Big Band Bash

Lisanne Lyons’s career began immediately following high school as the featured vocalist for the Air Force Bands. During her years in the service she performed and traveled worldwide with the NORAD Command Band, Travis AF “Band of the Golden Gate,” and the U.S. Air Force Academy “Falconaires.” She received her Bachelors and Master of Music and Doctorate in Music from the University of Miami Frost School of Music. As a student, she received two Down Beat “Dee Bee” awards for Best Jazz Vocalist and one for Best Jazz Arrangement. She was also invited to be a featured performer with Joel Grey on the NBC televised Orange Bowl half-time show, “You’ll Get a Kick Out of Cole.” Shortly after school, Cy Coleman selected her to replace Monica Mancini in the national touring company of his Tony award winning “City of Angels.”

Dr. Lyons has performed with the Woody Herman Orchestra, Maynard Ferguson Big Bop Nouveau, Arturo Sandoval, Larry Elgart, University of Miami Concert Jazz Band, Roanoke Symphony, Palm Beach Pops, Grand Rapids Symphony, Southwest Pops Symphony, Fort Worth Symphony, Las Olas Studio Orchestra, South Florida Jazz Orchestra, Sunrise Pops Orchestra, Ars Flores Orchestra, Gene Krupa Orchestra, XL Big Band in Sweden, Harry James Orchestra, Artie Shaw Orchestra, and numerous other bands across the country.

She has also performed with many of the world’s top jazz artists such as Maria Schneider, Bobby McFerrin, Mark Murphy, Four Freshmen, Mose Allison, Jon Hendricks, Don Braden, Paul Bollenbach, Ted Rosenthal, Ira Sullivan, Duffy Jackson, Jim Pugh, Harold Jones, Dave Berkman, Eliane Elias, Claudia Acuna, Bucky Pizzarelli, Gary Burton, Dennis DiBlasio, John Fedchock, Walter White, Kevin Mahagony, Brian Lynch, and many others. Lisanne has recorded two solo CDs, “Right as the Rain,” and “Smile,” with the John Toomey Trio. “Smile” has met with critical acclaim, including the Washington Post and Cadence magazine. In demand as a performer, adjudicator, arranger, and conductor, Dr. Lyons is currently director and founder of the jazz vocal program at Florida International University.

Inspired by the rich musical environs of his birthplace, New Orleans, it is no wonder that Patrick Hennessey has dedicated his professional life to the art of music.  As a professional musician with extended residencies in Southern California, Hawaii, and Florida, his performance credits include the touring Broadway shows A Chorus Line, Hello Dolly, Evita, Peter Pan, Grease, and Anything Goes. As a freelance musician he has played for such luminaries as Burt Bacharach, Sammy Davis Jr., Frank Sinatra, Liza Minelli, Natalie Cole, Johnnie Mathis, Bob Hope, Marvin Hamlisch, and Rosemary Clooney, to name a few. Selected big band experiences of note have included the Del Courtney Orchestra, the Glenn Miller Orchestra, the Harry James Orchestra, the Tom Kubis Big Band and performances with the Bill Watrous Big Band. In addition, Patrick held the position of principal trombone in the Royal Hawaiian Band, the only full-time, fully funded municipal band in the United States. He retired from the band in 2009 after twenty-six years of distinguished service.

An experienced and versatile educator, Patrick led the jazz ensemble program at the University of Hawaiʻi to national prominence, with performances at the Notre Dame Collegiate Jazz Festival, the Reno Jazz Festival, the Greater St. Louis Jazz Festival, and two appearances at the North Texas Jazz Festival. During his tenure he welcomed many renowned clinicians and guest soloists to work with his ensembles, including Jeff Jarvis, Jim Widner, Eric Miyashiro, Wycliffe Gordon, Bunky Green, Bill Cunliff, Kim Richmond, Bobby Sanabria, Emil Richards, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter and Gabe Baltazar. He has held adjunct positions at both Chaminade University and Brigham Young University – Hawai’i, and also served as the education director / co-artistic director of the Mānoa Jazz and Heritage Festival. Patrick also served as the Director of Bands at Hawaiʻi Pacific University, where he was charged with building a comprehensive band program. He concluded his career at Hawaiʻi Pacific University by leading the HPU Wind Symphony on a concert tour of the West Coast, with performances in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle.

Earning his Ph.D. in musicology at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, Patrick wrote his dissertation on Henry Berger (1844-1929), the legendary bandmaster of the Royal Hawaiian Band. Die Internationale Gesellschaft zur Erforschung un Förderung der Blasmusik (IGEB) selected his work for the 2010 Fritz Thelen Prize, awarded bi-annually for the outstanding dissertation in the field of wind music research. He also holds degrees in music education (MA) and trombone performance (BM) and maintains active membership in numerous professional and musicological organizations. He has presented his research both nationally and internationally and has published in the Journal of Band Research, the New Grove Dictionary of American Music, the IGEB Mitteilungsblatt, and Alta Musica.

Patrick continues to maintain an active career as a clinician, adjudicator, educator and performer. Since moving to Florida in 2012, his performance experiences include Johnny Mathis, Jerry Lewis, the New York Tenors, the Alan Parsons Project, Celtic Thunder, and the Indigo Girls. He has also performed with and guest conducted the Melbourne Municipal Band while serving on the organization’s Board of Trustees. Additional community groups include the Central Florida Winds and the Dog Bones. Patrick is currently a member of the Space Coast Symphony Orchestra and the Director of the Stetson University Jazz Ensemble.