Purdue News

December 3, 1999 Jazz Band and AMR express holiday moods in music WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – American Music Review and the Purdue Jazz Band add zip to the holiday season with "Holiday Jazz and Boogie," a concert that offers everything from funk to nostalgia. The Purdue University Bands event is set for 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 10, in Loeb Playhouse, Stewart Center. Admission is free. Realizing that moods run the gamut in December, the two performing groups will try to match all the emotional dimensions of the season. The concert offers everything from a funky Al Jarreau version of "Boogie Down" with American Music Review, directed by Bill Kisinger, to a jazz setting of the traditional Christmas tune "Greensleeves" by the Purdue Jazz Band, the top jazz ensemble in the bands department, directed by M.T. "Mo" Trout. The Jazz Band will continue to mix things up with such offerings as Sammy Nestico's "Freckle Face," seasonal favorite "Deck the Halls" and Dominic Spera's "Bye, Bye." American Music Review, the only Purdue Bands ensemble mixing singers with instrumentalists, matches the evening's lively tone by juxtaposing upbeat instrumental offerings such as Barry Manilow's "New York City Rhythm" against romantic ballads such as "Almost Like Being in Love." It features singer Hannah Niebrugge, a sophomore from West Lafayette who graduated from Harrison High School. Other featured vocalists include Amy Cook, a junior from Winamac, and Fritz Muehlhausen, a junior from Buck Creek who graduated from Harrison High School. Putting the perfect cap on the multifaceted holiday concert is Kevin Marler, a performer with both the Purdue Jazz Band and the American Music Review, who displays his vocal and instrumental versatility in the same piece. Marler, a freshman from Valparaiso, will get the spotlight as both a scat singer and an improviser on the trumpet in the Irving Berlin classic "White Christmas." CONTACT: Kathy Matter, Purdue Bands publicist, (765) 496-6785; kcmatter@purdue.edu NOTE TO JOURNALISTS: To arrange to take photos or conduct interviews at rehearsals before the concert, contact Kathy Matter, Purdue Bands publicist, at (765) 496-6785 or kcmatter@purdue.edu. Lafayette-area media may be interested in Harrison High School graduates Hannah Niebrugge and Fritz Muehlhausen. Trumpeter/singer Kevin Marler provides another good interview opportunity. To the Purdue News and Photos Page