New York-based drummer Matt Wilson recently spent three days at the Capital University Conservatory of Music, offering students a selection of high-level workshops and performances.
Wilson is currently one of the most on-demand players and educators on the modern jazz scene. He is frequently recognized on “best of” and “top ten” lists, and his albums earn five-star reviews. He is a favorite of both critics and fans and a powerful educator as well.
Dr. Thomas Zugger, dean of the Conservatory of Music, created this event in partnership with the Jazz Arts Group because of JAG’s emphasis on an educational component.
“We knew we were going to get people coming in who loved working with students,” Zugger said. “It’s part of their mission at Jazz Arts Group. We knew the people they would bring in would love to just hang with our students, which they did.”
Wilson was accompanied on the first part of his trip by members of his band, Good Trouble, including a vocalist who also plays piano and a saxophonist. The trio worked with Capital jazz students in an improvisation class, as well as visiting the Big Band and the Jazz Lab and engaging with students there. The trip also included visits by Wilson, his band mates, and Capital University faculty to three area high schools for presentations there.
Wilson’s musical focus is percussion, but the insights he can offer students go beyond a single instrument.
“It’s not just drums or saxophone or voice, it transcends all the instruments,” Zugger said. “It is not just performance. It’s how you work with other people, what it’s like on the road, what sort of people you meet. It’s the entire package of someone who makes a living doing this.”
In the middle of the week, students, parents, and members of the community enjoyed a concert by Wilson and Good Trouble. For the first half of the show, they performed with Capital’s Big Band, playing one of Wilson’s compositions. For the second half, Capital faculty members Roger Hines, Michael Cox, and Tom Davis joined the visiting musicians onstage for a combined performance.
The response from the students, Zugger said, has been “extraordinary.”
“The energy of the room last night was amazing,” he said. “The students left really excited and inspired, which is exactly what you're hoping for. It’s really cool that they get to see this really super-high level of playing and then meet really down-to-Earth people who are spreading the love of music.”
Wilson concluded his trip to Columbus with a performance at the Lincoln Theatre, which students were invited to attend for free.
Dean Zugger plans to co-create additional events with local arts groups, emphasizing Capital’s connection to downtown Columbus. He is currently finalizing a collaboration between the Pro Musica Chamber Orchestra and the Capital Chapel Choir for January 2025. Plans with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra are also in the works.
“For me, just standing in the back and watching this whole thing unfold, I felt like this is why I do this,” Zugger said. “You have these moments that inspire you to go back and work, moments when you see the energy exchange, and you see the love of music being passed back and forth.
“There’s a lot of stuff that goes into what we do that is mundane, and when you see those moments that are inspiring for the students, you’re like, okay, this is why we do this. I mean, I practiced this morning.”
For more information about Capital's Conservatory of Music, visit http://dnkl.dlokoko.com/academics/conservatory-of-music/.