Nov. 4, 1997 School of Music Contact Scott Barkhurst (541) 346-1163 or John R. Crosiar 346-3135 EDITOR'S NOTE: Trombonist Jeff Uusitalo's name is pronounced YOU-si-TAH-low. EUGENE--Familiar and original jazz pieces, avant-garde percussion works, and traditional and contemporary gospel music are on tap at the three concert offerings 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. Friday, Nov. 14--The Jazz Café Jazz combos will perform at "The Jazz Café" at 8 p.m. in its new location, the Alumni Lounge of Gerlinger Hall, 1468 University St. Tickets, available at the door, are $5 general admission and $3 for students and senior citizens. Light snacks and beverages will be available for purchase during the evening. The program will include not only music by familiar jazz composers, but also a variety of original material and arrangements by UO students. A special guest artist, trombonist Jeff Uusitalo, will be featured on the program. A jazz trombonist with Stan Kenton's band from 1976-77, Uusitalo has traveled throughout America, Europe and Japan. He has performed with such well-known artists as Carl Fontana, Clay Jenkins, Bud Shank, George Cable and Bobby Shew, and he has recorded with Jeff Lorber, Dave Barduhn and Stan Kenton. Uusitalo freelances as a soloist and clinician throughout the Northwest and serves on the faculty of the Mt. Hood Jazz Workshop. The Jazz Café was created in 1995 to provide the jazz combos more of a cabaret atmosphere than the formal setting of Beall Concert Hall. The concert is co-sponsored by the EMU Cultural Forum. Monday, Nov. 17--The Oregon Percussion Ensemble UO Professor Charles Dowd will conduct the Oregon Percussion Ensemble in a performance of six avant-garde classical works at 8 p.m. in Beall Concert Hall. Tickets, available at the door, are $5 general admission and $3 for students and senior citizens. The concert is titled "Bells Dance, Drums Ring." It includes an Aztec-Mayan work, "Paquiliztli," by Mexican composer Rodolfo Halffter; "Fourscore" by Irwin Bazelon; and "Bells Dance, Drums Ring" by Robert Carl. Both Bazelon and Carl are New York composers, and the piece by Carl will be a West Coast premiere. The stage will be filled with exotic percussion instruments for a savage Hawaiian war dance, "Ku-Ka-Ilimoku," by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Christopher Rouse. "Lift-Off from Cape Cannabis" will present shirtless performers drumming in Taiko-esque ferocity. Aaron Trant and Jason Palmer, percussionists well known to Oregon audiences, will be featured as soloists in a vibraphone/marimba duet by David Friedman and Dave Samuels titled "Sunset Glow." The Oregon Percussion Ensemble, which specializes in 20th-century avant-garde classical works, was nominated for the Laurel Leaf Award in 1996 by the American Composers Alliance in New York City for their performances of modern percussion works. Music Director Dowd has performed solo percussion works in Europe, Canada and throughout the United States, and is professor of percussion studies at the University of Oregon. Thursday, Nov. 20--University Gospel Ensemble and Gospel Choir The University Gospel Ensemble and Gospel Choir will present an evening of traditional and contemporary gospel music at 8 p.m. in Beall Hall. Tickets, available at the door, are $5 general admission and $3 for students and senior citizens. The gospel concerts are extremely popular, and patrons are advised to come early for best seating. The box office opens at 7 p.m. The University Gospel Ensemble, directed by adjunct assistant professor John Gainer, is made up of advanced singers performing more difficult pieces from the traditional and contemporary Black gospel repertoire. The ensemble also incorporates creative choreography and movement which is an integral part of the African-American religious experience. Selections on the Gospel Ensemble's portion of the program include "Anybody Here," "Catch the Spirit," "He's the One," "Why Do We Sing," "The Real Meaning of Christmas" and "Kum-Ba-Ya." The ensemble also will sing Richard Smallwood's "Angels," which will include liturgical dances utilizing signing, mime and movement to visually represent the lyrical context of the song. The Oregon Gospel Choir, directed by adjunct instructor Julia Neufeld, is a 170-voice choir open to all singers, regardless of experience. Their program will include "Woke Up This Morning," "Stomp!" "Beauty for Ashes," "Song of Praise," "In the Arms of Jesus" and "When the Spirit of the Lord." -30- #P-2059/A&E