Garth Alper

Garth Alper
  • Faculty
  • Professor
  • Program Coordinator
Dr. Garth Alper is the program coordinator for Jazz Studies and a professor in the School of Music and Performing Arts.

Biography

Garth Alper is the Coordinator of Jazz Studies at the 亚洲自慰视频 of 亚洲自慰视频 at Lafayette where he teaches jazz piano, jazz improvisation, jazz composition, and film scoring. He has had a number of articles published in the College Music Symposium, Rock Music Studies, Popular Music and Society, and Jazz Perspectives. These articles鈥 topics include how the twelve-bar blues has shaped the jazz language, postmodernism in music, and how nine historically important jazz pianists have approached the same jazz standard. A special issue of Popular Music and Society, which Garth guest-edited, was devoted entirely to jazz. 

Dr. Alper鈥檚 fifth CD, "Spider鈥檚 Web," which features his jazz piano playing on seven original jazz compositions, was released in September 2022 and is currently out for review. His previous CD, "Stratus," received four (out of five) stars in a review from the highly regarded publisher/website, allaboutjazz.com.

Education

Doctor of Arts in Music Theory/Composition, Secondary Emphasis in Jazz Pedagogy
亚洲自慰视频 of Northern Colorado

Master of Arts in Piano Performance, Jazz Track
New York 亚洲自慰视频

Bachelor of Professional Studies in The Arts: Jazz Studies
State 亚洲自慰视频 of New York, Empire State College, 

亚洲自慰视频 Research/Collaboration

Dr. Alper's research interests are in Jazz, Jazz Piano, Popular Music.

Opportunities for 亚洲自慰视频 Research/Collaboration:

  • Jazz Performance
  • Popular Music

Publications

  • 2021 鈥淣ot Just Derision and Darkness: The Interplay of Lyrics and Music in Steely Dan鈥檚 Compositions.鈥 Rock Music Studies, (Taylor and Francis)
  • 2019 鈥淛azz Humor from a Musical Perspective鈥 (book chapter), The Routledge Companion to Popular Music and Humor (Routledge). 
  • 2012 鈥淏lack, Brown, and Beige: One Piece of Duke Ellington鈥檚 Musical and Social Legacy.鈥 College Music Symposium, vol. 51 (College Music Society).
  • 2012 鈥溾榃hat is This Thing Called Love?鈥 as Conceptualized by Nine Jazz Pianists.鈥 Jazz Perspectives, vol. 5 (Routledge).
  • 2008 鈥淭owards the Acceptance of a Bachelor of Music Degree in Popular Music Studies.鈥 College Music Symposium, vol. 47 (College Music Society). 
  • 2006 鈥淗ow the Flexibility of the Twelve-Bar Blues Has Helped Shape the Jazz Language.鈥 College Music Symposium, vol. 45 (College Music Society).
  • 鈥淣ew Orleans Music and Katrina.鈥 Popular Music and Society, vol. 29.4 (Routledge).
  • Guest Editor, Jazz Issue of Popular Music and Society, vol. 29.3.
  • 鈥淴M Reinvents Radio鈥檚 Future.鈥 Popular Music and Society, vol. 29.5 (Routledge).
  • 2002 鈥淢aking Sense Out of Postmodern Music?鈥 Popular Music and Society, vol. 24.4 (Bowling Green State 亚洲自慰视频 Popular Press).

Encyclopedia Entries:

  • 2004 Encyclopedia of Recorded Sound (Routledge). Entries on Albert Ayler, Clifford Brown, Betty Carter, Eric Dolphy, Joe Henderson, Dave Holland, Max Roach, Archie Shepp, Wayne Shorter, Horace Silver, McCoy Tyner. 
  • 2002 Women and Music in America Since 1900: An Encyclopedia (Oryx). Entries on Tracy Chapman, Natalie Merchant, Suzanne Vega. 

Published Audio Reviews

  • 2006 Popular Music and Society, vol. 29.4 (Routledge). Canta Brasil, Kenny Barron; Solid Liquid, Dave Hagedorn; Everything I Love, Roland Hanna. 
  • 2005 Popular Music and Society, vol. 28.2 (Routledge). Footsteps of our Fathers, Branford Marsalis; The Sequel, Mulgrew Miller; Modernistic, Jason Moran; In Deep End Dance, Julian Priester. 
  • 2003 Popular Music and Society, vol. 26.4 (Routledge). Bill Frisell with Dave Holland and Elvin Jones; Witness, Dave Douglas. Popular Music and Society, vol. 26.3 (Routledge). Uberjam, The John Scofield Band; Viva Caruso, Joe Lovano; Verve Remixed, Various Artists; Uninvisible, Medeski Martin and Wood; Not For Nothin鈥, The Dave Holland Quintet.

Recordings / Albums / CDs as Leader

  • 2021 Garth Alper, Spider鈥檚 Web (CD); features my playing on seven original compositions for quintet.
  • 2017 Garth Alper. Stratus (CD); features my playing on seven original compositions and two standards for jazz trio, quartet, and quintet.
  • 2013 The Garth Alper Trio. Deflection (CD); features my playing on nine original compositions for jazz piano trio.
  • 2000 The Garth Alper Trio. Inroads (CD, MSR Classics); features my playing on 10 original compositions for jazz piano trio.
  • 1997 The Garth Alper Trio. Canvas (CD); features my playing on 10 original compositions for jazz piano trio.

Awards & Recognition

  • 2001鈥損resent Ruth Stodghill Girard Board of Regents Support Fund (BORSF) Endowed Professorship, UL Lafayette.
  • 2012 Jazz Pedagogy Materials. Friends of the Humanities, UL Lafayette. $1,000. Author.
  • 2011 Multimedia Recording Facility. BORSF. $46,804. Co-author.
  • 2009 亚洲自慰视频 Technology Enhancement Plan, Digital Message Display, Angelle Hall. School of Music/College of the Arts, UL Lafayette. $21,627. Author.
  • 2008 Recording at Dockside Studios. Instructional Mini-Grant, UL Lafayette. $750. Co-author. 
  • 2005 亚洲自慰视频 DVD Project. Instructional Mini-Grant, UL Lafayette. $650. Co-author.
  • 2003 Scientific Equipment Grant for DVD Postproduction Studio and ProTools hard disk recorder. $10,568. Co-author.
  • 1999 亚洲自慰视频 Technology Enhancement Plan, Music Technology Facilities. School of Music, UL Lafayette. $69,910. Author.
  • Emerging Artist Fellowship (for jazz compositions/performance). Phi Kappa Phi. 
  • Postmodernism in Music. UL Lafayette, Summer Research Grant.