One of Dan Atkinson’s fondest memories of the Rochester International Jazz Festival is getting his eardrums blown out at a Trombone Shorty show.
“I went to his show seven or eight years ago,” he said. “We made the mistake of sitting right in front of the speakers — it was the loudest thing I’ve ever heard.”
Atkinson, a junior at the Eastman School of Music, fell in love with the trombone after starting in middle school. His mother took him to see Jazz Fest shows throughout his childhood, which helped fuel a passion that led him to pursue studies in jazz performance. This summer, he’ll be leading a septet and playing his original compositions on the other side of the speakers.
“Last year I had a similar ensemble play at Stromboli’s, and Marc [Iacona, executive director of Jazz Fest] ended up coming to the show,” Atkinson said. “He stayed for a while and watched, which I was super grateful for, and I guess he liked what he heard — so he hired [the Dan Atkinson Septet] to play at the Wegmans Tent this year.”
Both Atkinson and Joey Stempien, a junior at the University of Rochester who is also performing at Jazz Fest, have hometown roots in Rochester. The two met in an All-County Jazz Band and have been friends — and frequent collaborators at Stromboli’s jam sessions — ever since. They have also both performed locally for years; Atkinson used to lead Bangers and Mash, a jazz quartet started by one of his teachers at Honeoye Falls Lima High School, and Stempien has been composing since the second grade.
“We all started playing in the Eastman Youth Jazz Orchestra, so that was really where I started building those connections between people, locals who are now Eastman students,” Stempien said.
His big band is composed of musicians from both the University of Rochester’s River Campus and Eastman, including Atkinson. Since the band’s inception, they’ve performed a litany of gigs, including at Stempien’s high school in Brockport, and recorded live albums on campus and at Bop Shop Records. For Stempien, whose band members range from hobbyists with non-music degrees to aspiring professional musicians, the group has grown and improved as the students have become closer.
“The people I bring in, they want to be there — they want to know the music,” Stempien said. “One of the coolest things [is] that I brought in these people from different facets of my life who would have probably never otherwise interacted, and people are now friends who might not have been friends otherwise.”
Through giving back to his community, Stempien has gained traction in the professional music world as well. At a local high school gig, he met saxophonist Jimmie Highsmith Jr., and Bill Tiberio, the music director of his school jazz ensemble, recommended him as a performer for Jazz Fest.
Tiberio was tapped by John Nugent and Marc Iocona to help schedule high school groups for performances at Jazz Fest, and looped in Stempien’s big band. To Tiberio, Stempien’s large body of original compositions and commitment to the Rochester area is a highlight of the group.
“I’ve been happy to schedule Joey’s group, as they are already out in the community performing gigs,” Tiberio said. “Like everybody in our area who has been involved with teaching and playing in the Rochester music scene for a long time, we are excited about seeing younger musicians at this festival, as well as all other venues in our area. The music will continue to grow with this next generation, and I am thrilled to see people like Joey taking on leadership roles.”
In the future, Stempien hopes to continue his studies in atmospheric science with a graduate degree — and potentially, through the music leadership experiences he’s gained, earn a separate degree in music. He also aims to keep the big band running, even as people transition in and out of the group. Atkinson plans to move downstate to New York City after graduation, but is thankful for the experiences he gained through his time in Rochester.
For now, both excitedly anticipate their performances at Jazz Fest, and being surrounded by performers and audience members all sharing the same passion.
“I’m excited to express my arrangements and my music with an amazing group of musicians who can do any music justice,” said Atkinson. “It’ll be a blast to do that in front of a larger audience.”
The Dan Atkinson Septet will perform at Wegmans Pavilion at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. June 20, and the Joey Stempien Big Band will be performing on the City of Rochester Jazz Street Stage on Gibbs Street at 4:30 p.m. and 5:15 p.m. June 28.
Stempien will also perform a free solo show on piano at the Central Library of Rochester and Monroe County at 12 p.m. June 23.
Alyssa Koh is a contributor to CITY.
This article appears in Dec 1-31, 2024.
