The Fourth Annual Mark Flugge Memorial Jazz Concert will be held on Sunday, June 4th at 3pm in Mees Hall at Capital University in Bexley. This annual free event honors the musical and educational legacy of the talented pianist, composer, arranger, educator, and bandleader with a program of his tunes played by his students, collaborators and friends. The first half of the concert will consist of solo and small combo performances, with one highlight being a premiere of Stan Smith’s arrangement of “Erika Kristen” for flute and guitar played by Lisa Jelle and Smith, The first half also includes Abhik Mazumder; Lucas Holmes’ combo with Bradley Mellen and Maxwell Button; Rachel Sepulveda with Jon Eshelman; Danny Bauer; and the 2017 Mark Flugge Jazz Award Winner Julian Dittmer with Adam Fischer and Will Ash. The second half of the show will bring Vaughn Wiester’s Famous Jazz Orchestra to the stage for a setlist that features concert premieres of new big band arrangements of Flugge’s pieces “Soiree” (John Fedchock), “February’s Promise” (Mark Lopeman), “Mi Zai” (Chas Baker), and “Dear Bill” (Paul Ferguson), as well as older favorite “Beatrice the Cat” (Kim Pensyl). A selection of Flugge’s CDs will be available for sale (see below for more info). Keep reading for more details and updates from Lisa Jelle, Director of the Mark Flugge Memorial Fund:
In November 2016, the Mark Flugge Memorial Fund released the CD A Chamber Jazz Christmas: Mark Flugge Remembered. It has been enthusiastically received [read the JazzColumbus review here]; copies are for sale in Mees Lobby on June 4th, along with Mark Flugge Remembered: Jazz Originals & Standards (2015), Waltz into Madness (Lisa’s 2012 release, which includes Mark’s music); Sacred Jazz and Spirituals (2008); In Love, In Blue (2007); Familiarity (2003); and February’s Promise (2002).
In January 2017, Mark’s extensive CD collection was donated to Capital’s Blackmore Library and named the Mark Flugge Memorial CD Collection. It consists of 650 recordings, mostly jazz. The CDs are available to be checked out for local circulation.
In April 2017, jazz piano major Julian Dittmer became the third recipient of the Capital University Mark Flugge Jazz Award. Julian is the student of Capital jazz piano professor Erik Augis; we are delighted to recognize Julian on June 4, and feature his combo in this concert. Previous awardees are trumpeter Steven Jacobs (2015) and bassist Marty Quinn (2016). Congratulations, Julian!
Release date TBA/soon: Capital University Saxophone Professor Michael Cox’s new CD, including Flugge compositions “Compassion for All”, “Yarneck”, “Familiarity”, and “Soiree.” Recorded in New York City, mixed in Panama City.
Please mark your calendars: the Fifth Annual Mark Flugge Memorial Jazz Concert will be on January 21, 2018 in Mees Hall! A new arrangement by Andy Frederick may be premiered at the concert by the PANdemonium4 Flute Quartet, featuring “Ahmad”, “The Letter”, and “Samba Fantasy.” My colleagues in PANdemonium4 are Kimberlee Goodman, Lindsey Goodman, and Alison Brown Sincoff.
In Spring of 2018, I will be focusing on my new solo flute CD in the Mark Flugge Remembered series, featuring recent big band arrangements of his tunes with a solo flute part, new chamber arrangements of his pieces, and a few tracks from the archives of Lisa and Mark’s performances. The working title is Bolling and Beyond: Jazz-Inspired Flute. Lisa Jelle: Mark Flugge Remembered. Release date is TBA, hopefully in time for the 2019 Memorial Concert.
Another long-term project in the works is The Mark Flugge Songbook, which will include lead sheets of Mark’s top tunes for gigging musicians. Please contact me at ljelle@capital.edu for suggestions on titles to include or other input. The main goal is to keep these great tunes in the repertoire of local musicians, and inspire them to create new forms of the pieces.