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Shenandoah Conservatory is proud to serve as a site for an Essentially Ellington Regional High School Band Festival in Winchester, Virginia. Director of Jazz & Commercial Music and Associate Professor of Trombone Matthew Niess will serve as director of this year’s event. Through its annual Essentially Ellington program, Jazz at Lincoln Center (JALC) co-produces education-focused festivals designed to offer high school jazz bands of all levels the opportunity to perform the music of Duke Ellington and other seminal big band composers and arrangers. Participating bands receive professional feedback from JALC clinicians and other jazz professionals in their own backyard.

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Celebrate the 250th anniversary of America’s independence with the American Festival Pops Orchestra (AFPO)! Under the baton of Artistic Director, Peter Wilson, join the AFPO for a compelling journey through the American experience with musical classics of the concert stage and screen by great American composers. Enjoy “Rhapsody in Blue” by Gershwin and works by Copland, Sousa, and John Williams, while paying tribute to the Veterans who have defended this great nation for two and a half centuries. This family-friendly concert will also feature the AFPO’s embedded big band and rich musical talent unique to the National Capital Region.

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A Little Noon Music with the Shenandoah Conservatory's Tromblone Collective performing holiday favotites as well as arrangements by trombonist Tommy Pederson as recorded by the LA, California's "Hollywood Trombones"

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The Commercial Rock Ensemble is dedicated to performing commercial and Top-40 hits from past to present. The Power of Funk brings the groove to life in a high-energy tribute to the rhythms, basslines and bold spirit that define the genre. From pioneers like The Meters and James Brown to modern funk-infused rock by Red Hot Chili Peppers and Living Colour, this electrifying performance celebrates the lasting impact and unstoppable drive of funk music.

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The SonoKlect Series at Washington and Lee University will present Matt Niess and The Capitol Bones All Brass Big-Band in concert on Saturday, October 4, 2025, at 8:00 p.m. in Wilson Concert Hall, Wilson Hall. Admission is free and open to the public. A reception follows the performance.

The program will include two works by local composer and series director Terry Vosbein, marking the continuation of a long-standing artistic collaboration between Vosbein and Niess.

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Steve Williams Mighty Little Big Band

Reston Town Square Park, 11900 Market St., Reston, VA 20190

The Mighty Little Big Band is an 11-piece, pint-sized big band. Featuring some of the finest musicians in the Washington, D. C. metro area, the group was created in 2021 to perform the compositions (original and jazz standards) and arrangements of its leader, saxophonist, Steve Williams. Composer, arranger and saxophonist Steve Williams has enjoyed a thirty-five-year career performing many styles of music. He has appeared on numerous albums including the Latin Grammy winning (2008) “Caribbean Jazz Project/Afro Bop Alliance Big Band featuring Dave Samuels.” Steve’s big band album, “Steve Williams and Jazz Nation,” is available on OA2 Records and features Steve’s exciting arrangements and compositions. Steve is a former member of the United Stated Navy Band Commodores, serving as the band’s lead alto player and musical director, contributing over fifty compositions and arrangements.

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Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra

National Museum of American History

Jazz Rides the Rails Led by A. Philip Randolph, the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters was organized in 1925 to fight the substandard treatment and working conditions of African Americans in Pullman car service. To celebrate the centennial of this historic railroad labor union—the first of its kind—SJMO presents music highlighting railroads across America. Concert selections include "Last Train from Overbrook" by James Moody; "Blues in the Night" by Harold Arlen; and "9:20 Special" by Earle Warren, Bill Engvick and Jack Palmer.

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Sunday Art in the Park with Shenandoah Conservatory. Shenandoah Conservatory is pleased to join Reston Community Town Center in presenting a series of Sunday evening concerts in the Reston Town Center Park. Performances take place Sunday evenings in the summer at 7PM and are free and open to the public. Pack a picnic and join us in the park for an evening of classical musical!

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