Jazz Chair at DSO

Thanks to a generous $1.5 million gift, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra has been able to create The Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Jazz Creative Director Chair. According to the Detroit Free Press, the chair will be filled annually by a musician of national stature who will perform in the DSO’s Paradise Jazz Series or appear with the DSO. Duties include conducting workshops for area students, acting as a liaison between the DSO and local and national jazz musicians and helping DSO leaders plan future jazz programs.

It will come as no great surprise to SEMJA Update readers that the first person chosen to fill the chair is Marcus Belgrave, Detroit trumpeter and educator extraordinaire since the 1960s. This is a great honor for Belgrave and we wish him well on this new opportunity to spread the jazz gospel!