DATE: February 27 - March 1, 2009
TIME: February 27 and 28 at 7:30 p.m.; March 1 at 2 p.m.
LOCATION: UNLV Judy Bayley Theater
DETAILS: Tickets available at the UNLV Performing Art Center or 895-ARTS; Tickets are $5 for all UNLV students with ID. Tickets can be picked up one hour prior to the concert at the UNLV Box Office.
Jazz greats Eric Marienthal, Joe La Barbera and Marlena Shaw will take the stage with UNLV Jazz faculty and students for the 3rd annual UNLV Department of Music Invitational Jazz Festival this weekend in recognition of Black History Month.
February 27
7:30 p.m.
UNLV Judy Bayley Theater
Guest artist-in-residence and saxophonist Eric Marienthal and drummer Joe LaBarbera will join UNLV Jazz Studies faculty Dave Loeb (piano), Tom Warrington (bass), JoBelle Yonely (vocal), and Phil Wigfall (saxophone) for a concert of straight ahead jazz featuring original arrangements by Gordon Goodwin and Joe LaBarbara.
February 28
7:30 p.m.
UNLV Judy Bayley Theater
Renowned vocalist Marlena Shaw will join Marienthal and the Las Vegas Academy Jazz Band
and the UNLV Jazz Ensemble I, conducted by UNLV faculty Bruce Paulson and Dave Loeb, for an evening of big band jazz music including the music of Oliver Nelson, Benny Carter, and Count Basie.
About Marlena Shaw:
Born in Valhalla, New York and raised on gospel and jazz, Marlena Shaw's first public performance was at the age of 10, at the legendary Apollo Theater. Her activities since then have been as diverse as her legions of fans. Marlena has fronted big bands and orchestras, among them Basie's (both original and new). Frank Foster's Loud Minority Band, the Cologne Big Band, the Smithsonian and Seattle Repertory Orchestras, and the US Army Blues Band. She's performed and recorded with Ray Brown, Benny Carter, and Joe Williams, toured with Sammy Davis Jr. for four years, and graced every major jazz festival in the world, as well as top venues like Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center.
About Eric Marienthal:
Eric Marienthal is a Los Angeles-based contemporary saxophonist best known for his work in the jazz, smooth jazz, and pop genres. After graduating from high school in Southern California in 1976, Eric went on to study at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Mass. There he studied with the legendary saxophone professor, Joe Viola. By the time he left Berklee, Eric had achieved the highest proficiency rating given by the school. He has since gone on to perform in over 65 different countries, recorded 11 solo CDs and has played on hundreds of records, films, television shows and commercial jingles. Eric started his professional career in 1980 with famed New Orleans trumpeter Al Hirt. After returning to Los Angeles, Eric became a member of the Chick Corea Elektric Band. He recorded six CDs with Chick's band, two of which were Grammy award winners.
About Joe La Barbera:
Joe LaBarbera is an American jazz drummer formally educated at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. After Berklee, he spent two years with the US Army band at Fort Dix, New Jersey. He began his professional career playing with Woody Herman and the Thundering Herd, followed by the Chuck Mangione Quartet. In 1978, La Barbera joined the Bill Evans trio with bassist Marc Johnson. After Evans' death in 1980, he joined pop singer Tony Bennett. LaBarbera currently resides in Los Angeles, California, where he has been teaching at the California Institute of the Arts since 1993. LaBarbera is also on the faculty of the Bud Shank Jazz Workshop in Port Townsend, Washington, has also served on the National Endowment for the Arts council in Washington, D.C., and has been a guest at many other colleges as both performer and lecturer.
