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Jazz

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Jazz | Percussion | Voice | Alexander Technique | Theory/Composition/Technology Lab

Jazz, America's original art form. Come explore the rich and varied jazz tradition with our top-notch professional faculty. Ever listened to Miles Davis or John Coltrane and wondered how they improvised such brilliant music? It's not a mystery! If you have the passion, we can show you how. Whether you're a beginning player looking to get started, a classical musician looking to try something new or an advanced jazzer looking to hone your skills, we have an opportunity for you. In addition to private lessons, we offer a wide-range of small and larger jazz ensembles. Because group playing is so essential in jazz, we do our best to co-ordinate student collaborations, and offer faculty-rhythm section accompaniment at our department recitals. It's not just about jamming; it's about finding your unique voice and experiencing the thrill of spontaneous conversation with other musicians.

please hover over the names to see the		Short Bio:
Jamie Dunphy		Jamie Dunphy B.A., University of Massachusetts-Boston; M.M., University of Massachusetts-Lowell; additional studies with Charlie Banacos, Olav Chris Henrisken. Mr. Dunphy performs frequently with The Mill City Trio, and in duos with jazz saxophonist Paul Combs, and with flutist Eileen Yarrison. He also teaches guitar at Atlantic Union College and the Lawrence Academy.
- guitar Jazz and Guitar Department Chair
Pamela Hines		Pamela Hines B.S., Boston University; B.A. in music ed., Old Dominion University; M.M. in jazz piano, New England Conservatory Jazz pianist Pamela Hines has been on many CDs since her debut CD with Bob Moses in 1998, "9-45." Her latest release on Spice Rack Records, "Drop 2," has done well on US and Canadian radio stations. Hines was a guest on Jazz Piano with Marian McPartland in 2000 and since that time has been a live guest on several radio shows including KMOX, St. Louis with Don Wolff. She has recorded or performed with Jerry Bergonzi, John Lockwood, Brian Torff and Bob Guilotti.
- jazz piano, jazz studies
Manuel Kaufmann		Manuel Kaufmann Professional Music Diploma, Berklee College of Music; M.M., Boston Conservatory; graduate studies, Eastman School of Music. Principal teachers: Herb Pomeroy, Greg Hopkins, and Dana Brayton. An active composer/arranger, Mr. Kaufmann's works and arrangements have been performed by many jazz musicians and ensembles including Herb Pomeroy, Jerry Bergonzi, Adam Nussbaum, Claudio Roditi, and the Greg Hopkins Nonet. As a performer, he has appeared at Wally's, Sandrina Jazz Café, Ryles, the Berklee Performance Center, and The Press Room.
- bass, jazz, theory/arranging, big band
Justin Meyer		Justin Meyer B.A., University of North Carolina; Berklee School of Music, studies with Dave Clark (jazz) and Oscar Stegnaro (Latin bass). Mr. Meyer has performed around the country with numerous ensembles, including the Clyde Beatty Cole Brothers Circus Orchestra and the Chris Fitz Band, which won the 2001 Boston Music Award for "Best New Blues Band". He is presently a freelance bassist in the Greater Boston area and house bassist at Club Caravan in Revere
- bass, acoustic and electric
Patrick Mottaz		Patrick Mottaz Universite de Lausanne; Ecole de Jazz et de Musique Actuelle; Performance Diploma, Berklee College of Music. Mr. Mottaz has many years of performance experience in Europe and the U.S. He has appeared on television, radio, CD recordings and live performances with Marlene, the Gifrantz Haitian Band, and his own Patrick Mottaz Trio.
- guitar
Paul Pampinella		Paul Pampinella B.M., Berklee College of Music, degree in Commercial Arranging. Principal teachers: Helen Hobbs Jordan, Nan Guptill, Joan Bujacich, John Porzycki. Mr. Pampinella is a veteran vocalist, arranger/composer and clinician with two Boston-based a cappella ensembles: Vox One and Five O'Clock Shadow. He has written and arranged songs on eight albums for the two groups. With Five O'Clock Shadow he has given hundreds of clinics on topics such as vocal technique, performance skills and arranging. Currently, Paul is on the faculty at Berklee School of Music. He teaches voice privately and works with both of his vocal groups on a part-time basis.
-voice, jazz voice
Gregory Passler		Gregory Passler B.M., University of Massachusetts-Lowell. Principal teachers: Neil Anderson, Benjamin Verdery, Robert Guthrie, and Ran Blake. As a member of the rock band, Childhood, Mr. Passler has appeared on MTV and recorded on the British record label, Barracuda Blue. His solo recordings have been featured in Guitar Player and Guitar magazines. He also performs regionally with his band, Magonia, and composes music for commercial television and film.
- guitar
Stuart Smith		Stuart Smith B.A. in music, Rutgers University; M.F.A. in music theory/composition, Brandeis University; Ed.D., University of Massachusetts Amherst. Stuart Smith has been playing jazz piano since his early teen years. He first learned "popular" piano from his mother, a dance school rehearsal pianist who had to develop piano arrangements of all kinds of music for ballet, tap, and jazz dance groups on short notice. He formed his first jazz combo while in the seventh grade and has continued to play with a variety of jazz groups ever since. In recent years he has performed with his own jazz trio, playing mostly his own original compositions. At UMass Lowell, where he has taught for many years, he has directed and written arrangements for student jazz ensembles and has taught a variety of music courses, including traditional music theory, jazz theory, jazz history, sound synthesis, and keyboard skills. He retired as professor emeritus from UMass Lowell in 2002, but has continued to teach there as adjunct professor of Music.
- jazz piano, music theory/composition