Delfeayo Marsalis jazzes up the Majestic with Sunderman Conservatory students
By Benjamin Pontz, Events Coverage Director
As parents from across the country and around the world descended on the Gettysburg College campus during parent’s weekend, a style of music with influences from across the country and from around the world emanated from the historic Majestic Theater Friday evening, October 28.
The Gettysburg College Jazz Ensemble was joined by the Camerata chamber singers and the Jazz Dispatch combo for a concert entitled “Fall Madness,” which featured trombone soloist Delfeayo Marsalis, a special guest who visited the Sunderman Conservatory and performed earlier in the afternoon at the conservatory’s weekly Now Hear This performance.
Marsalis, the brother of Wynton, Branford, and Jason Marsalis, and the son of Ellis Louis Marsalis, received recognition along with his family from the National Endowment for the Arts in 2011 as a Jazz Master, the nation’s highest jazz honor. He performed five tunes with the jazz ensemble: “Say When,” “Along Came Betty,” “Skylark,” “The Peaches Are Better Down The Road,” and “The Next Big Thing.”
Certainly, it impacted student performers.
Marc Tessier ’17, a music performance major, said, “Playing with Delfeayo was a phenomenal experience. He was so knowledgeable, and also so willing to share his knowledge. He was very down to earth, which is very pleasant from someone of his stature.”
Not to be forgotten, Camerata performed two songs: jazz standards “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” and “When I Fall In Love.” The pair fit together naturally according to director Dr. Rob Natter, director of choral music at the College.
“The first song never mentions love specifically,” he told the audience before elaborating that the second one is far more explicit; he thought they formed a nice pair.
The Sunderman Conservatory has several events throughout the remainder of the semester including, senior recitals from music majors Luke McCurry, Alex Schweizer, Brittany Barry, Meghan Riley, and Molly Clark, and performances from the Symphony Orchestra, Wind Symphony, and the Choral Program. A full schedule is available at the Sunderman Conservatory’s website:
http://www.gettysburg.edu/academics/conservatory/about/performances/calendar/calendar-of-events.dot