Hard-swinging, straight-ahead jazz will come to campus Friday night when acclaimed trombonist Wycliffe Gordon performs. 

Gordon will play at 8 p.m., April 27, in the Alexander Clark Center.  The band will include UT Dallas faculty member Kelly Durbin on piano, James Gilyard on bass and Steve Barnes on drums.

Gordon Wycliff

Wycliffe Gordon was named “Trombonist of the Year” from the Jazz Journalists Association in 2001, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2011.

Gordon is a modern master of the plunger mute, a jazz device that gives brass instruments a distinct sound. Gordon’s technique and signature style have earned him the title of “Trombonist of the Year” from the Jazz Journalists Association in 2001, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2011.  

He also serves on the faculty of the jazz arts program at the Manhattan School of Music. He has also held positions at the Juilliard School of Music and Michigan State University.

Gordon has worked with many top players from the swing and traditional jazz worlds, including Dizzy Gillespie, Branford Marsalis, Tommy Flanagan, Lionel Hampton and Eric Reed.  Gordon is a former veteran member of the Wynton Marsalis Septet and Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. He also has been a featured guest artist in Billy Taylor’s “Jazz at the Kennedy Center” series.

Durbin created and directs the UT Dallas Jazz Ensemble.

Gilyard is a Dallas-based composer, producer and lecturer. Barnes has taught at The University of Cincinnati’s College Conservatory of Music and the Jamey Aebersold Summer Jazz Workshops.

The event is free to UT Dallas students with a valid student ID. For more information, call (972) UTD-ARTS or email utdarts@utdallas.edu.