Veteran trombone artist and educator on stage with Kirkwood Ensemble and CR Jazz Big Band
One of the most expressive and talented trombonists of the modern day will headline an instrumental jazz concert at Kirkwood Community College on April 18. Wycliffe Gordon will appear in Ballantyne Auditorium with the Kirkwood Jazz Ensemble and CR Jazz Big Band at 7:30 p.m. The performance is directed by Dr. Timothy Feldkamp.
In addition to the concert, Gordon will share music techniques and stories of his career in a Jazz Master Class from 1 to 2:30 p.m. in 375 Cedar Hall on the main campus. The class is free and open to the public.
Wycliffe Gordon was born in Waynesboro, Georgia and learned the love of music from his late father, the classical pianist and educator Lucius Gordon. Following his high school and college education, he joined forces with jazz legend Wynton Marsalis in early ensembles, often cited as some of the most powerful influences for jazz music’s resurgent interest in the early 1990s.
He is a former veteran member of the Wynton Marsalis Septet, The Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, and has been a featured guest artist on Billy Taylor’s Jazz at Kennedy Center public radio series. Gordon’s television appearances have included the Grammy Awards, PBS specials and two “Live from Lincoln Center” broadcasts with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra: “Uptown Blues, Ellington at 100” (a collaboration with the New York Philharmonic) and “Big Train.” Mr. Gordon also appeared in the Ken Burns PBS documentary Jazz.
Among his many awards and honors are numerous citations as Trombonist of the Year by the Jazz Journalists Association and several critic’s choice awards for his performance and compositions. He has also performed in venues around the world as an “Official Jazz Ambassador” for the U.S. State Department. In addition to his recording and performance career, Gordon currently serves on the faculty of the Jazz Studies program at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
Tickets for the April 18 Kirkwood Jazz Fest 2009 concert with Wycliffe Gordon are $8 for adults and $5 for seniors and students with current ID. Kirkwood students, staff and faculty are admitted free of charge. Tickets are available from Kirkwood’s Student Life office in Iowa Hall, (319) 398-5578.