HOLIDAY JAZZ WITH DEE ALEXANDER
Saturday, December 2, 2023 at 7:30 pm ALLEN-BRADLEY HALL Dee Alexander, vocalist John McLean, guitar Steve Million, piano Jeremiah Hunt, bass Charles Rick Heath IV, drums/percussion
P R O G R A M T O B E A N N O U N C E D F R O M S TA G E
This weekend’s media sponsor is WISCONSIN PUBLIC RADIO. The length of this concert is approximately 2 hours. All programs are subject to change.
MILWAUKEE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
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Guest Artist Biographies
DEE ALEXANDER Born on Chicago’s west side, Dee Alexander is one of Chicago’s most gifted and respected female vocalist/songwriters. Her talents span every music genre, from Gospel to R&B, from Blues to Neo-Soul. Yet her true heart and soul are experienced in their purest form through her performance of Jazz music. From a soft, sultry ballad to a scat-filled romp, Alexander delivers each style with a passion for music that comes across in every note and a grace that is truly her own. Growing up in a household that was steeped in recordings of Dinah Washington, Alexander names Sarah Vaughan and Ella Fitzgerald among her major influences, as well as Chicago saxophonist Henry Huff, who encouraged her to take risks and cross boundaries thus setting her on the path to becoming one of the most accomplished vocal improvisers in the world today. Her Jazz Institute of Chicago commissioned tribute to Nina Simone and Dinah Washington entitled Sirens of Song introduced her to a larger audience and marked the beginning of worldwide recognition. The Millennium Park performance on the Pritzker Pavilion stage also began a period of frequent European touring. Alexander boasts long and fruitful associations with Chicago’s jazz elite, including Ramsey Lewis, Orbert Davis, Nicole Mitchell, Chicago Jazz Orchestra, and the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM). Alexander’s current project, Songs My Mother Loves, has received rave reviews and is intended not only to express thanks and pay tribute to Dee’s mother for her inspiration and influence, but also to pay homage to the music that has become such a significant part of her life. Alexander is currently a host on the WFMT Jazz Radio Network.
JOHN MCLEAN John McLean’s career has included work as a guitarist, composer, arranger, producer, bandleader, and educator. Since completing his studies at the Berklee College of Music (B.M.) and the University of Miami (M.M.), he has toured throughout the world and appeared on over 50 recordings. McLean has performed and/or recorded with such artists as Kurt Elling, Mose Allison, 46
MILWAUKEE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
Guest Artist Biographies Randy Brecker, Branford Marsalis, Anat Cohen, Jeff “Tain” Watts, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Richie Cole, Ken Nordine, Joe Locke, Regina Carter, Louis Bellson, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Terry Callier, Renée Fleming, John Patitucci, Adam Nussbaum, Ernie Watts, Dave Douglas, Patricia Barber, Kendrick Scott, Arthur Blythe, Eddie Gomez, and many others. Over the course of his 30 years of touring as both a leader and sideman, McLean has performed in virtually every major city in North America as well as London, Paris, Moscow, Johannesburg, Tokyo, Beijing, Sydney, Sao Paulo, Jakarta, Dublin, Rome, Madrid, Warsaw, Berlin, Oslo, Reykjavík, Oslo, Stockholm, Istanbul, Bucharest, Helsinki, Seoul, Lisbon, Vienna, Budapest, Brussels, Prague, Copenhagen, Zurich, and many more. McLean has conducted clinics throughout the United States and Canada, as well as Europe and Asia. He currently resides in the Chicago area and teaches at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois.
ALEXANDER/MCLEAN PROJECT The Alexander/McLean Project is a collaboration between a group of like-minded musicians who are interested in working along the nexus of poetry, long form composition, and jazz improvisation. This project is designed to expand upon each of the band members’ previous artistic efforts and incorporates a variety of stylistic approaches and strategies. Dee Alexander, the ensemble’s vocalist and co-leader and Westside native, has been a prominent member of Chicago’s arts scene for the last four decades. Dee is widely known for her close association and longtime membership with Chicago’s legendary AACM (Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians). In addition, Alexander has recorded and toured extensively in both leadership and collaborative roles. Likewise, John McLean the co-leader of the ensemble has a long-standing relationship with Chicago’s creative music scene. McLean has participated in over 60 recordings as both sideman and a leader and has toured worldwide in a variety of creative music ensembles. The goal of the Alexander/McLean Project is to delve as deeply and as creatively as possible into the art of songwriting as it relates to and intersects with the world of jazz improvisation. While the beloved works that we refer to as the “The Great American Songbook” provide us with a sturdy and beautiful template for this undertaking, the purpose of this project is to explore the extension of that legacy as well as presenting original material that reflect the times we are living in with love, hope, and happiness being the goal of every man, woman, and child.
MILWAUKEE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
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2023.24 SEASON KEN-DAVID MASUR Music Director Polly and Bill Van Dyke Music Director Chair EDO DE WAART Music Director Laureate RYAN TANI Assistant Conductor CHERYL FRAZES HILL Chorus Director Margaret Hawkins Chorus Director Chair TIMOTHY J. BENSON Assistant Chorus Director FIRST VIOLINS Jinwoo Lee, Concertmaster, Charles and Marie Caestecker Concertmaster Chair Ilana Setapen, First Associate Concertmaster Jeanyi Kim, Associate Concertmaster Alexander Ayers Yuka Kadota Elliot Lee** Ji-Yeon Lee Dylana Leung Allison Lovera Lijia Phang Yuanhui Fiona Zheng SECOND VIOLINS Jennifer Startt, Principal, Andrea and Woodrow Leung Second Violin Chair Timothy Klabunde, Assistant Principal John Bian, Assistant Principal (3rd Chair) Glenn Asch Lisa Johnson Fuller Paul Hauer Hyewon Kim Alejandra Switala** Mary Terranova VIOLAS Robert Levine, Principal, Richard O. and Judith A. Wagner Family Principal Viola Chair Georgi Dimitrov, Assistant Principal (2nd chair), Friends of Janet F. Ruggeri Viola Chair Samantha Rodriguez, Assistant Principal (3rd chair)* Alejandro Duque, Acting Assistant Principal (3rd chair) Elizabeth Breslin Nathan Hackett Erin H. Pipal Helen Reich
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CELLOS Susan Babini, Principal, Dorothea C. Mayer Cello Chair Nicholas Mariscal, Assistant Principal* Scott Tisdel, Associate Principal Emeritus Madeleine Kabat Shinae Ra Peter Szczepanek Peter J. Thomas Adrien Zitoun BASSES Jon McCullough-Benner, Principal, Donald B. Abert Bass Chair* Andrew Raciti, Associate Principal Nash Tomey, Assistant Principal (3rd chair) Brittany Conrad Teddy Gabrieledes** Peter Hatch* Paris Myers HARP Julia Coronelli, Principal, Walter Schroeder Harp Chair FLUTES Sonora Slocum, Principal, Margaret and Roy Butter Flute Chair Heather Zinninger, Assistant Principal Jennifer Bouton Schaub PICCOLO Jennifer Bouton Schaub OBOES Katherine Young Steele, Principal, Milwaukee Symphony League Oboe Chair Kevin Pearl, Assistant Principal Margaret Butler ENGLISH HORN Margaret Butler, Philip and Beatrice Blank English Horn Chair in memoriam to John Martin CLARINETS Todd Levy, Principal, Franklyn Esenberg Clarinet Chair Benjamin Adler, Assistant Principal, Donald and Ruth P. Taylor Assistant Principal Clarinet Chair* Taylor Eiffert* Madison Freed** E-FLAT CLARINET Benjamin Adler* BASS CLARINET Taylor Eiffert* Madison Freed** BASSOONS Catherine Van Handel, Principal, Muriel C. and John D. Silbar Family Bassoon Chair Rudi Heinrich, Assistant Principal Beth W. Giacobassi
MILWAUKEE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
CONTRABASSOON Beth W. Giacobassi HORNS Matthew Annin, Principal, Krause Family French Horn Chair Krystof Pipal, Associate Principal Dietrich Hemann, Andy Nunemaker French Horn Chair Darcy Hamlin Kelsey Williams** TRUMPETS Matthew Ernst, Principal, Walter L. Robb Family Trumpet Chair David Cohen, Associate Principal, Martin J. Krebs Associate Principal Trumpet Chair Alan Campbell, Fred Fuller Trumpet Chair TROMBONES Megumi Kanda, Principal, Marjorie Tiefenthaler Trombone Chair Kirk Ferguson, Assistant Principal BASS TROMBONE John Thevenet, Richard M. Kimball Bass Trombone Chair TUBA Robyn Black, Principal, John and Judith Simonitsch Tuba Chair TIMPANI Dean Borghesani, Principal Chris Riggs, Assistant Principal PERCUSSION Robert Klieger, Principal Chris Riggs PIANO Melitta S. Pick Endowed Piano Chair PERSONNEL MANAGER Françoise Moquin, Director of Orchestra Personnel LIBRARIANS Paul Beck, Principal Librarian, Anonymous Donor, Principal Librarian Chair Matthew Geise, Assistant Librarian & Media Archivist PRODUCTION Tristan Wallace, Technical Manager & Live Audio Supervisor Paolo Scarabel, Stage Technician & Deck Supervisor * Leave of Absence 2023.24 Season ** Acting member of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra 2023.24 Season
