Renowned local musician, recording artist Kerry Strayer
named Artistic Director of the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra
February 8, 2011 - Jazz and Kansas City over the years have become as intertwined as Plaza area side streets, but one venerable local jazz ensemble starts 2011 with a fresh note all its own. This month, the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra, founded in 2003, has named area musician, conductor and recording artist Kerry Strayer as its new Artistic Director.
“Kerry is much more than a jazz musician,” said Gene Hall, President of KCJO Board of Directors and co-founder of the orchestra. “He’s an inspired interpreter of the art form; he’s a recording artist and a composer who brings enthusiasm and a keen ear to our performances, and he invigorates the performers around him. We’re very fortunate to have him leading the KC Jazz Orchestra.”
Strayer brings more than 30 years of experience as a saxophonist, recording artist, band leader, composer, arranger, adjudicator and private instructor. He toured with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra in 1988-89, and is steeped in the distinctive Kansas City big band style of jazz that is the hallmark of the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra. He also spent 14 years as music director of the Plaza Lighting Ceremony. In 1982 he moved to Kansas City to study saxophone with Tim Timmons at the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance, earning a Master of Music degree in Saxophone Performance in 1985. Strayer has released seven recordings to commercial acclaim.
Strayer will lead the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra at its next performance, April 29, at 8 p.m. at Unity Temple on the Plaza, featuring saxophonist Gary Foster, whom Strayer has featured on three of his recordings, "Mentor," "Play it Where it Lays" and "Christmas in Kansas City.”
“Leading the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra is a remarkable opportunity, and one that will allow me to work with a number of distinctive and accomplished jazz musicians,” said Strayer. “I’m looking forward to some rousing performances; this will be a real treat for Kansas City and for regional jazz fans.”
The Kansas City Jazz Orchestra has made a number of moves to enhance its operational base in recent months, including expanding its Board of Directors to nine members, and naming an Honorary Board of Directors, including 18 area business and civic leaders. This month, the board hired an experienced orchestra manager, Larry Kopitnik, whose background includes work as an organizer of the Kansas City Jazz Festival from 1984-1990, and Chairman of the KC Jazz Commission in 1987-88.
“We’ve taken a number of concrete steps that position the KC Jazz Orchestra well for the foreseeable future, with strong leadership in both the operational and creative areas,” said Donald J. Hall, chair of the Honorary Board.
The Kansas City Jazz Orchestra will release its 2011-2012 schedule of concerts in February. The group presents a series of concerts each season that are both entertaining and artistically sound. Each concert features a guest instrumentalist, vocalist or theme to showcase the many facets of this diverse and evolving musical art. Youth programs and community outreach are also an integral part of the organization's mission. Educational and youth programs include the Kansas City Summer Jazz Camp, the Music Scholars Program, master classes, artists in residence, jazz mentoring and school visits.
For further information, please visit www.kcjazzorchestra.org, or call 913-381-2711.
###
|