Jazz Greats to Perform at 45th Pitt Jazz Seminar and Concert

A talented group of international jazz musicians will convene at the University of Pittsburgh for the 45th annual Pitt Jazz Seminar and Concert, the longest-running event of its type in the country. 

From Nov. 2 through 7, the campus will be alive with Jazz Week activities—guest lecturers, a performance by the Pitt Jazz Ensemble, the screening of a jazz film, and free seminars by the guest musicians. All events are open to the public. The week culminates with the Pitt Jazz Concert at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 7 in Carnegie Music Hall, 4400 Forbes Ave., Oakland.

Pitt was the first in the nation to offer an academic jazz seminar featuring international artists connecting with aspiring student musicians in a lecture format, then performing together as an ensemble.

This year, guest jazz artists include Kenny Barron, piano; Mino Cinelu, percussion; Jimmy Cobb, drums; Robin Eubanks, trombone; Robert Hurst, bass; Jimmy Owens, trumpet; Tineke Postma, saxophone; and Pharoah Sanders, tenor saxophone.

Orchestra or floor seats for the Nov. 7 concert are $30 in advance, $35 at the door; general admission is $25 in advance, $30 at the door; and tickets for students with valid University IDs are $10 in advance and at the door.Barron, Cobb, and Owens are National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Masters. The entire ensemble will perform under the direction of Pitt’s Geri Allen, pianist, associate professor of music, and director of the Department of Music’s Jazz Studies Program, Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences.

Tickets, which are expected to go on sale in the coming weeks, will be sold online at music.pitt.edu/tickets or by phone through the University of Pittsburgh Stages box office, 412-624-PLAY (7529). Tickets can also be purchased in person at the Stages box office, Cathedral of Learning’s 16th floor, from noon to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.

Additional details, including seminar schedules, will be available in the coming weeks. For more information, call the Pitt Jazz Studies Program at 412-624-4187.