Oberlin Jazz Group In Full Swing This 2001-02 Season By Joanna Chang
	Related: About the Members		The Oberlin Jazz Sextet ("OJS") is in full swing this fall, having kicked off their 2001-02 season by impressing audiences and educators at the Ford Detroit Jazz Festival on Labor Day weekend. The group also performed at this year's Opening Convocation in Finney Chapel. The members of the group, all students of the Conservatory, were nominated and selected to participate in the OJS by Oberlin's jazz faculty. This year, the OJS includes Calvin Barnes (saxophone), J.Q. Whitcomb (trumpet), Andy Hunter (trombone), Adam Faulk (piano), Matthew Elliott (bass), and James Alexander (drums). "The OJS are the jazz ambassadors for Oberlin Conservatory," says Peter Dominguez, associate professor of jazz studies and bass. "Their trip to Detroit was a highly successful one, and we are proud of what they've done there." The Ford Detroit Jazz Festival, originally the Montreux-Detroit Jazz Festival, is the largest free festival in America, featuring national acts like Tommy Flanigan, Benny Green, Dave Brubeck, Herbie Mann, Wallace Roney and many others. Education has been a very vital part of the festival, now in its 22nd year, and it is clear the festival made a deep impression on the OJS. "I had such an incredible time in Detroit," says Oberlin Jazz Sextet drummer James Alexander. "I got to hear the highest echelon of jazz players there and meet big names like Jimmy Smith and Christian McBride. I got such a rush performing there and seeing the crowd get on their feet. The festival was the best musical experience I've had in my life." In particular, one member of the OJS received special recognition for his performance that weekend. Every year, the International Association of Jazz Educators awards a scholarship to one outstanding College soloist and High School Soloist during the four day festival to further jazz studies. This year, OJS trombonist Andy Hunter received this scholarship and was honored as the most outstanding college soloist of the Ford Detroit International Jazz Festival. Says Jack Pierson, past president of the IAJE, "Andy was truly an outstanding performer. His solo style and command of the contemporary jazz idiom raised him to a level above other college performers at the festival." The group is currently planning for their next big project: a tour during winter-term. Stay tuned to the Conservatory website for more details about this exciting venture. A sound check in Detroit
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