New York Guitarist Mark Whitfield to Join Pitt Jazz Ensemble for Annual Spring Concert

PITTSBURGH-Mark Whitfield, one of the most dynamic guitarists on the New York jazz scene, will join the Pitt Jazz Ensemble on stage for the band's annual spring concert at 8 p.m. April 9 in the Assembly Room of the William Pitt Union, 3959 Fifth Ave., Oakland. Admission is $10 for the general public and $5 for students. For more information, call 412-624-4187.

Whitfield, who has collaborated with Sting, Dizzy Gillespie, Herbie Hancock, Wynton Marsalis, Jill Scott, Mary J. Blige, and many other artists, will first perform with local professional musicians and then with the ensemble itself.

The Pitt Jazz Ensemble comprises approximately 20 Pitt jazz student musicians, including jazz vocalists. They will perform under the director of Leon Lee Dorsey, Pitt assistant professor of jazz studies and coordinator of the Jazz Studies Program.

Whitfield is an alumnus of Boston's prestigious Berklee College of Music and launched a career in New York City in 1987 that included gigs with some of the nation's finest. His recording career has produced 14 solo projects and many collaborations.

In September 2005, Whitfield became a member of Berklee's faculty as an artist in residence, joining Joe Lovano, Ralph Peterson, Danilo Perez, and Terry Lynn Carrington. In addition to his teaching, Whitfield tours the country and performs in as many as 100 concerts a year with jazz trumpeter Chris Botti. Whitfield's latest solo effort, "Songs of Wonder," is a tribute to the music of the legendary Stevie Wonder.

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