The TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival offers free workshops to budding musicians

Jun 5 2016, 4:23 am

To help celebrate the 31st annual TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival, the Coastal Jazz and Blues Society is offering a variety of free educational programs for budding musicians and music lovers of all ages.

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In addition to the programs that Coastal Jazz offers year round, the festival will include free public lectures and seminars with homegrown and international talent lending their time and expertise. A number of workshops will be held at Tom Lee Music Hall and at The Studio at the Roundhouse Community Centre, and are all open to the general public.

Coastal Jazz

Coastal Jazz

One event we’re excited about is the 13th annual TD High School Jazz Intensive, a free program that offers high school students from the Lower Mainland the amazing opportunity to be part of a professional big band. This year, 21 aspiring young musicians were chosen to participate in the Intensive through a “blind” application process that involved more than 150 local schools.

An open rehearsal for the event is being held on Saturday, July 2 while a full concert featuring guest conductor Tomeka Reid will happen the following day on the David Lam Park Main Stage. In addition to providing students with a safe, nurturing environment to discover their talent, TD Bank awards more than $12,000 annually in music scholarships to these young, emerging artists.

Coastal Jazz

Coastal Jazz

Another event we’re looking forward to takes place on the Sounds of Youth Stage located at Robson Square on opening weekend. Through a curated selection process, the TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival has chosen a number of Metro Vancouver high school big bands and jazz ensembles to help kick off Downtown Jazz Weekend. Five talented collectives will perform on Saturday, June 25, while three more will play on Sunday, June 26.

Also happening during the Downtown Jazz weekend is Breathturns: Improvisation, a fascinating two-day symposium that focuses on the relationship between spontaneity and freedom in the arts. The free event, presented by UBC in partnership with the International Institute for Critical Studies in Improvisation, will include keynote speeches by musicians performing in the TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival.

More information on Coastal Jazz’s Education & Outreach programs is available here.

Daily Hive Vancouver is a proud media partner of the TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival

Rob FellerRob Feller

+ Arts
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