The concert, featuring selections from Oliver Nelson's 1961 album, The Blues and the Abstract Truth, takes place one hour prior to that evening's 8:30 p.m. Detroit Symphony Orchestra classical concert and is free for all DSO ticket holders.

Born in Milwaukee and based in New York, Carl Allen's profound and propulsive rhythms have provided soulful and syncopated support for nearly three decades, establishing Allen as a successful drummer, sideman, bandleader and entrepreneur. Also a talented educator, he has served on the jazz faculty at The Julliard School since 2001 as a drum instructor and coordinator of small ensembles. Currently, he is the Interim Artistic Director of Jazz Studies. Allen has over 150 recordings to his credit, both as a sideman and a leader, including his most recent, Get Ready (2007), his Mack Avenue gospel/Motown accented debut release on which he collaborated with Whitaker.

Rodney Whitaker, one of the leading performers and teachers of jazz double bass in the United States, is professor of double bass and Director of Jazz Studies at the Michigan State University College of Music. He is a member of the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, received national recognition performing with the Terence Blanchard Quintet and has toured internationally as a featured performer with the Roy Hargrove Quintet. He is a consultant with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in the development of jazz education at The Max and has served on the faculties of University of Michigan and the Juilliard Institute of Jazz. Featured on more than 100 recordings, from film to compact discs, he was nominated for a Juno Award for his 2006 release Let Me Tell You About My Day.

The Civic Jazz Orchestra is one of nine student groups in the Detroit Symphony Civic Youth Ensemble (CYE) that provide advanced training for both jazz and classical musicians. The 500-plus members of CYE benefit from training by Detroit Symphony Orchestra musicians and guest artists, including Itzhak Perlman, Midori, Yo-Yo Ma and Branford Marsalis. -- www.detroitsymphony.com