MUSIC

San Jacinto College (SJC) will host musical concerts and an informational music lecture during November that will feature student, faculty, and other musicians. All events are free and open to the public, and will be staged at the Central, North, and South campuses.

The Central Campus events will be held at the Dr. Monte Blue Music Building, or Slocomb Auditorium, 8060 Spencer Hwy., in Pasadena. The North Campus concert will be held at the Dr. Charles Grant Fine Arts Center, 5800 Uvalde Road in the North Channel area. The South Campus concert will be held in the Marie Flickinger Fine Arts Center, 13735 Beamer Road in Houston.

Thursday, Nov. 10, 7 p.m. – The Central Campus brass choir, under the direction of Dr. Karen Marston, will present an evening of chamber music featuring a variety of mixed ensembles. Composers on the program include Mouret, Mora, Ewazen, Haydn, Bernstein, Holst, Monteverdi, and Matchett. Students will perform in quintets, quartets, and in a large combined ensemble.

Friday, Nov. 11, 3 p.m. – The Central Campus orchestra, under the direction of Aaron Bielish, will present a concert that will feature various musical styles. The repertoire will include Mozart’s “Symphony #25,” Bartok’s “Rumanian Dances,” Vivaldi’s “Concerto for Two Violins and Cello in D Minor,” and Frederik Rung’s “Butterfly Dance Overture.”

Sunday, Nov. 13, 7 p.m. – Guest artists from Houston’s renowned Ars Lyrica baroque group will present an evening of musical magic, with prize-winning soloists, striking instrumental combinations, and even a taste of the supernatural. Familiar works by Bach and Handel will be combined with more exotic fare, including chamber works by Bach’s youngest son and by Frederick the Great’s personal composer. Selections will include J.S. Bach’s “Brandenburg Concerto No. 5,”J.G. Janitsch’s “Quadro O Haupt voll Blut und Wunden,”J.C. Bach’s “Quintet in D major, Op. 22, No. 1,”and H. Purcell’s “Suite from The Fairy Queen.”

Wednesday, Nov. 16, 10 a.m. – As part of the Houston Symphony Lecture series, award-winning film director and producer, Dr. Duncan Copp, will speak at the Central Campus Slocomb Auditorium. Copp collaborated with the Houston Symphony in January 2010 on a world premiere project called “The Planets – An HD Odyssey” which featured a live performance of English composer Gustav Holst’s music and planetary images from NASA. He is currently working on the sequel, “Orbit – An HD Odyssey.”

Thursday, Nov. 17, 7 p.m. – The Central Campus jazz ensemble and jazz combo, under the direction of Jeffrey Adams, will perform music from different jazz genres, such as standard jazz, blues, Latin, funk, and ballad. The jazz ensemble is a 20-piece group consisting of saxaphones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section (piano, guitar, bass, and drums). The jazz combo is a smaller group that includes a vocalist, and features more improvisation. The jazz combo will perform a repertoire of traditional jazz favorites. 

Tuesday, Nov. 29, 7:30 p.m. – The South Campus student band, under the direction of Bobby Wren, will present a concert that will include a variety of popular selections.

Tuesday, Nov. 29, 7:30 p.m. – The North Campus jazz band, under the direction of Dr. Randy Snyder, will perform a concert featuring a diverse repertoire. Highlights will include “Doxy,” a 16-bar blues standard composed by Sonny Rollins and arranged for big band by Mark Taylor; “Peter Gunn,” the James Bond theme composed by Henry Mancini as arranged for big band; and “Harlem Nocturne,” by Earle Hagen and featuring SJC student Johnny Hernandez on alto sax. Other selections will be “Tiger of San Pedro,” by John La Barbera and featuring student Cory Winston on trombone; “Fly Me to the Moon,” a classic standard featuring student Karly Hutchins as vocal soloist; “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy,” a soul selection that also features soloist Hutchins; and “In the Mood,” a Glenn Miller big band era classic that will close out the concert.

Pictured: San Jacinto College (SJC) music professor Aaron Bielish leads Central Campus orchestra students (from left) Joseph Mills, Julia Sandifer, Leonardo Barragan, and George Wester in rehearsal for a concert set for Nov. 11. Photo credit: Rob Vanya, San Jacinto College marketing department. (full image below, detail above).