Twin Cities' jazz composer,
saxophonist and music educator Kari Musil received a $10,000 Artist
Initiative grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board in 2011 to compose a
CD of original jazz. Ms. Musil, also a member of the Nova Contemporary
Jazz Orchestra sax section, created ten new compositions for this
recording - some for the big band and others for various combinations of
improvising musicians within the group. Her work with Nova over the
past 20 years has fostered a unique collaborative relationship that
inspired her to to compose three exciting new charts for the band. Her
compositional goal for this project was to stretch Nova's musical
boundaries by incorporating elements of free jazz, and also by bringing
in a vocalist and a poet.
Musil, mostly a self-taught jazz composer, received a BA in saxophone performance from Moorhead State University and spent six years in the MSU Stage Band under the direction of Dr. Al Noice. She was also a member of IMP ORK, and one of the original musicians of BADFIT. She studied closely with Twin Cities' jazz legend, saxophonist Ed Berger for several years while holding down the lead alto chair in Jazz I at the University of Minnesota. After the birth of her daughter she moved to northern Wisconsin for a number of years to pursue a M.M. in music education from UMD, continuing to play and compose under the tutelage of George Hitt and Michael Pagan. She has been back in St. Paul composing, teaching and playing since 1998.
Musil, mostly a self-taught jazz composer, received a BA in saxophone performance from Moorhead State University and spent six years in the MSU Stage Band under the direction of Dr. Al Noice. She was also a member of IMP ORK, and one of the original musicians of BADFIT. She studied closely with Twin Cities' jazz legend, saxophonist Ed Berger for several years while holding down the lead alto chair in Jazz I at the University of Minnesota. After the birth of her daughter she moved to northern Wisconsin for a number of years to pursue a M.M. in music education from UMD, continuing to play and compose under the tutelage of George Hitt and Michael Pagan. She has been back in St. Paul composing, teaching and playing since 1998.
