McConnell to Meet Minnesota's Own "Boss"
Ensemble - The JazzMn Big Band
Rob McConnell put his own indelible mark on the jazz world when he created "The Boss Brass", 14 Grammy nominations and 30-odd years ago. A talented soloist on the valve
Rob McConnell will be JazzMn's special guest March 19th at Ted Mann Auditorium at the University of Minnesota. Also joining the band will be vocalist Judi Donaghy.
Ticket Information Program
trombone, McConnell will be JazzMn's guest artist on March 19th at the Ted Mann Auditorium on the University of Minnesota Campus. Judi Donaghy will be the featured vocalist.
After playing in various bands in his homeland during the mid- and late 50s, McConnell joined fellow-Canadian Maynard Ferguson's New York Band in 1964. In 1968 he formed his own band, the Boss Brass, playing his own charts of currently popular music for a 15-piece brass and rhythm group.
In 1971, McConnell added a reed section and, with the band's musical policy slanted strongly towards jazz, he made a series of outstanding albums. Among the musicians in the band were Sam Noto, Guido Basso, Don Thompson and Ed Bickert. Apart from its own albums, the band also made records with Singers Unlimited, the Hi-Lo's, Phil Woods and Mel Tormé. The band has collected three Grammys and several Juno Awards (the Canadian equivalent to the Grammy). McConnell has also been voted best arranger by the National Association of Jazz Educators.
At the start of the new millenium, McConnell started his very successful tentet ensemble. JazzMn will be encorporating elements of both the Boss Brass and the Rob McConnell Tentet in the concert.
Judi Donaghy started her musical career in the seventies as a folk/pop singer, moved into the eighties with a bachelor's degree in Opera/Musical Theater from the University of Nebraska, and now is heard regularly in the Twin Cities as a jazz vocalist.
The JazzMn Big Band is a professional jazz orchestra that follows the models of classical orchestras, striving for artistic excellence. The group combines the talents of outstanding jazz musicians from throughout the Twin Cities area.
Rob McConnell will be the featured artist with the JazzMn Big Band on Saturday, March 19th, at 7:30 pm at the Ted Mann Auditorium. Tickets are available through the Northrop Box Office at 612-624-2345 or can be purchased online.
