TYLER, Texas — Tyler Junior College will host their annual Jazz Festival March 10 and March 11 with guest musician from the U.S. Army Blues Jazz Ensemble, Joshua Kauffman.
“It’s always a big thrill for us to bring someone of Josh’s caliber to come and work with our students,” Heather Mensch, TJC music department chair and professor of trombone and jazz said.
Kauffman is a University of North Texas graduate who auditioned and won a position with The United States Army Band. He currently holds the first trumpet chair in the U.S. Army Blues and the U.S. Army's premier jazz ensemble.
He is also an in-demand performer and educator in the Washington. D.C., metropolitan area and performs at major venues such as The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Capital One Arena and Blues Alley.
He teaches regularly at The National Jazz Workshop and frequently serves as a guest artist and clinician with colleges and schools throughout the U.S.
“In addition to improving their skills as players, the students get an idea of what it’s like to be a real, working musician by learning from someone who’s spent years in the profession, honing his craft,” Micah Bell, TJC professor of trumpet and jazz, who directs both TJC jazz ensembles said.
Kauffman will share his knowledge and performance skills with young musicians from schools in the area during the two-day festival, which will be held in Wise Auditorium, located in the Rogers Palmer Performing Arts Center.
Kauffman will also perform with the TJC Jazz Ensembles both nights at 7:30 pm. Pre-concert performances will begin at 7 p.m. each night, with the TJC Faculty Jazz Combo performing on Thursday and the Souled Out Jazz Orchestra on Friday. Admission is free, and the public is invited to attend.
TJC Jazz Ensemble 1 students and their hometowns are: Christian Butler, Bullard; Cameron Furr, Flint; James Gentry, Crandall; Sebastian Hernandez, Marshall; Collin Hill, Lindale; Zach Holcek, Tyler; Samuel Hooker, Jacksonville; Collin Miller, Paris; Harvey Nguyen, Whitehouse; Eduardo Ortiz, Mexia; John Park, Lindale; Mariah Parnell, Tyler; Isaac Sanders, Bullard; Jett Schnackenberg, Mansfield; Mitchell Shulka, Fort Worth; Lauren Taylor, Pineland; Dominic Theriot, Forney; and Aubrien Washington, Tyler.
TJC Jazz Ensemble 2 students and their hometowns are: Brody Bradshaw, Bullard; Leo Chesley, Whitehouse; Will Culbertson, Paris; Ethan Davis, Flint; Shaylee Durst, Nacogdoches; Justin Eden, Canton; Isabella Giannantonio, Melissa; Tyler Hannan, Tyler; Paul Haygood, Tyler; Jose Madrid, Winona; Nataliegh McGill, Chandler; Alex Roman, Tyler; Justin Shaw, Weatherford; Cody Taylor, Tyler; Outlaw Tidwell, Lindale; Jonathan Valadez, Tyler; and Rafael Valdez, Tyler.
