Jazz Ensembles swing with Terell Stafford this weekend

On Friday and Saturday, Nov. 22 and 23, the Cornell University Jazz Ensembles, under the direction of Paul Merrill, will present two days of great jazz in Barnes Hall, including three concerts and a clinic with guest artist Terell Stafford. The shows are free and open to the public.

On Friday evening at 8, the Bissett and Appel Chamber Jazz Ensembles each present a set of three tunes, which sets the mood for the Cornell Jazz Lab Ensemble II, featuring guest trumpeter Stafford.

On Saturday at 11 a.m., Stafford will present a guest lecture/clinic on the stage of Barnes Hall, followed at 1 p.m. by a concert of two small groups: the Trommer Chamber Jazz Ensemble, led by Paul Merrill, and the CU Chamber Jazz Ensemble, directed by James Armstrong.

The Saturday evening concert at 8 p.m. opens with the Gussman Chamber Jazz Ensemble playing a set of six selections, two of which were written by members of the quartet: drummer Kevin Lowe's Shift and guitarist Peter Gerakaris's Black Fly Season. After intermission, the Cornell Jazz Ensemble I presents a set of six pieces, again featuring the artistry of trumpeter Stafford.

Born in Miami to musically inclined parents, Stafford picked up his first trumpet at the age of 13. Growing up in Chicago, and later in Silver Spring, Md., he studied classical music, but was always drawn to jazz.

While he pursued a degree in music education at the University of Maryland, Stafford played with the school's jazz band. He received his master's degree in 1993 at Rutgers University. During his time at Rutgers, he met saxophonist Bobby Watson, who invited him to join his group Horizon. Over the next five years, the knowledge and experience he gained on the bandstand performing with such stellar players as Watson, co-leader Victor Lewis and Shirley Scott balanced Stafford's education off the bandstand.

Since the mid-1990s, Stafford has been performing as an integral part of various jazz groups led by such stellar performers as Cedar Walton, Sadao Watanabe, John and Jeff Clayton and Herbie Mann, as well as with many of the New York-based big bands: Jon Faddis' Carnegie Hall Jazz Band, Wynton Marsalis' Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, the Mingus Big Band and the Village Vanguard Jazz Orchestra.