Ensembles
Numerous Jazz ensembles on campus include Afro-Cuban Ensemble, Jazz Combos and Vocal Jazz, among others. View additional descriptions for ensembles.
Your Mentors
Hafez Modirzadeh
Hafez Modirzadeh (Ph.D., 1992) focuses on creative and cross-cultural music, as well as jazz and ethnomusicology. Both an NEA Jazz Fellow and Senior Fulbright Scholar, his Grammy-nominated work on saxophones can be heard on Pi Recordings, while his published research can be found in Black Music Research, Leonardo, Critical Studies in Improvisation and Popular Music Studies. Composition grants include the MAPfund and Copeland, while other faculty positions include BANFF (Canada) and the California Jazz Conservatory. Email: hafezmo@sfsu.edu
Dianthe Spencer
Dianthe Spencer is a Professor of Jazz and Musical Theatre at San Francisco State University. She received her B.S. from Florida A&M; M.M. at Washington University in St. Louis; and EdD., University of San Francisco. Dee founded the Jazz Studies degree program in the School of Music at SFSU and served as director for five years. Her latest recording “Tranquility” was released in 2018. She is an Annual Screener for the GRAMMYs Music Awards. Her former students include recording artists/producers, Braxton Brothers, BEYONCE’S music director, saxophonist Tia Fuller, and LAUREN HILL’S music director, saxophonist Howard Wiley. Email: dspencer@sfsu.edu