Back to News 
MILLIGAN UNIVERSITY, Tenn. (Oct. 24, 2022) – Milligan University’s music area will present a Homecoming concert titled “All that Jazz” this Saturday, Oct. 29, at 3:30 p.m., in the Mary B. Martin Auditorium in Seeger Chapel.
The concert features performances by the Milligan Orchestra, directed by Dr. Kellie Brown; the Milligan Concert Choir and Heritage, both directed by Dr. Noah DeLong; Milligan Women’s Chorale, directed by Kelly Davenport; and the Milligan Guitar Ensemble, directed by James West.
“The Homecoming concert is one of my favorite events of the year,” said Brown, professor of music. “All of our various music groups get to come together for a fun pops concert for the current Milligan community and our wonderful alumni.”
The concert will feature several soloists performing with the Milligan orchestra, including Jamie Buxton, assistant professor of music, as vocal soloist on Stephen Sondheim’s “Send in the Clowns.”
“Jazz chords and colors heavily influence Sondheim’s signature sound, and we hear glimpses of those influences in ‘Send In the Clowns,’ one of his most deliberately melodic pieces that has become a beloved staple in the American songbook,” said Buxton, who holds degrees in musical theatre from New York University and the University of Central Oklahoma, where she studied classical singing with New York City Opera’s Kay Creed.
Trombone soloist Dr. Hunter Mullins will be featured on the orchestra’s performance of “Georgia on My Mind.”
“The Milligan music area has been an important part of this institution and our surrounding community for many years,” said Mullins, who serves as adjunct professor of music at Milligan and teaches music at University School in Johnson City. “It is an exciting honor and pleasure for me to share a stage with the orchestra at Homecoming.”
Other performances by the orchestra include “At Last,” featuring Milligan senior Hope Davis, of Goshen, Ohio, as mezzo soprano soloist; “I Wanna Be Like You” from Disney’s “The Jungle Book”; and “The Pink Panther Theme.”
The Guitar Ensemble will present “Come Rain or Come Shine” and “All the Things You Are.”
Milligan’s vocal ensembles will present several pieces, including “Swinging on a Star” and “Love is Here to Stay,” performed by the Women’s Chorale; “Blue Skies,” performed by the Concert Choir; and “Java Jive” and “When I Fall in Love,” performed by Heritage.
“It has been fun preparing these wonderful vocal jazz arrangements,” said DeLong, who holds music degrees from Taylor University, Ball State University and the University of Iowa. “Audiences will enjoy the close harmonies and swinging, syncopated rhythms.”
The concert will close with a performance of “What a Wonderful World,” featuring the combined choirs and orchestra.
The event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact the Milligan music area at 423.461.8723 or visit www.milligan.edu/music.