Big band music, presented by the UI School of Music.

JCL Director John Rapson premieres his new nine-movement suite entitled "Unlikely Characters." Each movement is a portrait of a musician who has had some contact with jazz on the margins and generally not a household name. The accordion and the fiddle play prominent roles in each of their repertoires.

The nine movements are:

1. Karl Seglem (saxophonist from Norway, mixing traditional Norwegian folk music with jazz)
2. Art VanDamme (an American accordion player who worked with many French musicians)
3. Ben Webster (a well-known tenor saxophonist - not so marginalized - first featured with Duke Ellington's band)
4. Astor Piazzolla (bandeneon player from Argentina who combined tango with jazz)
5. Sivuca (an accordion player from Brazil who combined baion with jazz and pop)
6. Jack Sheldon (an LA trumpet player featured in many film noir movies)
7. Chuck Berry (a rock icon put into a jazz context, somewhat like zydeco)
8. Pauline Oliveros (best known as a classical composer and accordionist, but championed by a wider audience)
9. Carla Bley (a jazz composer who came from experimental origins to now lead her own jazz orchestra; her daughter plays accordion, organ and harmonica in the band)