Western Illinois University Presenting Jazz Concert Wednesday Night
The Western Illinois University School of Music will present a Jazz Studio Orchestra (JSO) Concert with special guest trumpeter and vocalist, Benny Benack III, at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 17 in the College of Fine Arts and Communication (COFAC) Recital Hall.
The JSO is under the direction of Whitney Ashe, director of Jazz Studies.
By age 33, Emmy-nominated Trumpeter and Vocalist Benny Benack III has already become a leading voice in Jazz for his generation, headlining clubs and festivals around the world on the heels of his latest critically acclaimed album “Third Time’s the Charm” which ascended number two on the JazzWeek International Radio Charts in 2023. He is the rare talent who is just as formidable as a fiery trumpeter ranging from Freddie Hubbard to Louis Armstrong and everyone in between, while as a singer he delivers sly, mature, naturally expressive post-Sinatra vocal stylings.
The program will be selected from the following:
You Go To My Head – J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie/arr. Bill Holman
Off the Cuff – Jim McNeely
Send In the Clowns – Stephen Sondheim/arr. Dave Bardhoun
Social Call – Gigi Gryce and Jon Hendricks/addl. lyrics by Benny Benack III/arr. Diego Rivera
A Night in Tunisia – Dizzy Gillespie/arr. Michael Phillip Mossman
Won’t You Be My Neighbor – Fred Rogers/arr. Thomas Wenglinski
Third Time’s the Charm – Benny Benack III/arr. Mike Sailors
Old London Towne – Benny Benack III/arr. Steven Fiefke
Georgia – Hoagy Carmichael/arr. Tommy Newsome
This performance is open free for general audience seating and will be live-streamed on the School of Music’s YouTube channel and Facebook page.
For more information, call the COFAC Recital Hall office at (309) 298-1843 or visit wiu.edu/recitalhall.
