Jazz showcase unites, celebrates local talent

Michael Naylor, WCC music program director. Lilly Kujawski | Washtenaw Voice

By John Kopelman
Contributor

WCC is set to host its fall jazz showcase event on Dec. 9, which features musical performances from WCC students, local high school students, community groups and special guests.

Christopher Barrick, a saxophone soloist and Eastern Michigan University’s music/dance director, is the guest performer at the event and will perform with the WCC groups.

“The WCC jazz showcase events occur each year at the end of the fall and winter semesters,” said WCC jazz director and instructor Steve Somers. “In December, we feature students from the WCC jazz combo class and the new noncredit WCC jazz orchestra class.”

The showcase gives students from all skill levels and backgrounds a chance to get into a room and create music together, said Michael Naylor, the director of WCC’s music program.

WCC strives to nurture creativity and build community, and the music program is a place where a diverse group of people can get together and create something valuable, Naylor said.

According to Naylor, musician Wynton Marsalis once said that jazz is essentially musical democracy—people bring what they have, respect each others experiences, and make something happen.

The showcase has musicians of different cultures, and ages range from 16-year-olds to people in their 70s, which gives young musicians a chance to learn from their older peers.

Besides Barrick, guest musicians performing in the showcase include: Corner Pocket from Ann Arbor’s Community High, Washtenaw International High School’s Jazz Ambassadors, The Big Band Theory and the Ypsilanti Youth Orchestra’s jazz ensemble.

Fall Jazz Showcase

Dec. 9, 7 p.m.

Towsley Auditorium

Admission is free.

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