group of AUJO students performing

Maplerock Jazz Festival to take place Friday, March 22

Published on March 15, 2024
Music

ASHLAND, Ohio – The 43rd edition of the Maplerock Jazz Festival, an educational and entertaining event that features the Ashland University Jazz Orchestra (AUJO) mixing with internationally-recognized jazz artists as well as regional scholastic groups, will be Friday, March 22. The festival will be held inside AU’s Center for the Arts (331 College Ave.), with the concert portion at Hugo Young Theatre starting at 7:30 p.m.

First, high school jazz ensembles from Ashland, Brecksville-Broadview Heights, Brunswick, Crestview and Ontario will perform in a non-competitive format from 12:30-3:30 p.m. In addition to performing, the groups will take part in clinics with instruction from the guest artists.

In the evening, the AUJO will take the Hugo Young stage and play a selection of jazz standards, joined by special guests Matt Ellis (trombone), Larry Harms (saxophone), Michael Philip Mossman (trumpet, composer) and Rock Wehrmann (piano). The AUJO recently returned from a 10-day spring break tour of Spain, where they received standing ovations following each of their four performances in the Catalan region.

Tickets for the concert can be purchased at ashland.edu/performing-arts-tickets in advance, or cash-only tickets will be available the night of the show. Ticket prices are $10 for adults and $5 for students. AU students are admitted free.

Scott Garlock, director of the award-winning AUJO and professor of music, noted that the Maplerock Jazz Festival is one of the oldest jazz festivals in the Midwest and is named after the process by which the region’s Indigenous people extracted maple syrup.

Ashland University is a mid-sized, private university conveniently located a short distance from Akron, Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio. Ashland University (www.ashland.edu) values the individual student and offers a unique educational experience that combines the challenge of strong applied academic programs with a faculty and staff who build nurturing relationships with their students.