Synthesis, 1994, Japan
BYU jazz group Synthesis combines swing, blues, jazz, Latin, and fusion styles to delight domestic and international audiences. They won DownBeat magazine’s Top College Big Band award in 2013 and have performed for prestigious jazz showcases, including the Rio das Ostras Jazz and Blues Festival in Brazil, the Pori Jazz Festival in Finland, and the Umbria Jazz Festival in Italy. The group is no stranger to sharing the stage with some of the best jazz talents in the world—including renowned singers StephenDuffy, Freddie King, and Todd Gordon—and have appeared several times on national television.
The joy Synthesis brings to audiences is best summarized in their historic 2016 tour to the Baltic states. Their performance at the Saulkrasti Jazz Festival in Latvia was so captivating that the audience called for multiple encores, even after the venue had shut off the lights.
To describe the appeal of Synthesis, Giuseppe Pasta, director of public affairs for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Italy, observed, “The public was involved by their joy, their unity, and their great music sound and sense of humor. All performances were terminated with requests for encore.”
