When Doug Tejada arrived at Fayetteville Technical Community College two years ago, he wanted to ramp up the College’s existing jazz ensemble.
“It’s important to get students out of that classical mindset where everything is geared toward developing musicians who can play in an orchestra,” the Fine Arts music instructor said. “That hasn’t been the case in my lifetime, and I’m pretty old.”
Under Tejada’s tutelage, the ensemble has grown to nine student musicians on various instruments and vocals.
This week, the group will take an important step by holding a free concert on Wednesday, May 4, at 7 p.m. in Cumberland Hall Auditorium. The concert will feature guest performer Lee Jean, a vocalist and guitarist who reached the Top 8 on American Idol in 2016.
It’s part of developing the live performance skills for students, a valuable asset when considering job opportunities for musicians.
“The idea is to make us more of a commercial music school,” Tejada said. “Every church, every bar, every club that has live music, needs someone with musical capabilities, especially for sound and sound designs for the places.
“As commercial musicians, you have a lot more doors open than just teaching.”