It’s incredibly exciting to be given permission to examine the ways in which music academia might not currently serve today’s collegiate vocal jazz community.
—Sara Gazarek
Eastman School of Music, of the University of Rochester, announces the launch of a newly conceived Jazz Voice track in the undergraduate Jazz and Contemporary Media degree program. To lead and design this new program, Eastman has appointed Sara Gazarek as Associate Professor of Jazz Voice within the Jazz and Contemporary Media (JCM) department. Joining Eastman after a 12-year tenure at the Thornton School of Music, of the University of Southern California, this two-time GRAMMY nominated vocalist has performed and/or recorded with internationally acclaimed artists including Fred Hersch, Kurt Elling, Terri Lyne Carrington, Billy Childs, John Beasley’s Monkestra, and is a founding member of the GRAMMY nominated vocal supergroup, säje. She has been a clinician, adjudicator and performer at universities, jazz camps and jazz festivals throughout the United States and Canada.
Jamal Rossi, Joan and Martin Messinger Dean of the Eastman School of Music states, “Given the breadth of her background as a performing and recording artist, coupled with her extensive teaching experience, Sara is the ideal musician to build our new program in jazz voice within the JCM department.”
“It’s incredibly exciting to be given permission to examine the ways in which music academia might not currently serve today’s collegiate vocal jazz community,” shares Gazarek. She continues, “by establishing new ways of thinking and teaching that celebrate, uplift and unify the next generation of jazz singers, and creating a musical bridge that jazz musicians – instrumentalists and vocalists alike – can interchangeably cross, Eastman is championing the future of this genre. I am entirely grateful to the school and the members of the JCM department for asking the question, ‘how can we help?’ and then creating the space to listen.”
Gazarek’s vision for this program seamlessly aligns with Eastman’s goals for it. With this launch, Eastman is creating a track for jazz singers within the existing jazz degree program that challenges the typical divide between jazz vocalists and instrumentalists. By creating a program with the singer’s experience in mind, Eastman is embracing new directions in the ever-changing landscape of the jazz community and the jazz voice genre. Over the coming year, Sara will work with faculty across the school, both within and outside the JCM department, to craft a curriculum that meets the needs of the talented musicians who will populate the program. Students should expect a syllabus of extraordinary performance opportunities with both large and small jazz ensembles, plus academic coursework in jazz and other genres that will broaden and enrich their understanding of this uniquely American art form; putting Eastman on the map as the place to be for jazz vocal artists and educators.
“Sara’s artistry is superb and she brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to launch the jazz voice program at Eastman,” says Jeff Campbell, chair of the JCM department. “We look forward to this next chapter in the legacy of our department.”
More than 900 students are enrolled in the Collegiate Division of the Eastman School of Music—about 500 undergraduates and 400 graduate students. They come from almost every state, and approximately 23 percent are from other countries. They are taught by a faculty comprised of more than 130 highly regarded performers, composers, conductors, scholars, and educators. They are Pulitzer Prize winners, Grammy winners, Emmy winners, Guggenheim fellows, ASCAP Award recipients, published authors, recording artists, and acclaimed musicians who have performed in the world’s greatest concert halls. Each year, Eastman’s students, faculty members, and guest artists present more than 900 concerts to the Rochester community. Additionally, more than 1,700 members of the Rochester community, from young children through senior citizens, are enrolled in the Eastman Community Music School.
Jamal Rossi, Joan and Martin Messinger Dean of the Eastman School of Music states, “Given the breadth of her background as a performing and recording artist, coupled with her extensive teaching experience, Sara is the ideal musician to build our new program in jazz voice within the JCM department.”
“It’s incredibly exciting to be given permission to examine the ways in which music academia might not currently serve today’s collegiate vocal jazz community,” shares Gazarek. She continues, “by establishing new ways of thinking and teaching that celebrate, uplift and unify the next generation of jazz singers, and creating a musical bridge that jazz musicians – instrumentalists and vocalists alike – can interchangeably cross, Eastman is championing the future of this genre. I am entirely grateful to the school and the members of the JCM department for asking the question, ‘how can we help?’ and then creating the space to listen.”
Gazarek’s vision for this program seamlessly aligns with Eastman’s goals for it. With this launch, Eastman is creating a track for jazz singers within the existing jazz degree program that challenges the typical divide between jazz vocalists and instrumentalists. By creating a program with the singer’s experience in mind, Eastman is embracing new directions in the ever-changing landscape of the jazz community and the jazz voice genre. Over the coming year, Sara will work with faculty across the school, both within and outside the JCM department, to craft a curriculum that meets the needs of the talented musicians who will populate the program. Students should expect a syllabus of extraordinary performance opportunities with both large and small jazz ensembles, plus academic coursework in jazz and other genres that will broaden and enrich their understanding of this uniquely American art form; putting Eastman on the map as the place to be for jazz vocal artists and educators.
“Sara’s artistry is superb and she brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to launch the jazz voice program at Eastman,” says Jeff Campbell, chair of the JCM department. “We look forward to this next chapter in the legacy of our department.”
About Sara Gazarek
Graced with an “impeccable” voice (Winnipeg Free Press) and hailed as an artist who “may well turn out to be the next important jazz singer” by the LA Times, two-time GRAMMY Award nominated vocalist Sara Gazarek has been one of the leading lights of an impressive generation of jazz vocalists since her brilliant emergence at age 20. While her subsequent career has been the picture of success – highlighted by five critically acclaimed albums, numerous world tours, an ardent fanbase, enthusiastic reviews, a teaching position at the University of Southern California and collaborations with such luminaries as Kurt Elling, Fred Hersch, Billy Childs and Larry Goldings, it is with her latest double-GRAMMY nominated album, Thirsty Ghost, and most recent four-song EP, Vanity, that Gazarek brings her musical expression stunningly into phase with her emotional maturity. Gazarek is a founding member of the all-female, GRAMMY nominated vocal ensemble, säje, and currently serves as Governor of the Los Angeles Chapter of the Recording Academy.About Eastman School of Music
The Eastman School of Music was founded in 1921 by industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman (1854-1932), founder of Eastman Kodak Company. It was the first professional school of the University of Rochester. Mr. Eastman’s dream was that his school would provide a broad education in the liberal arts as well as superb musical training.More than 900 students are enrolled in the Collegiate Division of the Eastman School of Music—about 500 undergraduates and 400 graduate students. They come from almost every state, and approximately 23 percent are from other countries. They are taught by a faculty comprised of more than 130 highly regarded performers, composers, conductors, scholars, and educators. They are Pulitzer Prize winners, Grammy winners, Emmy winners, Guggenheim fellows, ASCAP Award recipients, published authors, recording artists, and acclaimed musicians who have performed in the world’s greatest concert halls. Each year, Eastman’s students, faculty members, and guest artists present more than 900 concerts to the Rochester community. Additionally, more than 1,700 members of the Rochester community, from young children through senior citizens, are enrolled in the Eastman Community Music School.
