The UNCG Spartan Jazz Collective is a collaborative group of faculty and students founded in 2012 to function in the mentorship tradition of the bands of Art Blakey, Miles Davis, and Horace Silver. Faculty members mentor a rotating cast of students in bandleading, arranging, and rehearsal technique, while focusing on specific jazz artists for each semester. Previous artists studied have included Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus, John Coltrane, Max Roach, and Billy Strayhorn, among many others.
SWEET POPPA LOU
This year, the UNCG Spartan Jazz Collective will play the music of Lou Donaldson. Donaldson, now age 96, is a famed alto saxophonist born in Badin, NC who attended North Carolina A&T State University in the 1940s. He played with many of the jazz titans including Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Horace Silver, and Art Blakey.
THE BAND
Members of the 2023 UNCG Spartan Jazz Collective are (front row, l-r): Cecilia Richardson-student, guitar; Tori Thomas-student, flute; Alston Harris-student, drums; Chad Eby-faculty, saxophone;( back row, l-r) Steve Haines-faculty, double bass; Dandrick Glenn-student/faculty, trombone; Julian Kennedy-student, piano and vocals, and Thomas Heflin-faculty, trumpet. The Spartan Jazz Collective enjoys performing locally at the Crown in Greensboro, and for festivals & events in North Carolina.
