Grammy-nominated Mingus Big Band to headline Jazz Ensemble's Winter Weekend

A collection of high school jazz bands and the Mingus Big Band will join the Jazz Ensemble for the first Princeton University Jazz Winter Weekend.

This event will feature performances by the jazz groups, a lecture with Phil Schaap and the Invitational High School Jazz Festival, a collection of high school jazz bands. The weekend begins Friday, February 7 at 7:30 p.m. in Richardson Auditorium and will continue Saturday, February 8 at noon.

The University Concert Jazz Ensemble's performance will include compositions from last semester as well as the music of Mingus, Duke Ellington and Stevie Wonder, according to University ensembles director Anthony D. J. Branker.

Other surprises, yet to be determined, should be expected as well, he said.

Adding a more prominent jazz presence to the mix, the event will feature the Mingus Big Band, a 14 piece jazz ensemble from New York that celebrates the music of the late composer and bassist Charles Mingus.

Just as this first Jazz Winter Weekend aims to increase awareness and support of the university's jazz program, the Mingus Big Band aims to increase recognition of Mingus as seminal composer, said Sue Mingus, his widow and current artistic director of the Mingus Big Band.

"He always said he was first and foremost a composer, but his personality took over on stage," she said. Mingus's colorful character often portrayed him principally as a lively performer, not the iconic composer that he has come to be known as today.

The purpose of this jazz fête is twofold, said Branker. The event is meant to be a cultural experience for the campus community and the larger Princeton community alike. In addition, the University Concerts Committee intends for the event to bring more visibility to the university's jazz program.

Members of the University Concert Jazz Ensemble agree. Dave Morris '03, an ensemble member who plays alto saxophone, said he hopes that the event will allow students, faculty and community members to recognize Princeton as the "jazz powerhouse" that it is. Morris also pointed out its other intentions.

Increasing awareness of the jazz ensemble on campus is part of it, but it's also about reaching out into the community, said Morris.

Reaching out does not just mean offering several performances for interested audiences. The event aims to offer an unprecedented learning experience for high school students interested in the performance of jazz music.

According to Branker, the heads of jazz studies from Rutgers University in New Jersey and Queens College in New York will join him in serving as adjudicators during the Invitational High School Jazz Festival. This will allow participants to listen to and learn from one another.

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"I think it's a really good idea to get a lot of high school bands involved," said Brett Leghorn '04, a university ensemble member who plays lead trombone.

The renown of the Mingus Big Band should attract a sizeable audience for the Jazz Winter Weekend, as should, said Branker, the novel quality of the event.

The Mingus Big Band performs every Thursday evening at "The Fez" under the Time Café in New York's East Village. It was named "Best Big Band" by "Down Beat Critics Poll," "Jazz Times Readers Poll" and "New York Jazz Critics Circle" in 1998, and produced two recordings that were 1996 and 1997 Grammy nominees. Its latest album, "Tonight At Noon, Three Or Four Shades Of Love," has just been nominated for a Grammy, as well, Sue Mingus said.

Branker expects an audience of 400 to 600 people. Leghorn, too, anticipates a larger crowd than typical university jazz events are accustomed to, noting the considerable press that the event is receiving in addition to the family and friends of the high school students that will turn out for the performances.

Perhaps the university jazz program is not as notorious among students, faculty and community members as it could be; maybe its audiences aren't as populous as those of other university concerts and events. But once the ensemble attracts a new audience member, they have no problem retaining their support, according to Leghorn; a first experience usually guarantees a second, third, and so on.