Rennes 2 is pleased to announce the coming arrival of celebrated jazz musician, arranger-composer, and influential educator Steve J. Haines. Always an active double bass player, he has played extensively with Chad Eby, Wycliffe Gordon, Joel Frahm, Ralph Bowen, Joe Chambers, Joey Calderazzo and Fred Wesley; and has recorded with Jason & Branford Marsalis, Peter Bernstein, and Jimmy Cobb, among others.
His first album as a leader, The Steve Haines Quintet: Beginner's Mind (2003) received international critical acclaim and was hailed as “one of the best inside/outside records of the year.” He has also released three more albums as a leader: The Steve Haines Quintet with Jimmy Cobb: Stickadiboom (2009), Secret Stash (2017), and the recent Steve Haines and the Third Floor Orchestra (2019). He also orchestrated and arranged the musical Ella: The Life and Music of Ella Fitzgerald.
"My discipline as a musician encompasses many passions,” says Steve Haines, “including my work as a double bassist, composer, arranger, teacher, and most important of all, student.”
He is also the director of UNCG’s Miles Davis Jazz Studies Program, a position he has held for 20 years, as well as being the recipient of a 2019–20 North Carolina Jazz Fellowship and a finalist for the 2010 Jazz Knights Commission.
In addition to the events taking place on Rennes 2's Villejean Campus, he will also be playing at various musical venues in and around Rennes. A full list of events in which he will be participating is available below.
Steve Haines will be accompanied by 3 other jazz teachers from UNCG for a series of concerts in Brittany (Brest, Rennes, Saint-Brieuc, Granville) organized by Rennes 2 Faculty Erwan Boivent and Emmanuel Parent. Don't miss the kick-off concert on Thursday, March 5 on the Villejean campus.
* Following the government's announcements on the COVID-19 situation, Rennes 2 University has decided to take new precautions. As of Monday, 16 March, all events planned by the university will be canceled.
Events at Rennes 2 University: | ||
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Wednesday, March 4 | Jazz Theory lecture, a review of theoretical notions and prerequisites for the analysis of jazz, room 304 (Building O) | 3:00 - 5:00pm |
Thursday, March 5
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Concert “A Transatlantic Sextet” in partnership with the Conservatoire de Rennes and the Festival Jazz à l'Etage, Tambour (Building O), 5€/15€, with Chad Eby, Thomas Heflin, Ariel Pocock, Erwan Boivent & Stéphane Stanger | 8pm |
Monday, March 9
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Jazz Analysis I, “The Majesty of Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington”, room O304, (Building O); registration required: emmanuel.parent [at] univ-rennes2.fr (emmanuel[dot]parent[at]univ-rennes2[dot]fr) | 4 - 6pm |
Tuesday, March 10
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Jazz Listening I, Bibliothèque de musique (Building O), free entry | 12:45 - 1:45pm |
Friday, March 13
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Jazz History, CM Histoire du jazz lecture, L2, amphitheatre B019 | 3:15 - 4:45pm |
Tuesday, March 17
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Jazz Listening II, Bibliothèque de musique (Building O), free entry | 12:45 - 1:45pm |
Wednesday, March 18
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Jazz Analysis II, room O304 (Building O), registration required: emmanuel.parent [at] univ-rennes2.fr (emmanuel[dot]parent[at]univ-rennes2[dot]fr) | 3:45 - 5:45 |
Tuesday, March 24
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Jazz Listening III, Bibliothèque de musique (Building O), free entry | 12:45 - 1:45pm |
Thursday, March 26
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Final concert with the Big Band Universitaire around “Nutcracker Suite” (Tchaikovsky/Strayhorn/Ellington), in partnership with l'Orchestre Symphonique du Conservatoire de Rennes, Auditorium du Tambour (Building O), free entry | 8:30pm |
Off-campus Events : | ||
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Wednesday, March 11 | Public lecture, at "L'Autre Lieu" (médiathèque du Rheu), in partnership with l'école de musique de La Flume and the Festival Jazz à l'Etage | 4 - 6pm |
Thursday, March 12 | Concert at Jazz à l’Etage, Erwan Boivent invites Steve Haines, L’Etage, free entry | 7:45pm |
Saturday, March 14 & Sunday, March 15 |
Opening Concert at the Opéra de Rennes with the Big Band Universitaire, in partnership with l'Orchestre Symphonique du Conservatoire de Rennes |
6pm & 4pm |
Monday, March 16 | Conference and workshop at the Department of Philosophy at the université de Nantes | 1:30 - 5pm |
Friday, March 27 | “Soul Crushing Pedagogy in Jazz Education”, conference for teachers of Pont supérieur (74 rue de Paris, Rennes) | 10am - 12pm |
Summary of Conference Topics:
Jazz Analysis, The Majesty of Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington
Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington were master orchestrators. We will look at examples from their brilliant, highly swinging and endearing arrangements and orchestrations of Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s “Nutcracker Suite” from 1960. We may not be able to enjoy the Russian vodka and dancing that Billy experienced as he wrote this distinguished work, but we can live vicariously through the music. Additionally, we will bring context to this work by reviewing the typical arranging styles that came before.
Jazz Listening, The Importance of Listening
Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears! Through the lens of music, we will discuss what it means to listen. We can’t allow secondary sources to distract us; we must learn directly from the music, our primary source. These sessions will teach you the what, how, and why of listening, and will offer fun, practical interactive examples. These lectures are designed for students, performers, arrangers, composers, and teachers.
Soul Crushing Pedagogy in Jazz Education
Why does jazz these days sound so bad? Why is it difficult to feel this music, or to hear melodies and pulse? Jazz has lost its sense of individuality. In this session, we will discuss the roots of Black American Music, and its dreadful treatment in music schools.
* Please note that, for the most part, these lectures will be held in English.