Jazz legend Rodger Fox is known for his trombone artistry and for the Rodger Fox Big Band which has been performing locally and internationally for 50 years.
Not everyone knows that Rodger is also one of the country’s most important jazz educators. He was instrumental in creating the firstjazz music studies in Aotearoa in the 1980s, and to this day is an important faculty member at the NZSM university jazz programme in Wellington.
Te Kōkī New Zealand School of Music has two big bands rehearsing throughout the university year with players regularly auditioning for their position. The bands have regular performance opportunities in Wellington including the Southern Cross Hotel and they often perform at jazz clubs throughout the country. Then there are the annual jazz festivals in Tauranga, Manawatū, Napier, and Queenstown. Big Band One features the country’s best up-and-coming jazz talent drawn from the cream of the New Zealand School of Music jazz majors.
The NZSM Big Band One has been making history for many years, and always with different players as students complete their studies and move on with their careers. This band has performed and recorded with international artists the likes of Chris Cain, Bob Sheppard, Jon Papenbrook, Bill Cunliffe, Tom Warrington, and Bruce Forman to name but a few.
The one constant is Rodger Fox, and he introduces the concert with a few words:
“Hear the future of New Zealand jazz in one concert. Twenty-two young musicians from all over New Zealand attend the jazz programme at the NZ School of Music in Wellington. Now check them out in concert in Whanganui. Keep jazz alive. Best, Rodger Fox.”
■ Whanganui Jazz at the St Johns Club, 158 Glasgow St
Sunday, August 6, 6.30pm, General admission $25, members $15
