The Youth Jazz Ensemble of DuPage with Guest Artist Pharez Whitted
Sunday, January 19, 2025 at 4:00 pm
Free concert featuring Youth Jazz Ensemble of DuPage concert with acclaimed Pharez Whitted
Jazz up the new year and don’t miss this special free winter concert featuring the Youth Jazz Ensemble of DuPage with guest artist Pharez Whitted, an acclaimed trumpeter, performer, clinician and educator, at Shepherd of the Prairie Lutheran Church, 10805 Main Street, Huntley, on Sunday, January 19, 2025 at 4:00pm.
Sponsored by the SOTP Artist Series, the public is invited to attend this free performance. No tickets are required and freewill donations are gratefully accepted.
The Youth Jazz Ensemble of DuPage (YJED) was founded by current director Robert Blazek in 1998 to provide the opportunity for the top high school jazz musicians in the 20+ high schools in DuPage County and surrounding areas to perform high-level jazz music literature in concert and in an annual studio recording. Since its founding, YJED members have had the privilege playing for highly prestigious events and with a number of jazz greats. They have been finalists in the Essentially Ellington Festival in New York City.
The Illinois Music Educators Association auditions and selects a limited number of the top high school musicians to perform in its district festival called ILMEA. This year, 23 YJED members were chosen to be part of this select group. And 8 of those were picked to be in the jazz combo, which is the most elite group of district high school jazz musicians.
Guest artist Whitted has performed throughout the United States and overseas, including performances at Presidential Inaugurations, The Arsenio Hall Show, The Billboard Music Awards, Carnegie Hall and major jazz festivals throughout the country. He has two CDs released on the MoTown Jazz Label (MoJazz) and three other recently released CDs on various labels.
He studied music at DePauw University and went on to earn a master’s degree from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. He is professor of Jazz Trumpet at Northern Illinois University and previously taught at prestigious colleges and universities such as Wabash College, The Ohio State University, and Chicago State University. He is also the Director of the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras (CYSO) Jazz Orchestra.
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Judson University Choir with Special Guest Huntley Brown
Saturday, February 1, 2025 at 7:00 pm
Utilizing a variety of instruments from a full contemporary praise band to brass and chamber orchestral instruments, the 40+ members of the Judson University Choir will provide an outstanding choral performance and worship experience at Shepherd of the Prairie Lutheran Church, 10805 Main Street, Huntley, on Saturday, February 1, 2025 at 7:00pm.
Under the direction of choir director Dr. Warren Anderson, a 1986 graduate of Judson, the Judson University Choir will be joined by Reverend Dr. Huntley Brown, international Christian Concert Pianist, who is a Judson alum (‘88) and its first-ever Artist-in-Residence at the Elgin University’s DeMoss Center for Worship in the Performing Arts.
Sponsored by the SOTP Artist Series, the public is invited to attend this free performance. No tickets are required and freewill donations are gratefully accepted.
The Judson University Choir has enjoyed a long and fruitful ministry founded by Dr. Edward Thompson during Judson’s first year, 1963-64. Members of the Choir are part of the Judson University Community School of Musical Arts.
Choir Director Dr. Anderson has taught at Judson University since 1991 and has served as the University Choir Director since 2012.
The Choir has served as one of the primary “faces” of the University for nearly 60 years. The Choir has performed in Eastern and Western Europe, the Caribbean, and part of Asia. The Choir performs nationally three times per year and overseas bi-annually with Reverend Dr. Brown. This past May, the Choir and Rev. Dr. Brown ministered in Jamaica, his home country.
The Rev. Brown, who was ordained by the Evangelical Church Alliance International, is a concert pianist and recording artist who regularly partners with some of Christianity’s well-known ministries, including the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Additionally, he has served as an artist-in-residence for CTS-TV in Seoul, South Korea; played for thousands at Carnegie Hall; been inducted into the Fox Valley Arts Hall of Fame; and holds a black belt in martial arts.
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