NORWICH – The Chenango County Council of the Arts in Norwich kicks off its 2008/09 Performance Series on Sept. 27 with a free performance by the United States Military Academy Band’s Jazz Knights, co-sponsored by The Evening Sun.

For over 30 years, the Jazz Knights have brought musical excellence and variety to their audiences by presenting the best of Big Band jazz and popular music. Members of the group are graduates of America’s finest music schools. They are recruited and selected through a competitive audition process specifically for service in the United States Military Academy Band at West Point. Members of the band have played with such jazz icons as Count Basie, Buddy Rich, Woody Herman, Maynard Ferguson, Ahmad Jamal, and the Glenn Miller Band.

The Jazz Knights’ highlights over the years include playing with Benny Goodman at Lincoln Center in 1982, performing with the Duke Ellington Orchestra for the 200th Anniversary of the New York State Legislature, and twice appearing at the Hatch Shell for Boston’s Independence Day celebration. The Jazz Knights have also performed for festivals and music educators’ conventions, including International Association of Jazz Educators’ conventions, the Western International Band Clinic, the University of North Colorado Jazz Festival and the International Society of Bassists’ convention. Notable guests who have performed with the Jazz Knights include David Liebman, Jim Pugh, Scott Robinson, Emil Richards, Byron Stripling, John Clayton, Eddie Daniels, Steve Turre and James Carter.