Down the corridor of years
We'll forget the joys and tears,
But North Texas – North Texas! – we love.
A heartfelt congratulations to the Class of 2020. We are immensely proud of your grit, artistry, and resilience through a trying academic year. Enjoy this video message from Jazz Studies faculty as organized by Prof. Quincy Davis. Welcome to our proud alumni family!
#GoMeanGreen!
The One O'Clock Lab Band, under the direction of Alan Baylock, made the finals round of competition at the inaugural Jack Rudin Jazz Championships organized by Wynton Marsalis and Jazz at Lincoln Center. The band took fourth place overall amongst a prestigious lineup of university jazz programs from across the country on Sunday, January 19, 2020.
Additionally, UNT Jazz Studies students took home a number of individual and section honors including:
Congratulations to all of our students and colleague institutions for an amazing weekend in New York City!
The Commission Project, the new CD by the JazzMN Orchestra, involves two generations of UNT alumni as players and composers. Seven of the ten titles are newly-commissioned works. The well-produced CD, released by Momentous Records, includes contact information for the composers of all 10 titles for those who want to purchase the charts.
The alumni composers Gerald Stockton and John Wasson. The alumni players are Rich MacDonald, drums and producer; Brad Dutz, percussion; Pete Whitman, tenor saxophone; Doug Snapp (conductor, artistic director, and founder of JazzMN); Brian Handeland, baritone saxophone; Aaron Hedenstrom, alto saxophone; and Brad Shermock, lead trumpet.
The orchestra's site is: http://jazzmn.org/
CD information is here: http://momentousrecords.com/jazzmn.shtml
We are pleased to welcome two new members of our faculty, who will begin in Fall 2019.
Philip Dizack has been appointed Assistant Professor of Jazz Trumpet, Improvisation Emphasis.
Rob Parton has been appointed Associate Professor of Jazz Trumpet, Lead Trumpet Emphasis.
Each year since 2013, the organizers of Dallas Jazz Appreciation Month, who represent organizations and institutions that support and present jazz year-round in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area, recognize important figures in the jazz community with the Jazz Legend Awards.
Among this years winners are UNT Jazz Studies Faculty members Jennifer Barnes (Jazz Educator) and Rodney Booth (Jazz Artist), and Instrumental Studies adjunct instructor and Jazz Studies alumnus Stockton Helbing (Jazz Innovator). They were recognized on April 13, 2019 at the DJAM Open House at the Moody Performance Hall in Dallas. Jennifer Barnes was on tour with the Jazz Singers that day. Photos by Bart Marantz.
Arlington Jones, Rodney Booth, Joanna St. Angelo
Arlington Jones, Stockton Helbing, Joanna St. Angelo
Congratulations to this year's DownBeat Student Music Award recipients from the Division of Jazz Studies:
Large Vocal Jazz Ensemble
Undergraduate College Outstanding Performance
Avenue C - Marion Powers, director
Faculty mentor: Rosana Eckert
Large Vocal Jazz Ensemble
Graduate College Winner
UNT Jazz Singers
Faculty mentor: Jennifer Barnes
*Outstanding Soloist: Stephanie Hanson on “Spring Is Here”
*Outstanding Scat Soloist Kara Walton on “Spring Is Here”
Original Composition – Large Ensemble
Undergraduate College Outstanding Performance
Kyle Myers, “Red Herring”
Faculty mentor: Richard DeRosa
Dean John Richmond has announced that Philip Dizack has been appointed as Assistant Professor of Jazz Trumpet – Improvisation Emphasis. His appointment begins Fall 2019.
https://music.unt.edu/faculty-and-staff/philip-dizack
https://www.philipdizack.com/
Last weekend the U-Tubes, our jazz trombone ensemble, made a successful tour to Washington, D.C. to represent our program at the American Trombone Workshop. The group is directed by graduate student Nathan Davis and mentored by Prof. Nick Finzer. "The students represented UNT on a very high level," said Prof. Finzer. "They had the opportunity to network with many musicians from the military bands there and at our gig Sunday. In addition, the students at the schools we visited were very receptive and open to the ideas our students had to share. The camaraderie and momentum this trip has built for our studio is extremely exciting!" Elvis Moreno is the trombonist in the photo.
A new jazz education journal has been started as a collaboration between the Jazz Education Network and Indiana University:
https://scholarworks.iu.edu/iupjournals/index.php/jazz/index
Yu Nishiyama, 2017 UNT Jazz Studies bachelor's graduate, has been named one of this year's ASCAP Foundation 2019 Herb Alpert Foundation Young Jazz Composer Award recipients.
