UTEP’s department of music debuted its first Music on the Plaza concert, an event free to attend at the heart of UTEP’s creative center of art, Fox Fine Arts Plaza on April 9.
The event, which will take place every Friday in April, at 12 p.m., featured the UTEP Jazz Ensemble, led by Kenny Capshaw, the director of Jazz Bands and was hosted by the Student Engagement and Leadership Center (SELC) and Dean of Students.
Attendees enjoyed food and activities while strolling around during the event to the jaunty jazz rhythms presented by their very own local UTEP music students and artists.
Future Music on the Plaza events will feature different UTEP musical groups including the Percussion Ensemble on April 16, the Symphonic Band on April 23, and the Wind Symphony on April 30, giving a fresh sound at each event.
Friday’s performance was a show of talent and fortitude by the Jazz Ensemble, as students like Johnathon Melendez gave an exceptional performance on trumpet and Javier Velasquez on piano.
Jaunty and uplifting, the tunes performed at the show bolstered the essence of newly arrived spring with even cheerful laughs between switching conductors, as well as a special surprise guest, Paydirt Pete, who wandered into the plaza during the performances.
Other well-known groups around UTEP, who setup stands for attendees to peruse, included the National Honor Society in International Psychology, the UTEP Bookstore, the Institute of Cardiology El Paso, and SELC among several others.
The Music on the Plaza will continue to run throughout the month of April on Fridays. Special event parking for attendees is located on the top floor of the Sun Bowl Parking garage.
Attendees are required to abide by UTEP’s COVID-19 regulations, which include wearing a mask and social distancing.
A full list of UTEP’s upcoming events may be found at https://minetracker.utep.edu/events.
Sven Kline may be reached at prospector.utep.edu; @SvenKline on Twitter.
