CHS JAZZ FESTIVAL TO BE HELD SATURDAY; TROMBONIST TO BE FEATURED AT EVENT HERE

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The 12th annual Central High School Jazz Festival Saturday features performances by 22 area bands and a professional jazz trombone player.

The festival includes competition all day and a concert in the evening, said Ronald Nall, director of bands at Cape Central High and coordinator of the event.

The guest musician for this year's festival is Arch Martin, a professional trombone player from Kansas City. He also works for a musical instrument company.

Nall said this marks the first time a trombone player has been the featured artist at the festival.

The All-District Jazz Band and the Southeast Jazz Band will both perform an evening concert at the CHS auditorium. It begins at 7 p.m. Martin will perform with both groups.

The concert is open to the public and costs $2 for adults. Students and children are admitted free.

Southeast Missouri State University co-hosts the festival with Cape Central. The Southeast jazz band will also perform at 4:30 p.m. for students.

The university will provide a scholarship for one-half the tuition to Southeast for the top jazz musician performing at the festival.

Nall said the music will be "big band" style jazz from the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. "These are the old, traditional jazz pieces. It might be Latin or blues, but you probably won't hear any rock 'n' roll or pop music.

"People who haven't kept up with high school jazz programs will be surprised, I think, at the quality of music they will hear," Nall said. "It will be high quality jazz music."

Among judges for the day are Martin, Gary Grant, a jazz instructor at the University of Missouri, and Jon Fischer, former band director at Central High, and several music professors from Southeast.

Jazz bands from area will be judged beginning at 8:30 a.m. and continue through 4 p.m.

Each band will be given a rating of I (superior), II (above average) or III (average), Nall said.

These performances are open to the public at no cost.

Among schools participating are Cape Central, Jackson, Delta, Ste. Genevieve, Flat River, Farmington, Kennett and Poplar Bluff. Several schools from St. Louis and the Lead Belt area will also compete.

"I'm so pleased to have a number of schools from this area participating in the festival for the first time this year," Nall said.

Nall said competitions like this festival are "very educational.

"Students hear other high school bands play and can compare themselves to those groups," he said. "It's a good experience. And it's enjoyable too for anyone interested in jazz to hear these performances."