With the upcoming Family Weekend, students with family members visiting have plenty of activities around campus to attend. One event that should be on everyone’s radar is the A la Carte Jazz Brunch on Sunday, Oct. 12 from 11-12:30 p.m. in the Evelyn Young Dining Room. The event will feature live music from the Adolphus Jazz Ensemble and the Gustavus Jazz Lab Band.
Director of Jazz Ensembles Dave Stamps, will be heading the Jazz Brunch for the first time. Along with making and directing music for the Inaugural Concert and the Nobel Conference, Stamps’ first months here have been busy.
“We have been preparing for the Jazz Brunch in tandem with the Nobel Conference. All of these great Gustavus traditions are new to me, so I’m going in to each one relaxed and eager to learn and adapt,” Stamps stated.He had this to say about the preparation of the event and the events surrounding it.
According to Stamps both bands have come a long way this past month. While the set list is still evolving, both the Adolphus Jazz Band and the Gustavus Jazz Lab Band will have their fair share of pieces to play. The Gustavus Jazz Lab Band will play six to seven charts while the Adolphus Jazz Ensemble will be featuring five.
Both bands will also be featuring vocalist Junior Music and Psychological Science Major, Hannah Walters, who will be singing with the Gustavus Jazz Lab Band. While Sophomore English and Political Science Major Clara Wicklund will be singing with the Adolphus Jazz Ensemble.
Wicklund was unaware of an opening for a vocalist in the Jazz band until she received an email about auditions.
An admirer of the Jazz music by Louie Armstrong and the portrayal of the Jazz Age by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Wicklund decided to try for the role. Auditioning with the song, Dream a Little Dream of Me by the “Queen of Jazz” herself, Ella Fitzgerald, Wicklundwas granted the position right after the audition.
Since the audition Wicklund has rehearsed with the Jazz band once a week to prepare Frank Sinatra’s Fly Me to the Moon and the most famously sung version of When I Fall in Love by Doris Day. She specially likes the Fly Me to the Moon edition they will be doing. While it’s a song that has been covered for years, Wicklund believes that the arrangement by the Adolphus Jazz Band features really enjoyable percussions and a solo that will make it special for students and families. Wicklund is excited to sing-along with the arrangements.
“I’m excited to perform for the first time with the Jazz band behind me. Not only will it be the first time the brunch will feature vocalists but it will be fun to showcase how much work everyone has put into the show. The Adolphus Jazz Ensemble and the Gustavus Jazz Lab Band, is a great group of people and it has been really fun to work with them over the past two months,” Wicklund said.
“All of these great Gustavus traditions are new to me…so I’m going in to each one relaxed and eager to learn and adapt.”—Dave Stamps
For Stamps these arrangements have been something kept to the Jazz Bands, but with the work behind them, he is proud to finally share them with the community.
“I’m looking forward to the whole process, but probably most specifically, I’m looking forward to showcasing the students and meeting their families,” Stamps said.
“Gustavus is a special place with lots of talent and it should be celebrated for that matter. At the same time we should also remain humble and inquisitive and use that curiousness to push ourselves continually forward. Jazz Music has a very humbling history and I hope that we can make more people aware of this beautiful, American formation of art,” Stamps said.
Under the direction of Stamps and the vocals of Walters and Wicklund, the A la Carte Jazz Brunch is something to be enjoyed by all students and families. Tickets for the event may be purchased at the door. All are encouraged to attend.
-Dan Vruno