News
October 11, 2017SUNY SCCC’s Empire Jazz Orchestra To Celebrate 25 Years of Making Music
The Empire Jazz Orchestra (EJO), the professional jazz repertory ensemble in residence at SUNY Schenectady County Community College (SUNY SCCC), begins a yearlong celebration of its milestone 25th Anniversary, commencing with a special concert on Tuesday, October 17. The performance will feature a retrospective of longtime favorites and a few new surprises, as EJO delves deep into the jazz archives with pieces by Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn, Gil Evans, Gerry Mulligan, Count Basie and more. Longtime EJO vocalist Colleen Pratt will be singing several arrangements by band member Jim Corigliano.
Conducted by Dr. William Meckley, Dean of the SUNY SCCC School of Music, the EJO is dedicated to the performance of superior ensemble music from all eras of jazz and features numerous faculty members and alumni, including Brett Wery, Professor and Director of the Capital Region Wind Ensemble, and award-winning saxophonist Brian Patneaude.
“The Empire Jazz Orchestra includes several of the Capital Region’s finest professional musicians, who come together to pay tribute to some of the greatest jazz ever written,” Dr. Meckley said. “We’ve played with the likes of Benny Golson, Jimmy Heath and Slide Hampton, some of the most important jazz musicians known today.”
“We couldn’t be more thrilled to celebrate this important anniversary by doing what we do best—sharing incredible music with an incredible community,” said Jim Corigliano, jazz saxophonist and composer. He has been performing with the EJO since the beginning.
Tickets are $20 for general admission, $6 for students and free for SUNY SCCC faculty, staff and students with ID. The performance will be held in the Carl B. Taylor Auditorium in the Begley Building on the SUNY SCCC campus, and will begin at 8 p.m. This evening is made possible in part through a grant from the Schenectady County Initiative Program.
