Ensembles with renowned saxophonist to kick off new concert series

By KIMBERLINA ROCHA

Fresno State Jazz Bands A and B and Jazz Combo I will host the first annual Women in Jazz concert featuring renowned saxophonist Mary Fettig today at 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall.

Michael Caldwell, director of the jazz ensembles, said women are underrepresented in the jazz world as instrumentalists. A majority of female jazz artists are vocalists, he said.

“I have worked over the years with a number of female jazz artists and have communicated with them about the imbalance in jazz,” Caldwell said. “As an artist myself, I’ve become sensitive to that.”

Caldwell developed the idea of an annual concert series to showcase the broad spectrum of talented female jazz artists.

“We want to focus on creating an awareness on the diversity within jazz music,” he said.

Fettig is one of the most prominent female jazz saxophonists in the nation. She has toured with notable artists such as Tito Puente, Flora Purim and Airto and Marian McPartland. She has performed at jazz festivals in Concord, Calif., San Francisco, the Hollywood Bowl and the Women’s Jazz Festival in Kansas City, Kan.

One of the most pivotal points in her career came in 1973, when she was accepted as the first female instrumentalist to perform, at age 19, in the Stan Kenton Orchestra, an ensemble known for having mainly male musicians.

“It was a pretty exciting experience,” Fettig said. “Girls didn’t play jazz at that time. I was the first woman in the band, other than the singers, and it was a big deal.”

Even though jazz today remains a male-dominated field, Fettig said jazz is slowly taking a change.

“Jazz has been male-oriented for so long and it’s hard to change that image,” she said. “I hope in the years to come that it will become more integrated.”

Fettig continues to perform and teach jazz in the Bay Area at Diablo Valley College and St. Mary’s College.

When Fettig was invited by Caldwell, a former student of Fettig, to play at the Women in Jazz concert, she was ecstatic to be the performer to start off the series.

“It’s a thrill to be performing as a guest at his school,” she said.

Fettig will perform standard tunes like “Indian Summer” and “Body in Soul.” She will also perform original pieces such as “Neapolitan World,” written by Fresno State student composer Josh Appleby.

The event will also feature a free jazz performance workshop with Fettig from 5 - 5:45 p.m. inside the Concert Hall. The workshop is open to anyone interested.

“There’s a freedom in jazz that allows for spontaneous expression that you can only have in a moment,” she said. “Every moment is different, because there’s a different tune every time.”