SUNY Plattsburgh Presents the 2007 Winter Jazz Concert

The concert will take place on Friday, Nov. 30 at 7:30 in the E. Glenn Giltz Auditorium at Hawkins Hall on the campus of the State University of New York College at Plattsburgh. This year's concert features the work of guest performers Jerry Lavene and Nicholas Cassarino on guitar, playing with SUNY Plattsburgh's Jazz Ensemble and Contemporary Combo under the direction of Assistant Professor of Music Rick Davies, Ph.D.

Cassarino and Lavene represent both ends of the great jazz guitar spectrum.

Young and upcoming guitarist Nick Cassarino has taken the Burlington, Vt. jazz scene by storm.  Only 21 years old, he is already one of the busiest and most highly regarded jazz musicians in Vermont.

Brent Hallenbeck, writing in the Burlington Free Press recently noted, "Only two years out of high school, Cassarino has become a high-profile fixture on the Vermont jazz scene, from performances with the group Fauxtet and his own quartet at the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival ... "

Jerry Lavene is a North Country legend who grew up in Northern New York and has been considered one of the treasures of the local community for decades.  After going to the famous Berklee music school and paying road dues with groups like the Glen Miller Orchestra, Lavene returned to his hometown and has been thrilling audiences there ever since with his incredible mastery of the guitar.

"He's one of the best musicians ever to come out of the region, and there are some good musicians here," said Davies.

Among the selections played by the two student groups are pieces written by Davies himself and by students Rick Reeves and Peter Fiore, who will be playing drums. Songs will include "Sunny Ray" by Ray Santos and some Count Bassie tunes.

This concert is free and open to the public.