Frederick Community College (FCC) invites the public to enjoy the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra (SMJO) at their JBK Theater on Friday, February 9, at 7:30 pm.
 
The SMJO will present “The Legacy of Max Roach” as part of FCC’s Jazz Festival, part of the College’s Music Program. Members of the SMJO will work with FCC music students during the day and perform in the evening. This concert will also be presented again at the Smithsonian’s American History Museum on February 10.  
 
During the 1940s, Max Roach revolutionized the world of modern drum-set playing which inspired contemporary music legends Chick Web, Sonny Greer, Jo Jones, and the innovations of Kenny Clarke. Roach developed a swing and cymbal technique, with dynamic expression that became the template for the creative imagination and technical mastery required to move modern jazz forward. Featuring songs such as Charlie Parker's “Ko Ko," Max Roach and Clifford Brown's recording of “Delilah,” and his own composition “Little Folks,” the SJMO honors the legacy of Max Roach, who would have been 100 years old in January 2024.
 
In 1990 the U.S. Congress, recognizing the importance of jazz in American culture, authorized the establishment of the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra (SJMO). The SJMO presents concerts featuring transcribed works, new arrangements, commissioned works, and programs that illuminate the work of jazz masters who contributed to the development of American jazz and defined the music’s character. The SJMO has performed for audiences at the Smithsonian Institution and the Kennedy Center; at the White House and the U.S. Capitol; at Harlem’s famed Apollo Theater; at the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta; at the Ravinia Festival and the Monterey Jazz Festival; and at schools and venues in Canada, Europe, the Middle East.
 
The Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Septet includes on alto saxophone Charlie Young, trumpet Kenny Rittenhouse, tenor sax Scott Silbert, trombone Mark Williams, piano Tony Nalker, bass Amy Shook, and drums Ken Kimery.
 
The event will take place at the JBK Theater in the Visual and Performing Arts Building at FCC, 7932 Opossumtown Pike, Frederick, MD. The suggested donation is $15 per ticket. To attend, register via Eventbrite.

For additional information about this event, contact Tabetha White, FCC Arts Center Director, at [email protected] or 301-624-2827.