Axe ’Em, Jacks!
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – The steel drum band at Stephen F. Austin State University, also known as Jacks of Steel, will present the program “A Night of Latin and Friends” at 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 30, in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.
“A Night of Latin and Friends” focuses mainly on the music of Central and South America including music from Trinidad and Tobago, Brazil and Cuba, as well as popular Latin artists like Santana and Gloria Estefan, according to Dr. Jamie Vilseck, adjunct instructor of percussion and director of the Jacks of Steel.
“The theme has allowed the ensemble and students to explore and appreciate the music of other cultures more intensely,” Vilseck said. “Additionally, the concert focuses on collaboration with faculty across the School of Music.”
The most popular pieces of the concert are “Smooth” by Santana and “Conga” by Enrique Garcia (performed by Estafan). Larry Greer, adjunct professor of guitar, will be a soloist on Santana’s “Smooth.” Robert Eason, assistant professor of saxophone, and Luke Vacca, adjunct professor of trombone, will join the ensemble on “Conga.”
“It was my desire to perform ‘Smooth’ that led to the idea of a concert of Latin music,” Vilseck said. “Once that idea was in place, most of the other works also fell easily into place.”
The Jacks of Steel will premiere a new arrangement by music graduate student Don Gatz of Newport News, Virginia. “Cooling Springs” by Kenneth Young is from the PlayStation game Astro’s Playroom.
Concert tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. To purchase tickets, visit the SFA Fine Arts Box Office website or call (936) 468-6407. For additional information, contact the SFA School of Music at (936) 468-4602.