WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 5th - 9:00 p.m.

•Topsy Chapman with Solid Harmony
Solid harmony began singing Gospel music. Topsy Chapman, who had been singing for twenty odd years, decided it was time to form a group with daughters, Yolanda, and Jolynda. Ms. Chapman has charmed and endeared herself to crowds all over the world with her authentic style and clear melodious voice. Audiences enjoy different genres of music during performances. Although Topsy’s roots were in gospel, her daughters had been exposed to and listened to a wide range of music. Together they performed Gospel, Jazz, Rhythm & Blues and often provided background vocals for other entertainers as the Chapman Singers. She later renamed the group Solid Harmony, because the strength of the performance lay in the singers’ ability to deliver stellar harmonies. Solid harmony now performs at jazz festivals in Switzerland, Japan, Germany, Holland, Norway, Brazil, at church concerts in the Czech Republic, Lincoln Center, and in their hometown frequently and at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Ms. Chapman has performed for the Democratic Party, the Queen of England and the Duke of Edinburgh and appeared on Australia's "Midday" show and on several occasions on Garrison Keillor's" A Prairie Home Companion." In addition, Topsy has appeared in publications such as Time, Ebony and Jet magazines and has received rave reviews in the New York Times, New York Post, Daily News, Variety, Times Picayune, and Lagniappe publications. To hear her is a pure delight for people of all ages.

•Dr. Michael White Quartet
Although he grew up in the jazz-saturated environment of New Orleans and several of his relatives played with early jazz greats King Oliver and Kid Ory, Dr. Michael White's primary musical influence as a youth was his aunt, who played classical clarinet. White played clarinet in the noted St. Augustine's School Marching Band, but at the end of his college days he joined the Fairview Baptist Church Brass Band led by Danny Barker, a banjoist and elder statesman of New Orleans traditional jazz. White also played with Doc Paulin's Brass Band, marching in funeral parades and exploring historical recordings of such band-leaders as Johnny Dodds, Sidney Bechet, and George Lewis. During this period he had the opportunity to play alongside more than three-dozen traditional jazz musicians born between 1890 and 1910. Since then, White has served as a resident artist with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and has been named as a Keller Endowed Chair in the Humanities at Xavier University, where he taught Spanish for more than 20 years. He also performed with a number of musical ensembles including the Young Tuxedo Brass Band and his own Original Liberty Jazz Band. White recently released his first post Katrina recording of mainly original compositions entitled “Blue Crescent, ” on Basin Street Records.

THURSDAY, JANUARY 6th - 7:30 p.m.

•The Dirty Dozen Brass Band
In 1977, the Dirty Dozen Social and Pleasure Club in New Orleans began showcasing a traditional Crescent City brass band. It was a joining of two proud, but antiquated, traditions at the time: social and pleasure clubs dated back over a century to a time when black southerners could rarely afford life insurance, and the clubs would provide proper funeral arrangements. By the late 70s, few of either existed. The Dirty Dozen Social and Pleasure Club decided to assemble this group as a house band, and over the course of these early gigs, the seven-member ensemble adopted the venue’s name: the Dirty Dozen Brass Band

•The Thelonious Monk Institute Jazz Ensemble
Four-time GRAMMY Award-winning composer and trumpeter Terence Blanchard serves as the artistic director of the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Performance, a full-scholarship graduate level program that accepts one ensemble of musicians for each two-year class. Located at Loyola University New Orleans, the unique jazz education program enables the most gifted young musicians from around the world to study with the greatest living jazz masters. The current Class of 2011 includes pianist Victor Gould, alto saxophonist Godwin Louis, tenor saxophonist Matt Marantz, drummer Nick Falk, bassist Hogyu Hwang, and trumpeter Billy Buss.

•The Junior Mance Quintet
Junior Mance, a jazz legend, has six decades of experience performing with other jazz greats like Dizzy Gillespie, Cannonball Adderley, Lester Young, and Gene Ammons. He formed the Junior Mance Quintet in 2008, which debuted at the Bern Jazz Festival. The group includes: bassist Hid Tanaka who came to New York in 1982 and quickly became one of the most sought after players citywide; drummer Kim Garey of Kansas, who has played with legendary jazz masters such as Don Braden and others; and saxophonists Ryan Anselmi and Andrew Hadro who studied at the New School with Mance. Anselmi, from Kansas City, has played with Jay McShann, and Hadro, from Chicago, has played with Clark Terry and Chico Hamilton.

•The John Mahoney Big Band featuring Evan Christopher, soloist
The John Mahoney Big Band, first organized in 1992, per- formed at the IAJE Conference in 2000 and often plays at Snug Harbor Jazz Bistro. John Mahoney is Coordinator of Jazz Studies at Loyola University, and an active performer on both trombone and piano. A CD of ten of Mahoney’s big band compositions was released in 2001 entitled In From Some- where while Christmas Joy was released in December 2009. Mr. Mahoney has twenty- four compositions for jazz ensemble published with Walrus Music Publishing. For its concert at the JEN Conference the John Mahoney Big Band will program music from both its Cds, plus less heard compositions and arrangements by its trombonist-leader. Some of the finest and most versatile musicians from the New Orleans area will be featured.

•Evan Christopher
Clarinetist Evan Christopher is a refreshingly bright light on the international jazz scene. He combines virtuosity and enthusiasm with a deep commitment to exploring the full range of musical possibilities in the traditions of New Orleans Jazz. His voice is highly personal, yet authentic, anchored in the musical language created by early Creole clarinetists such as Sidney Bechet, Omer Simeon, and Barney Bigard. Christopher moved to New Orleans in 1994 to be a part of the local music community. Varied work with artists from Al Hirt to Galactic quickly established him as an advocate for extending the legacy of the clarinet style unique to New Orleans. His performances with his own groups including Django à la Créole and the Jazz Traditions Project give particular emphasis to the distinct rhythmic character of the clarinet as it evolved throughout “Le Monde Créole.”

FRIDAY, JANUARY 7th - 7:30 p.m.

•EXTENSIONS - The University of Miami Jazz Vocal Ensemble
Larry Lapin, director
Extensions, a jazz vocal sextet made up of members of the larger University of Miami - Frost School of Music’s award winning JV1, has been a part of the jazz vocal program since 1992. Distinguished over the years by several Downbeat awards and prestigious performances with artists such as Kurt Elling, Eliane Elias, Kevin Mahogany, Claudia Acuna, Jon Secada and many others, the group performs jazz in various styles including standards, swing, bebop, cool, funk and fusion, both with rhythm section and a cappella. Extensions is flattered and very excited to have been invited to perform at the 2011 JEN Conference.

•Don Vappie and the Creole Jazz Serenaders
Don Vappie, musician, composer, lecturer, cultural ambassador and star of the PBS documentary, American Creole: New Orleans Reunion, embodies the soul of New Orleans jazz with his Caribbean melodies and African rhythms, giving audiences a glimpse into the heart of the unique Creole culture of southeast Louisiana. Currently, Don performs and tours with his group, the Creole Jazz Serenaders, as well as his numerous guest artist appearances in a variety of musical genres including Wynton Marsalis (jazz), Otis Taylor (blues), Cheick Hamala Diabate (African griot) and others.
Don Vappie and the Creole Jazz Serenaders will perform musical styles showcasing the important role that the Creole culture of southeast Louisiana played in creating the fertile environment for jazz to form in New Orleans as well as classic early jazz compositions.

•Lynne Arriale: Highlights of Nuance & Convergence featuring Randy Brecker
Tonight’s concert features Omer Avital, bass and Anthony Pinciotti on drums. Lynne Arriale’s chart topping recordings on Jazz Week Radio - #1, Billboard Jazz - #17, and numerous Best Of lists have earned her headline status at international festivals and venues of distinction. She toured Japan with the Golden Fingers tour, won The Great American Jazz Piano Competition, numerous critics awards, has been featured on PBS Profile of a Performing Artist, the first female artist on the cover of JAZZed magazine, and on many NPR programs including Piano Jazz. Her Motema Music releases include Arise, Come Together, LIVE, NUANCE and debuting at JEN, Convergence. Lynne Arriale is currently Assistant Professor of Jazz Piano at The University of North Florida

•The Airmen of Note with Special Guest Dave Liebman
The Airmen of Note is one of eight performing units of the United States Air Force Band in Washington, D.C., and is the premier jazz ensemble of the United States Air Force. Originally created in 1950 to carry on the tradition of Glenn Miller Army Air Corps dance band, the Airmen of Note is one of today’s few touring big bands, and has attracted 18 of the finest musicians in the country. As a result, it has earned an international reputation as one of the finest and most versatile big bands of its kind in the world.

•Dave Liebman
Considered a renaissance man in contemporary music with a career stretching over forty years, 2011 National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master Dave Liebman has played with many of the masters including Miles Davis, Elvin Jones, Chick Corea, John McLaughlin, McCoy Tyner and others; authored books and instructional DVDs which are acknowledged as classics in the jazz field; recorded as a leader in styles ranging from classical to rock to free jazz; recipient of the NEA Masters of Jazz award; founded the International Association of Schools of Jazz; a multiple Grammy nominee; an inductee into the International Association of Jazz Educator's Hall of Fame; the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate from the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, Finland, as well as the Order of Arts and Letters from the French government. He has consistently placed among the top finalists in the Soprano Saxophone category in the Downbeat Critics Poll since 1973 and has to his credit over 100 recordings as a leader/co-leader including several hundred original compositions.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 8th - 7:30 p.m.

•Delfeayo Marsalis presents the UPTOWN Jazz Orchestra
2011 NEA Jazz Master Delfeayo Marsalis has produced over 100 major label jazz recordings. Known for combining old school and modern concepts, Marsalis’ latest recording provides an updated octet version of Ellington/Strayhorn’s classic Such Sweet Thunder. The Uptown Jazz Orchestra was formed in 2008 to bring the traditional riff and blues sounds to school students in the New Orleans area. Anchored by former Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra pianist Fred Sanders and Dirty Dozen founder Roger Lewis on bari sax, UJO sings and swings with confidence and soul...all night long!

•Aaron Goldberg Trio
Aaron Goldberg is a pianist at the vanguard of jazz music. His latest album Home (2010, Sunnyside) builds upon his last, Worlds, both exhibiting the sensitivity and dynamism of his longstanding trio. In addition to heading his singular trio, Aaron has spent the last 15 years touring with many of the most brilliant voices in jazz--Joshua Redman, Wynton Marsalis, Betty Carter, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Madeleine Peyroux and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra among others. Goldberg displays sharp harmonic reflexes, fluid command of line and a cut-to-the-chase sense of narrative logic, DOWNBEAT (August, 2010).

•Cadence Vocal Jazz Group
This fabulous foursome has been entertaining audiences worldwide for over a decade like four thieves who’ve been stealing the show for years. (Toronto Star) Cadence has played to sold-out concert halls and toured jazz festivals across the globe, sharing the stage along the way with artists such as Bobby McFerrin, Quincy Jones and Gordon Lightfoot. Wherever they are performing, audiences are left raving about Cadence’s instrumental imitations, vocal acrobatics, and charismatic stage presence. Combining the lyricism of Stan Getz, the sophisticated harmonies of the Count Basie Big Band and the devil-may-care attitude of Louis Prima, Cadence demonstrates that the human voice has no limits. With their infectious energy and wild stage antics, this rat pack of musical misfits thrills with their innovative jazz arrangements.

•The University of North Texas One O’Clock Lab Band
Steve Wiest, director
The One O’Clock Lab Band is the premier performing ensemble of the internationally acclaimed University of North Texas jazz studies program. Steve Wiest, Grammy-nominated composer and arranger, is director of the One O’Clock Lab Band. With an unprecedented six Grammy nominations (Lab 2009 received double nominations for Best Large Jazz Ensemble and Best Instrumental Composition for Ice-Nine composed by Steve Wiest) resulting from the library of over fifty critically acclaimed Lab Band recordings to date, the One O’Clock Lab Band is noted for exceptional individual musicianship and tight ensemble performance. Lab Band concerts feature the Stan Kenton and Maynard Ferguson libraries (both housed exclusively at North Texas), original compositions by Grammy-nominated composers Neil Slater and Steve Wiest, and the wealth of compositions and arrangements in our library written by current and former North Texas students.