A Jazzy Affair

The Jazz Orchestra has been busy sharing its music throughout the Midwest this month with a tour, a homecoming concert, a professional recording session and an Iowa Bandmaster’s Association concert.

Comprised of 22 students ranging from first-years to seniors, the Luther College Jazz Orchestra is the top jazz ensemble on campus. Chosen after auditions each fall, the orchestra features guitar, piano, percussion, saxophone, clarinet, flute, trumpet, flugel horn, trombone and bass. The group also includes vocalist Annie Kuttler (‘12), violinist Karla Dietmeyer (‘13) and collaborates with Luther’s Vocal Jazz ensemble.

“In addition to being outstanding musicians, I am convinced this is the happiest ensemble on campus,” Director Juan Tony Guzman said. “They have a gift of having a tremendous discipline, but at the same time a joy in making music that is evident in every note we play.”

Guzman is an accomplished jazz musician, director and composer who has studied music education at Luther College and Florida State University. As of this spring, he has been teaching at Luther for 15 years.

“It’s a great privilege to work with Tony,” guitarist Gavin Colahan (‘13) said. “He just inspires me to play well every day.”

For their 2010 tour, Guzman and the Jazz Orchestra traveled to Minnesota and Wisconsin. Beginning April 22 and going through April 25, the ensemble performed in Duluth, Stillwater, Eau Claire and Middleton. The tours, partially based around people with ties to Luther, visited some alumni who now live in Eau Claire.

As for next year, Coordinator for Music Organizations and Marketing Jennifer Self says another tour of the Midwest is a possibility.

“We’re starting to think about it,” Self said. “On this tour, someone approached me about hosting the Jazz Orchestra in Chicago, and one of the students has ties in Cedar Rapids. We don’t have concrete plans, but they are definitely in the works.”

The Jazz Orchestra performed their homecoming and final formal concert April 27 at 7:30 p.m. in the Center for Faith and Life. The performance included a wide variety of songs with elements of jazz, blues, Afro-Cuban, tango, spiritual and Rumba. The show also included two vocal solos from Kuttler, and Vocal Jazz treated the audience to a lively and charming a cappella piece called “Chile con Carne.”

“The concert was one of the best I’ve heard at Luther,” Mitch Dietz (‘11) said. “The program was stylistically diverse, covering many genres and the musicians were just tearing it up.”

Those who missed the ensemble’s final formal concert need not worry. Last weekend, the group traveled to Cedar Falls to make a professional recording that will be released on CD. The CD will be the first in many years and will include songs from their tour and concert program.

Another shorter performance is also on the way. The Jazz Orchestra will perform a new piece composed by Sky Macklay (‘10) during the Research Symposium May 7 at 11 a.m. in the Noble Recital Hall. The work consists of six movements and will last around 30 minutes.

Following their symposium performance, the Jazz Orchestra will travel to Des Moines May 13 to play for the Iowa Bandmaster’s Association.

“It will be the most enlightened audience we’ll play for this year—700 band directors,” Guzman said. “It’s a highly selective audience and quite a treat for us.”

The Jazz Orchestra has been a busy group of musicians this month, and the dedication, talent and teamwork that the group demonstrates has brought their music to a wider audience than ever before.