U-M School of Music, Theatre & Dance jazz trumpet professor Bill Lucas is in U-M’s Duderstadt Studio this month working on a new project — Gershwin on the Fringe — that taps into the lifeblood of Gershwins’ creativity by bringing a classical brass quintet together with a jazz combo. The resulting CD project will be released this spring with concerts in Ann Arbor and Detroit. Professor Lucas plays both jazz and classical music regularly as he is also a member of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. Other U-M faculty involved include David Jackson (trombone) and Andrew Bishop (woodwinds). The Duderstadt Studio is a vibrant resource for U-M students and faculty with the best available in audio and video technology. The project is funded by Michigan’s School of Music, Theatre & Dance faculty research fund with matching money from the Office for the Vice President for Research. It is part of the U-M Gershwin Initiative’s broad impact on creative life at the University of Michigan.

The musicians pictured bring together the best of jazz and classical talent. Featured are bassist Paul Keller, drummer Pete Siers, pianists Ellen Rowe and Phil Kelly as well as Bishop and Lucas. Additionally the Lighthouse Brass Quintet makes its recording debut by melding the talents of trumpeters Rich Stoezel and Bill Lucas, the french horn of Bryan Kennedy, trombonist Dave Jackson, and the tuba of Matt Brown