Education News

NYC Vocal Jazz Workshops with Carolyn Leonhart, Presented by New York Jazz Academy, Now Registering

Source: New York Jazz Academy Publicity
November 24, 2009

NYC Vocal Jazz Workshops with Carolyn Leonhart, presented by New York Jazz Academy, are now registering interested students. Led by Carolyn Leonhart, long-time vocalist with Steely Dan, acclaimed jazz singer, and professor at Berklee School of Music, these workshops are open to teens and adults at all levels. For jazz vocal enthusiasts, these weekly workshops offer a hands-on exploration of all elements of jazz singing. Workshop participants will work on personalizing tunes, develop a feel for time signatures other than ...

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The 8th edition of the KoSA CUBA: One-Week Study Program and Fiesta Del Tambour

Source: Michael Ricci
November 24, 2009

March 7-14, 2010

KoSA is proud to present its 8th edition of the KoSA Cuba Workshop and Fiesta del Tambor (music festival) taking place in Havana. Participants will be hosted at the historic Hotel Riviera in central Havana.

Course of Study: The KoSA Cuba Workshop is a one-week immersion in Cuban rhythms, music, and culture. Daily classes are given on conga, bongo, timbales, bata, drumset and other instruments by some of Cuba's top artists. All instruments are supplied on site. ...

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New on JazzPianoOnline.com: Improvising over Just in Time

Source: All About Jazz
November 24, 2009

Improvising Over Just In Time

The melody of this 1956 standard tune is, you could say, spare. The basic motive is composed of two notes a half step apart that are repeated in quarter notes up to 15 times in each section. To say that Anthony Wonsey's solo over the chord changes to this tune is in contrast to this tame theme is an understatement to be sure. His energetic and exuberant solo from his 2004 Sharp Nine trio album ...

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Berklee Holds Scholarship Auditions in Istanbul for the First Time

Source: Michael Ricci
November 20, 2009

Berklee College of Music, the world's leading institution for the study of contemporary music, will be holding audition and interview events (A&I) in Turkey for the first time as part of the college's World Scholarship Tour, offering talented musicians the chance to be awarded a scholarship to attend the college. The events, hosted by Modern Mzik Akademisi (MMA) in Istanbul, November 22 to 26, will include clinics, lectures, an information session, a jam session, and a music educator's forum. For ...

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PlayJazzNow Releases Bebop and Odd Meter Playalong Tracks

Source: Michael Ricci
November 18, 2009

The innovative jazz education website PlayJazzNow.com has just released a new series of downloadable backing tracks. The latest sets of tracks delve into both classic and contemporary jazz materials. BEBOP STANDARDS is the new collection of tunes popularized by Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and their “worthy constituents" in the 1950's. PlayJazzNow offers a fresh take on some of the most beloved and often performed standards from this era, available exclusively as high fidelity mp3 files. ODD METER BASICS will help ...

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Andreas Oberg and Jimmy Bruno Form the Artistworks Guitar Project

Source: Michael Ricci
November 13, 2009

Two of today's greatest jazz guitarists collaborate for the first time ever for 5 intense days in Napa California at the studio of ArtistWorks. Video footage of the Guitar Project and behind the scenes video and audio are to be released. So what happens when two world class guitarists get together for the first time? What if you close the door and tell them “go do something new together"? Jimmy Bruno and Andreas Oberg had never met until a few ...

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Nation's Top High School Jazz Bands Selected for Swing Central at 2010 Savannah Music Festival

Source: All About Jazz
November 10, 2009

Savannah Music Festival (SMF) has selected twelve outstanding high school jazz bands from more than 50 applications to participate in the fifth annual SWING CENTRAL High School Jazz Band Competition & Workshop. Under the leadership of pianist/educator/composer Marcus Roberts, the esteemed clinicians of SWING CENTRAL include Jeff Clayton, Wycliffe Gordon, Jim Ketch, Marcus Printup, John Clayton, Gerald Clayton, Jason Marsalis, Jim Ketch, Dave Stryker, Roland Guerin, Ted Nash, Obed Calvaire, Terell Stafford, Leon Anderson, Chris Crenshaw, Rodney Jordan, Bill Peterson, ...

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Stop Fiddling with Your Instrument and Learn to Read Music

Source: All About Jazz
November 10, 2009

There's an old musician's joke that goes something like this: Want to know the best way to make a guitarist to turn down their volume? Put sheet music in front of them.

All jokes aside, it's possible to perform music without any knowledge of music theory just as it's possible to memorize a speech without knowing how to read. But reading music puts you in league with the big masters. Let us help you with the basics. To refine your ...

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