March 2, 2011

JAZZ EXTRAVAGANZA XII will feature the Spelman College Jazz Ensemble and the Drexel University Jazz Orchestra and Saxtet on Thursday, March 10th at 7 PM in the Mandell Theater. The Spelman College Jazz Ensemble, which has shared the stage with Wynton Marsalis, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Nancy Wilson and other great jazz musicians, is a unique ensemble of instrumentalists and vocalists from the college for women in Atlanta, Georgia. Under the direction of Professor Joseph Jennings, the Spelman College Jazz Ensemble will present a program of classic jazz compositions that were either composed or performed by the likes of John Coltrane, Horace Silver, Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis. The concert’s  theme is "Honoring Those Who Paved The Way." The Drexel University Jazz Orchestra and Saxtet, under the direction of Dr. George Starks, will present “The King, The Duke, Horace, Oliver, Mingus, Lee, and Moody: The Music of Benny Carter, Duke Ellington, Horace Silver, Oliver Nelson, Charles Mingus, Lee Morgan, and James Moody”  as part of the evening’s program. The event is free and open to the public.