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Monterey Jazz Festival Announces 2012 Next Generation Jazz Festival Results

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68 Big Bands, Combos, Vocal Ensembles, and Special Guests from 11 States Performed Throughout Weekend of March 30-April 1, 2012 Top Groups Will Appear at 55th Monterey Jazz Festival, September 21-23, 2012

Monterey, CA: The Monterey Jazz Festival is proud to announce the results of the annual Next Generation Jazz Festival, celebrating the 42nd National High School Jazz Competition.

A full list of top groups, scholarship and award winners can be found on the Festival's Web site.

Results by Category

In the High School Big Band Division, top honors went to the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts (Los Angeles, CA), Jason Goldman, director. The runner-up was Folsom High School Jazz Band I (Folsom, CA), Curtis Gaesser, director. Third place went to Rio Americano High School “AM” (Sacramento, CA), Josh Murray, director. All three bands will perform at the 55th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.

In the High School Combo Division, top honors went to the Berkeley High School Combo A (Berkeley, CA), Sarah Cline, director. Second place went to Los Angeles County High School for the Arts (Los Angeles, CA), Jason Goldman, director. Third place went to ArtsWest High School (Eagle, ID), Clark Sommers, director. The Berkeley High School Combo A will perform at the 55th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.

In the High School Vocal Ensemble Division, top honors went to Folsom High School Jazz Choir I (Sacramento, CA), Curtis Gaesser, director. Second place went to Los Angeles County High School for the Arts (Los Angeles CA), Jason Goldman, director. Third place went to Marin School of the Arts (Novato, CA), Janet Matranga, director. Folsom High School Jazz Choir I and Los Angeles County High School for the Arts will perform at the 55th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.

In the College Big Band Division, top honors went to Cal State Northridge (Northridge, CA), John Daversa, director. Second Place went to Azusa Pacific University (Azusa, CA), David Beatty, director. Third Place went to Sacramento State University (Sacramento, CA), Steve Roach, director. Cal State Northridge will perform at the 55th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.

In the College Vocal Ensemble Division, top honors went to Fullerton College “J Train” (Fullerton, CA), Jamie Shew, director. Second Place went to Mt. San Antonio College “Singcopation” (Walnut, CA), Bruce Rogers, director. Third Place went to College of the Canyons “Just Jazz” (Valencia, CA), Julie Lawson, director. Fullerton College “J Train” will perform at the 55th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.

In the Conglomerate Division, top honors went to the Tucson Jazz Institute “Ellington" Band (Tucson, AZ), Doug Tidaback, director. Second Place was a tie between the SFJAZZ All-Stars Jazz Orchestra (San Francisco, CA), Rebeca Mauleon & Claire Phillips, directors; and the Jazzschool Monday Night Studio Band (Berkeley, CA), Keith Johnson, director. Third Place went to Roll Hill Arts Academy (El Dorado Hills, CA), Curtis Gaesser, director. The Tucson Jazz Institute “Ellington" Band will perform at the 55th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.

In the Open Combo Division, top honors went to the Center of Life Jazz Band (Pittsburgh, PA), Tim Smith, director. Second place went to the Colburn Jazz Workshop Monday Night Band (Los Angeles, CA), Lee Secard, director. Third Place went to Pure Bliss (Boston MA), Christian Lyman, director. The Center of Life Jazz Band will perform at the 55th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival in September.Day by Day Review Day by Day Review

The Next Generation Jazz Festival got off to a spectacular start on Friday, March 30 with a standing room-only crowd of nearly1600 jazz fans for the highly-anticipated Kick-Off Concert, which included performances from the Berklee College of Music’s Global Jazz Institute Sextet and the NGJF Judges, including pianist Shelly Berg; saxophonists Joel Frahm, Aaron Lington, and Artist-In-Residence, trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire; drummer Jeff Hamilton; trombonist Wayne Wallace; trumpeters Gilbert Castellanos and Jeff Jarvis; bassist Ray Drummond; guitarist Corey Christiansen; and vocalist Nnenna Freelon. After the conclusion of the Kick-Off Concert, a large number of students remained to participate in the traditional Student Jam Session, hosted by Azusa Pacific University.

Prior to the start of the concert, the Monterey Jazz Festival presented its annual Salute to Jazz Education, 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 Monterey Jazz Festival Board members.

Saturday’s activities included nearly 80 back-to-back performances in five locations in downtown Monterey. Tourists and fans alike saw young performers at Gilbert’s Red Snapper Restaurant on Fisherman’s Wharf, the Portola Hotel & Spa, the Monterey Conference Center and the Museum of Monterey, despite a deluge rainstorm in the morning that rolled into Monterey Bay. In addition, several clinics were held including a Q&A with Ambrose Akinmusire with and the Global Jazz Institute Sextet.

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 award-winners. Explosive applause rang out as the groups and soloist winners were announced.

The Showcase Concert later that evening was a preview of the 2012 Monterey Jazz Festival, which included the big bands from Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, Folsom High School and Rio Americano; the Berkeley High School Combo A; and Vocal Jazz ensembles Folsom High School and Los Angeles County High School for the Arts Jazz Choir.

Only at the end of the evening would it be known that Los Angeles County High School for the Arts would appear on the Jimmy Lyons Arena Stage — for the fourth year in a row.

On Sunday morning, the final divisions of the Next Generation Jazz Festival took the stage: the Middle School, Conglomerate, College Big Band, and College Vocal Ensemble performances. In the Steinbeck Forum, Nnenna Freelon gave a special performance and vocal clinic, accompanied by bassist and adjudicator, Ray Drummond.

Downstairs in the Serra Ballroom, the Conglomerate Division was also underway. Representing the best-of-the-best high school musicians, each band was an all-star congregation of High School players. Winning the top award for the first time was the Tucson Institute “Ellington” Band, who will perform at the 55th Monterey Jazz Festival in September.

The College Big Band Division featured some of the most advanced groups in the nation. Fluid and commanding in their performances, each group showcased their unique interpretations of big band literature. The Cal State Northridge Big Band took top honors, and will perform at the 55th 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, Fullerton College “J Train” took top honors for the first time, and will perform at the 55th 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 tour of Japan in 2012. New Technologies Help Jazz Education

The Next Generation Jazz Festival expanded its foray into the digital and mobile realm by providing free Web casts of the performances on the Serra Ballroom’s Stage and Steinbeck Forum on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, with over 2660 fans tuning in to see their favorite bands perform in nearly 4000 live streams; and launching the Monterey Jazz Festival’s newly-updated mobile phone apps for the Next Generation Jazz Festival, for both iPhone and Android. The live web stream from the Serra Ballroom was supported by Access Monterey Peninsula Community Television.

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