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June 26, 2017

Jazz at Lincoln Center Fosters Next Generation of Jazz Artists 3rd Annual Summer Jazz Academy

New York, NY
(June 26, 2017) —  

Jazz at Lincoln Center announces its 3rd annual premier high school program, Summer Jazz Academy, in residence at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York from July 17  – 30. Forty-four advanced high school jazz students from across the U.S. and Cuba were selected to participate in the two-week rigorous training institute designed and instructed by Jazz at Lincoln Center Artistic and Managing Director, Wynton Marsalis.

“We’re incredibly excited to celebrate our 3rd Annual Summer Jazz Academy at Bard College,” said Dr. Michael Albaugh, Summer Jazz Academy Program Director and Director of Operations, Education, at Jazz at Lincoln Center. “This year, we welcome 44 amazingly talented high school students who will spend two weeks in this jazz-centric environment working with the most dedicated and committed faculty anywhere. Through improvisation we will teach personal confidence, through swing we will teach good manners and team work, through the blues we will encourage emotional depth and determined optimism.”  
 

In May, 15 of the top high school jazz bands in the U.S. competed in Jazz at Lincoln Center’s 22nd Annual Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition and Festival. The organization continues the momentum of fostering the next generation of jazz talent with Summer Jazz Academy.

The program is a tuition-free summer intensive dedicated to providing a holistic educational experience and foundation for talented and aspiring high school jazz musicians.  Students will perform in big bands and small combos, receive private instruction, and experience classes in aesthetics, culture, history, performance practice and pedagogy. Students will gain insight to American vernacular music and jazz specific techniques, learn the communal history of jazz in a socio-political context, receive guidance on how to interact with an audience as an artist and entertainer, and gain awareness of the mission of jazz musicians today building on the aspirations laid by earlier generations.
 

Faculty for the program includes: Marcus Printup (Trumpet), Ted Nash (Saxophone), Vincent Gardner (Trombone), Helen Sung (Piano), James Chirillo (Guitar), Rodney Whitaker (Bass), and Marion Felder (Drums).

The curriculum and format is based on Jazz at Lincoln Center’s 30 year history of education in jazz performance and appreciation. In addition to this educational component, the Summer Jazz Academy program culminates with three public performances in Bard College’s Olin Hall featuring the student combos, student big bands, along with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis.

Public Performances:
All performances are held in Olin Hall located in the Fisher Center for the Performing Arts on Bard College’s Campus at 60 Manor Avenue, Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. Tickets can be purchased at: http://fishercenter.bard.edu/jazzatlincolncenter/

                                                                            
WYNTON MARSALIS OCTET

Opening Performance Featuring Summer Jazz Academy Student Combos

July 22-23, 7pm & 2pm Olin Hall

Join an all-star octet led by Jazz at Lincoln Center Managing and Artistic Director Wynton Marsalis, featuring trumpeter Marcus Printup, saxophonist Ted Nash, trombonist Vincent Gardner, pianist Helen Sung, guitarist James Chirillo, bassist Rodney Whitaker, and drummer Marion Felder.
 

JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER ORCHESTRA WITH WYNTON MARSALIS

July 29, 7pm Olin Hall

The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis (JLCO), comprising 15 of the finest jazz soloists and ensemble players today, has been the Jazz at Lincoln Center resident orchestra since 1988. This remarkably versatile orchestra performs and leads educational events in New York, across the U.S. and around the globe; in concert halls, dance venues, jazz clubs, public parks; and with symphony orchestras, ballet troupes, local students; and an ever-expanding roster of guest artists.

SUMMER JAZZ ACADEMY BIG BAND FINALE

Closing Performance Featuring Summer Jazz Academy Student Combos

July 30, 1pm Olin Hall
You won’t want to miss Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Summer Jazz Academy’s final performance of the Clark Terry Big Band, directed by Jazz at Lincoln Center Managing and Artistic Director Wynton Marsalis, and the Milt Hinton Big Band, directed by internationally renowned bassist and educator Rodney Whitaker. 

About Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Education Programs

Jazz at Lincoln Center’s education programs drive our organization’s efforts to advance the appreciation, understanding, and performance of jazz. Our programs have been developed under the guiding vision of Managing and Artistic Director Wynton Marsalis, who during his visits to schools throughout our nation observed that the caliber of jazz education was often inferior to that of other fine arts. In response, Jazz at Lincoln Center offers a continuum of jazz education programs that are designed to suit the varied interests and capabilities of children, teens, and adults. Students learn about jazz’s distinctly American heritage and history as well as its greatest musicians and compositions; they explore its connection to other art forms and study how to play jazz. Today, over two-thirds of Jazz at Lincoln Center’s programming is educational—reaching more than 1,000,000 individuals of all ages and experiences in all 50 states through concerts, webcasting, direct musical instruction and distribution of music scores free of charge.


Additional information may be found at jazz.org |
Facebook: facebook.com/jazzatlincolncenter | Twitter: @jazzdotorg | Instagram: @jazzdotorg | YouTube: youtube.com/jalc | Livestream: jazz.org/live

 

Jazz at Lincoln Center proudly acknowledges its major corporate partners:
Bloomberg, Brooks Brothers, Centene Charitable Foundation,
The Coca-Cola Company, Con Edison, Entergy, SiriusXM, Steinway & Sons,  The Shops at Columbus Circle at Time Warner Center, and United Airlines.