Yale Jazz Ensemble to perform its spring concert

The Yale Jazz Ensemble (YJE), the university’s one and only “big band,” will perform its spring concert on Monday, March 6, at 7:30 p.m. in Sprague Memorial Hall, 470 College St. The concert is free and open to the public.

The concert will feature the band’s latest commission, “Dale Pa’lante,” a contemporary jazz piece by New Haven bassist and Yale alumnus Jeff Fuller. Big-band blues, straight-ahead swing, jazz ballads, and soulful post-bop music by Thad Jones, Count Basie, Hoagy Carmichael, Earle Hagen, and Samuel Adams are also on the program. The ensemble is conducted by Thomas C. Duffy, music director.

The Yale Jazz Ensemble is a 17-piece big band that performs a wide variety of music, from Benny Goodman to new jazz compositions. It has performed extensively in the United States and internationally at such noted venues as New York’s Village Vanguard and Iridium jazz clubs, and London’s Ronnie Scott’s. The ensemble has performed or opened for The Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra, the Toshiko Akiyoshi/Lew Tabackin Big Band, the World Saxophone Quartet, Jane Ira Bloom, Jimmy Owens, and Branford Maralis.

 Visit the YJE website for more information.