Inaugural Student Jazz Combo Competition

When: Saturday, April 22
Time: Competition 10-4:30, winner announced at 5 p.m.
Where: Glaser Center 547 Mendocino Ave., Santa Rosa
Ticket: Concert tickets $10, available on Brown Paper Tickets, under 18 free.

Healdsburg Jazz launches a friendly competition for Sonoma County High School Jazz Combos  − Come check them out and get inspired!

While many schools across the country have cut music programs along with other arts education programs, we know that learning music, playing it and hearing it, can inspire and educate like nothing else. That’s why we’re committed to jazz education in Sonoma County schools, and that’s why we’re sponsoring the first-ever Student Jazz Combo Competition (SJCC) in Sonoma County.

Ten jazz combos comprised of Sonoma County high school musicians will participate. See the list of combos and judging criteria here.

Come hear for yourself on April 22, at a special day-long immersion in the art and practice of jazz improvisation. From 10 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., students from 10 area high schools will demonstrate their growing creativity and confidence on their instruments in ensembles of up to six, under the direction of their local music teachers.

Student groups from Casa Grande, El Molino High bands 1 and 2, Healdsburg High, Montgomery High bands 1 and 2, Petaluma High, Rincon Valley High, Sonoma Academy, and Windsor High will perform in 30-minute slots throughout the day.  This is a juried competition – see judging criteria here – and each half-hour performance by the 9-12 graders will include material that reflects their personal vision of jazz. Their selection should include at least one “swing” number, but can also draw from bebop, Latin jazz, funk jazz – even original compositions.

If you’re a student in a local school, you should find the day-long event inspiring and fun. Cheer on your school but stay positive for everyone, this is a friendly competition. Get inspired to play, and start a combo to compete next year – you could win a prize! Students under 18 are admitted free (though we do ask you pre-register so we know you’re coming).

The winning bands will be announced at 5 p.m., and thanks to the generosity of our sponsors and others, there will be prizes:

  • First Place Combo – $1,000 and a place on stage at the Healdsburg Jazz Festival on June 9, 2017
  • Second Place – $500
  • Third Place – $250

It’s sure to be an exciting day, and we expect not only parents and students from other schools in the area, but members of the general public who enjoy jazz and want to see music education at work. It’s held at the spacious and acoustically-friendly Glaser Center (open map here), just a couple blocks from downtown Santa Rosa and within easy walking distance of dining, shopping and other attractions.

Download SJCC poster (199 kb, PDF)

Don’t miss the “finale” of the April 22 competition, SJCC Evening Concert and Student Jam (7 p.m.). Students who participated during the day’s competition are invited to sit in with the Redwood Empire All-Stars, showing their chops and stretching their creativity before a live audience.

More about the Student Jazz Combo Competition: