Maryville College Jazz Band schedules second concert since its resurrection for April 14
April 1, 2026
The Maryville College Jazz Band was resurrected by Music Professor Dr. Bill Swann with its return concert on Nov. 4, 2025.
Now, going into their second performance at 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 14, in the Clayton Center for the Arts’ Harold and Jean Lambert Recital Hall, the seven members of the band have found their groove.
“Most members have another semester’s worth of improvisation study under their belt and are beginning to make breakthroughs that were unachievable for them last semester,” Swann said. “Many of them are beginning to utilize melodic and harmonic tools that were out of reach for them last year. As a teacher, that’s very rewarding for me to see and hear.”
Currently, the Maryville College Jazz Band consists of an alto saxophonist, a bass clarinetist, two electric guitarists, a bass guitarist, a pianist and a flautist, according to Swann.
Swann himself is an accomplished jazz musician, with previous careers in performance, composition and music pedagogy, and is the pianist for the Knoxville Jazz Orchestra.
His knowledge of jazz music has helped make this ensemble successful, imbuing traditional jazz values into the band’s performances.
“Typically, repertoire for jazz concerts is chosen based on the improvisational opportunities each piece brings, rather than the programmatic intent of the composer,” Swann said. “We’ve chosen a selection of songs that challenge the students in various ways as improvisers: melodically, rhythmically and harmonically, in various amounts. Listening to the players grapple with the twists and turns of the pieces is, we hope, the main point of focus for the audience.”
Some of the songs that will be played are as follows:
- “Little Sunflower” by Freddie Hubbard,
- “Stolen Moments” by Oliver Nelson,
- “Basin St. Blues” by Spencer Williams,
- “Gingerbread Boy” by Jimmy Heath,
- “Road Song” by Wes Montgomery,
- “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy” by Josef Zawinul and
- “The Jody Grind” by Horace Silver.
According to Swann, the student response has been uplifting.
“For the brave student-musician, learning jazz improvisation is an immensely fun and rewarding thing,” Swann said. “I think everyone in the group is excited and looking forward to demonstrating how much they’ve learned since the last concert in the fall. I hope that folks who came to our last concert notice how much some of the musicians have learned over the last few months.”
The concert will take place at 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 14, in the Clayton Center for the Arts. The event is free and open to the public.
Written by McKenna Marr ’28