South Philly Big Band returns to Rittenhouse Soundworks for the 3rd Annual Harlem Nutcracker featuring vocalist Najwa Parkins.

Philadelphia based saxophonist, composer and educator Chris Oatts has been hailed as “a force to be reckoned with,” by All About Jazz. Oatts has performed, recorded or toured with the likes of Seal, Jazz Orchestra of Philadelphia, Chelsea Reed and the Fair Weather Five, Terell Stafford, the Philly Pops, Prism Saxophone Quartet and the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra. Oatts is the nephew of alto saxophone great, Dick Oatts whose debut album as a leader, First Quintet was released in 2017. The record features all original compositions, which pay tribute to the rich tradition of jazz while simultaneously forging a unique and personal style. Oatts is the founder and musical director of the South Philly Big Band, a group steeped in the tradition of the great big bands that continually commissions new works from Philadelphia composers. SPBB has performed shows with Walt Weiskopf, Ignacio Berroa and Gary Smulyan and in December 2017 released a Christmas EP of new imaginations of Christmas classics entitled, “SPBBXMAS.” The group maintains a residency in Philadelphia and plays host to a monthly Big Band Jam Session. Currently on faculty at Temple University, Oatts directs a dedicated saxophone group as well as the Swingin’ Owls: two 16 piece big bands that offer students and community members an opportunity to take part in playing iconic big band music. Oatts also teaches at the Shipley School located in Bryn Mawr, Pa, where he teaches Music Theory, Composition, production, small and large ensemble jazz playing, as well as private saxophone instruction.

Najwa Parkins is a Philadelphia-based vocalist, songwriter/composer, arranger, bandleader, and educator. Her voice has often been described as smooth, smoky, and soulful, with a profound range of emotion. She graduated from Temple University with a B.M. in Jazz Studies and Vocal Performance, after which released her self-produced debut album, Not the Next Someone Else, in 2011. She has shared the stage with a wide array of artists including Benny Golson, Larry McKenna, Bob Dorough, Nellie McKay, Donn T, Houston Person, Nicholas Payton, Phil Woods, and Branford Marsalis. Nawja is the featured vocalist on the 2013 release, New Celebration, by Phil Woods and the Festival Orchestra. She can be seen and heard on the Emmy Award-winning television show, Alex and the Kaleidoscope, which premiered in March 2014. In the winter of 2016, she toured nationally, portraying Rosa Parks in the Mad River Theater Works production of “Walk On: The Rosa Parks Story. Najwa graduated from New York University with a M.S. in Professional Writing in May 2016. She returned to Temple University in the fall of 2016, this time, as an adjunct faculty member in the vocal jazz department.

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Tickets $20 / Students $10
at the door Free Parking at the lot next door