Live in the Lobby Jazz- Jazz Faculty Ensemble

The UofSC Jazz Faculty Ensemble present Music from The Beatles Songbook

The UofSC Jazz Faculty Ensemble will play tunes from The Beatles. Bert Ligon has taken familiar tunes from The Beatles and arranged for the group. The Beatles recorded together for eight years from 1962-1970. Their catalog includes 213 songs–188 originals and 25 covers. This is an enormous selection of tunes from which to choose. UofSC Jazz Faculty ensemble will Come Together and perform gorgeous ballads, jazz waltzes, funky tunes, swinging and singing. This concert will be sure to satisfy as these tunes are so much fun and part of our musical history. Sure to disappoint, too—we might leave off one of your favorites! Don’t be a Fool on the Hill, come find out which tunes we pick. You Can’t Buy me Love, but you can buy a ticket.

The Koger Center for the Arts is proud to host the UofSC Jazz Faculty as the fourth concert in the inaugural season of Live in the Lobby: Koger Center Jazz. Created as a partnership between the Koger Center, U of SC Jazz, and ColaJazz, Koger Center Jazz will consist of six concerts held in the dynamic, open expanse of the Koger Center lobby curated to embody a specific style and era of jazz music. Join us to experience this one-of-a-kind concert series designed for audiences seeking premier jazz and specialty experiences in an exceptional setting.

Bert Ligon – piano & guitar

Bert Ligon is director of Jazz Studies at UofSC. He teaches jazz theory & improvisation. He has written several books on jazz improvisation, and published music for jazz big band, string orchestra, guitar and steel drum ensembles, and arranges music for several ensembles including the SC Jazz Masterworks Orchestra.

Aletha Jacobs – piano & vocals

Aletha Jacobs is a local legend on piano and voice. Aletha is a UofSC Jazz graduate who returned to work with the Jazz Vocal ensemble. She is a dedicated and enthusiastic teacher and musician.

Lauren Meccia – sax & vocals

Lauren Meccia directs the jazz ensembles at UofSC Columbia and Aiken. Lauren earned a Bachelor of Music in Education with a Certificate in Saxophone Performance and a Master of Music in saxophone performance from UofSC. She has performed jazz and music festivals throughout the Southeast and across the US. You have heard her sing with her own group, the Mike Frost Band, and the SC Jazz Masterworks Orchestra.

Craig Butterfield – bass

Craig Butterfield is professor of double bass and jazz studies at the UofSC. Comfortable in many styles of music, Butterfield has performed extensively as a jazz artist as well as a classical soloist and clinician. He has recorded several CDs in a range of styles. He can be heard around town with the Post-Timey String band.

Michael Wilkinson – trombone

Michael Wilkinson joined the UofSC faculty in 2017 as Assistant Professor of Trombone. He is active performing in many settings in the Columbia area including the South Carolina Philharmonic, the Soda City Jazz Band, leading his own jazz quartets, and the SC Jazz Masterworks Orchestra.

Brendan Bull – drums

Brendan Bull is a graduate of the UofSC jazz program. Brendan returned to teach drums at UofSC while he continues his busy schedule as an in-demand drummer for ensembles around the country. Brendan drives the band with sophisticated grooving drumming and his infectious positive energy

Tickets are $28/General Public, $23 USC Faculty/Staff & Military, and $8 Students (Discounted Tickets must be purchased at the box office.)