Director Matt Shevitz
Featuring guest Artists Ernie Watts and Corky Siegel
Ernie Watts, a two-time Grammy Award–winning saxophonist, is celebrated as one of the most versatile and expressive voices in modern jazz. Performing professionally since age 16, he has appeared on over 500 recordings with artists such as Cannonball Adderley, Aretha Franklin, and Frank Zappa. Known for his rich tone and melodic style, Watts received the prestigious Frankfurt Music Prize in 2014 for his influence on generations of musicians. After releasing 15 albums, he founded Flying Dolphin Records in 2004 with his wife, Patricia, to create music on his own terms. The label has produced acclaimed albums including Wheel of Time, A Simple Truth, and Oasis, showcasing his range from blues and calypso to post-bop and lyrical ballads. A longtime member of Charlie Haden’s Quartet West, Watts continues to tour internationally, teach, and perform, dedicated to using music as a unifying force that connects people through shared harmony and spirit. Learn more at www.erniewatts.com
Corky Siegel is known internationally as one of the worlds great blues harmonica players, blues pianist, singer-songwriter, creator of CHAMBER BLUES and the sole pioneer/composer of award-winning revolutionary works that weave blues and classical forms together. Co-founder of the SIEGEL-SCHWALL BAND, and Blues Hall of Fame Inductee, Siegel has a catalogue of recordings on RCA, Vanguard, Alligator, and million selling blues/classical recordings on the iconic classical label Deutsche Grammophon. His close associations with the blues masters in the earlier days of Chicago blues, his essential part in the blues rock revolution, and his surprising success in bringing together blues and classical audiences make him a pivotal (though inconspicuous) figure in modern music history. “underappreciated national treasure” – Downbeat Magazine. Learn more at www.corkymusic.com
The DuPage Community Jazz Ensemble performs programs throughout the academic year as well as numerous off‐campus performances. The ensemble has accompanied guest artists such as Melissa Aldana, Wycliffe Gordon, Ignacio Berroa, Carl Allen, Dee Alexander, Fareed Haque, Jens Lindemann, Victor Garcia, and Mark Colby, is a frequent presence at the Elmhurst University Jazz Festival, has performed at the Jazz Showcase in Chicago, and in 2004 was recognized by the United States House of Representatives for its work on behalf of the Armed Forces Children’s Education Fund. Its repertoire spans more than a century of large jazz ensemble compositions, including original work from members of the ensemble.
About the Director: Matt Shevitz is an in-demand musician in the jazz, blues, and popular music scenes of Chicago area. He has performed alongside such internationally renowned jazz musicians as Dick Hyman, Ignacio Berroa, Howard Levy, Frank Capp, and Frank Wess along with blues/roots rock guitarist Eric Lindell and Ropeadope Records artists Spare Parts. Shevitz has performed at Jazz in the Park Festival (Milwaukee), Waterfront Blues Festival (Portland), Chicago Blues Festival, Lollapalooza and House of Blues in Chicago. Matt is a contributor to DownBeat Magazine since 2009 with articles analyzing transcriptions of great jazz solos as well as jazz theory and effective practice habits. Matt is a professor and the Director of Jazz Ensembles at the College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn, IL. He received a Doctor of Musical Arts in Jazz Performance degree from the Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Master of Music in Jazz Pedagogy from Northwestern Univ. and a Bachelor of Science in Music from the Univ. of Oregon.
Media Sponsor
