Jazz saxophonist and School of Music faculty member Bruce Johnstone and his Fredonia student ensemble Carousel Strings will present a concert featuring a broad range of jazz standards, noted Brazilian compositions and some original material on Sunday, April 17, at 2 p.m., at the Blasco Memorial Library’s H.O. Hirt Auditorium, 160 East Front St., Erie, Pa.
Johnstone, director of Curricular Jazz at Fredonia, has played with Stan Kenton, was a featured soloist with the Maynard Ferguson Big Band and performed in the Woody Herman Orchestra. He has also played with the Erie Philharmonic, the Buffalo Brass, Bemus Point Bay Pops and the Misery Bay Big Band, among others.
Formed in 2008, the Carousel Strings has played at Buffalo jazz clubs, Jamestown Community College, Patterson Library in Westfield and on the Fredonia campus. The ensemble consists of five violins, two violas, two cellos, a guitar, piano, bass and drums. Soloists within the ensemble will also be featured.
The concert is sponsored by JazzErie, Erie County (Pa.) Public Library, Erie Arts & Culture and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. Suggested donations are $10 for JazzErie members, $15 for adult non-members and $5 for students.
