ROWAN JAZZ FESTIVAL CELEBRATES BROADWAY AND 41 YEARS OF MUSIC, EDUCATION

(GLASSBORO, NJ) -– "Jazz Goes to Broadway" when the 41th Annual Rowan Jazz Festival concludes with a gala concert event on Friday, February 11, 2011 at 8 pm in the university's Pfleeger Concert Hall.

Festival director and acclaimed jazz artist Denis DiBlasio welcomes noted jazz trumpeter and clinician Joe Mosello to share the bill for the evening's performance. They join George Rabbai, Rowan's Lab Band and Jazz Band, as well as vocalist Marian Stieber, for a program highlighting jazz arrangements of classic tunes from the history of Broadway.

"The festival is a lively event filled with great playing and great educational experiences wrapped up in a friendly atmosphere," DiBlasio notes. "The non-competitive environment allows for groundbreaking, loose, interactive moments that have become the cornerstone of the festival."

Hosted by the Maynard Ferguson Institute of Jazz Studies at Rowan, the concert caps a three-day festival (February 9-11) that focuses on providing a non-competitive, educational environment. Schools from throughout the region take part in adjudication sessions, workshops and performances aimed at teaching, as well as spotlighting high school and middle school jazz musicians.

The daily schedule – from 9 am to 5 pm in Wilson Hall – gives each participating ensemble an opportunity to perform in front of clinicians, guests and other schools. Members of the Rowan jazz faculty and visiting artists work with each band and provide valuable feedback. A clinic in the middle of each day can include anything from addressing specific topics to students performing for each other. These daily events are free and open to the public.

Mosello, a resident of Marlboro, NJ, is among the most respected trumpet players around today. A graduate of the Eastman School of Music, he was a student of Chuck Mangione. Mosello was lead trumpet for the Jazz Ambassadors of the U.S. Army Field Band after college and toured and recorded with Maynard Ferguson's band for five years. He was part of the Philip Morris Superband, has been in the pit for a dozen Broadway shows and is been a fixture in the New York music scene for years, playing jazz, rock and classical music for television, movies, and commercials. He's performed with Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Sarah Vaughn, B.B. King, Julie Andrews, Sammy Davis Jr., Johnny Mathis, Nancy Wilson, Wayne Newton, The Temptations, Vic Damone, The Four Tops, Blood Sweat & Tears and many more.

Tickets for the concert are $15 each, and free for Rowan students with valid ID. Purchase tickets online at www.rowan.tix.com or call the box office at 856-256-4545. Admission to the daytime events is free. For more information on the festival and the daily schedule, contact Denis DiBlasio at 856-256-4500, ext. 3528. Pfleeger Concert Hall is located in Wilson Hall on the campus of Rowan University, Route 322 in Glassboro.