The Friends University Jazz Vocal Ensemble, also known as JVE, will perform its final concert of the school year Thursday, April 13, at 7:30 p.m. The program is titled Ticket to Ride.
“Many of our songs this year reference modes of travel,” said Craig Curry, director. “We have one song that mentions ‘country walks in springtime,’ another that talks about traveling to Mars, and the group will close the concert with a fun Latin jazz arrangement of the Doobie Brothers’ Long Train Runnin. And, of course, the Beatles tune Ticket to Ride seemed the perfect way to tie it all together.”
The group has been featured at national jazz and regional choral conferences, opening for Pentatonix in Little Rock, Ark. in 2014. With 12 vocalists selected by audition, they perform both a cappella (with and without the occasional beatboxing) and also with a four-piece rhythm section which brings their own energy and swing into the mix. This year the group will perform arrangements by traditional vocal jazz groups like the Four Freshmen and the Swingle Singers, as well as more contemporary groups such as Groove for Thought and New York Voices.
Tickets for adults are $9; students and seniors are $6. Tickets can be purchased by calling Friends University at 316-295-5677. The performance will take place in Sebits Auditorium in Riney Fine Arts Center on the Friends University campus at 2100 W. University Ave., Wichita, Kan.
For more information on this event or other Fine Arts events, please contact the Fine Arts Box Office at 316-295-5677 or finearts@friends.edu.
Friends University, a Christian University of Quaker heritage, equips students to honor God and serve others by integrating their intellectual, spiritual and professional lives.
