April 15, 2010; Monterey, CA; The Monterey Jazz Festival is proud to announce the results of the 6th Annual Next Generation Jazz Festival, incorporating MJF's 40th Annual National High School Jazz Competition. A full list can be found on the Festival's web page montereyjazzfestival.org
Results by Category
In the High School Big Band category, top honors went to the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts (Los Angeles, CA), directed by Jason Goldman. The runner-up was Rio Americano High School AM, directed by Josh Murray. Third place went to Folsom High School Jazz Band 1, (Folsom, CA), directed by Curtis Gaesser. All three bands will perform at the 53rd Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.
In the High School Combo category, top honors went to the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts G (Los Angeles, CA), directed by Jason Goldman. Second place went to the Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences A (Santa Monica, CA), directed by Evan Avery. Third place went to Berkeley High School A (Berkeley, CA), directed by Scott Dailey. The Los Angeles County High School for the Arts G will perform the 53rd Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.
In the High School Vocal Ensemble category, top honors went to Folsom High School Jazz Choir I (Folsom, CA), directed by Curtis Gaesser. Second place went to Los Angeles County High School for the Arts (Los Angeles, CA), directed by Pat Bass. Third place went to Hamilton High School Academy of Music (Los Angeles, CA), directed by Jim Foschia. The Folsom High School Jazz Choir and the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts Vocal Ensemble will perform the 53rd Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September. 2010 is the third year in a row that Folsom has been the top High School Vocal Ensemble.
In the College Big Band category, top honors went to California State University, Northridge A (Northridge, CA), directed by Matt Harris. Second place went to University of Nevada, Las Vegas I (Las Vegas, NV), directed by David Loeb and Nathan Tanouwe. Third place went to Azusa Pacific University (Azusa, CA), directed by David Beatty. California State University, Northridge A will perform at the 53rd Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.
In the College Vocal Ensemble category, top honors went to Mt. San Antonio College Singcopation (Walnut, CA), directed by Bruce Rogers. Second place went to Sacramento State University Jazz Singers (Sacramento, CA), directed by Kerry Marsh. Third place went to American River College (Sacramento, CA), directed by Art Lapierre. Mt. San Antonio College Singcopation will perform at the 53rd Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.
In the Conglomerate category, top honors went to the Jazzschool Monday Night Studio Band (Berkeley, CA), directed by Keith Johnson. Second place went to the American Music Program (Portland, OR), directed by Thara Memory. Third place went to the Jazzschool Thursday Night Studio Band (Berkeley, CA), directed by Keith Johnson. The Jazzschool Monday Night Studio Band will perform at the 53rd Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.
In the Open Combo Division, top honors went to California State University, Northridge 1 (Northridge, CA), directed by Matt Harris. Second place went to the Chase Morrin Group (San Diego, CA), directed by Chase Morrin. Third place went to California State University, Northridge 2 (Northridge, CA), directed by Matt Harris.
The Monterey Jazz Festival is also proud to announce the winner of the Next Generation Jazz Festivals Composition Competition. John Sturm, from Princeton High School in Princeton, New Jersey, won with his composition, Sounds of Dusk which will be performed by the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra on the Jimmy Lyons Arena Stage on September 19, 2010. He will receive the 3rd Annual Gerald Wilson Award and a cash prize. For a complete list of top ensembles, outstanding soloists and scholarship recipients, please visit www.montereyjazzfestival.org. See below for a complete list of the performers at the 53rd Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September, 2010.
Day by Day Review
The 6th Annual Next Generation Jazz Festival got off to a spectacular start on Friday, April 9th with a standing room-only crowd of 1,500 jazz fans for the highly-anticipated Kick-Off Concert. Opening the show were ensembles from Texas Southern University, who entertained the crowd prior to the performances by the NGJF Judges, including Alan Pasqua (piano); Billy Harper (tenor saxophone); Paul Contos (alto saxophone); Aaron Lington (baritone saxophone); Terri Lyne Carrington (drums); Andy Martin (trombone) Ray Drummond (bass); Corey Christiansen (guitar) and vocalists Matt Falker, Michele Weir, and Jenifer Barnes. Artist-In-Residence Dianne Reeves also performed, and got the largest-ever audience for the Next Generation Jazz Festival on their feet with a standing ovation. The jazz masters performed in small combos and all-star groups which set the standard for the high energy and excitement to be felt throughout the weekend. After the conclusion of the Kick-Off Concert, a large number of students remained to participate in the traditional Student Jam Session, hosted by Berklee College of Musics Nadia Washington Quartet.
Prior to the start of the concert, the Monterey Jazz Festival presented its annual Salute to Jazz Education, hosted by local radio personality Barry Brown. The event recognizes educators, student participants, volunteers, and the many supporters of the Festival's year-round Jazz Education Programs with plaques named in honor of past MJF Board members. Monterey Mayor Chuck Della Sala opened the Salute by issuing a proclamation of Jazz Weekend Monterey in honor of the Next Generation Festival.
Saturdays activities included over ninety back-to-back performances in five locations in downtown Monterey, the largest amount of shows ever produced by the Next Generation Jazz Festival. Tourists and fans alike gathered in large numbers at the historic Fishermans Wharf and Cannery Row, the Portola Hotel & Spa, and the Monterey Conference Center. The participating bands performed with precision, taste, and professionalism that belied their young looks on stage.
In addition, several clinics were held at the Next Generation Jazz Festival, including two separate vocal clinics with Dianne Reeves and Nadia Washington. Ms. Reeves brought up four young vocalists who then performed in front of the crowd, with Ms. Reeves providing pointers, tips input, and encouragement.
Early Saturday evening, after a long afternoon of performances, students packed the Serra Ballroom to hear the announcement of the top High School Big Bands, Vocal Ensembles and Combos, and soloist and scholarship awards. As usual, explosive applause rang out in support of the soloist winners, scholarship winners, and for the top groups from their fans.
The Showcase Concert that evening was a preview of the 2010 Monterey Jazz Festival, which included the big bands from Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, Rio Americano High School, and Folsom High School; the Folsom High School Jazz Choir and the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts Vocal Ensemble; and the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts G combo.
Only at the end of the evening would it be known that Los Angeles County High School for the Arts Big Band earned their second appearance in a row on the Arena Stage - and their third time since 2007.
After the conclusion of the Showcase Concert, students continued to play music for several more hours in a jam session hosted by the house band for the evening, the combo from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Sunday morning may have brought a rainstorm to Monterey, but that didnt dampen the enthusiasm for the final components of the Next Generation Jazz Festival: the Middle School, Conglomerate, College Big Band, and College Vocal Ensemble performances. In the Steinbeck Forum, six middle school bands - some with members that were barely teenagers - played with intense devotion and ebullience to the room of proud parents and fans. In addition, a special clinic on performance tips improvisation was held by the middle school adjudicators Dave Loeb, Dave Gregoric, and Dr. Howard Harris. All gave valuable advice to the young performers.
Downstairs in the Serra Ballroom, the Conglomerate Division was also underway. Representing the best-of-the-best high school musicians in a particular region of the country, each band was an all-star congregation of young players. For the second year in a row, Berkeleys Jazzschool Monday Night Studio Band won top honors (the Jazzschool also took third place with their Thursday Night Studio Band), with the American Music Program from Portland as the runner-up. The Jazzschool Monday Night Studio Band will perform in the Night Club at the 53rd Monterey Jazz Festival on September 19, 2010.
The College Big Band Division featured some of the most professional-sounding groups in the nation. Fluid and commanding in their performances, each group showcased their unique interpretations of big band literature. The California State University, Northridge A took top honors, with second place going to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas I. Third place went to Azusa Pacific University. For the second time in three years, California State University, Northridge A will perform at the 53rd Monterey Jazz Festival in September.
Sunday afternoon was College Vocal Ensemble time in the Steinbeck Forum, with each of the six top schools showing their sophisticated and daring harmonic sounds. In the end, Mt. San Antonio College Singcopation took top honors, with second place going to the Sacramento State University Jazz Singers. Third place went to American River College. Mt. San Antonio College Singcopation will make their debut at the 53rd Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.
Also on Sunday, behind closed doors, live auditions for the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra were taking place. The Next Generation Jazz Orchestra, one of the premier high school bands in the country, is the Monterey Jazz Festival's national high school showcase band, filled with all-star musicians from around the country. The prestigious orchestra will embark on a 10-day North American tour, with five performances slated in Cleveland, the Toronto Jazz Festival, the Montreal Jazz Festival, Burlington, Vermont; and New York Citys Jazz Standard, from June 30 - July 7, 2010.
Student musicians also auditioned for the Jimmy Lyons Scholarship, a four-year, full tuition scholarship to Berklee College of Music, named in honor of MJF's founder.
After two days and nights, with nearly one hundred twenty events in five locations, performed by over sixty-three participating groups, the 6th Annual Next Generation Jazz Festival came to a close, marking the largest attendance of fans, musicians, and performances in the events forty-year history. All the students, fans, judges, and educators who came to the Next Generation Jazz Festival will have memories of 2010 that will carry into the future of their extraordinary weekend in Monterey.
