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Professor Skip Wilkins
Skip Wilkins, associate professor of music, has spent the summer performing throughout Europe with the Rostislav Fras – Skip Wilkins Quintet, promoting the group’s new album, Frydlant Nights. Beginning in May, the Czech-American jazz group has given performances in Berlin, Prague, and the Czech Republic.
Wilkins, on the piano, is touring with American saxophonist Neil Wetzel and drummer Gary Rissmiller, along with Czech saxophonist Rostislav Fras and bassist Josef Feco. They toured the United States together for the first time last February, including a performance at Lafayette’s Williams Center for the Arts, and have made numerous previous tours of the Czech Republic.
While on tour, Wilkins and the quintet performed at the Kyjov and Duba jazz festivals, as well as many jazz clubs and other venues. The anchor of the tour almost didn’t happen. The quintet was scheduled to perform and teach at The Karel Velebny Summer Jazz Workshop, in its 27th year, but the event was nearly canceled due to extreme flooding in the town of Frydlant, where it has always been held.
“We were just receiving this news as we arrived in Kyjov for the first performance. We are marveling at the wherewithal of our Czech hosts to scramble and arrange the logistics for a replacement option in just two days,” Wilkins says. Wilkins and the other musicians gave nightly performances during the week-long festival and then concluded the workshop with student concerts. As he has done at this workshop in previous years, Wilkins directed the Jazz Singers at the event.
The group’s repertoire includes compositions by various members of the group, including some of Wilkins’ own pieces. Wilkins will return to the Czech Republic for a multi-city tour in October.
Wilkins also has three albums with his group the Skip Wilkins Quintet, The Paint-Peeler, Skip Wilkins Quintet: Volume I, and Skip Wilkins Quintet: Volume II; two albums with flutist Jill Allen, Petty Theft and Too Much Fun!; and Skip Wilkins Solo–Live at Lafayette.