EUGENE–One of the nation’s top jazz saxophonists, an ensemble of the Bay Area’s finest chamber soloists and a highly regarded group of Bulgarian folk musicians will perform in three concerts scheduled this week at the University of Oregon School of Music, 961 E. 18th Ave.

For more information, call the UO School of Music weekdays at (541) 346-5678. To confirm concert times and ticket information, call GuardLine from a Touch-Tone phone at 485-2000, ext. 2533, for a 24-hours-a-day taped message of the week’s events.

Jazz saxophonist David Liebman, a national recording artist, brings his jazz quartet to Beall Concert Hall, 961 E. 18th Ave., for an evening of jazz. Concert time is 8 p.m. Tickets, available at the door, are $12.

Since 1973, Liebman has consistently placed in the top five soprano sax players in the annual Downbeat Critics’ Poll. Born in New York City in 1946, he decided to seriously pursue jazz studies after seeing John Coltrane perform live. He received his undergraduate degree from New York University, studying with Lennie Tristano and Charles Lloyd. Soon after, he played with Ten Wheel Drive and then moved on to the group led by Elvin Jones. During the early 1970s, he toured and recorded with Miles Davis.

In 1981, he formed the group Quest, recording seven CDs and touring extensively through 1991. After Quest, he formed the Dave Liebman Group, which was reorganized in 1997 into the quartet playing this concert. They have toured Europe, Japan and Israel, and recorded numerous CDs–the latest of which is "New Vista" with Arkadia Records.

Liebman founded the International Association of Schools of Jazz, an organization devoted to jazz education, and in 1997 he received an honorary Doctorate of Music from the Sibelius Academy in Finland.

Four members of the Arcangeli Baroque Strings will perform 17th-century Italian chamber music at 8 p.m. in Beall Hall. Tickets, available at the door, are $7 general admission and $4 for students and senior citizens.

The program includes music by Cima, Castello, Marini, Frescobaldi, Granata, Corelli and others. The performance is sponsored by the American Association of Italian Studies, which holds its annual conference in Eugene this weekend.

Arcangeli Baroque Strings was named after the Father of Italian Violin Music, Arcangelo Corelli. Founded by Michael Sand (former music director of the Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra), this highly touted young ensemble consists of four to eight of the finest "original instrument" soloists in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Arcangeli is unique–only ensemble of its kind in America big enough to play the great concerto repertoire, but small enough to remain an intimate chamber ensemble. The four performers on this program are Michael Sand, baroque violin; UO assistant professor of music history Marc Vanscheeuwijck, baroque cello and violone; Richard Savino, baroque guitar and archlute; and Phebe Craig, harpsichord.

The School of Music’s World Music Series presents the Yuri Yunakov Ensemble, performing Bulgarian folk music at 8 p.m. in Beall Concert Hall. Tickets, available at the door, are $10 general admission and $8 for students and senior citizens.

The Yuri Yunakov Ensemble performs Slavic and Rom (Gypsy) music from the Balkan countries of Bulgaria and Macedonia. The ensemble plays in a contemporary style called "wedding music," so named for its popularity at life cycle celebrations such as weddings and baptisms. This style, which gained popularity in the 1970s, emphasizes virtuosic technique, improvisation, rapid tempos and daring key changes. It incorporates musical influences from jazz and rock, as well as Turkish and other Near Eastern musics.

The Yuri Yunakov Ensemble was formed in New York City in 1995 and has performed at the Clearwater Festival, WOMAD, Folk Parks and the Telstra Adelaide Festival. The group has recently completed a North American tour with the World Music Institute’s "Gypsy Caravan," and it will perform at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in June. Traditional Crossroads has produced two CDs of the ensemble, "New Colors in Bulgarian Wedding Music" and "Balada."

The leading members of the ensemble–Yuri Yunakov (saxophone), Nesho Neshev (accordion) and Salif Ali (drum set)–have played together since the 1970s in Ivo Papazov’s legendary band, Trakija. They are featured on numerous recordings, such as "Orpheus Ascending," "Balkanology" and "Bulgarian Space Folk." They will be joined by American musicians Carol Silverman (vocals), a UO folklorist and associate professor of anthropology; Catherine Foster (clarinet, trumpet, vocals); and Lauren Brody (synthesizer, vocals).

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