Made possible by a generous contribution from Trio Foundation of St. Louis, Jazz St. Louis is proud to offer JazzU, a series of weekly workshops geared towards middle and high school students who have a desire to become better jazz musicians. JazzU offers a middle school track and a high school track to better attend to the needs and abilities of participating students.

JazzU workshops are offered weekly on Mondays and Tuesdays beginning September 24 and 25 from 4 to 6pm at the Centene Center for Arts and Education. Besides the benefit of weekly instruction from JazzU faculty members, students will have the opportunity to meet and work with musicians participating in the Jazz St. Louis Artist Residency program, which include the Esperanza Spalding Trio, the Terell Stafford Quintet and the Cyrus Chestnut Trio. All the necessary information, including audition requirements, are listed below.

Workshop Activities

Ensemble
Jazz Language
Improvisation
Music Theory Concepts
Listening Strategies
Field Trips to Jazz at the Bistro Concerts

Become a JazzU Student

To be eligible to attend JazzU, students must be in any grade 6-12 during the 2007-2008 school year and attend a school in the St. Louis Metro area (Illinois/Missouri). Eligible instruments include: piano, bass (acoustic or electric), drums/percussion, guitar, saxophones, trumpet, trombone, flute, clarinet, french horn, tuba/euphonium.

Faculty

Regular JazzU faculty include Anthony Wiggins, professional trumpeter and educator, along with pianist and Jazz St. Louis Director of Education, Phil Dunlap. Guest clinicians will appear throughout the year and include Reginald Thomas, Ronald Carter, Hamiet Bluiett and the afore mentioned Jazz St. Louis Residency Artists.

Application Information

Interested students are asked to download, fill out and submit the application form along with a letter of recommendation from their band director or music teacher. Based on teacher recommendations and the student's response to the application questions, students will be invited to attend the JazzU workshops. Applications should be postmarked by Monday, September 10th (late applications will be considered if space is available).

Tuition and Fees

All students will be awarded scholarships based upon their application and letter of recommendation. These scholarships allow us to keep JazzU free for interested students.