PORT ANGELES — Songs made famous by Michael Bublé and the Irish rock band U2 will be part of a free concert this Thursday.
It’s the debut of the Peninsula College Vocal Jazz Ensemble, and it showcases 12 singers at Maier Performance Hall, the intimate venue on the Peninsula College campus at 1502 E. Lauridsen Blvd.
“It’s going to be fantastic,” said Elaine Gardner-Morales, the music professor who formed the ensemble last spring.
Thursday’s 7 p.m. concert will have solo and ensemble singing, with the latter including “Operator,” made famous by the Manhattan Transfer; “Blue Skies”; “One Note Samba”; and “Mas que Nada.”
The four soloists are Rachel Heath with Bublé’s “Feeling Good,” Brandi Larson with “Fascinating Rhythm,” Marissa Wilson with “Cry Me a River” and Anna Roth with “Lullaby of Birdland.”
These are not easy songs, Gardner-Morales said, adding that her students have risen to the challenge.
Each singer has developed his or her own style, phrasing and vocal color, and will show these things off during the hourlong concert.
‘So rewarding’
“It’s been a ton of work, but so rewarding,” added Gardner-Morales.
The ensemble also features singers Gabe Bagno, Jake Bonifazio, Signe Crawford, Hannah Foxe, Lucy Higgs, Josette Hodge, Judy Larson and Marian McGilvra, all students in the vocal jazz course that started this spring at Peninsula College.
The show will feature one instrumental, with Crawford on saxophone: “Green Onions,” the tune immortalized by Booker T. & the MGs in 1962.
Backing up the vocalists is a three-piece band: stand-up bass man Clint Thomas, Terry Smith on drums and George Lindamood on piano.
The vocal jazz concert Thursday night comes at the end of Spring Arts Week, a series of free public events at Peninsula College.
For more information on these activities, visit www.PenCol.edu or Peninsula College’s Facebook page.
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Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5062, or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
