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Monday, April 25, 2011

Article in LaReVista

NVC Student Travels to Brazil for Jazz Meeting

Several years ago, after the Katrina Hurricane in New Orleans, Jeané Gaines and her family fled to San Antonio in search of a better life.

Since coming to NVC, she has found some of her dreams come true as she was recently picked to attend the International Association Schools of Jazz (IASJ) meeting in Săo Paulo, Brazil this summer.

Read more >>

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Concert and Master Class with Perla at Vista, and Upcoming Events


Jazz Appreciation Month - Alamo Colleges Jazz Allstars and Gene Perla
Location: Palmetto Center for the Arts, Recital Room 107
Open Master Class, 12-6 PM. Free Performance, 7 PM.

April 12 was an intensive mini-residency with Gene Perla for the Alamo Allstars. He coached them all day on the IASJ Top 10 tunes to know in jazz. In the evening, they performed in the recital room of the Palmetto Center for the Arts. Their growth as a collaborative ensemble was palpable, and the audience was enthusiastic.  Gene Perla, a distinguished bassist, has performed with such jazz legends as Willie Bobo, Patato Valdes, Sarah Vaughan, and Elvin Jones. He came to Northwest Vista as part of the college's Vis-a-Vis Visiting Artist Series.


This was the third master class and performance for the Alamo Allstars this semester. The first was in February, at Trinity University with New Orleans trumpeter Nicholas Payton, made possible by Musical Bridges Across the World, Northwest Vista College, and the Growing Jazz initiative of Trinity University's KRTU Jazz 91.7. In March, the group performed at San Antonio College and were coached one-on-one by San Antonio's own Small World, featuring Polly Harrison on guitar, Kyle Keener on drums, Chuck Moses on bass, and Richard Oppenheim on saxophone.

On Friday, April 15, the Alamo Colleges Jazz Allstars will perform at the St. Mary's University Fiesta Jazz Festival, which is adjudicated by acclaimed bassist Rufus Reid.  Next on the horizon for the group is a live studio recording and broadcast for KRTU Jazz 91.7. They'll perform and be interviewed as part of the station's South Texas Jazz Project, hosted by JJ Lopez. Stay tuned for more details, and watch the calendar at http://alamo.edu/nvc/programs/fpa.

Saturday, April 9, 2011

South Texas Jazz Project: Live studio recording and broadcast on KRTU Jazz 91.7 FM

In May, the 2011 Alamo Allstars will be in the studios at KRTU Jazz 91.7 FM, to record for the South Texas Jazz Project, hosted by JJ Lopez. JJ will be interviewing the musicians and recording their music. What a great opportunity!

Stay tuned for dates and times. Join the KRTU Facebook community for details...

Listen to the KRTU broadcast right now.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

2010 Allstars Combo - IASJ Top 10

Combo members are expected to know all of the following tunes by heart by the end of the spring semester. Lead sheets with lyrics are given below (PDF). They are all in concert keys that are friendly to women singers, which are usually different from the original keys.

Players of Bb, Eb, and bass clef instruments are expected to transpose their own parts. It's important to learn to do this on sight, but feel free to write them out if you need to. 

If you have any difficulty downloading these charts, please contact me right away. 

IASJ TOP 10  - (list of tunes)


Saturday, April 2, 2011

About the Alamo Allstars and the IASJ

 "The future of jazz is linked with jazz education and ...the IASJ is the chain!"

Each year in November, an outside panel of professional musicians selects a new Alamo Allstars student combo.  Auditions are performed live in a San Antonio jazz venue. The combo trains and peforms locally throughout the spring semester. The culminating event in the Alamo Allstars spring season is the grand prize recipient's participation in the annual meeting of the International Association of Schools of Jazz.

The IASJ, established in 1989, is the only existing world wide network of schools of jazz. Students, teachers and representatives are connected through the IASJ. During the Annual IASJ Jazz Meeting, which takes place in a different country every year, they perform, teach and network and build up live-long professional relations and friendships.  Read more...

Katchie Cartwright, the program coordinator, serves on the Board of Directors of the IASJ. The Alamo Allstars are the first community college representatives in the history of the organization.

2010/2011 Combo Members

Jeané Gaines (voice, Northwest Vista College), 2010/2011 Grand Prize Recipient

Marco Antonio Escobedo (guitar, San Antonio College)

Rene Pintor (trombone, San Antonio College)

Amanda Sanchez (bass, Palo Alto College)

Jessica Brandi Adams (drums, St. Philip's College)