INFORMATION FOR
Jazz saxophonist, composer, arranger, and William Paterson University alumnus Brian McCarthy returns to his alma mater with his Nonet for his first appearance on the University’s acclaimed Jazz Room Series on Sunday, March 8.
The concert begins at 4 p.m. in the Shea Center for Performing Arts on campus. “Sittin’ In,” an informal jazz talk with the afternoon’s artist, begins at 3 p.m. in the Shea 101 Recital Hall; the event is free to all Jazz Room ticketholders. The concert will open with a performance by a William Paterson student jazz ensemble.
Tickets are $15 for the general public, $12 for the William Paterson community and senior citizens, and $8 for non-William Paterson students; admission is free for William Paterson students. There will be an additional $3 charge per ticket on the day of the performance.
McCarthy and his Nonet will perform his nine-piece work, The Better Angels of Our Nature. The work takes its title directly from the final line of Abraham Lincoln’s first inaugural address, which was offered in a spirit of reconciliation and hope for reunification with the seceded Confederacy. In his work, McCarthy, a self-professed Civil War buff, chronicles the years of reconciliation after the Civil War, which gave birth to, among many other things, the jazz art form. The project, released by Truth Revolution Recording Collective in 2017, grew out of a Creation Grant from the Vermont Arts Council in his home state, and was included in Best of 2017 lists in DownBeat Magazine and the Huffington Post.
In addition to McCarthy ’05, MM ’07, who performs on alto and soprano saxophone, members of the Nonet include William Paterson jazz alumni Cameron MacManus, MM ’06, on trombone; Stantawn Kendrick, MM ‘08 on tenor saxophone; and Justin Kauflin ‘08 on piano, as well as Bill Mobley on trumpet and flugelhorn; Daniel Ian Smith on tenor and soprano saxophone; Andrew Gutaskas on baritone saxophone; Matt Aronoff on bass; and Zach Harmon on drums.
William Paterson University’s Jazz Room Series, now in its 43rd season, is the longest-running program of its kind in the United States. Launched in 1978, the Jazz Room has welcomed more than 500 jazz legends to the stage, including Sonny Rollins, Wynton Marsalis, Wayne Shorter, Joe Williams, Marian McPartland, Slide Hampton, Kenny Burrell, Joe Lovano, Kenny Garrett, Clark Terry, Michael and Randy Brecker, the Vanguard Orchestra, and more.
Concerts have encompassed the entire spectrum of jazz, from early jazz and swing to avant garde, and from intimate solo performances to big bands. The performance series provides support for the University’s internationally renowned Jazz Studies Program, founded in 1973, which draws students from across the United States and abroad under the current direction of pianist Bill Charlap.
The Jazz Room at William Paterson University has been made possible, in part, by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.
For information, call the Shea Center for Performing Arts Box Office at 973-720-2371 or visit wp-presents.org.
