Faculty Artist Series presents Emergence - with Ben McIlwain, trombone and Zhaolei Xie, piano

Emergence is an evening of music from diverse composers and genres that takes the listener from darkness to shadow to brilliant light. Works by Higdon, JacobTV, Maier, and Pugh. Faculty artists include Ben McIlwain, trombone, and Zhaolei Xie, piano.

The program is a journey from darkness and introspection to overwhelming joy and fullness. Jennifer Higdon’s Legacy opens the program followed by two pieces that are very unique - JacobTV’s I Was Like Wow for trombone & video along with Maier’s Slipstreamfor trombone and loopstation. The unabashed joy will be championed in the final piece by American jazz trombonist and composer, James Pugh. 

This project is supported in part by funding from the Mississippi Arts Commission, a state agency, and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.