The Jazz Studies Area at Hope College will present the last in a series of concerts on Thursday.

Jazz chamber ensembles also performed on Monday and Tuesday, Nov. 18-19. The public is invited.  Admission is free.

Performing on both Nov. 18 and 21, the college’s jazz chamber ensembles afford students the opportunity to perform in the classic small-group combo setting.  The ensembles vary in size and instrumentation, and place a creative focus on improvisation and group communication.  All of the ensembles perform works from the classic jazz repertoire.   The more advanced jazz chamber ensembles also perform repertoire from the contemporary jazz world.  The ensembles also place an emphasis on original student and faculty compositions.  All of the ensembles are coached by members of the Hope College jazz faculty.

 The ensembles include the Blue Note Ensemble, coached by Steve Talaga, adjunct assistant professor of music; Vanguard Ensemble, coached by Mike VanLente, instructor of jazz percussion; Verve Ensemble, coached by Tom Lockwood, instructor of jazz saxophone; Standards Ensemble, coached by Brian Coyle, professor of music and director of jazz studies; Prestige Ensemble, coached by senior Mike Graverson of Hamilton; and the Concord Ensemble, coached by senior Jared DeMeester of Grand Rapids.

The student vocal jazz concert with the Hope College Faculty Jazz Ensemble on Tuesday, Nov. 19, will feature the singing of six Hope students.  The vocal jazz instructor is Edye Hyde.

The Jazz Arts Collective that will be performing with the jazz chamber ensembles on Thursday, Nov. 21, is the premier large jazz ensemble at Hope College.  The collective places a creative focus on ensemble communication and improvisation.  Comprised of a rhythm section and flexible wind/string instrumentation, this select group performs compositions and arrangements from across the full spectrum of music.  The collective’s repertoire ranges from the great historical jazz composers such as Duke Ellington and Charles Mingus, to works by modern jazz masters like Vince Mendoza, Jim McNeely and John Hollenbeck. The Jazz Arts Collective frequently performs commissions, works by emerging young composers, and originals by Hope College faculty and students. The ensemble also collectively reinterprets and re-imagines the music from the twentieth century classical repertoire.  The directors are Brian Coyle and Rob Hodson, professor of music and chairperson of the department.

Dimnent Memorial Chapel is located at 277 College Ave., on College Avenue at 12th Street.  Nykerk Hall of Music is located in the central Hope campus at the former 127 E. 12th Street between College and Columbia avenues.