Second Annual Gene Yevich Memorial Concert Set at Scranton
Second Annual Gene Yevich Memorial Concert Set at Scranton
Five musicians headline the second annual Gene Yevich Memorial Jazz Concert scheduled Friday, Feb. 12, in The University of Scranton’s Houlihan-McLean Center. Taking the stage at this year’s memorial event — which is sponsored by former Scranton Mayor David Wenzel and his wife, Janet — are trumpeters Mark Gould and Joseph Boga, pianist Ted Rosenthal, bass player Matt Rybicki and drummer Carmen Intorre.
The performance will take place at 7:30 p.m., and admission is free and open to the public.
The concert honors the late Gene Yevich, who served as Fire Chief for the City of Scranton during Wenzel’s administration. He served with the Scranton Fire Department for decades before retiring in 1989. Yevich, who passed away in 2005, was also a popular and talented local musician. He was married to the former Julia Pucher, with whom he had three children, University of Scranton graduates Michael Yevich and Cynthia Yevich, and the university’s Director of Performance Music Cheryl Yevich Boga.
Featured artists performing at the concert include Gould, who served as co-principal trumpet of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra for more than 30 years. A legendary performer and musician, Gould is also a highly acclaimed conductor and sought-after trumpet educator. He chairs the brass department at The Manhattan School of Music and serves on the faculty of The Juilliard School.
Boga, the grandson of Gene Yevich, is a student at the Manhattan School of Music. He is a trumpet student of Mark Gould, Wynton Marsalis, and Cecil Bridgewater, and has played professionally with an array of established and emerging jazz artists.
Rosenthal first achieved international recognition by winning first place in the second annual Thelonious Monk International Jazz Piano Competition. Since then he has performed throughout the world with many of the jazz greats of our time and has released 11 CD’s as a leader and many more as a sideman. He is a member of the faculty at The Manhattan School of Music.
Regular performers in the New York area, Rybicki – a native of Cleveland, Ohio - and Intorre – a native of Buffalo, N.Y. - have performed and recorded with many notable musicians, including Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, Wycliffe Gordon, Joey DeFrancesco, Loren Schoenberg, and Nnenna Freelon. Both are graduates of the The Juilliard School.
For additional information regarding this event, contact Cheryl Y. Boga, director of Performance Music at The University of Scranton, at (570) 941-7624 or www.scranton.edu/music.