UWS Music School Director Set For Concert At Neighborhood Institution

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — The Bloomingdale School of Music has provided classes for kids of all backgrounds on the Upper West Side for nearly 50 years, and its recently appointed Director of Jazz is set for a special CD release concert at the neighborhood institution.

The Daniel Bennet Group, led by saxophonist Bennet who joined the school's faculty at 108th Street between West End and Broadway in February, will celebrate the release of the group's ninth studio album — "New York Nerve."

The upcoming show is part of Bloomingdale's Free Faculty Concerts Series, which take place most Fridays at 7 p.m. within the school's David Greer Concert Hall.

The modern jazz concert on Friday will include Bennet playing the saxophone, flute and clarinet, along with Koko Bermejo on the drums and keyboard, and Kevin Hailey on the electric bass.

The group has received stellar reviews from NPR, the Boston Globe, and the UK Jazz Journal — among others.

• You can find out more about the concert — HERE.

"It's a wonderful place to learn Jazz! Our students learn the history and style of this music," Bennet told Broadway World when he accepted the job at the Upper West Side school. "Every ensemble performs in our concert hall."

For those who might not be familiar with the history of the Bloomingdale School of Music, it is one intertwined with the Upper West Side.

It was founded in 1964 by David Greer, who was the organist at the West End Presbyterian Church at West 105th Street.

The initial enrollment in 1964 was 75 students taking lessons for 50 cents to a dollar.

"From its beginning, the Bloomingdale House of Music, as it was first known, brought amazing vitality to an Upper West Side community that was already growing in diversity," reads the school's website.

By 1966, the music school's enrollment had ballooned up to 500 students, which prompted the move to its current location.

The school purchased and renovated the brownstone at 323 W. 108th St. to transform it into a space to teach music.

Its core values remain to this day as Access, Diverse and Inclusive, Community, Expression and Connection, and Excellence.

The Bloomingdale School of Music offers classes from early childhood to adulthood.