Jazz Faculty at PLU| Director of Jazz Studies | University Jazz Ensemble/Combos Jazz Theory/Jazz History  Dr. David Joyner is Professor and Director of Jazz Studies at Pacific Lutheran University. He is a native of Memphis, Tennessee, mentored by jazz piano great James Williams. Dr. Joyner came to western Washington from the University of North Texas in Denton, where he held the position of Associate Professor of Jazz Studies from 1986 to 2000. He received his Bachelors degree in composition and Ph.D. in ethnomusicology from the University of Memphis, and his Masters degree in composition from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. Dr. Joyner has served as a clinician and adjudicator at festivals and workshops in Tennessee, Alabama, Texas, Ohio, Oregon, Nevada, California, New Mexico, and Washington. A scholar in jazz and popular music, he has written numerous published articles and books, including a chapter for The Cambridge History of American Music and the third edition of his history text American Popular Music, published by McGraw-Hill. He has free-lanced for over thirty years in the Memphis, Cincinnati, and Dallas/Fort Worth areas. He has performed with jazz artists such as Bobby Shew, Marvin Stamm, Marc Johnson, Ed Soph, and others. Dr. Joyner is a professional vocalist in both studio and live settings, and is a composer and arranger. He currently arranges big band charts for Jeff Coffin, saxophonist with Bela Fleck and the Flecktones and the Jeff Coffin Mu'tet, published by UNC Press. He is arranger, vocalist, and pianist for In Full Swing, a Dallas-based jazz vocal group act that appears with symphony pops orchestras across the countrywww.infullswing.net. Guitar |  Chris Spencer is a native of Virginia, graduating Magna Cum Laude with a degree in jazz guitar from the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston. Chris served for four years in the U.S. Air Force Band as guitarist and staff arranger. Chris also has an MBA from Georgia College & State University. Since moving to Seattle in 1998, he has quickly established himself as an important member of Seattle’s vibrant music scene. Chris is an extremely versatile performer, equally at home playing rock, funk, blues, R&B, gospel, country, and classical music. His area musical laisons include the Steve Tresseler Quintet, Joe Doria Trio, Lance Buller’s Monarchs, Byron Vannoy’s Meridian, Mark Taylor Quartet, New York Confidential, and many other Seattle based musical groups. Chris has his own recording studio, recording many for many local artists and record labels. Find out more about Chris at www.chrisspencercreative.com. Piano |  Dan Kramlich, recently returned to Seattle from Western Michigan University, where he received a Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Studies. While in Michigan, he studied with Fred Hersch, Billy Hart, and Dr. Steve Zegree. Dan currently performs with many local groups, including the Javatown Swing Orchestra, the Jim Sisko Quartet, The New Four, and his own piano trio. He has performed with such jazz greats as Slide Hampton, Randy Brecker, David Sanchez, and Bob Mintzer, and has performed in master classes for Rufus Reid, Eric Reed, Jim McNeely, and Clare Fischer. In addition to his work at PLU, Dan is the jazz piano instructor at Seattle Pacific University, and at Creative Music Adventures in Seattle. Bass |  Clipper Anderson is one of the most popular bassists in the Northwest. He was described by Seattle's "Earshot" jazz magazine as "a player for the connoisseur to savor." A native of Polson, Montana, Clipper played both french horn and bass in high school. He graduated from the University of Montana, having studied bass with Frank Diliberto. After a professional stint in the Spokane area, he moved to Seattle. Mr. Anderson has toured and played with a number of internationally-known jazz artists, including Randy and Michael Brecker, Toots Thielmanns, Herb Ellis, Bob Mintzer, Diane Schurr, Freddie Hubbard, James Williams, and many others. As a seasoned educator, Clipper has taught privately at Spokane Falls Community College, Eastern Washington University in Cheney, and numerous clinics and festivals at schools and colleges. For the past nine years, Anderson has been involved in various groups participating in a program called "Music For Youth." | Drum set |  Maria Joyner is an active musician and jazz educator in Western Washington. As an educator, Maria has taught private drum lessons for twelve years, and participated in jazz combo and jazz vocal workshops in Oregon, Washington, and Texas. She is currently in demand as a clinician working with many college, junior high and high school jazz bands throughout western washington. Maria has over ten years experience performing jazz, big band, rock, and country in the Seattle, Portland, and Dallas areas. While earning a bachelor's degree in jazz studies from the University of North Texas, she performed with such local Dallas groups as the Dallas Jazz Orchestra, Pete Peterson and the Collection. She has also made appearances with Herb Ellis, Jack Peterson, and the Jimmy Dorsey Band. She is former director of the Seattle Women's Jazz Orchestra, and frequently performs with Seattle's Emerald City Jazz Orchestra and the Jay Thomas Big Band, and leads her own trio. Maria was chosen by international audition to be a member of the 2004 Sisters In Jazz, a collegiate all-women jazz combo sponsored by the International Association for Jazz Education and Black Entertainment Television. With the SIJ, Maria performed at the IAJE annual conference in New York City and at the Mary Lou Williams Women in Jazz Festival at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. She is currently working on her masters degree at the University of Washington. To learn more about Maria, visit www.joyneronline.com | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||