January 11, 2005

Award-winning jazzmen heat up 15th Purdue Jazz Festival

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Already studded with top American jazz musicians, the Purdue Jazz Festival, set for Jan. 21-23 on the West Lafayette campus, basks in the extra prestige of awards raked in by its performers over the holidays.

Conrad Herwig, who brings Another Kind of Blue: The Latin Side of Miles Davis to campus to open the festival on Friday, Jan. 21, was nominated for a Grammy for his Miles Davis tribute. The Chicago Tribune named drummer Paul Wertico as the Windy City's top jazzman in 2004. Wertico is slated to present a drum technique clinic on Saturday, Jan. 22.

To celebrate its 15th year of existence, the annual festival, which embodies student competition as well as headliner concerts and activities around the community, has scheduled a whole host of jazz treats.

One of them is Los Angeles' Wayne Bergeron, the former lead trumpeter with the Maynard Ferguson Band. He'll heat up the festival with a Saturday, Jan. 22, headliner concert with the Purdue Jazz Band that also includes Chicago saxophonist Mark Colby. Representing the jazz stylings of the East Coast, the David Berkman Quartet from New York City gives Greater Lafayette's club jazz scene a boost by performing at the Boiler Market in a free prefestival event on Thursday, Jan. 20.

"We did splurge a bit for our 15th year," says M.T. "Mo" Trout, director of the Purdue Jazz Festival. "We augmented our normal star-studded cast to make it even brighter. These jazz musicians are some of the finest you'll find in New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles – and they're all going to be right here."

At the heart of the festival for all 15 years has been the Saturday competition featuring high school and middle school musicians. More than 100 big bands and combos from 52 schools in Indiana, Illinois and Michigan will participate. There is no charge to watch the bands perform, and admittance also is free to workshops presented by the festival's guest artists.

Another 15th anniversary treat lies in a workshop presented by Jamey Aebersold, a name familiar to students. Perhaps the nation's best-known jazz educator, his prolific series of "Play-Along" book and CD sets offer students the chance to enhance their skills by playing with professional jazz musicians.

Purdue University Bands has been the festival's organizer since its inception in 1990, with help from Purdue Convocations.

"As always happens with successful festivals, the events spread out and multiply," says festival publicist Kathy Matter. "We're excited that the Sunday (Jan. 23) Jazz Brunch at Maize Catering has developed a strong following and that University Church loves incorporating live jazz into their worship that day for a unique service."

Area night spots playing host to live jazz and blues during the festival include Boiler Market, Vienna Espresso and the Knickerbocker.

Festival activities are centered around the Purdue Memorial Union and Stewart Center. More information on Purdue Jazz Festival events is available by calling (765) 496-6785 or going online.

Festival activities include:

• Thursday, Jan. 20. 8:30 p.m. David Berkman Quartet from New York City. Boiler Market, 320 W. State St. Free.

• Friday, Jan. 21. 8 p.m. Conrad Herwig's Another Kind of Blue: The Latin Side of Miles Davis. Loeb Playhouse, Purdue Stewart Center. Tickets are $25 for the public, $16 for students, and are available by calling (800) 914-SHOW. Following the show, fans can meet the musicians at Boiler Market.

• Friday, Jan. 21. 9:30-11:30 p.m. Jazz, Espresso & Food inspired by Jazz Legends, featuring Purdue Jazz combos. No cover charge.

• Friday, Jan. 21. 9 p.m. Club Jazz & Blues, featuring the Johnny Rawls Revue. Knickerbocker Saloon, 113 N. Fifth St., Lafayette. Cover charge $3.

• Saturday, Jan. 22. 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. High school and middle school Instrumental Jazz Competition. Purdue Memorial Union, Stewart Center and University Church. No admission.

• Saturday, Jan. 22. 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Jazz clinics at various campus locations. Details are available online at https://www.purdue.edu/bands/jazzfest. No admission.

• Saturday, Jan. 22. Noon. David Berkman Quartet from New York City. Stewart Center's Loeb Playhouse Free.

• Saturday, Jan. 22. 7 p.m. Festival finale concert, featuring Los Angeles trumpeter Wayne Bergeron and Chicago saxophonist Mark Colby with the Purdue Jazz Band. Stewart Center's Loeb Playhouse. Tickets, which are $10, are available by calling (765) 494-0770.

• Saturday, Jan. 22. 9 p.m. Club Jazz & Blues, featuring the Johnny Rawls Revue. Knickerbocker Saloon, 113 N. Fifth St., Lafayette. Cover charge $3.

• Sunday, Jan. 23. 11 a.m. Jazz church service with the Riverboat Ramblers. University Church, 320 North St.

• Sunday, Jan. 23. 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Jazz brunch with Purdue Jazz Combo. Maize Catering on Columbia, 625 Columbia St., Lafayette. Cost is $19.95. Reservations are preferred and can be made by calling (765) 420-7022.

• Sunday, Jan. 23. 3-6 p.m. 6th Annual Midwinter Jazz & Swing Dance. Jefferson High School auxiliary gym. Tickets $10 at door, or can be purchased in advance by calling (765) 772-4700, Ext. 2082.

High schools and middle schools participating in the Instrumental Jazz Competition include:

Avon High School, Avon, Ind.; Belzer Middle School, Indianapolis; Ben Davis HS, Indianapolis; Bloomington North HS, Bloomington, Ind.; Bloomington South HS, Bloomington, Ind.; Brownsburg HS, Brownsburg, Ind.; Cathedral HS, Indianapolis; Center Grove HS, Greenwood, Ind.; Champaign Central HS, Champaign, Ill.; Columbus North HS, Columbus, Ind.; Concord HS, Elkhart, Ind.; Crown Point HS, Crown Point, Ind.; Decatur Central HS, Indianapolis; DeKalb HS, Waterloo, Ind.; Downers Grove North HS, Downers Grove, Ill.; East Kentwood HS, Kentwood, Mich.; Eastern HS, Greentown, Ind.; Edgewood HS, Ellettsville, Ind.; Edgewood Junior HS, Ellettsville, Ind.; Forest Hills Central HS, Grand Rapids, Mich.; Forest Hills Central Middle School, Grand Rapids, Mich.; Goshen HS, Goshen, Ind.; Greenwood High School, Greenwood, Ind.; Harrison HS, West Lafayette, Ind.; Hoopeston Area Middle School, Hoopeston, Ill.; Huntington North HS, Huntington, Ind.; Jefferson HS, Lafayette, Ind.; Jimtown HS, Elkhart, Ind.; John Adams HS, South Bend, Ind.; John Hersey HS, Arlington Heights, Ill.; Kokomo HS, Kokomo, Ind.; LaPorte HS, LaPorte, Ind.; Lawrence Central HS, Indianapolis; Lebanon HS, Lebanon, Ind.; Michigan City HS, Michigan City, Ind.; Mishawaka HS, Mishawaka, Ind.; Munster HS, Munster, Ind.; North Central HS, Indianapolis; Northfield HS, Wabash, Ind.; Northwood HS, Northwood, Ind.; Park Tudor HS, Indianapolis; Perry Meridian HS, Indianapolis; Pike HS, Indianapolis; Rolling Meadows HS, Rolling Meadows, Ill.; Snider HS, Fort Wayne, Ind.; South Adams HS, Berne, Ind.; Terre Haute North HS, Terre Haute, Ind.; Valparaiso HS, Valparaiso, Ind.; Wabash HS, Wabash, Ind.; Wea Ridge Middle School, Lafayette, Ind.; Wilbur Wright Middle School, Munster, Ind.; and Zionsville Community HS, Zionsville, Ind.

Source: Kathy Matter, (765) 496-6785, kcmatter@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

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