UNC Jazz Press

A seven movement original composition for large jazz ensemble, auxiliary percussion and narrator (optional). The thematic material presented in the various movements is programmatic in design, tracing events found in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. Literary events are realized muscially through the use of a multitude of timbres within the jazz orchestra (e.g., various mute combinations for the brass and extensive doubling for the woodwinds). Contemporary jazz compositional techniques are utilized throughout in conjunction with the composer's own compositional and orchestrational choices. Performance time is 60 minutes. The Suite was premiered by the award-winning University of Miami Concert Jazz Band in February 2001. Movements from The Suite received an Outstanding Recognition Award in 2002 "Original Extended Jazz Composition" category in Down Beat Magazine's International Collegiate Awards.
The Seven Movements are:
I. Overture for Narnia
II. The Children in the Wardrobe
III. The Land of Narnia
IV. The Turkish Delight
V. The Witch's House
VI. ASLAN: Still Deeper, A Magic Before the Dawn of Time
VII. The Great Battle

View all charts by Scott Cowan

SCOTT COWAN, a jazz specialist, directs the Western Michigan University Jazz Orchestra, coaches chamber ensembles and teaches jazz theory, jazz arranging, jazz improvisation, applied jazz brass and jazz appreciation. He has held faculty positions at the New England Conservatory of Music, Berklee College of Music, Longy School of Music and Florida International University. He has performed with the Ron Miller Ensemble, the Artie Shaw Orchestra, the Palm Beach Pops Orchestra and as a guest artist at the Glenn Miller Festival. He has appeared with entertainers including Jack Jones, Vinny Falcone, The George Shearing Quintet, Steve Lawrence, Eddie Gormet, Vince Damone, Michael Feinstein, Bobby Rydell, Diahann Carroll and Billy Eckstein; and as a studio musicin for celebrities such as Mike Wallace, Chris Everett, Donald Trump, Regis Philbin and Chevy Chase. He won the Boston Jazz Society Outstanding Jazz Soloist Award and was a finalist in the International Trumpet Guild Jazz Competition. His jazz compositions have been premiered at IAJE conferences and the Boston Globe Jazz Festival; faculty members of the New England Conservatory have presented recitals of his works; and recordings of his compositions have been made by the premier performing ensembles at the University of Miami. As a recording artist, he has performed with the Ken Schaphorst Big Band, Robert Cogan, Bob Moses, the Duke Ellington Repertoire Orchestra and the True Colors Big Band.