The Grammy Foundation® Selects Students For The Grammy Camp-Jazz Session Program 2016
The GRAMMY Foundation® (www.grammyintheschools.com) announced that 32 talented high school students from across the United States have been selected for the 2016 GRAMMY Camp® — Jazz Session. Their selection launches them into the spotlight surrounding the 58th Annual GRAMMY Awards®, and provides them with unparalleled opportunities to perform for some of music’s biggest names. The students, representing 29 cities and 15 states, will travel to Los Angeles for a weeklong musical adventure under the direction of Justin DiCioccio of the Manhattan School of Music, Dr. Ron McCurdy of the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music and associate choral director Susanna Wegner of Kansas City, Mo. Two former GRAMMY Camp students will be joining as members of the GRAMMY in the Schools® Media Team to document the GRAMMY® Week experience for theGRAMMY Foundation’s social media platforms.
“Each year, GRAMMY Camp — Jazz Session brings together some of the most gifted jazz singers and instrumentalists and gives them an extraordinary musical experience during GRAMMY Week,” said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of the GRAMMY Foundation and TheRecording Academy®. “These talented young people demonstrate their gifts by making music with their peers and performing with GRAMMY-nominated and GRAMMY-winning artists at a range of events. We’re especially proud that many of them actually go on to have successful careers in our music industry.”
From Feb. 12–14, courtesy of Capitol Studios & Mastering, the young musicians will record an album (GRAMMY Jazz 24) at the legendary facility in Hollywood, Calif. Over the years, noted members of The Recording Academy’s Producers & Engineers Wing® have worked with the ensembles during the recording process. Again this year, multi-GRAMMY-winning engineer and Producers & Engineers Wing member Al Schmitt will be mixing the project. GRAMMY Camp — Jazz Session albums from 2007–2015 are available for purchase via online music outlets such as Amazon, iTunes and Rhapsody.
In addition, the selected students will perform at various GRAMMY Week events, including — for the seventh year — an appearance atGRAMMY In The Schools Live! — A Celebration Of Music & Education sponsored by Ford Motor Company Fund. This special event, which is open to the public, will showcase the selectees, along with special guest artists, on Feb. 11, 2016, at Club Nokia in Los Angeles. Thegroup will offer additional public performances with special guest artists at Spaghettini Fine Dining & Entertainment in Seal Beach, Calif., and Spaghettini & the Dave Koz Lounge in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Feb. 10 and Feb. 12, respectively. GRAMMY Camp — Jazz Session members will also attend the 58th Annual GRAMMY Awards on Feb. 15 as guests of The Recording Academy and will perform at theGRAMMY Celebration® after-party.
GRAMMY Camp — Jazz Session selectees are eligible for more than $2 million in college scholarships made possible through the GRAMMY Foundation’s college partners: Berklee College of Music, Manhattan School of Music, The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, and USC Thornton School of Music. In addition, each selectee’s school will receive a professional cymbal courtesy of the Zildjian Company.
| Band | |||||
| Name | City | State | School | Part | |
| Matt | Richards | Walnut Creek | Calif. | Las Lomas High School | Alto Sax 1 |
| Nathan | Farrell | Montclair | N.J. | Montclair High School | Alto Sax 2 |
| Jason | Chrisman | Weaverville | N.C. | North Buncombe High School | Tenor Sax |
| Morgan | Guerin | Atlanta | Ga. | Westlake High School | Tenor Sax |
| Ben | Fitzpatrick | Bethel | Conn. | Bethel High School | Bari Sax |
| Jonah | Moss | Walnut Creek | Calif. | Northgate High School | Trumpet Lead |
| Evan | Abounassar | Yorba Linda | Calif. | Los Angeles County High School for the Arts | Trumpet Jazz |
| Alex | Melnychuck | Tucson | Ariz. | Salpointe Catholic High School | Trumpet 3 |
| Geoffrey | Gallante | Alexandria | Va. | West Potomac High School | Trumpet 4 |
| Carlos | Ramos | Downey | Calif. | Downey High School | Trumpet 5 |
| Remee | Ashley | Berkeley | Calif. | Berkeley High School | Trombone 1 |
| Jack | Kotze | Frankfort | Ill. | Lincoln-Way North High School | Trombone 2 |
| Jasim | Perales | Oakland | Calif. | Oakland School for the Arts | Trombone 3 |
| Ethan | Santos | Fresno | Calif. | Buchanan High School | Bass Trombone |
| Sam | Towse | Huntington | N.Y. | Friends Academy | Piano |
| Abeed | Janjua | Pembroke Pines | Fla. | Dillard High School | Bass |
| Joseph | Bell | Princeton | N.J. | Princeton High School | Guitar |
| Julius | Rodriguez | White Plains | N.Y. | The Masters School | Drums |
| Choir | |||||
| Sharada | Shashidhar | Painted Post | N.Y. | Corning-Painted Post High School | Soprano |
| Abigail | Berry | Burbank | Calif. | Los Angeles County High School for the Arts | Soprano |
| Kara | Walton | La Vista | Neb. | Papillion La Vista High School | Alto |
| Makele | Clemmons | Chicago | Ill. | Chicago High School for the Arts | Alto |
| Jack | VanGorden | Dallas | Texas | Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts | Tenor |
| Jack | O’Connor | Dallas | Texas | Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts | Tenor |
| Daniel | Barbrack | New York | N.Y. | Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music, Art and Performing Arts | Bass |
| Evan | Wright | Temple City | Calif. | Los Angeles County High School for the Arts | Bass |
| Combo | |||||
| Jamael | Dean | Redondo Beach | Calif. | Los Angeles County High School for the Arts | Piano |
| Maxwell | Schwartz | Berkeley | Calif. | Berkeley High School | Bass |
| Jordan | Reifkind | Los Angeles | Calif. | Los Angeles County High School for the Arts | Guitar |
| Zachary | Vaughen | Lancaster | Pa. | Manheim Township High School | Drums |
| Media Team | |||||
| Anthony | Richard Jr. | Gretna | La. | New Orleans Center for Creative Arts | Media Team |
| Alejandra | Matheu-Rios | Henderson | Nev. | College Southern Nevada High School | Media Team |
The GRAMMY Foundation was established in 1988 to cultivate the understanding, appreciation and advancement of the contribution of recorded music to American culture. The Foundation accomplishes this mission through programs and activities that engage the music industry and cultural community as well as the general public. The Foundation works in partnership year-round with its founder, The RecordingAcademy, to bring national attention to important issues such as the value and impact of music and arts education and the urgency of preserving our rich cultural heritage. In recognition of the significant role of teachers in shaping their students’ musical experiences, the GRAMMY Foundation and The Recording Academy partnered to present their first Music Educator AwardTM in 2014. Open to current U.S. music teachers in kindergarten through college, the third annual Music Educator Award recipient will be recognized during GRAMMY Week 2016.
For more information about our music education programs, please visit www.grammyintheschools.com.
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