Valparaiso University Celebrates 30 Years of Jazz

Grammy Award-Winner Natalie Cole Headlines Anniversary Concert on April 11

Valparaiso University will host the 2015 Jazz Fest April 6–11, offering an exciting lineup by local and regional artists capped with performances by The Marcus Roberts Trio and Natalie Cole.

In addition to guest artists, the University’s faculty and student ensembles, as well as high school jazz ensembles, will participate in the festivities. Local middle and high school bands will kick off the week Monday, April 6, and Tuesday, April 7. Each performance will be held at 6 p.m. in the Harre Union Ballroom and is free and open to the public.

Featured Jazz Fest performances include:

  • Valparaiso University Faculty Jazz Trio with guest trombonist Tom “Bones” Malone, followed by The Northwest Indiana Jazz Educators Big Band — Wednesday, April 8, 7 p.m., Harre Union Ballroom. Tickets are free to Valpo students, faculty, and staff, $8 for alumni and seniors and $10 for the general public.
  • Valparaiso University Jazz Ensemble featuring guest trombonist Tom “Bones” Malone — Thursday, April 9, 7:30 p.m., Harre Union Ballroom. Tickets are free to Valpo students, faculty, and staff, $8 for alumni and seniors and $10 for the general public.
  • An Evening with The Marcus Roberts Trio, “The Virtuoso,” piano — Friday, April 10, 8 p.m., Harre Union Ballroom. Tickets are $5 for students; $10 for alumni, faculty, staff, and seniors; and $15 for the general public.
  • 30th Anniversary Jazz Fest Concert: An Evening with Natalie Cole — Saturday, April 11, 8:30 p.m., Athletics–Recreation Center. Tickets are $15 for Valpo students, $30 – $75 for the general public.

In 2014, Marcus Roberts was profiled by “60 Minutes” and called “The Virtuoso” and America’s greatest living jazz piano player. The segment featured Roberts’ life from his early roots in Jacksonville and at the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind to his remarkable career as a modern jazz musician.

An accomplished R&B and jazz vocalist and the daughter of legendary crooner Nat King Cole, Natalie Cole will perform hits from her new, Latin Grammy Award-nominated album “Natalie Cole En Español,” as well as classics such as “This Will Be” and “Unforgettable … With Love.”

Tickets for “An Evening with Natalie Cole” are available now at valpo.edu/jazz-fest-tickets or the ARC Box Office, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Student tickets must be purchased in person.

Tickets for the Harre Union Ballroom shows on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday are available at union.universitytickets.com or the Harre Union Welcome Desk. Online tickets are available beginning Monday, March 2, and in person beginning Wednesday, March 18.

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