SOUNDING OFF

All That Jazz Since ’71

during Labor Day weekend, 25 musicians from the classes of 1974 to 1989 reunited to play big-band jazz one more time under the Bucknell Jazz & Rock Ensemble (BJRE) banner and relive the fun that began 50 years ago. The event at the Jazz Forum in Tarrytown, N.Y., owned by band member Mark Morganelli ’77, is the first of two planned anniversary celebrations. BJRE will gather again during Reunion Weekend, June 3–5.

To prepare for the concert, the players downloaded music from a shared drive and practiced at home. They gathered on Sept. 4 for a three-hour rehearsal before their two-hour Jazz Forum gig the next day. The reunions are the result of a project led by David Morse ’82 to gather and record the history of the student-led BJRE, which made music for 25 years — from fall 1971 to spring 1997. Barry Raphael ’74 and Dory Vanderhoof ’75 founded the BJRE, with inspiration from Professor Richard Brockhaus, philosophy, a band member, mentor and faculty adviser who died in August. — David Morse ’82

Photos: Nick Carter
Top: Barry Raphael ’74 directs “Country Road.”
Below: Alumni from the classes of 1974 to 1989 gathered for the musical weekend. Hear them play: go.bucknell.edu/BJREVideo
Barry Raphael ’74 directs “Country Road”
Alumni from the classes of 1974 to 1989 gathered for the musical weekend
Barry Raphael ’74 directs “Country Road”
Photos: Nick Carter
Top: Barry Raphael ’74 directs “Country Road.”
Below: Alumni from the classes of 1974 to 1989 gathered for the musical weekend. Hear them play: go.bucknell.edu/BJREVideo
Alumni from the classes of 1974 to 1989 gathered for the musical weekend