Crane Jazz Ensemble Performs with Alumnus Larry Ham '82 on Keys

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Pianist Larry Ham ’82 will return to SUNY Potsdam’s Crane School of Music as a guest artist, performing alongside the Crane Jazz Ensemble on Feb. 25.

POTSDAM, NY (02/19/2015)(readMedia)-- The next Crane Jazz Ensemble concert at SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music will feature accomplished alumnus and guest artist Larry Ham '82 on the keys.

The Crane Jazz Ensemble performance will be on Wednesday, Feb. 25 at 7:30 p.m. in the Sara M. Snell Music Theater.

The program will include three selections written by Ham, including "Sioux Suite," "The Big Balloon" and "Upside Downtown," as well as "Un Paseo Salvaje" by ensemble director Bret Zvacek, among other works.

About the performers:

The Crane Jazz Ensemble is the premier performance group in the jazz studies program at The Crane School of Music. The 20 outstanding musicians in the ensemble perform on saxophone, trumpet, trombone, piano, guitar, bass and percussion. The Crane Jazz Ensemble is directed by Bret Zvacek.

Crane School of Music alumnus Larry Ham began his professional career in the Lionel Hampton Orchestra, and was pianist in the Illinois Jacquet Big Band, before going on to work extensively with jazz legends such as the late Junior Cook and Dakota Staton. He has appeared at jazz festivals, concerts and nightclubs throughout the United States, Europe, West Africa and Japan. His recent New York appearances include performances at Jazz at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Iridium, the Village Vanguard, Small's, the Kitano Hotel and Harlem's historic Lenox Lounge.

During the past few years he has toured extensively. In 2007, he appeared at the Kennedy Center and at Zankel Hall (Carnegie Hall) with Catherine Russell, and in Prague, in the Czech Republic. Recent festival appearances include the Montreal Jazz Festival, the Rochester Jazz Festival, the Cape Cod Jazz Festival, New Jersey JazzFest and a performance for the West Texas Jazz Society.

Hamm earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in musical studies from The Crane School of Music at SUNY Potsdam, and a Master of Arts degree in jazz performance from the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College in New York City. He is currently an adjunct professor at Dutchess Community College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., where he teaches jazz piano, jazz history and improvisation.

This event is free, and the public is invited to attend.

This concert will be broadcast live on the SUNY Potsdam website at the performance time. To view the program and see other upcoming streaming performances, visit www.potsdam.edu/academics/Crane/streaming.

For more information about SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music, please visit www.potsdam.edu/crane.

Founded in 1886, SUNY Potsdam's Crane School of Music has a long legacy of excellence in music education and performance. Life at Crane includes an incredible array of more than 300 recitals, lectures and concerts presented by faculty, students and guests each year. The Crane School of Music is the State University of New York's only All-Steinway institution.

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