Sun Prairie High School Jazz I - Essentially Ellington 2018
Upcoming Jazz I Performances:
Student Info & Downloads:Jazz I Food Nights:Support Sun Prairie High School Jazz’s trip to Essentially Ellington in New York City by eating locally at one of these restaurants.
March 21 (Wed) - Burrachos 4-8 pm * Customers MUST mention jazz band in order for jazz to get percentage of sales! April 4 (Wed)- MACS macaroni and cheese shop *Open to close. Please mention jazz band when placing order. April 9 (Mon) - Dairy Queen *5 - 10:30 $1 for every blizzard (except mini) sold during that time will go directly to Sun Prairie Jazz 1. A great way to finish off Band O Rama! **UPDATED - MAY 2 (Wed) - Day One Pizza** *All day. Get your pre-orders in early to avoid the lunch or dinner wait! Jazz I NYC Raffle List:Drawing to be held at Jazz I Send-off Concert (need not be present to win)
|
SPHS Jazz I - "Essentially Ellington" 2018Congratulations to members of SPHS Jazz Ensemble I who represented us all so well in New York. The band met at 3:15am on Wednesday, May 9th to head out to New York. Upon their arrival at LaGuardia airport in New York they traveled to the historic Apollo theater in Harlem. The tour was given by the legendary, Billy Mitchell - better known by some as "Mr. Apollo". The tour included the history of the building and a talent show put on by members of our tour group. After that were treated to some wonderful soul food at Sylvia's in Harlem. We enjoyed fried chicken, ribs, corn bread, potato salad and collard greens. After that we checked into the Park Central Hotel for a little down time before heading up to Central Park via the subway. We started at Strawberry Fields and walked past fountains, the carousel, bumped into bass player Emiliano Lasansky from Birch Creek, Tavern on the Green and more before taking the subway to dinner at Carmine's Times Square. We all had plenty to eat!
The next day we began by rehearsing at Michiko Studios, a rehearsal space on 46th that many New York musicians use to practice. We were joined by jazz tubist, Bob Stewart about halfway through the rehearsal who had some encouraging words to say. On the way out of the studio we also ran into jazz saxophonist Todd Williams. Some students knew him from Birch Creek and we all got to know him as an adjudicator for this year's "Essentially Ellington" festival. We all had lunch on our own and then met at the hotel to start our festival journey. It began with the cheer tunnel and then an open rehearsal/ Q&A with Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. This was followed by sectionals with members of the orchestra and then dinner and a Jam session in which 8 of our students participated in. The next day was our rehearsal at J@LC with our mentor, Marcus Printup. Marcus had some great information to share. After that we heard 8 fantastic high school bands perform in part I of the competition. That evening we walked to Birdland - a jazz club near Times square - to have dinner and hear the Bill Charlap Trio. It was a great performance! The following day it was our turn to perform at the festival. We warmed up with both Mr. Printup and our old friend Kenny Rampton in attendance. Everyone got fired up by Ernie who always asks "Where you at?" and "What you gonna do?" followed by a trip backstage and then showtime! The band played very well and everyone had a good time. Several reed players were recognized for their performance. We earned an Outstanding Saxophone Section award as well as individual awards. Megan Rault for Outstanding Soprano Saxophone, Bennett Leclaire for Outstanding Tenor Saxophone, Kyra Devlin for Honorable Mention Soprano Saxophone and Dillon Crawford for Honorable Mention Clarinet. At the conclusion of the competition, there was an opportunity for students to get their “EE” posters autographed by members of the J@LCO. Some of our students were fortunate enough to check out Dizzy’s Jazz Club when Bill Charlap entered. He asked if they wanted to hear a tune which they replied, “sure”. After he played on Dizzy’s stage for them he then proceeded to take questions about how to play on tunes - they all received a 20 minute lesson at Dizzy’s overlooking Central Park from Bill Charlap - not bad. That evening we heard the 3 top placing bands and the J@LC Orchestra in performance followed by the awards ceremony. Mr Sveum was also fortunate to have Bob Stewart introduce him to Mercedes Ellington, Duke’s granddaughter just before the concert began. Our final day in New York concluded with a Mother's Day brunch cruise on the Hudson River past the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island and the Brooklyn Bridge. We then transferred to the Metropolitan Museum of Art followed by a trip to the "Top of the Rock" which we had almost exclusively to ourselves. This was followed by dinner on 7th avenue and then back home via Southwest airlines with our friends from the Beloit High School Jazz Ensemble. This is a band to be proud of as two entire sections of the band were completely new to Jazz I this year. Students worked hard individually and in sectionals, did a lot of listening and transcribing and really took ownership of their own playing. It took a while to develop as a band, but in the last several weeks there was not a rehearsal where something did not noticeably improve. Congratulations to all in the band for their outstanding hard work that led to a memorable performance at Rose Hall on May 12, 2018! Congratulations SPHS Jazz I !!!! Congrats - SPHS Jazz 1 invited to Essentially Ellington 2018!
2018 Essentially Ellington Competition & Festival Finalist Bands
We are proud to announce the finalists of the 2018 Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition & Festival. We received submissions from many talented ensembles and it was a truly difficult decision. Listed in alphabetical order, they are: Agoura High School (Agoura Hills, CA) Ballard High School (Seattle, WA) Beloit Memorial High School (Beloit, WI) Carroll Senior High School (Southlake, TX) Champaign Central High School (Champaign, IL) Dillard Center for the Arts (Fort Lauderdale, FL) Mountlake Terrace High School (Mountlake Terrace, WA) Newark Academy (Livingston, NJ) Newton South High School (Newton, MA) Osceola County School for the Arts (Kissimmee, FL) Roosevelt High School (Seattle, WA) Sun Prairie High School (Sun Prairie, WI) Triangle Youth Jazz Ensemble (Raleigh, NC) Tucson Jazz Institute (Tucson, AZ) William H. Hall High School (West Hartford, CT) STAY CONNECTED!To join in on the "EE" excitement, check out the following social media provided by Jazz at Lincoln Center. The entire weekend of EE events, including the final concert featuring the three top-placing bands and the JLCO, will be webcast live on jazz.org/live.
The Competition & Festival is the culmination of the annualEssentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Program (EE), which also includes non-competitive regional festivals around the country, teaching resources, a summer Band Director Academy, newsletters, and more. The year-long Essentially Ellington program will have distributed 30,000 newly transcribed scores by the end of this school year. For more information including background, history, photos, and audio recordings of the Essentially Ellington2016 repertoire, and more, visit: jazz.org/ee The Essentially Ellington Competition & Festival is media-accessible via JALC social media on Facebook, Twitter @EssEllington, Instagram @jazzdotorg, and Tumblr. Students, viewers, and participators can share their thoughts and photos by using the hashtag #EE2018 |