ISSUED: 15 February 2017
MEDIA CONTACT: Valerie Owens
SHEPHERDSTOWN, WV — The 2017 Shepherd University Jazz Festival will take place Saturday, February 18, in the Frank Center Theater. The daylong event will include master classes and performances by middle and high school and college musicians. Concert performances, which are free and open to the public, include:
- 9-11 a.m.—Martinsburg South Middle School, Shepherdstown Middle School, Harpers Ferry Middle School, and Wildwood Middle School.
- 1—3:30 p.m.—Hedgesville Middle School, Spring Mills High School, Washington High School, Jefferson High School, and Charles Town Middle School.
- 5 p.m.—Shepherd University Jazz Ensemble, featuring special guest artists—saxophonist Xavier Perez, music director for the Army Blues, trombonist Ben Patterson, music director of the Airmen of Note, and guitarist Josh Walker, Shepherd adjunct professor of jazz guitar.
Xavier has performed in 13 countries and 48 states with a wide range of artists in the jazz and Latin music worlds. He is currently assistant musical director and tenor saxophonist for the U.S. Army Blues Jazz Ensemble, performing ceremonies and concerts at the White House, the U.S. Capital, and in the Washington, D.C. area.
Patterson is a trombonist, composer, and arranger living in the Washington, D.C., area. Currently, he is the jazz trombone instructor at the University of Maryland, lead trombonist and musical director for the U.S. Air Force Airmen of Note, lead trombonist for the Alan Baylock Jazz Orchestra, and a member of the award-winning Latin ensemble Sin Miedo.
In 2011 Walker won Downbeat Magazine’s annual award for Best Blues, Pop, or Rock Solo By An Instrumentalist at the College Graduate Level. Since 2010, he has held the guitar chair in the award-winning Bohemian Caverns Jazz Orchestra in Washington D.C. He also teaches guitar at the Levine School of Music in Washington, D.C., and at George Mason High School in Falls Church, Virginia.
For more information about the Shepherd University Jazz Festival concert and performances call 304-876-5555 or visit www.shepherd.edu/music.
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