The concert, hosted by the UCF School of Performing Arts, will be a medley of songs decided right before the show. This technique, known as “calling tune,” is common among jazz musicians, said UCF trumpet professor John Almeida. A musical virtuoso, Morrison is adept with the piano, trumpet, saxophone, double bass and all the brass instruments.

“We don’t know how many instruments Mr. Morrison will bring to the concert. He has a steamer trunk full of instruments and you can never tell which ones he’s going to bring out,” Almeida said.

The UCF Jazz Professors are are Jeff Rupert, Michael Wilkinson, Per Danielsson, Richard Drexler, Bobby Koelble and Marty Morell. All are music faculty members at the university and active performers in the jazz industry. In addition to their solo works, together as a group they create albums that consistently reach the top 50 in the jazz charts. Most recently, their album Do That Again reached No. 6 in JazzWeek.

Tickets may be purchased in advance online or from the UCF School of Performing Arts Box Office and are $20 for general admission, $10 with a student ID, and free for students with UCF IDs. Doors will open at 8 p.m.

For more information about the .

The festival’s opening-night concert at the Nicholson School of Communication Auditorium will be highlighted by Russell, who has performed and recorded with David Bowie, Paul Simon, Steely Dan and other stars. Individually, Russell has recorded five CDs and won a Grammy in 2012 for her appearance as a featured artist on the soundtrack for the HBO series “Boardwalk Empire.”

The vocalist was born into a musical family. Her father was Louis Armstrong’s longtime musical director, and her mother was a bassist/guitarist/vocalist who attended Julliard and performed with several groups. Her next performance after leaving the UCF is at Carnegie Hall the following week.

Opening up for Russell will be the UCF All Star High School Jazztet. The group will be made up of select high school musicians who compete for the opportunity to perform at the festival. The band will be coached by the UCF jazz faculty for two days culminating in the festival performance.

The second night of the UCF festival will be kicked off by The Jazz Professors, who will be playing the music of composer Johnny Mandel. In 2010, the Jazz Professors recorded the album Live from the UCF-Orlando Jazz Festival, which reached the Top 20 on JazzWeek.  The band’s second recording Do That Again rose to No. 6 on the national jazz charts, and was No. 39 in the top 100 jazz albums for 2014.

The band is made up of Jeff Rupert, UCF’s director of jazz studies; Richard Drexler,  who teaches jazz bass; Per Danielsson, who teaches jazz piano; Michael Wilkinson, jazz trombone faculty member; and Marty Morell, who teaches jazz drum set.

Concluding the festival will be The David Hazeltine Trio, with Hazeltine on piano, David Wong on bass, and Jason Tiemann on drums.

Hazeltine, who made his professional debut at age 13, has performed with Charles McPherson, Ed Thigpen, Eddie Harris, Chet Baker and others. Currently he is on the faculty at State şŁ˝ÇÖ±˛Ą of New York at Purchase.

Both Russell and Hazeltine have been featured on musician Marian McPartland’s NPR radio program.

“We strive to bring artists of the highest caliber to the UCF campus, ones that are rarely, if, ever performing in the region,” Rupert said. “Artists and collaborations of this nature are unique and profound, and we are gratified to present Catherine Russell and David Hazeltine – who both swing with authority – to Orlando.”

The UCF-Orlando Jazz Festival begins both nights at 8 p.m. Tickets each night are $20 or free for students with a current ID.

For more information and tickets, go to http://ucforlandojazzfestival.ucf.edu/.

The Jazz Professors’ new album, Do That Again, has climbed to No. 13 on the JazzWeek album chart in its third week of release. Meanwhile, The Blues is Alright, a CD of performances by UCF students, is keeping famous company among the “Most Added” albums.

Do That Again is the second album from The Jazz Professors, a group of six UCF faculty members who are also seasoned performers. Having recorded and toured with a veritable “who’s who” of the jazz realm, The Jazz Professors include director and saxophonist Jeff Rupert and Marty Morell, a former member of the Bill Evans Trio.

UCF’s student ensemble players are rubbing shoulders with the likes of Kevin Eubanks, the Wayne Shorter Quartet, and Grace Kelly on JazzWeek’s “Most Added” chart. The Blues is Alright, by the UCF Jazz Ensemble I and Jazz Workshop, features three original songs as well as new and classic arrangements of several jazz standards.

Do That Again and The Blues is Alright are published by UCF Music’s label, Flying Horse Records. Both records are available for purchase. Digital downloads are available from most major online music retailers.

JazzWeek is the definitive Jazz and Smooth Jazz national radio airplay chart—a weekly report of the top 50 jazz and smooth jazz recordings played on radio stations across the United States and Canada. Radio reporters and industry subscribers receive the weekly Jazz Fax or Smooth Fax with the current chart each Friday.