Successful Jazz Alum Returns to USU for Concert

It will be a homecoming for jazz musician Dana Landry when he visits Utah State University for a three-day residency with the school’s jazz bands in the department of music. A concert tops the list of activities that includes Landry and the Dana Landry Trio. Other highlights include jazz arrangements by USU jazz students.

The concert is Wednesday, Dec. 5, at 7:30 p.m. in the Kent Concert Hall of the Chase Fine Arts center on campus (approximately 1110 E. 610 North, Logan). Tickets are available at the door. General admission is $5, and USU students with valid ID are admitted free.

 

The Dana Landry Trio, based at the University of Northern Colorado, will perform with USU’s jazz groups, including the USU Jazz Ensemble, under the direction of Todd Fallis, and the USU Jazz Orchestra, directed by Jon Gudmundson. In addition to Landry, the trio includes Eric Applegate (acoustic bass) and Jim White (drums).

 

“Dana Landry is director of jazz studies at the University of Northern Colorado,” Gudmundson, USU’s current director of jazz studies said. “But back in the ‘80s, he was a student here at USU and studied under the previous jazz director, Larry Smith.”

 

The concert opens with Fallis’s Jazz Ensemble locking in on some well-known standards in the repertoire, including Stolen Moments by Oliver Nelson.

 

“This recognizable tune and chords give ample opportunity for the students to improvise,” Fallis said.

 

Up next is the beautifully arranged ballad Central Park West by John Coltrane.

 

Fallis said he was inspired by Gudmundson to pull out an arrangement by the Bob Mintzer band after the opening concert of the season. As a result, Mr. Funk is included this time out. The work is a jazz shuffle and Fallis hopes to feature the guest trio on the tune.

 

The Dana Landry Trio will also be featured in Count Basie’s Shiny Stockings.

 

“The rhythm section trio sitting in with our band will motivate the wind players and guide them into perfect Basie style, I’m sure,” Fallis said.

 

The Jazz Ensemble concludes its set with another Count Basis favorite, Corner Pocket, a work that features piano and trumpet and a full band shout chorus.

 

The Jazz Orchestra will perform a range of big band jazz, from Duke Ellington’s Cottontail to USU student Ryan Conger’s arrangement of Michael Brecker’s Renaissance Man.

 

“We love featuring arrangements of our jazz students here at USU,” Gudmundson said. “Ryan really captured the essence of this composition and did a great job translating it into a big band piece.

 

Gudmundson said he and his students are excited about the concert, especially to play with three stellar guest artists and jazz educators.

 

Contact: Jon Gudmundson [gudmundson@hass.usu.edu] (435) 797-3003

Contact: Todd Fallis [tfallis@hass.usu.edu] (435) 797-3005

Source: Jazz Program, Music Dept.