March 20, 2007 – The UVI Jazz Ensemble will hold its annual Spring Concert at 8 p.m., on Saturday, March 24, at Pilgrim's Terrace on St. Thomas. Under the direction of Martin J. Lamkin, this year's concert will feature two artists: bassist Reuben Rogers and alto saxophonist Ron Diehl.
Rogers, a 1992 graduate of the Charlotte Amalie High School, received his degree from Berklee School of Music and has since become one of the jazz world's finest bassist. Diehl, a music educator, has been working with the UVI Jazz Ensemble since January as an artist in residence. He is a former member of the U.S. Navy Commodores, Washington D.C., the official Jazz Ensemble of the U.S. Navy. UVI student vocalist Besha Liburd will also be featured at the concert.
Rogers will also be the featured artist at a free music clinic scheduled for 12:30 p.m., on Thursday, March 22, in UVI's St. Thomas campus Music Building. Members of the public, especially music students, are invited to the music clinic.
He has toured extensively and has been recorded on more than 60 CDs. He is a member of the Caribbean jazz group "21st Century." Diehl, a former faculty member at Towson State University in Towson, Md., and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County Campus, is heavily committed to jazz education and performance. He has written a book on saxophone techniques. Liburd will be featured on "The Man I Love," "Teach me Tonight," "Summertime" and "Do Nothing Till You Hear From Me." The ensemble will present jazz standards by Count Basie, Oliver Nelson and other notable jazz composers. The concert will also feature the saxophone section performing "On a Clear Day."
Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for students and are available at the UVI Bookstore, UVI Humanities Office, at the door on the night of the concert and from Ensemble members. The jazz concert is sponsored in part by the V.I. Council on the Arts and the National Endowment of the Arts.
For more information, call 693-1194.
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