Tag Archives: UCA

Anat Cohen kicks off Oxford American 2015-16 Jazz Series at South on Main tonight at 8

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oa jazz AnatTonight at 8pm, the Oxford American magazine welcomes Anat Cohen to the South on Main stage to kick off the OA Jazz Series!

Doors open at 6:00 PM, with dinner and drinks available for purchase at that time. This series is made possible by presenting sponsor, the UCA College of Fine Arts & Communication. Additional partners include The Summer Foundation, Arkansas Arts Council, Capital Hotel, Piano Kraft, Rosen Music Company, and FM-89.1 KUAR.

Tickets are $20 (General Admission), $30 (Reserved), and $32 (Premium Reserved). View the South on Main reserved seating map here. Please take a look at this very important ticketing and seating information before purchasing your tickets.

Clarinetist/saxophonist Anat Cohen has won hearts and minds the world over with her expressive virtuosity and delightful stage presence. Anat was born in Tel Aviv, Israel, and raised into a musical family. She began clarinet studies at age twelve and played jazz on clarinet for the first time in the Jaffa Conservatory’s Dixieland Band. At sixteen, she joined the school’s big band and learned to play the tenor saxophone; it was this same year that Anat entered the prestigious “Thelma Yellin” school, where she majored in jazz. After graduation, she discharged her mandatory Israeli military service duty from 1993-1995, playing tenor saxophone in the Israeli Air Force band.

The Jazz Journalists Association has voted Anat as “Clarinetist of the Year” eight years in a row, and she has topped both the Critics and Readers Polls in the clarinet category in DownBeat magazine every year since 2011. That’s not to mention years of being named “Rising Star” in the soprano and tenor saxophone categories in DownBeat, as well as for “Jazz Artist of the Year.” In 2009, ASCAP awarded Anat a Wall of Fame prize for composition and musicianship, among other honors.

In March 2015, Anzic Records releases Luminosa, her seventh album as a bandleader. Luminosa sees Anat play singing, dancing originals, interpret Brazilian classics by the likes of Milton Nascimento, and even re-imagine electronica as acoustica with an ingenious arrangement of a Flying Lotus tune. Luminosaencapsulates the description Jazz Police offered of Anat in full flight: “She becomes a singer, a poet, a mad scientist, laughing—musically—with the delight of reaching that new place, that new feeling, with each chorus.”

Tonight at 6 at South on Main, Clinton School & Oxford American present “Jazz: Integrated Art in Segregated America” symposium

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alvin02sm.jpg.190x140_q60_cropThis evening at 6pm at South on Main, Oxford American in partnership with the Clinton School of Public Service presents “Jazz: Integrated Art in Segregated America,” a symposium and panel discussion surrounding music and race.

The discussion will be led by Dr. Jackie Lamar, Professor of Saxophone at University of Central Arkansas’s College of Fine Arts and Communication. A jazz performance will follow the panel discussion. Thanks to sponsors Clinton School of Public Service, UCA College of Fine Arts & Communication, Piano Kraft, Rosen Music Company, and Arkansas Arts Council for helping make this event possible.

Featured panelists include Little Rock-based singer Irene Crutchfield; bassist Bill Huntington (born, New Orleans, LA); drummer Alvin Fielder (pictured), based in Jackson, MS; and bassist London Branch, also based in Jackson, MS. The symposium event is free and open to the public. South on Main’s doors open at 5:00 PM. with light food and drinks available for purchase.

At 8pm, the Oxford American presents jazz ensemble The Southeast Quartet at South on Main. This event is $10 regular, or $5 students/artists payable in cash at the doors on the night of the show.

A Pound of Flesh and Unstrained Mercy – MERCHANT OF VENICE at Ark Shakes

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AST 2015 MoVComedy and tragedy collide in this story of lovers united and families torn apart.  At the center is Shylock, the Jewish moneylender. When the Venetian merchant Antonio is forced to seek a loan from Shylock, a man he despises for his religion and profession, he is asked to enter into an impossible contract: he must give a pound of flesh if unable to pay back the borrowed sum. What follows is a complex and challenging exploration of love, mercy, integrity, and justice that reminds us that, “all that glisters is not gold.”

The Merchant of Venice continues the 2015 season of the Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre.  Performances are at 7:30 tonight, Saturday, June 20 and Tuesday, June 23.  Matinees are at 2pm on June 20, June 27 and June 28.  All performances take place in the Reynolds Theatre on the UCA campus.

The cast is led by Chad Bradford, Peter Kevoian, Paul Kiernan and Jocelyn Vammer.  Others in the cast are Jordy Neill, Taylor Galloway, Jeff Gonzalez, Hannah Moulder, Ferginho Philippe-Auguste, Hunter Ringsmith, Matthew Schmidli, Tanner Berry, Mattie Bogoslavsky, Mark Fox and Harrison Trigg.  Members of the Youth Ensemble are Anna Caroline Greg, Ethan Marotte and Olivia Marotte.

A second season of Jazz at South on Main set for 2015-16

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2e6b4_1320267846-oxa_logoAfter last season’s successful Jazz on Main series, the Oxford American is bringing more Jazz to South on Main next season.  
Things kick off on September 3 at 8pm with Anat Cohen.  Clarinetist/saxophonist Anat Cohen has won hearts and minds tAnat Cohen [Jazz Series]he world over with her expressive virtuosity and delightful stage presence. Anat was born in Tel Aviv, Israel, and raised into a musical family. She began clarinet studies at age twelve and played jazz on clarinet for the first time in the Jaffa Conservatory’s Dixieland Band. At sixteen, she joined the school’s big band and learned to play the tenor saxophone; it was this same year that Anat entered the prestigious “Thelma Yellin” school, where she majored in jazz. After graduation, she discharged her mandatory Israeli military service duty from 1993-1995, playing tenor saxophone in the Israeli Air Force band.
Doors open at 6:00 PM, with dinner and drinks available for purchase at that time.
Aaron Diehl [Jazz Series]
In an era revolving around celebrity hype and mediocre entertainment, Columbus, Ohio native Aaron Diehl seeks to stand out as an artist in his generation that exemplifies excellence, sophistication, and a fluency in the American musical vernacular. The 2011 Cole Porter Fellow of the American Pianists Association, Diehl has been hailed by the New York Times as “a smart young pianist with a fastidious grasp of Jazz traditions.” He is committed to unearthing the treasures of a musical aesthetic through collaborative efforts with musicians across generations.
The Oxford American magazine is excited to welcome Aaron Diehl to Little Rock on November 5 as the second show in our 2015 – 2016 Jazz Series! Doors open at 6:00 PM, with dinner and drinks available for purchase at that time.
Victor Goines [Jazz Series]
On January 21 at 8:00 PM, Victor Goines takes the South on Main stage! This is the third show in our 2015 – 2016 Jazz Series!  Clarinetist, saxophonist, and educator, he is one of the most respected and multi-faceted musicians in the jazz world today. He is also an acclaimed and sought after solo artist who leads his own quartet and quintet.

Adept in a bevy of instruments, Mr. Goines has also collaborated, recorded, and/or performed with many noted jazz and popular artists.  Victor Goines has played the clarinet since the age of eight and continued his studies with Carl Blouin, Sr., who introduced him to the saxophone at St. Augustine High School. In 1980, he entered Loyola University in New Orleans where he studied clarinet and saxophone, receiving a Bachelor of Music Education Degree in 1984.

Doors open at 6:00 PM, with dinner and drinks available for purchase at that time.

Bria Skonberg [Jazz Series]
Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with Jazz when Bria Skonberg perofrms on the South on Main Stage at 8:00 PM.   This is the fourth and final show in our 2015 – 2016 Jazz Series!  Hailing from Chilliwack, BC, and now living in New York City, award-winning trumpeter / vocalist / composer Bria Skonberg is “poised to be one of the most versatile and imposing musicians of her generation.”Best known for her knowledge of classic jazz and instigative nature, she is now creating an adventurous style rooted in New Orleans jazz and blues, world percussion, soul, and cabaret. She currently tours the world, headlining major clubs and festivals, as well as programming music education workshops for all ages.

Doors open at 6:00 PM, with dinner and drinks available for purchase at that time.
This series is made possible by presenting sponsor, the UCA College of Fine Arts & Communication.

Tonight at South on Main – UCA Arts Night

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som uca percussionUCA Arts Night takes the stage at South on Main tonight at 7:30.  The evening is spsonored by the Oxford American in partnership with the UCA School of Fine Art and Communications.

This semester’s concert features Blake Tyson and the UCA Percussion Group performing a selection of original compositions and innovative arrangements. The event is free and open to the public, but call ahead at (501) 244-9660 to ensure a reservation at a table.

Blake Tyson is recognized as one of the finest percussionists of his generation, and his compositions are performed in concert halls around the world. His own performances have taken him to five continents and almost forty states, but he is proud to call Arkansas home. Blake will take the stage at South on Main to perform his own works, as well as works by some of his favorite composers. In addition to solo pieces, he’ll perform chamber music with a selection of his fantastic graduate students from the University of Central Arkansas Percussion Studio,

A Look at Slaves in Arkansas’ Wilderness today at the Old State House Brown Bag lunchtime lecture series

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oldstatehouseThe next installment in the Old State House’s Brown Bag Lecture series is today at noon.  It features Dr. Kelly Jones discussing “Opportunity on the Edge of the South: Slaves in the Wilds of Arkansas.”

While white settlers were successful in establishing a harsh regime of slavery in Arkansas, the abundance of “wild” spaces lent opportunity outside the master’s gaze. Kelly Jones leads a presentation that draws from WPA ex-slave interviews and plantation records to describe how enslaved people in Arkansas used the land around them to resist the demands of their bondage and keep up social ties.. Jones is currently a visiting lecturer at the University of Central Arkansas and has a Ph.D. in history from the University of Arkansas.

The Old State House Museum is an agency of the Department of Arkansas Heritage.

Jazz on Main returns to South on Main tonight with Peter Martin & Romero Lubambo: New Orleans Meets Rio

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peter_martin_cropped_2.jpg.190x140_q60_cropJoin the Oxford American magazine for the continuation of their 2014-2015 jazz series at South on Main featuring Peter Martin & Romero Lubambo! This special evening will include a live multi-camera video shoot of the showby AETN – Arkansas Educational Television Network.

The OA jazz series is sponsored by the University of Central Arkansas College of Fine Arts and Communication. Doors open at 6:00 PM with dinner and drinks available at that time. The concert begins at 8:00 PM.

Single tickets went on sale September 1 at $30 for reserved seats at tables and $20 for general admission. Purchasing a reserved seat assigns you to a specific guaranteed seat at a table. However, seating at tables is family-style, and unless you purchase the entire table, you will be seated with other patrons. General admission tickets are good for barstools and standing room, available on a first-come first-served basis.For ticketing questions, please contact Metrotix at (800) 293-5949.

Raised by parents who are both classical musicians, Peter Martin began studying music at the age of three. After graduating from high school, Martin received the Presidential Scholar in the Arts Award from President Reagan. He then attended The Juilliard School in New York on scholarship, studying piano with Martin Canin, until moving to New Orleans in 1990.

While in New Orleans, Martin honed his skills working with key musicians such as Nicholas Payton, Germaine Bazzle, Brian Blade, and Victor Goines. He also embarked on an active solo career and toured and recorded with artists such as Betty Carter, Wynton Marsalis, Dianne Reeves, Chris Botti, Joshua Redman, Christian McBride, Roy Hargrove, and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. Martin has performed with the Berlin Philharmonic, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, and the Sydney Symphony, as well as numerous other orchestras around the world. He’s also played at The White House twice.

Martin performed on and arranged Dianne Reeves’ Grammy winning release A Little Moonlight, as well as co-produced her 2004 Blue Note CD Chrismas Time Is Here. He appeared in George Clooney’s 2005 film Good Night, and Good Luck and was featured on the movie’s Grammy-winning soundtrack. Wynton Marsalis called Martin, “An unbelievable musician with a unique kind of charisma. Not just the technical competence, but a deep kind of penetrating insight into music.”

In 1985, Romero Lubambo came to the United States, and brought with him a new sound in Brazilian jazz guitar. His guitar playing unites the styles and rhythms of his native Brazilian musical heritage with his fluency in the American jazz tradition, forming a distinctive new sound. From the cool, sophisticated rhythms of his native Brazil to hard bop, Lubambo is a guitarist who’s comfortable in any musical setting. He is an uncommonly gifted soloist and musical improviser with a steady stream of unpredictably creative musical thoughts and the virtuosity to deliver them ever so tastefully.

Lubambo has performed and recorded with many outstanding artists, including Dianne Reeves, Michael Brecker, Yo-Yo Ma, Kathleen Battle, Diana Krall, Wynton Marsalis, and Paquito D’Rivera among many others.

“Guitarist Romero Lubambo may be the best practitioner of his craft in the world today… [his] facility, creativity and energy are in a class all their own.”—JAZZIZ Magazine