Award-winning tenor saxophonist Joel Frahm to be guest artist at Fairfield University's Jazz Ensemble winter concert | Press Releases

The Fairfield University Jazz Ensemble welcomes Joel Frahm, Down Beat Magazine's 2005 Rising Star Tenor Saxophonist as guest artist at its winter concert on Thursday, Dec. 7 at 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. in the Wien Experimental Theatre at the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts.

Fairfield University's Director of Jazz and Popular Music, Brian Torff, is a noted bassist and composer. He will lead the ensemble through a program of innovative works, several of which were arranged by Fairfield University students, including Frank Zappa's "Peaches En Regalia," arranged by senior, Mark Basso; Leon Russell's classic "Feelin' Alright," arranged by senior, Brendan Hermalyn; two Torff originals, "Brasil 79" and "Momentum;" Sonny Rollins' "Tenor Madness;" and Les McCann's "Better Get it in your Soulness."

The Jazz Ensemble is an accomplished group of university students who often invite notable guest artists to join them in concert. Past guests have included members of Blood, Sweat & Tears and Spyro Gyra, Blues Brothers saxophonist Lou Marini and internationally known pianist, James Williams.

This year's guest artist has consistently received accolades from his early years as a musician. As a high school sophomore Frahm played with the award-winning Concert Jazz Band and the following year he was honored by Down Beat Magazine as Best High School Jazz Soloist.

After graduating from the Manhattan School of Music with a Bachelor's degree in Jazz Performance, Frahm was selected for a spot in Betty Carter's Jazz Ahead program and soon after was a semi-finalist in the Thelonious Monk Institute's International Saxophone Competition. In 2005, Down Beat Magazine's Critic's Poll named him a Rising Star in the Tenor Saxophone category.

Frahm has played with a great many well-known jazz artists, including Larry Goldings, Matt Wilson, Maynard Ferguson, Jane Monheit, Brian Blade, and Pat Martino, to name but a few. Last August, he appeared at Jazz at Lincoln Center, in a tribute to the legendary Django Reinhardt playing with Django stylist Tchavolo Schmitt, Brian Torff and five other noted jazz musicians.

As a bandleader, Frahm has released three critically acclaimed CDs on the Palmetto Record label and he has appeared on over 40 commercially released jazz recordings.

Tickets to the Jazz Ensemble concert are $8, $5 for students. Call the Quick Center Box Office at (203) 254-4010 or toll free at 1-877-ARTS-396 to purchase tickets. For more information, visit the website, www.quickcenter.com.