As many of you devoted readers already know, I spent the last 10 days in the old hometown of State College, PA. My main reason for the stay was to take my position on the staff of the Penn State Summer Jazz camp, as mentioned in my last post. While there, I taught drum set masterclasses, performed with some amazingly talented faculty, directed big bands, and my own jazz combo. The latter, I might add, rocked the roof off of Penn State’s Esber Recital Hall with their own swingin arrangement of Led Zepplin’s Rock n’ Roll, and the 4 big bands swung with authority thanks to some very skilled drummers. Kudos to all of the students!

Aside from the whirlwind of PSU Jazz, I also had the pleasure of performing with State College jazz mainstay Rick Hirsch on multiple occasions. To see details from the most recent hit at the Bellefonte Courthouse, check out the Centre Daily Times article. I’ll be playing with Hirsch’s group, which consists of Hirsch on saxophones, Jim Robinson on bass, and Mac Himes on guitar, again on August 17th. Check the Performances page for more details!

Below are some more photos from the Bellefonte performance. All photos by Arthur Heim.