SCC Jazz heads for Texas

After two years of dedicated practice and hard work, the SCC Jazz Ensemble is receiving the opportunity to compete nationally. In January it was invited to attend and compete with 19 of the best jazz bands in the nation in the Fourth Annual North Texas Jazz Festival.

“We’re all very excited and happy about going,” commented Chris Berg, the ensemble’s lead trumpet player.

Berg isn’t new to the festival circuit. Last year he was selected as one of five trumpet players in the nation to play in the honor band of the International Association for Jazz Education (IAJE).

Shoreline’s jazz program has a reputation for turning out strong players. In the past 10 years, six students have been asked to play in the IAJE band

Though SCC’s jazz ensemble has been well-known for a long time, this year the group is said to be particularly strong. Said Doug Reid, director of the ensemble, “This is one of the best ensembles I’ve seen while working here.”

For the last 10 years Reid has directed the ensemble, and has conducted other bands, including the National Community College Jazz Ensemble at the International Association of Jazz Educators Convention in Long Beach, California.

The festival begins on Friday, April 2, with college and university performances. Reid and the ensemble plan to play three pieces in their allotted 20 minutes: “Quintessence” by Quincy Jones, “Fantasia on an Ellington Theme” by Rick Hersch, and the original score to “Dreamcatcher,” by Northwest composer Daniel Barry.

On Saturday, workshops and middle school peformances will take place, followed by the awards ceremony.

In addition to Reid, those traveling to Texas are: alto sax players Tristan Sill and Danielle Newton; tenor saxophonists Nikos Loutsis and Desiree Guevara; baritone sax player Joel Johnson; trombone players Joshua Draper, Dana Hench and Brian Craig; bass trombone player Erin Easley; trumpeters Chris Thomas, Kevin Slota, Kenn Backholm and Alyse Avgoustiou; Thomas Miller on piano; David Thomson on guitar; Britton Wentzel on bass; and Kevin Belford on drums.

If the ensemble does well, they have the opportunity to win such prestigious honors as the Gene Hall award, which goes to the outstanding college jazz ensemble.