemba.com to learn more.
November 22 | Mark G. Meadows, Songwriting & Piano
Acclaimed jazz composer, pianist, music director, vocalist, jazz instructor and actor, Mark G. Meadows is a man on a mission: to create a unifying sound that breaks through social barriers. There is something for everyone in his music which harmonizes pop, gospel, R&B, hip hop, funk and jazz. With his lyrics, suffused with meaning, and his velvet voice, Meadows cuts through the noise to speak to all. Debonair on the stage, he is also an entertainer of the highest caliber. Increasingly in demand around the globe, Meadows has performed alongside world-renowned artists, including Bobby McFerrin, Kendrick Lamar, Renee Fleming, Nicholas Payton, Kurt Elling and Warren Wolf. He has headlined at premier venues, including Jazz at Lincoln Center and Smalls Jazz Club in New York City, Blues Alley, Bohemian Caverns, The Warner Theatre and The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., and the Music Center at Strathmore in North Bethesda, Maryland.
Questions? Contact Harrison Endowed Chair in Piano, Director of Jazz Studies and Associate Professor of Jazz Piano Robert Larson ’08, D.M.A.
Schedule is subject to change.
