The Baker University music department has a busy week ahead, as it hosts a music forum, the symphonic winds and orchestra concert, jazz concert, and the BU Jazz Festival.
The week begins with music forums, which take place at 11 a.m. every Tuesday in McKibbin Recital Hall. The forums are a way for students who take private lessons to perform in front of their peers and teachers.
“They can run anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour, just depending on how many students we have,” Susan Baker, music and theater department assistant, said. “It allows the faculty to hear how well their students are doing and to see the musical growth that is taking place in their students as they progress through lessons. “
Also at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in Rice Auditorium is the Symphonic Winds and Orchestra Concert. This is a combination concert, and both the symphonic winds band and the orchestra will play about four numbers each. Music will include a concert march titled “Guns Up,” “Chant” by Gary Ziek, and a trumpet trio featuring three students. The orchestra will perform a selection called “Wildwood Flower.”
“What we do with our fall concert, we share it with orchestra. So orchestra will do half of it … and then we’ll finish the concert with the band,” Director of Bands Raymond James said. “Probably our most challenging number for this concert would be the chant by Gary Ziek.”
Senior Scott Ireland will be the guest conductor for the concert. Ireland will also perform his senior percussion recital at 3:30 p.m. Nov. 18.
The end of the week will be filled with jazz, as Baker’s jazz ensemble will perform its concert at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in Rice Auditorium. The concert will feature guest artist Ken Watters.
“This is the 15th year that we’ve done this, so I always bring in a guest artist,” Director of Jazz Ensemble J.D. Parr said. “Not somebody who’s nationally famous unless you’re a real jazz fan. But it’s always been somebody who’s a superb jazz musician from some other part of the country.”
Watters is a trumpeter from Alabama who has performed, recorded, and/or toured with musicians such as Carlos Santana, Frank Sinatra and Marc Anthony.
He will arrive at Baker University Wednesday to rehearse and do clinics with the jazz ensemble before he performs at the concert Thursday.
The concert will consist of a big band, meaning it’s an 18-piece band rather than a combo band, which consists of three to six people. The band will play several swing, Latin, funk and ballad jazz selections, featuring several student soloists.
“Most of it will be featured on Mr. Watters that night,” Parr said. “We hope we get a good crowd for that, because he’s an excellent trumpet player — world class.”
In order to support the costs of bringing in guest artists like Watters, the music department hosts the BU Jazz Festival.
“Each band has to pay an entry fee so that entry fee helps pay to get this guest artist here that we may not be able to afford otherwise,” Parr said. “So by virtue of the jazz festival, the Baker jazz band gets to play with a really, really fine jazz artist who has the financial incentive to be able to come here.”
The BU Jazz Festival is one of the only universities around the area that hosts a festival in the fall. Eighteen high schools mostly from around the area will come to Baker University Friday to play for ratings in front Watters and three other judges, who will critique them and give them ratings.
“The purpose of it is its partially recruiting,” Parr said. “It’s to get high school kids on campus to let them see Baker and maybe they’ll be interested in possible looking to come to school here and playing in our bands.”
The Baker community is encouraged to attend each of the events, as they will feature different sections of the music department.
“Everything is free and we really like everybody to come and hear all of our different ensembles that will be featured during each of the performances,” Baker said.
