JAZZ ENSEMBLE TUNES UP FOR PERFORMANCE AT FLORIDA SOUTHERN COLLEGE

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Mar 29, 2022, 12:46 ET

LAKELAND, Fla., March 29, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Florida Southern College's Festival of Fine Arts is closing out March with a performance of Jazz Excellence, featuring FSC's Jazz Ensemble performing with guest artist Aaron Eckert.

Eckert is a trombonist from the U.S. Army Blues Band, the premiere Jazz Ensemble of the Army. Eckert, originally from Belleville, Ill., has performed with artists such as Jon Faddis, Jeff Hamilton, Chuck Israels, Conrad Herwig, and Scott Wendholt, among others. With the Army Blues, Aaron performed across the capital region, including the White House, Capitol Building, and Kennedy Center.

The performance will highlight the trombone and its role in the world of Jazz. Dr. Jeffrey Benatar, director of jazz studies and assistant professor of music at Florida Southern, will direct the fourth installment of the Spring Jazz Guest Artist-in-Residence Program that highlights an array of styles in the Big Band tradition.

FSC's Jazz Ensemble performs music written for contemporary Big Bands, as well as the compositions and arrangements of Count Basie, Duke Ellington and other jazz greats. The jazz ensemble is in frequent demand for performances on campus, in the community and at jazz festivals. Past guests include Bill Watrous, Ernie Watts, Jimmy Cobb, Vincent Herring, Nat Adderley, and others.

Jazz Excellence is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. on March 30 in the Branscomb Auditorium.

Tickets are $8 for adults and $4 for children. Florida Southern faculty, staff and students can attend the show for free with proof of ID. The show is open to the public.

For tickets, call the Branscomb Auditorium box office at 863-680-4296. Or visit https://www.flsouthern.edu/campus-life/arts-centers/festival-of-fine-arts for more information.

About Florida Southern College

Founded in 1883, Florida Southern College is the oldest private college in the state. The College maintains its commitment to academic excellence through 70+ undergraduate programs and distinctive graduate programs in business administration, education, nursing, and physical therapy. Florida Southern has a 14:1 student-to-faculty ratio, is an award-winning national leader in engaged learning, and boasts 30 NCAA Division II National Championships. Florida Southern is ranked at #8 among the "Best Regional Universities in the South" by U.S. News & World Report in its 2022 "Best Colleges" guide and is included in The Princeton Review's 2022 Best 387 Colleges guide and the "Fiske Guide to Colleges 2022." The 2021-2022 Colleges of Distinction guidebook praises Florida Southern's AACSB accredited Barney Barnett School of Business and Free Enterprise alongside the College's School of Education and its Ann Blanton Edwards School of Nursing and Health Sciences. Poets & Quants, U.S. News & World Report, and The Princeton Review further laud the Barney Barnett School of Business and Free Enterprise and the Ann Blanton Edwards School of Nursing and Health Sciences as foremost programs in the nation for business and nursing education. Home to the world's largest single-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture, FSC has appeared on The Princeton Review's top 20 "Most Beautiful Campus" national listing for 12 consecutive years. Connect with Florida Southern College.

SOURCE Florida Southern College