Saxophone great Steve Wilson (left) and the CCNY Graduate Jazz Ensemble that he directs, at the WBGO studio. Photo credit: Simon Rentner/WBGO
Of the handful of all-jazz radio stations still around, Newark-based WBGO88.3 FM is hailed in the industry as the pre-eminent home of the genre. And for the rest of the month, WBGO showcases The City College of New York Graduate Jazz Ensemble as part of its Jazz Appreciation Month.
Under the direction of renowned saxophonist and band leader Steve Wilson, the ensemble was invited to make its debut on the famed station operated by Newark Public Radio.
Antonio Ciacca (piano), Steve Lacey (guitar), Moto Kobayashi (bassist and the only undergraduate member), Fred Griggs (drums) and Jamile Staevie (vocals) performed Jule Styne’s “Just in Time,” along with three original compositions: “Oscar P” and “Jobim” by Antonio Ciacca, and “Nobody’s Soul” by Jamile Staevie.
Click here to hear their four-track recording in the WBGO studio.
Wilson, director of jazz studies in City College’s Division of Humanities and the Arts and a man described by the Wall Street Journal as being "essential to this city's jazz landscape,” noted the significance of the WBGO recording by one of CCNY’s multiple ensembles.
“The jazz station of the jazz capital of the world,” he termed 88.3 FM. “It is one of the most important and significant jazz stations -- actually one of the few full time jazz stations anywhere in the world.”
Wilson holds the rank of associate professor at CCNY.
About The City College of New York
Since 1847, The City College of New York has provided a high quality and affordable education to generations of New Yorkers in a wide variety of disciplines. Today The Chronicle of Higher Education ranks CCNY #2 among public colleges with the greatest success in ensuring the social mobility of our student body; at the same time the Center for world University Rankings places it in the top 1.2% of universities worldwide in terms of academic excellence. More than 16,000 students pursue undergraduate and graduate degrees in eight professional schools and divisions, driven by significant funded research, creativity and scholarship. CCNY is as diverse, dynamic and visionary as New York City itself. View CCNY Media Kit.