Guest artist, Bill Evans, saxophone

Throughout his 20-year career as a solo artist, multi Grammy-nominated saxophonist Bill Evans has explored a variety of musical settings that go well beyond the confines of traditional jazz. Evans first studied at North Texas State University before transferring to William Patterson University, where he began private studies with sax great and former Miles Davis sideman, David Liebman. It was through Liebman’s recommendation that Evans was tapped by Miles Davis in 1980 to play a key role in Miles’s celebrated comeback band. Bill became Miles’s right-hand man on a series of notable recordings from 1981 through 1984, including The Man With The Horn, We Want Miles and Decoy. After leaving Davis in 1984, Evans joined John McLaughlin in a reconstituted edition of the Mahavishnu Orchestra, and also released his first solo recording, Living in the Crest of a Wave. Evans also toured and recorded through the 1980s with the band Elements and through the 1990s with the fusion super group Petite Blonde. More recently, Evans has toured Europe and the United States with the Soulbop band, which he co-leads with trumpeter Randy Brecker.

In 2001, Evans’s album Soul Insider was nominated for a Grammy, as was his 2005 collaboration with Bela Fleck, Soulgrass. Soulgrass marked a new direction for Evans, an unlikely hybrid of bluegrass and jazz, something the saxophonist had in mind for years: “I’ve been an Americana fan ever since my Miles days. I liked the sound of mandolin, banjo, dobro and fiddle and I thought that music had a very cool rhythmic approach, even though I never really knew the names of the players or the tunes; but I just connected with that music in some way. So it had been in the back of my mind for years to do a project like this.” Evans’s latest album, The Other Side of Something, continues this trend further with Evans singing as well as playing soprano, alto, tenor and baritone saxophones. The record blends the styles of funk, soul and Amercana with Evans’s sense of melody and groove.

Our Commitment to Jazz Education

The annual Moores School of Music Jazz Festival invites middle school and high school jazz ensembles to perform in the Moores Opera House for a panel of distinguished jazz artists. Our festival will be organized according to IAJE guidelines and will include a private clinic/commentary session by one member of the panel. Although this festival is not competitive, it includes a trophy system that will single out top performances by individuals and groups. The festival trophy list includes:

• 50 All-Star Trophies (25 given each day to outstanding performers)
• Outstanding Soloist of the Day
• Outstanding Soloist of the Festival
• Outstanding Middle School Ensemble of the Day
• Outstanding High School Ensemble of the Day
• Outstanding Middle School Ensemble of the Festival
• Outstanding High School Ensemble of the Festival
• Outstanding Ensemble of the Festival

Our guest artist will be presenting a free one-hour clinic with the assistance of the MSM Jazz Orchestra beginning at noon. This free clinic is open to the public.

Purchase Tickets

Complete our PDF ticket order form, then sign, and fax it to us.

Want to Participate?

If you are interested in participating in our event, we strongly encourage everyone to please send the necessary application fee as quickly as possible. Time slots fill up very quickly and ensembles will be admitted in the order that their applications are received.

1. Complete our online registration form, then email, fax, or mail to us.
2. Complete our online ensemble roster form, then email, fax, or mail to us.
3. Use our online stage setup application, which will let us know how to set up our stage properly for your organization.