The world premiere of Jake Hertzog's "Anthropoesia: A Concerto for Jazz Guitar and Jazz Philharmonic" will light up Faulkner Performing Arts Center at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 16, performed by Hertzog and the newly formed Ozark Jazz Philharmonic under the direction of Maestro Susumu Watanabe. 

Hertzog is an assistant professor in guitar in the Department of Music and the jazz area coordinator. His work has spanned jazz, rock, contemporary classical and avant garde. This performance marks the conclusion of his Jazz Road Creative Residency — a prestigious grant program from South Arts — that also included a recording of this same work to be released in 2025.

Watanabe, conductor and director of the Tokyo Brass Art Orchestra, was the featured artistic collaborator on the project and arranged and orchestrated the piece. He is also a faculty member in the U of A's jazz program.

The Ozark Jazz Philharmonic is a unique ensemble consisting of a full jazz orchestra, with the addition of strings, that combines some of the region's finest jazz and classical musicians. Hertzog was effusive in praise for the new cohort of musicians and excited for what was to come.

"Recording this music has been an extraordinary experience, and we are so excited to share it live. I hope this ensemble can continue to evolve and perform as we work towards building more and more jazz in our region," Hertzog said.

This project would not be possible without the support of Jazz Road, a national initiative of South Arts, which is funded by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation with additional support from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. 

This event is a part of the 2024 UARK Jazz Festival sponsored by the Department of Music.

Tickets for the event can be obtained through the Faulkner Performing Arts Center website.

Ozark Jazz Philharmonic

Rhythm section: Matt Nelson, Garrett Jones, Chris Peters, Jake Hertzog, Tomoko Kashiwagi

Trumpets: Rich Rulli, Cameron Summers, Ben Hay, Bill Gable

Trombones: Cory Mixdorf, Shea Pierce, Michael Olefsky, Jason Hausback

Saxophones: Rick Salonen, Michael Hanna, Alisha Pattillo, Sarah Hetrick, Austin Farnam

Strings: Er-Gene Kahng, Dayton Strick, Tim Macduff, Pecos Singer