Valparaiso University Hosts 33rd Annual Jazz Fest

The Tierney Sutton Band Headlines April 6 Concert

Valparaiso University will host the 2018 Jazz Fest April 2–6 with an array of exciting performances by talented artists, including local performers as well as The Tierney Sutton Band featuring Tierney Sutton, vocals, Don Braden, composer/arranger/tenor saxophone soloist, and The Bill Boris Trio.

Featured Jazz Fest events:

Local high school bands — Monday, April 2, 6 p.m., Harre Union Ballrooms. Admission is free and on a first-come, first-seated basis.
Swing and Dance Night featuring the Valparaiso University Jazz Ensemble and special guests Maura Janton Cock, vocals, and the Valparaiso University Ballroom Dance Team — Tuesday, April 3, 7:30 p.m., Harre Union Ballrooms. Tickets cost $15 for the general public; $10 for seniors and non-Valpo students; and are free to Valpo students, faculty, staff and card-carrying members of the Valparaiso Concert Association.
Local high school bands with a special performance by the Valparaiso University Faculty Jazz Trio, the Northwest Indiana Jazz Educators Big Band, and special guest Don Braden, tenor saxophone — Wednesday, April 4, 6 p.m., Harre Union Ballrooms. Admission is free and on a first-come, first-seated basis.
Valparaiso University Jazz Ensemble, directed by Jeffrey C. Brown, with special guest Don Braden, tenor saxophone — Thursday, April 5, 7:30 p.m., Harre Union Ballrooms. Tickets cost $10 for the general public; $8 for seniors and Valparaiso University retirees and alumni; and are free to Valpo students, faculty, and staff.
Jazz Festival Concert with The Tierney Sutton Band featuring Tierney Sutton, vocals, and opening act The Bill Boris Trio — Friday, April 6, 7:30 p.m., Harre Union Ballrooms. Evening hosted by The Lembke Family Endowment. Tickets cost $25 for the general public; $20 for seniors and Valpo retirees, alumni, faculty and staff; and $5 for Valpo students.

An eight-time Grammy nominee, Tierney Sutton has received a “Best Jazz Vocal Album” Grammy nod for each project she has released in the past decade. Sutton has fronted The Tierney Sutton Band since 1993, collaborating with instrumental virtuosos Christian Jacob, Trey Henry, Kevin Axt and Ray Brinker. In 2011, the group received a Grammy nomination for their collaborative arranging, the only band to receive this honor.

The Bill Boris Trio features jazz guitarist Bill Boris, who has taught at Columbia College Chicago as a jazz guitar instructor and ensemble director since 2001. Boris performs regularly throughout the Chicago area, and he previously led workshops at the Pescara Conservatory in Pescara, Italy.

Don Braden has toured globally for more than 30 years and is known as an exciting and interactive jazz soloist, a creative and prolific composer, a passionate and energetic educator and a specialist at arranging and performing classic popular songs in modern jazz style.

Tickets will be available on the Harre Union website March 1 and in person at the Harre Union Welcome Desk beginning March 6.