Friends University is pleased to announce the hiring of Robert Brooks as the university’s new director of jazz. Brooks will officially start at Friends in August 2019 and will direct the program following the retirement of long-time Jazz Director Lisa Hittle.
Brooks will be attending this weekend’s Friends University Jazz Festival to meet current students, prospective students, alumni and Friends University colleagues.
He is an accomplished jazz saxophonist and woodwind doubler. He will be completing his Doctor of Musical Arts at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) this March. He earned a Master of Music from UIUC and a Bachelor of Music from Central Michigan University. He has served on faculty at the University of Illinois in Springfield, Ill. and Bradley University in Peoria, Ill.
In addition to working in higher education as a music educator and advocate, Brooks maintains a full and diverse performing schedule. His most recent releases, “Accidental Nomad” and “New Standard Duo” on Ropeadope Records, have been received with critical acclaim. He has toured with Reginald Chapman’s “Pressure Fit,” “Sun Stereo,” and “Lake Effect,” throughout the Midwest and East Coast.
Brooks looks forward to joining the faculty at Friends University, working with dedicated students and performing in the Wichita music community.
Friends University, a Christian University of Quaker heritage, equips students to honor God and serve others by integrating their intellectual, spiritual and professional lives.