Cleveland Jazz Orchestra presents "Mardi Gras gets the Gospel"

Prior to the pandemic, the Cleveland Jazz Orchestra’s Mardi Gras themed concert was one of the great musical highlights of the 2019-2020 season. Ever the musical chameleons, the CJO reprises and celebrates this music and melds it with the pungently deep sounds and feels of gospel music. The great Reginald Bowens joins the CJO once again, and we premier our musical relationship with Adrianna Miller.

This evening of incredible energy and buoyant sounds will serve as a fund raiser to assist the Cleveland Jazz Orchestra’s Educational Outreach with the Cleveland Municipal School District. Proceeds from the concert will support the purchase of badly needed instruments for CMSD students and the CJO’s ongoing programs for the students of the CMSD.

“ Reginald Bowens’ gifted art has wrought him an exceptional background over the years, working with accomplished artists, such as Bobby McFerrin, and Smokie Robinson, to name a few. After completion of his undergraduate degree program at Howard University, he appeared on season three of NBC’s hit a cappella television show “The Sing-Off” as a contestant, arranger, and music director with Afro Blue. This experience led him to found his A Cappella Camp in 2013 (www.theacappellacamp.com), which appeared on Fox 8 News’ Kickin’ It With Kenny (Cleveland, OH). He is an accomplished arranger in the a cappella and jazz communities, and his arrangements and performances have brought him recognition in DownBeat Magazine’s Student Music Awards over the years. He has restructured and developed curricula in voice and piano at Cuyahoga Community College, and Cleveland State University. Currently, he is a doctorate of musical arts student at the Eastman School of Music (Rochester, NY), where he is majoring in jazz piano performance and teaching a course on the history of jazz.”

Adrianna Miller began singing at two years old. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Adrianna has served as a Worship Leader in various churches in Northeast Ohio.

Aside from singing, she is currently pursuing higher education in Associate of Arts with an emphasis in Music Education. Adrianna is a Music student at Tri-C & has also been a member of the Tri-C Jazz Ensemble, Jazz Ease from September 2018- April 2019. While her voice lends itself to a variety of styles, Adrianna has especially excelled in the Jazz genre.