EMS 8th Graders Perform with Jeff Antoniuk and the Jazz Update

Members of the Easton Middle School band had the rare honor of performing with professional Jazz Saxophonist Jeff Antoniuk and his band, the Jazz Update, live on stage at the Avalon.  The Talbot County and Maryland Arts Councils, the Avalon Foundation and the Dock Street Foundation joined together to generously provide artist-in-residence workshops with Antoniuk and his band for the Easton Middle 8^th grade band students.

Antoniuk is internationally respected as a jazz composer and musician. Now living in Annapolis, Maryland, the Canadian born artist appears on numerous recordings and has been consistently well received by critics.  He worked with students at the school in several sessions during band class.  At the end of the final week of the program, the 8^th grade musicians performed for their classmates in the morning, then performed a free public concert the same evening. Antoniuk and his band also performed several selections independently, and the concert included a brief history of the origin and development of jazz in the U.S.

“This is a phenomenal opportunity for our students,” said Donna Ewing, Easton Middle School Band Director.  “To perform in this wonderful theatre with professional musicians of this caliber is truly an inspiration. We are so grateful to the Avalon Foundation, Dock Street Foundation and the Arts Councils for making this possible.”