C&.notes Jazz Is Hitting The Right Chord With Students, Teachers And Parents (NAPSA)—It’s been said that jazz is America’s true native art form—and increasingly, it’s being used to educate young people. A growing number of teachers are using jazz—as both an academic and performance subject —as a teaching tool at different grade levels. In classrooms across the country, educators are using jazz to: * teach creative problemsolving * foster communication and cooperation * enhance self-discipline and the ability to improvise * serve as a backdrop for much of this country’s social history, serve as an introduction to math and other forms of music and art. According to Wynton Marsalis, world-renowned musician and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, “Jazz provides a painless way to learn about the best in American culture.” Said Marsalis, “Jazz can teach geography, where the different musicians are from. It can help with math, the way forms are laid out, the way musical forms are counted.” He also believes jazz can help give students confidence in their ownindividuality. Jazz at Lincoln Center is a not-for-profit arts organization dedicated to jazz. The organization’s new home,Frederick P. Rose Hall, is the first performance, education and broadcast facility devoted to jazz. Located in New York City on Broadway at 60% Street, it features the Ertegun formance of Duke Ellington’s music. photo: Frank Stewart/Jazz at Lincoln Center Jazz at Lincoln Center Artistic Director Wynton Marsalis at a Jazz for Young People Concert. Jazz Hall of Fame, a multimedia installation featuring an 18-foot video wall, interactive kiosks, touch-activated virtual plaques and the great soundsof jazz. It is free and open to the public. As a cornerstone of its mission, Jazz at Lineoln Center has mounted a comprehensive education program teaching the public, especially young people, about the rich heritage of jazz, its great works and musicians, and the relationship between jazz and other disciplines. Its education programs reach over 300,000 students, teachers and general audience members a year. * The Jazz for Young People Curriculum brings the language of jazz to upper elementary and middle school students across the country and around the world. * The Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition and Festival supports high school jazz bands across the U.S. and Canadain the study and per- * The Band Director Academy enhances the abilities of high school and college band directors to teach and conduct big band music. * Jazz for Young People Concerts introduce children, their parents, and educators to major styles and figures in jazz. * Jazz in the Schools brings professional artists to schools throughout the five boroughs in interactive, hour-long performance/demonstrations. * WeBop classes teach very young children and their parents/ caregivers to sing, move and play with the soulful rhythms and melodies of great jazz. * Master classes feature world-renowned musicians working with students to improve their playing and performance, all in front of an audience. * Jazz 101 classes bring the history and personalities of jazz into the classroom, enlivening the concert-going experience for jazz novices and aficionadosalike. * Jazz Talk features musicians, writers and scholars in lively conversations about jazz and our world. * In addition, Jazz at Lincoln Center conducts residences, workshops, teacher training and jazz lessons in New York and while on tour. The Jazz at Lincoln Center concert archives are available at the New York Public Library. To learn more about these and other programsof Jazz at Lincoln Center, visit www.jalc.org.
