The Caltech Jazz Band, under the direction of Barb Catlin, presents the annual Jazz Guest Artist Concert featuring legendary percussionist/drummer Alex Acuña and saxophonist/flutist Mary Fettig on Saturday, Jan. 27 at 8 p.m. in Beckman Auditorium. Tickets are $5 for students, seniors and faculty; $10 for general admission and can be purchased by calling the Caltech ticket office at (626) 395-4652. Parking is free.  

Peruvian drummer and percussionist Alex Acuña started his career playing with Prerez Prado but is best known for his tenure with the jazz super group Weather Report. His contributions on the legendary album Heavy Weather, along with those of Joe Zawinul, Wayne Shorter and Jaco Pastorious, are recognized as defining moments in jazz history. Acuña is a top session musician and has recorded/performed with musicians from every genre – Paul McCartney, Ella Fitzgerald, Elvis Presley, Herbie Hancock, Antonio Carlos Jobim and many others. Acuña was the recipient of the Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in November.  

         Saxophonist/flutist, Mary Fettig rose to prominence when she became the first woman to play saxophone in the Stan Kenton Orchestra. In addition to Stan Kenton, she has toured with Flora Purim and Airto, Marian McPartland, Tito Puente, Toninho Horta, Joe Henderson and numerous short tours with celebrity acts. Fettig is active as the top-call woodwind player in the San Francisco Bay Area and also on the festival scene performing at Concord, San Francisco, Monterey, Playboy, Hollywood Bowl, Mt. Hood, Chicago, Detroit, Mobile, the world’s first Women’s Jazz Festival in Kansas City, Buffalo, Montreux and North Sea. 

         The Beckman Auditorium on the Caltech campus is located at 332 S. Michigan Ave. in Pasadena.