Egyptian Jazz Coalition
The Egyptian Jazz Coalition (EJC) is a collective of southern Illinois jazz professionals from which groups are formed as needed, to play for area events. Sizes of the groups are flexible, from solo piano or guitar to a 9-piece jazz ensemble with vocalist.
The following jazz performers, supplemented on occasion, are active members
of the EJC:
Bob Allison, trumpet
Phil Brown, bass
Ron Coulter, drums
Wayne Goodwin, drums
Mel Goot, keyboards
Tom Hensold, drums
John Hentschel, trombone
Steve Jacobson, guitar
Dick Kelley, saxophones
Trefan Owen, guitar
Tim Pitchford, trombone
Buddy Rogers, saxophones
Frank Stemper, keyboards
Jim Wall, bass
The Egyptian Jazz Coalition derives its name from the area of the country where it is based — southern Illinois, also known as "Little Egypt" — not, as a newspaper reporter once wrote, because it plays Egyptian jazz.
FourOnSix
FourOnSix is the jazz duo of guitarist, Steve Jacobson and bassist, Phil Brown. The group was formed between the two good friends in 1998, and has enjoyed performances at clubs and social events throughout Illinois, from Chicago to Carbondale, ever since.
In 1998, FourOnSix was a finalist for the Kennedy Center/U. S. State Department Jazz Ambassadors Program. The group performs a variety of jazz standards, as well as a number of originals, and on occasion, augments itself with a drummer. FourOnSix, along with the New Arts Jazz Quartet, is recorded on the album, Darkness Into Light, a release by Phil Brown. The group's name is borrowed from the popular Wes Montgomery tune, but also alludes to the number of strings on the bass and the guitar, respectively.
New Arts Jazztet
The New Arts Jazztet (NAJ) has been a mainstay on the southern Illinois jazz scene for 25 years. This popular jazz group, forged in the eclecticism of neo bop and the energy of contemporary jazz, performs an engaging selection of original works.
Equally comfortable in clubs or concert halls, the NAJ’s club performances have included Cincinnati’s Blue Wisp and Chicago’s Pops for Champagne, as well as other nightspots around the Midwest; its concert, clinic and festival engagements have comprised a number of universities and other performance venues throughout the Heartland.
The group has opened twice for guitarist, Stanley Jordan, has appeared with several other jazz artists, and
has performed as part of a live statewide television broadcast, Arts Across Illinois: Center Stage 2004, at WTTW/Channel 11, Chicago. Each spring, the New Arts Jazztet presents a formal concert as part of the Southern Illinois Jazz Festival, and is a featured ensemble at the Southern Illinois Music Festival each summer.
The group, along with the duo, FourOnSix, is recorded on the album, Darkness Into Light, a release by NAJ bassist, Phil Brown, a 2003 Illinois Arts Council Artist Fellow. The NAJ is featured on Brown's forthcoming CD, Bright Side, expected in 2009. Brown has penned almost 3 dozen originals for the New Arts Jazztet. The recordings, as well as booking information, can be found elsewhere on this web site.
Besides Brown, the group includes Bob Allison on trumpet/flugelhorn, Dick Kelley on saxophones/reeds, Tim Pitchford on trombone, Mel Goot on piano, and Ron Coulter on drums. Since 1983, the New Arts Jazztet has been in residence at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, where its members are School of Music faculty.
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Phil Brown Quartet
The Phil Brown Quartet (PBQ) came together as a studio group in Chicago in 2001 and is recorded on the compact disc, Hope Street Saunter. A stunning sold-out concert in Carbondale kicked off the release in 2003, and the CD has enjoyed significant airplay across the country. The PBQ is comprised of Fareed Haque on guitars, Bradley Williams on piano, Phil Brown on bass, and Tom Hipskind on drums. All but Hipskind were once students together at North Texas State University.
