Centre Dimensions wraps up another year of jazz Wednesday with its final concert of the year.

The 17-piece traditional Big Band will display its classical and contemporary jazz stylings at 8 p.m. in Esber Recital Hall.

"We want to put on a show that people are going to enjoy," director Dan Yoder said. "In a way, this concert wraps things up for the year, so I do pay attention to what the show is going to sound like to the audience."

For this concert, Yoder said there would be between 10 and 12 pieces of music performed, primarily swing-based style with a twist.

"Centre Dimensions is a contemporary Big Band," Yoder said. "So it's going to be playing music that's largely swing-based, but it is done with contemporary swing beats, music that has grown out of the old style of swing. The concert is going to include some variety as well, with a mixture of other music, including some Latin numbers."

Dave Jumper (senior-music education), who plays the trumpet for Centre Dimensions, said he hopes jazz will become a more popular art form in State College over time.

"Jazz isn't rising as much as it could be here in State College," Jumper said. "It's such an important art form, and it's a freedom of expression -- telling a language without words and expanding the imagination through improvisation. I'd definitely like to see more people interested."

Matt Clauhs (junior-music education), who plays alto saxophone for the group, said he thinks that community interest and support for jazz groups such as Centre Dimensions is based on experiencing jazz music and enjoying the fun elements of the music.

"Experience is the key word in jazz music," Clauhs said. "The point of jazz is to really communicate to the listener, so the audience has a very active role. There are also very attractive concepts, like a lot of rhythms and improvisation. You'll see in every song someone's going to get up and create a melody spontaneously, and that's very interesting to pick up on."

The music performed and created by Centre Dimensions will be a blend of pre-existing compositions as well as original music written by Yoder.

The group focuses on a more formal presentation of jazz music, presenting many different jazz styles in its concerts.

"Jazz is one of the most complex forms of music," Jumper said. "Most rock groups come from where jazz has been -- the rhythms and the beats, the music is all so complex. When people think of jazz, most of them think of old school Big Band stuff from the '50s, but there are all different styles of jazz music, like blues and bebop. We definitely do a mix of it all."

Yoder said he thinks the concert's variety makes it a fun, enjoyable performance for the musicians and the audience.

"I encounter a lot of people who don't know a lot about jazz," Yoder said. "But after watching a concert, the comment is usually how enjoyable it is, even though it might not be their kind of music. It's different than going to see an orchestra or a concert band because it's always slightly different -- the solos are never the same. There's a lot left to spontaneity. That's one of the exciting things about jazz -- even people who haven't seen a lot of jazz can really pick up on that."