UNT Division of Jazz Studies

When I checked out "The Last Samurai," a fascinating novel by Helen DeWitt, in September 2008, I found the photo above, which includes UNT jazz alumnus and drummer Blair Fix (standing at the right side of the group of musicians), in the book. Reached in Toronto for comment by email, Blair replied: "That's pretty funny. This picture was taken when I was in the Motown band at Six Flags over Texas in the summer of 2003. I had to be at Six Flags for about nine hours each day, six days a week, but we only played about 2.5 hours per day, so I had a lot of time on my hands. I definitely read that book in the cast trailer. You can put that on the website if you want. It is a great book, but not what I expected. This was around the time that Tom Cruise had a movie out by that name, and I was expecting the same story...what I got was much more interesting. It's kind of funny that no one has read that book since then." The novel deals with the search for his father by a single mother's son; both of them are obsessed with language and, to a lesser extent, music; and Kurosawa's "Seven Samurai" plays a crucial role throughout.--J.M.

Here's the link.

Steve Wiest's new CD "Out of the New" features his trombone playing and arrangements. He's joined on it by Fred Hamilton, guitar; Stefan Karlsson, piano; Lynn Seaton, bass; and Ed Soph, drums. It's available at iTunes or from Arabesque Recordings.

"The idea behind this project," Steve explains, "was to find unusual modern source material – the more unusual the better, I suppose – with the idea that modern pop music and modern rock music, and songs from Broadway and TV, can also be good material for jazz. I then wanted to approach these new tunes in the same way that jazz musicians have been rewriting and recomposing the old standards for years: often going in completely different directions from the original for the sake of creative variation (such as taking 'On Green Dolphin Street,' which was originally a slow, hypnotic ballad and turning it into an up-tempo exciting samba/straight ahead vehicle). While the Great American Songbook is by no means tapped-out, I had a great time finding new directions and fresh formats with this new material."

Here's all you need to know:

Event: Floyd Graham Society annual meeting
Day: Sat., Oct. 25
Time: 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
Place: University Union, UNT campus
Program: BOB DOROUGH (www.bobdorough.com)
Dancing: Yes! To the Aces of Collegeland big band, Jack Rumbley, director
Reservations: Required. Due by 5 p.m., Wed., Oct. 22.
Payment: $30/person. In advance. Includes a seated luncheon.
VISA/MC number/expiration via fax to 940-891-0690 or via phone to 940-387-9068.
Charge will appear on statement as Graham Public Relations.
Checks: Mail to Floyd Graham Society, 815 Ector, Denton, Texas 76201
Paypal to gpr1@earthlink.net (that's g-p-r-numeral one)

This poster has all the details. Alumni are invited to contact the Jazz Studies office at (940) 565-3743 for ticket information that is specific to alumni.

View the poster. Read the Denton Record-Chronicle article.

From the UNT press release:

UNT pays tribute to Maynard Ferguson in Fort Worth event

What: "Dreaming of Birdland"
The University of North Texas One O'Clock Lab Band's Tribute to Maynard Ferguson
Featuring music from the newly acquired Maynard Ferguson Music Library
When: 7:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. Oct. 17 (Friday)
Where: McDavid Studio, adjacent to Bass Performance Hall, 301 E. 5th St. in Fort Worth
Cost: $30
Contact: For tickets, visit www.basshall.com.

DENTON (UNT), Texas ⎯ The world-renowned University of North Texas One O’Clock Lab Band will present music from the Maynard Ferguson Music Library for the first time since acquiring the historic collection in August.
"Dreaming of Birdland:" The UNT One O’Clock Lab Band’s Tribute to Maynard Ferguson, will take place at 7:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. Oct. 17 (Friday) at McDavid Studio, adjacent to Bass Performance Hall, 301 E. 5th St. in Fort Worth. Tickets are $30 and available by visiting www.basshall.com.

“In many cases, it will be the first time this music has been performed since Maynard’s groups performed it in the late 1950s and early 1960s,” said Steve Wiest, interim director of the UNT One O’Clock Lab Band and a member of Ferguson’s band from 1981 to 1986. “Back then, this music was considered ‘cutting edge’ and super-exciting. Today, it still feels the same and has stood the test of time that defines any great work of art.”

New York trumpeter Craig Johnson, who played lead trumpet with Ferguson in the 1990s and in the UNT One O’Clock Band in the 1980s, will be featured as a guest artist on pieces from the Birdland Dream Band era. Former One O'Clock Lab Band lead trumpet soloist and Los Angeles-area musician Pete DeSiena will perform on several pieces, including Tenderly, an arrangement he recorded with the One O'Clock Lab Band on Lab 2001. Also appearing as a guest artist will be Stockton Helbing, a drummer in the One O'Clock Lab Band in the early 2000s who went on to become Ferguson’s drummer and final musical director. Stockton will reprise his performance on the Grammy-nominated arrangement of Besame Mucho, among other works.

The 400-piece Maynard Ferguson Music Library, acquired by UNT with the help of a donation, arrived on campus in August. The Maynard Ferguson Music Library covers Ferguson's career from the mid-1950s until his death in 2006 and features works by influential composers and arrangers in modern jazz history, including Mike Abene, Slide Hampton, Bill Holman, Willie Maiden, Marty Paich and Don Sebesky. The library complements the UNT jazz program's collection, which also includes the Stan Kenton Library. Kenton, a famed jazz orchestra leader, gave UNT a collection of arrangements in 1962 and bequeathed the remainder of his collection to UNT in 1979.

The One O’Clock Lab Band, directed by Steve Wiest, will play a concert at UT-Dallas on Friday, September 26, 2008 at 8:00 p.m. at the UT-D Conference Center. Admission is $20, free for UTD students with ID. More information

This video was made by UNT students David Minton, Michael Clements, and Donald Mooney. It was recorded at the spring 2008 lab band concert. It's posted here and on our youtube channel by permission.