Emens Auditorium has been host to its share of legends. Last February, then 80-year-old blues guitarist B.B. King graced the Emens stage, and just more than a week ago, George Jones, one of the most prolific country songwriters in history, performed to a welcoming Muncie crowd.
Tonight, traditional jazz gets a new spin at Emens, with a performance by the Bob Mintzer Big Band. The group features Mintzer, a Grammy award-winning saxophonist and composer, and a cast of "who's who's" in the modern jazz scene, Larry McWilliams, performance director of jazz ensembles at Ball State, said.
"Bob Mintzer is one of the leading players and writer-arrangers today," he said. "He has a different take on writing and arranging and composing, and the band is full of heavyweights. He's got some of the great players of New York [City] in that band."
Mintzer, whose 2001 "Homage to Count Basie" won a Grammy for best large ensemble, has been nominated for the award 13 times since 1989 as a solo artist, big band leader and member of the fusion group the Yellowjackets.
Though Mintzer has performed as a part of national acts since the early 1980s, he said the thrill of writing, recording and performing has not grown old.
"There's plenty more to do, and I don't think I'll ever stop," Mintzer said. "Never say never, but that's my current thinking."
While Mintzer's primary artistic commitment is to jazz music, he has made forays into pop music as well, laying down studio tracks for distinguished artists such as James Taylor, Aretha Franklin, Queen and Steve Winwood.
Senior Ben Morrissey, who plays saxophone in Ball State University jazz ensembles, said Mintzer is a prominent influence on his playing.
"I have to listen to the older [jazz musicians] and the new guys, and he's one of the guys I listen to as the new generation of saxophone players," Morrissey said. Morrissey does not yet have a ticket to the show but said he's looking for someone to loan him the $5 Ball State student admission fee.
Throughout his more-than-25-year professional career, Mintzer has incorporated diverse musical elements and "his own touch," into the standard jazz format, McWilliams said.
"It's not like Count Basie or Duke Ellington, but it has hold overs from them," he said. "He takes some traditional jazz ideas and treats them a little differently with different harmonies and different arranging."
Mintzer said he draws inspiration for a variety of influences, including former Yellowjackets members who have experience in Latin, orchestral and rock music.
"Jazz music is an art form that reflects the now, and you're gonna be influenced by what's happening around you," he said. The idea is to integrate that with what's come before in a way that the music is fresh and sounds unique."
Though MoTini's in the Village is one of the only jazz venues in Muncie, Mintzer's fresh approach to jazz has the potential to appeal to audience members from many musical backgrounds - including Muncie-area country music fans, Morrissey said.
"I think people get this idea that jazz is gonna be above their head," he said. "I think they need to understand jazz is very approachable. As long as you go in with an open mind and listen, you'll more often than not find something you like."
Mintzer and his cast of jazz all-stars is set to hit the Emens stage at 7:30 p.m. tonight. Tickets are $5 for Ball State students, $20 for faculty and staff, $25 for adults and $10 for children.
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