Trumpeter/vocalist Jumaane Smith to Perform

Performance Music at The University of Scranton will welcome Jumaane Smith and Friends for a performance of “Louis, Louis, Louis!” Sept. 23. The concert, which will also include an appearance by The University of Scranton Singers, will begin at 7:30 p.m. at the University’s Houlihan-McLean Center, Mulberry Street and Jefferson Avenue.

Admission is free, with seating on a first-come, first-seated basis.

Smith and his band recently performed “Louis, Louis, Louis!” at New York City’s Jazz at Lincoln Center. The show is a tribute to the work of three iconic 20^th-century musicians – Louis Armstrong, Louis Jordan and Louis Prima.

Meanwhile, the student choir will perform several pieces at the show in celebration of Family Weekend at the University, according to Performance Music Conductor and Director Cheryl Y. Boga.

Smith has a longtime association with Performance Music, going back to his local visits with Juilliard’s Jazz Orchestra.

“For all these years, I’ve taken advantage of my friends. With Jumaane, I kind of adopted him,” joked Boga, noting Smith served as an early mentor to her son, professional jazz and classical trumpeter Joseph Boga. 

A highly talented trumpeter and vocalist, Smith is perhaps best known for being a member of both Michael Bublé band and the house band for Harry Connick Jr.’s daytime TV show. But, he is also a virtuosic jazz soloist who has played in venues around the world, recorded a solo album and performed for two sitting U.S. presidents.

“He has grown so much musically. He’s singing, he’s writing, he’s producing. And he’s working with a lot of big names,” Boga said of Smith, a protégé of jazz great Wynton Marsalis.

Smith has played on albums that have sold more than 25 million copies worldwide and won three Grammys. In addition to Bublé, Marsalis and Connick, he has collaborated with an eclectic array of pop and jazz luminaries, including Quincy Jones, Wyclef Jean, Justin Bieber, Jackie Evancho, Diddy, Natalie Cole, James Ingram, Ravi Coltrane and Chris Botti.

His other accomplishments include performing at the Grammy Awards with Stevie Wonder and the Jonas Brothers, recording “As I Am” with Alicia Keys, appearing on the “American Idol” soundtrack, and scoring and performing the music for the film, “Handsome Harry.”

Boga said it’s always gratifying to see old friends like Smith continue their association with Performance Music.

“I still think of them as kids, but it’s really neat to see them as grown men,” she said. “I’m so proud of them when they come back here, and I see all that they’ve accomplished, and that they’re still being them and living their life in a way that gives back.”

For further information on the concert, call 570-941-7624, email music@scranton.edu or visit scranton.edu/music. For more on Smith, visit jumaanesmith.com.