“In sound and film, this seminar will review, discuss the great big bands of – Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller, Woody Herman, Stan Kenton, Don Ellis & Maria Schneider,” said Tony.  “The seminar will include recordings, movies, You Tube clips, and a full discussion of their impact on American music.  Participants will be introduced to the personal and professional lives of eight of these top jazz artists, the big bands which and the popular artists which they have spawned.”

The seminar will be held on Thursday mornings for four weeks from October 28 to November 11th at the University.

Tony is a retired professor of social work and a former faculty member of the College of Arts and Sciences at Roger Williams University in Bristol, Rhode Island where he taught for almost a quarter century.  He taught courses in the fields of social work, social research, the evolution of jazz and world religions.  A musician since 1943, he has played accordion, piano, keyboards, and a variety of brass instruments.

Tony has been a radio and TV broadcaster and has published a wide variety of works in the social sciences and jazz history. He currently hosts his own cable access program called "Jazz Bash."  His written works include a guide to establish legal regulation for the social work profession ("The Legal Regulation of Social Work Practice"), a book on wines ("The Wrath of Grapes") and a brief history of the Newport Jazz Festival.

Tony has also has written  various research articles as well as works on Stan Kenton, Don Ellis, Eddie Safranski, "How to Do Jazz Research," Urban Contemporary Jazz", and "All Jazz Is Fusion."  He is the Editor of "The Network," an Internet newsletter for the alumni, friends and fans of Stan Kenton.  He is currently working on his first mystery novel, "The Professor Was Dead."

In addition to La Salle, Tony is a graduate of St. Michael's College (Vermont), Boston College and has taken post-graduate courses at Smith School for Social Work; he lives with his wife Barbara on Aquidneck Island in Narragansett Bay.  Prior to moving to Portsmouth, they raised their children on the East Side of Providence, where Tony was a life-long resident.