Vermont Jazz Center Presents Annual Workshop And Concerts: August 11th to 17th

The Vermont Jazz Center will present its twenty seventh annual summer workshop this year from August 11th to the 17th at the Putney School in Putney, Vermont. As a part of this workshop, the VJC will offer two concerts to be held at the Loft at Cotton Mill Hill in Bratttleboro, VT, on August 15th and 16th. The Faculty Gala will take place on Thursday, August 15th at 8:00 PM and will include artists Sheila Jordan and Jay Clayton (vocals), Valery Ponomarev, Howard Brofsky and Alex Brofsky (brass), Pete Yellin (saxophones), Dave Stryker (guitar), Michael Cochrane, Gene Rush and Eugene Uman (piano), Marcus McLaurine (bass) and Steve Johns (drums). The Student Extravaganza will take place on Friday, August 16th and will include performances by six ensembles under the direction of VJC faculty, as well as presentations by vocalists with a professional rhythm section. Over the years these two performances associated with the Summer Workshop have become favorites for lovers of jazz in the area. Both concerts offer a variety of accessible jazz that includes a steady shifting of instrumentation and engaging vocal interpretations over a program of original compositions and familiar jazz standards.

The Vermont Jazz Center's annual summer workshop is the cornerstone of their entire program. It was implemented twenty seven years ago by VJC's venerable founder, Attila Zoller at his home in Newfane, Vermont. Zoller invited students from around the world to study with him at his rural abode in the woods on Wiswall Road. Stories of students visiting, living and jamming with the master and the great artists he invited and informally called “faculty" abound. In fact, Zoller built dorms to accommodate the steady turnover of students and jazz musicians that would come visit him. The workshop was initially not limited to the summer as it is now. The attractions of cross country skiing in the day and jamming at night allured many of New York's best jazz musicians to join Zoller in his vision of a county jazz retreat. Many working jazz musicians, from New York to Tokyo remember with fondness the early days of the Vermont Jazz Center and consider it a pivotal educational experience in their development.

Attila Zoller's tradition is still alive, although with his passing in 1998 it has lost some of its mystique. The program continues at the Putney School and still features a stellar faculty, many of whom were originally chosen by Zoller himself. The curriculum now includes theory and composition classes, jazz arranging and master classes for each instrument. There is also a listening hour, ensembles and the esteemed late night jam sessions. One can hear the music coming from the Putney School at all hours during the summer workshop. Students this year are coming from as far away as Japan and England to partake in this event. Most of the students are professionals and dedicated amateurs who take jazz quite seriously. The VJC carries on Zoller's tradition of recognizing the musical tradition as something paramount in the lives of all participants.

The week-long summer jazz workshop concludes with two feature events that are both open to the public: on Thursday evening the faculty will present a Gala Concert and on Friday evening the students will perform their annual Extravaganza. Both concerts will take place in Brattleboro at The Loft, a performance space located in the Cotton Mill Hill Complex next door to the Vermont Jazz Center's studio. This year's concerts will not take place at Landmark College as they have the last two years. Tickets may be reserved by calling the Vermont Jazz Center at (802) 254 9088 and leaving your name and number. They may be purchased directly at Mainly Music and Maple-Leaf Music in Brattleboro. For further information, please check the VJC's website at www.vtjazz.org.