Jazz St. Louis announces student workshop series

Jazz St. Louis has announced a series of free weekly educational workshops for middle school and high school student musicians in the St. Louis metro area. The program, called "JazzU," will begin Monday, September 24 and continue on subsequent Mondays and Tuesdays at the Centene Center for Arts and Education, 3547 Olive in the Grand Center district.

The program will be overseen by local jazz educators including trumpeter Anthony Wiggins and pianist Phil Dunlap, who serves as Jazz St. Louis' Director of Education. Activities will include instruction in ensemble performance, jazz language, improvisation, music theory concepts and listening strategies. Students will also make field trips to performances at Jazz at the Bistro, and work with visiting educators and musicians such as Ronald Carter and Reginald Thomas as well as Jazz St. Louis resident artists such as the Terell Stafford Quintet, the Cyrus Chestnut Trio, and the Esperanza Spalding Trio.

Students interested in participating must submit an application along with a letter of recommendation from their music teacher or band director. Applications are due by Monday, September 10, and students will be notified of their acceptance by Monday, September 17.

You can find application forms and more information on the Jazz St. Louis Web site, or you can contact Dunlap by calling 314-289-4033 or via email at phil @ jazzstl.org.