The Saint Mary's University Jazz Combo is an intermediate level group with an emphasis on refining skills needed to improvise jazz. The group is open by audition and students participating in this group have generally taken the Workshop Combo or have had the equivalent experience. The Jazz Combo tours with faculty members on recruiting trips to area high schools and performs several concerts each semester. Tours have taken SMU jazz combos to London, Washington D.C., New York City, Chicago, Salt Lake City, Atlanta, and Kansas City as well as attending several conventions held by the International Association of Jazz Educators. In previous years, they have participated in I.A.J.E conventions in Chicago, New Orleans and Miami. In 1996, Jazz Combo I toured Mexico with the SMU Chambers. They made a similar trip to France last year and plan to tour in the Chicago area in March 2006. Jazz Combo I and the Jazz Ensemble both received excellent reviews at their University of MN/Mpls in 2001 as did Jazz Combo I at their Elmhurst Jazz Festival performances in 2002. They also perform on a regular basis throughout the semester at area high schools, art openings and Winona area clubs
