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Conad and Umbria Jazz Are Looking For New Talents - Register Today!

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Registration Deadline: May 3, 2017

For the sixth year running, Conad and Umbria Jazz are renewing their partnership to nurture young talent by promoting the new edition of the music contest for artists under 35.

The ten finalists will compete for the chance to play on the Festival stage (Perugia,
 July 7-16, 2017), along with a Spotify playlist, financial support for their careers and many other opportunities for exposure, such as playing on Il Grande Viaggio Insieme Conad tour.

Registration opened on 16th March for the Conad Jazz Contest, a competition for Italian and foreign musicians under 35, promoted by Conad and Umbria Jazz under the patronage of Region of Umbria and the Municipality of Perugia. Contestants can register for free until Wednesday May 3, 2017 by uploading three tracks onto the conadjazzcontest.it website.

This commitment to nurturing young talent will involve even more support for young musicians in 2017, including expanding their opportunities for exposure in front of the general public, while still offering financial support and help with their careers.

“This project was set up to create space for young talent and solid opportunities for them to further their careers”, explained Francesco Pugliese, the CEO of Conad, “we understand that when looking to the future you have to start with young people so we are bringing the project forward, offering them opportunities to showcase their talent and help the country grow. With this in mind, every year the contest is improved with new awards: not just financial prizes–although they are offered–but opportunities for young people to develop their talent and passion”.

The first major new feature for the sixth edition will be the chance for the 12 bands or soloists, chosen by the Technical Panel of Judges from all the contestants, to play during the first four stops in Italy of Il Grande Viaggio Insieme Conad (May-July 2017), a tour which, for the third year running, is taking Conad to the most beautiful squares in Italy to meet people and communities. Here, the 12 bands will compete live for the chance to be on the shortlist of the ten finalists, together with 4 bands already selected by the Technical Panel of Judges.

The live phase will be launched at the same time as the first leg of Il Grande Viaggio Insieme Conad tour (Syracuse, May 13- 14), marking the start of the Public Vote when the public can vote for their favourite band from the 12 groups through the website or app. The band with the most votes overall will be added to the shortlist of ten finalists and will win a €500 voucher to be spent on recording their own album in a professional recording studio.

The opportunities for exposure connected to Il Grande Viaggio Insieme Conad tour will also continue after the summer, when the top 3 will be able to perform their music during the final three stages (September 2017).

The ten finalists will also be able to enjoy another prize: thanks to the partnership with Spotify, the global music streaming platform, and Audioglobe, a physical and digital record company, they will be able to upload their tracks onto a special Spotify playlist for the Contest, containing the 30 tracks from the competition (3 for each band).

The final ranking from 1 to 10 (regardless of the popular vote) will be decided once again this year by the Artistic Panel of Judges, chaired by Renzo Arbore and including Marco Molendini, a music critic and journalist for “Il Messaggero”, Luca Conti, the editor of the “Musica Jazz” monthly magazine, Donatella Miliani, a journalist for the QN Group, and Giovanni Guidi, a pianist.

Bringing all his usual enthusiasm to his role as a judge, the chairman of the Umbria Jazz Foundation, Renzo Arbore, is focusing on expanding the contest’s appeal, as we can see from the energy and artistic creativity of contestants from previous years: “The really interesting point, and the reason for the contest’s excellent results, is that, thanks to the skill and creativity of many of our leading musicians—who even outdo the once unreachable Americans at times—Italian jazz has inspired new generations, who are getting into this extraordinary musical language that we have engraved in our DNA”.

Once again for 2017, the 1st placed band in the rankings will be included in the line-up for Umbria Jazz Winter #25 and will win €5,000 to support their professional development, having been recognised as the most talented band overall.

Individual musicians will also compete for a unique training experience: a place at the Berklee Summer School at Umbria Jazz Clinics 18. The most promising musician will be chosen from all the contestants by the conductor Peppe Vessicchio, the Contest’s Special Judge.

Online Voting Deadline: July 2, 2017

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