Jazz is not the only art form to contain improvisation—far from it. But in jazz the discipline of improvisation is developed to a very high level. Far from a casual, occasional exercise, improvisation in jazz is something that beginning players struggle to master, and that professionals spend their lives honing, refining, and changing. To this day, musicians study the recorded improvisations of such masters as Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, and Herbie Hancock in order to gain insights and inspiration.

Dr. Lewis Porter will explore jazz improvisation with Béla Fleck, the innovaive banjoist who leads the Grammy-winning band, The Flecktones. The presentation will consist of performances of short improvised pieces, followed by discussion. For each piece, the performers will explain the basis of the improvisation—there is always some starting point, often written out on music paper or memorized. After performing a piece and discussing it, the musicians will take questions from the audience. Four or five pieces will be performed in this unique 90 minute presentation.

Béla Fleck is certainly the best known banjo player in the world today. He has virtually reinvented the image and the sound of the banjo, performing all over the musical map and on a range of solo projects and collaborations, most notably with his group The Flecktones. Born and raised in New York City, Fleck began on guitar. From September of 1973, when he got his first banjo and entered the High School of Music and Art, the banjo became his full-time passion. He studied privately with Erik Darling, Marc Horowitz, and Tony Trischka. After graduation, he performed and recorded with Tasty Licks, and made the first of many solo banjo albums, Crossing the Tracks. He toured with Spectrum until 1981, when he joined the celebrated progressive bluegrass band New Grass Revival. In 1988, as part of a PBS music series, Fleck formed The Flecktones, which have since become an acclaimed group with a busy international touring schedule. They have appeared on The Tonight Show, Arsenio Hall, and Conan O'Brian. Fleck has also appeared solo on Saturday Night Live and Late Night with David Letterman. Fleck has won 8 Grammys, with 20 nominations across more categories than anyone in Grammy history.

Dr. Lewis Porter is a jazz pianist and Professor of Music at Rutgers University in Newark, where he directs the Master's program in jazz history. He is known worldwide for his teaching and for his many books and articles, including the acclaimed study John Coltrane: His Life and Music. He also edited The John Coltrane Reference, which appeared in January 2008. As a pianist and keyboardist, he has performed recently with such artists as Wycliffe Gordon, Ravi Coltrane, and Jane Ira Bloom. He performed in Europe in November 2007 with Dave Liebman and others, and is a member of the group Dharma Jazz, with Badal Roy and Vic Juris. His latest CD, recorded live at Siena Jazz, is the acclaimed Italian Encounter. Jazz Times recently described Porter as "a helluva piano player."