Jazz
Dr. Michael Nickens holds a doctor of musical arts degree in tuba performance at the University of Michigan. He has been a member of Michigan’s Creative Arts Orchestra as well as other local musical ensembles that focus on improvisation such as "Yours Truly," which blends jazz and hip-hop elements. Active as a free-lance tuba player in the Midwest, he also teaches in the Cranbrook (N.J.) Upper School Music Department.
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Alex Noppe is an Associate Instructor in Jazz at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, where he directs the Jazz Ensemble IV and is currently working on his DM in Brass Literature and Pedagogy. He previously completed a masters degree in music performance at Indiana, studying with John Rommel and David Baker, and holds dual bachelors degrees in trumpet performance and jazz studies from the University of Michigan, where he studied with Bill Campbell, Bill Lucas, and Dennis Wilson. He has played with the Lansing Symphony, the Jackson Symphony, and the Green Bay Symphony, and has performed at the International Association for Jazz Educators conference and the Detroit Jazz Festival. Alex currently plays with the Columbus-Indiana Philharmonic, the Terre Haute Symphony, and the David Baker Jazz Ensemble. He has had compositions and arrangements premiered by the University of Michigan Jazz Ensemble and the Arbor Brass Choir and is active as a freelance performer and teacher in the Detroit and Indianapolis areas. |
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James Orfanella is the band director at Valley View High School (Pa.). In addition, he is an active free-lance trumpeter throughout Northeastern Pennsylvania and has a private trumpet studio. While at PAI, he taught jazz theory and conducted the Jazz Band. |
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Perry Orfanella graduated from the Hartt School of Music, where he was a double bass student of Gary Karr and went on to receive his Masters of Music at the University of South Florida. He currently is Director of Orchestras at the Osceola County School for the Arts in Kissimmee Florida, a free-lance bass player and studio musician. Bringing fourteen years of experience with him from the Encore Music Camp of Pennsylvania, he has served as the director of jazz activities, Jazz Band conductor, jazz combos coach and string bass teacher. |
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