Big Band in New Haven

Just received this announcement via email and jazz fans in CT (and surrounding areas) should take a look:

Mingus Big Band opens concert season at Yale

14-piece big band celebrates the musical legacy of Charles Mingus

NEW HAVEN, CT  |  The Ellington Jazz Series at the Yale School of Music kicks off its 2012–2013 season on Friday, September 14 with a concert featuring the MINGUS BIG BAND.

The Grammy Award-winning Mingus Big Band celebrates the music of the composer and bassist Charles Mingus, who died in 1979.

Under the artistic direction of Sue Mingus, the widow of Charles Mingus, the 14-piece band tours extensively in the United States and abroad. The ensemble has ten recordings to its credit, six of which have been nominated for Grammy Awards. The 2010 album Mingus Big Band Live at Jazz Standard won a Grammy for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album.

The members of the Mingus Big Band performing in this concert are: Alex Sipiagin, Greg Gisbert, and Philip Harper (trumpets); Craig Handy, Alex Foster, Abraham Burton, Wayne Escoffery, and Lauren Sevian (saxophones); Ku-umba Frank Lacy, Luis Bonilla, and Dave Taylor (trombones); Donald Edwards (drums); Boris Kozlov( bass); and Helen Sung (piano).

The concert begins at 8 pm in Morse Recital Hall, located in Sprague Memorial Hall (470 College Street, New Haven). Tickets are $20–$30, $10 with student ID. Season tickets to the Ellington Jazz Series begin at $51.

Quite a band, quite a venue and quite a repertoire - this bodes well for music lovers.  On the same night, right across town, the Firehouse 12 Fall 2012 series opens with drummer/composer E.J. Strickland.  More on both shows shortly.  Reviews return over the weekend.