Willimantic, CT — The Straight Up Jazz Trio, composed of an Eastern professor, staff member and non-traditional student, will present a recital on Feb. 5 at 7:30 p. m.in the new Fine Arts Instructional Center at Eastern Connecticut State University. The recital is part of First Friday Faculty Recital Series in 2016. The public is invited. Admission is free.
Trio members include Eastern Music Professor Anthony Cornicello; Rick O’Neal, learning specialist/tutor in music at Eastern; and Venlo Odom, who has been a professional musician for more than 40 years and is currently pursuing a bachelor of arts in music performance at Eastern.
Cornicello, who teaches jazz piano and directs Eastern’s jazz band, has been involved with jazz since the 1980s, leading his own ensembles and playing with avant-garde groups such as “Inside/Out.” He plays the piano in the Straight Up Jazz Trio.
O’Neal plays the bass for Straight Up Jazz and for the regional bands Delta Generators and O’Neal Armstrong. He earned his undergraduate degree in music at Eastern. In addition to serving as a learning specialist in Eastern’s Academic Services Center, O’Neal also teaches at Pomfret School and the Complex Center for the Arts in Putnam, CT.
Drummer Odom has performed with Barry White, The O’Jays, John Lee, Jimmie Smith and other prominent musicians. He has played in Harlem’s Apollo Theatre; the Wolf Den at the Mohegan Sun Resort and Casino; and has appeared on many recordings.
The Straight Up Jazz Trio has been playing together since 2014, as part of the house band for the Stomping Ground’s Thursday night jazz sessions in Putnam. The trio format is a special ensemble in jazz, with a tradition going back to the early swing era. With a basic instrumentation of piano, bass and drums, the musicians explore and reinterpret music spontaneously, including material from standard repertoires, in an expressive, adventurous, and visceral manner.