Sun. 2/3 Exploring Jazz Guitar: Melodic & Harmonic Minor Harmony and Triad Substitutions
John Stowell

12:00 noon-3:00 pm

Modes of the melodic and harmonic minor and triad substitutions are clearly explained/demonstrated by instructor John Stowell in the context of developing an extended harmonic vocabulary. Students get hands-on experience locating new sounds and with ear training in the context of specific sounds/chords and progressions/songs. Please bring a guitar and notepaper. Recording the workshop is recommended but not required. A 40-page pdf file with workshop material will be emailed to all participants. Prerequisites: intermediate to advanced level recommended.
$50 advance purchase, $65 day of the workshop     

Sat. 2/9 In and Out: Making Your Way Through a Tune
A Vocal Workshop with Jay Clayton and Art Lande

3:15-6:15 pm
Jay Clayton was among the first singers to use electronics and be part of the vibrant "free jazz" scene in New York during the 1960s. She then ran the vocal program at the Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle for almost twenty years. Internationally recognized as a performing and recording artist, Jay is also one of the rare singers that has devoted her life to vocal jazz education. Join Jay and master pianist/improviser Art Lande for a workshop on singing "in and out"-singing a song as written and then taking it to a new place through improvisation, exploration, and fun games and exercises to find freedom and create new interpretations. Open to singers of all levels. Students should bring two copies of one or two songs of any kind to work with in class.
$50 Limited to 10 participants

Auditors, $25, limited to 10

Sun. 2/10, 2/17, and 2/24 Vocal Jazz Composer Series: The Music of Rodgers and Hart

Maye Cavallaro

12:00 noon-3:00 pm

Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart composed dozens of songs beloved by jazz singers and instrumentalists. Some famous titles include "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered," "The Lady is a Tramp," "Where or When," "Blue Moon," and "I Could Write a Book." In this workshop, singers explore the music of these two great musicians. Students also explore how jazz greats have interpreted these songs and made them their own. Instructor Maye Cavallaro provides 10 charts and practice tracks for each workshop series. Class time is spent learning the songs and developing new arrangements. In the third meeting of each series, students work with an accompanist. Maximum enrollment: 8.

$220 advance purchase/$235 day of the workshop

(for each 3-part workshop)

Sun. 2/10 Releasing Your Own Album

Todd Gascon

2:00-4:00 pm
This workshop led by attorney Todd Gascon provides a business and legal guide to releasing your own album. Topics include business formation, trademarks, album artwork agreements, sidemen releases, and more. In addition, students learn how to secure mechanical licenses for outside songs as well as permissions to compose arrangements for outside songs. Students also learn how to register their album artwork and master recordings with the Library of Congress.

$30 advance purchase/$45 day of the workshop

Sun. 2/10 Salsa/Afro-Cuban/Latin Jazz Piano: A Listening Survey

Bob Karty

2:00-4:00 pm
Through close listening to selected recordings, pianist Bob Karty presents a detailed overview of the evolution of Cuban piano styles and the role of the piano in both dance music and Latin jazz from the 1930s to the present. This presentation is open to all: both musicians and non-musicians will find it of interest.
$30 advance purchase/$45 day of the workshop

Sun. 2/10 The Piano-Horn Connection
A Workshop with Art Lande
11:00 am-1:00 pm
Join master pianist/improviser Art Lande for this workshop focusing on the relationship between the horn player and the pianist/guitarist in an improvised jazz ensemble. Learn to better hear each other, breathe together, improve the quality of the exchange of musical ideas and more. For all instruments. Students should bring two copies of a chart for a song of their choice.
$30 advance purchase/$45 day of the workshop

Sat. 2/16 The Art of Brush Playing

Jon Arkin

3:15-5:15 pm
Brushes are among the most effective and essential tools available for drummers when playing in an acoustic jazz context. This workshop with Jon Arkin provides an overview of brush techniques and concepts, including basic time patterns, variations, accents, textural possibilities, articulation, and finger control, and in moving beyond the fundamentals, covers the ways that brushes can open one's playing up to new ideas, dynamics, and interactive possibilities. Open to all drummers, as well as any musicians interested in learning basic time playing with brushes.
$30 advance purchase/$45 day of the workshop

Sun. 2/17 Acting for Singers with Lisa Lindsley

12:00 noon-3:00 pm

There are many talented vocalists out there, but when it comes down to it not many are able to reach into their arsenal of skills and pull out a good act. When you step on stage you are an actor. You portray the song and its emotions and you tell a story. In this workshop led by Lisa Lindsley, you will learn the fundamentals of stage acting, and how to bring out your inner actor and show the audience that you are capable of another level of performance. Wear comfortable clothes and bring one chart in your key.

$50 advance purchase/$65 day of the workshop

Sun. 2/17 Mark Levine Workshop Series: Upper Structures

11:00 am-1:00 pm
Upper structure voicings are the spice added to the meat and potatoes of jazz piano voicings. From Bill Evans to Mulgrew Miller, they have become a staple in the jazz pianist's bag. In this workshop taught by Mark Levine, students will use Chick Corea's "Mirror, Mirror" as a workshop tune for applying various upper structure voicings.
$30 advance purchase/$45 day of the workshop

Sun. 2/17 Mark Levine Workshop Series: Coltrane's Harmony
2:00-4:00 pm

Grammy-nominated pianist/educator Mark Levine introduces students to the harmonic formula employed by John Coltrane in the late 1950s and early 1960s, mastery of which is still considered an essential skill for aspiring jazz musicians. Most famously serving as the harmonic basis for his 1959 composition "Giant Steps," Coltrane also used the formula as the basis for numerous other original compositions and also as a means of reharmonizing various jazz standards. In this workshop, Levine discusses compositional precursors (the music of Tadd Dameron and Richard Rodgers), and also tracks the influence and continued relevance of "Giant Steps" and other compositions based on John Coltrane's harmonic formula. Numerous practical applications are discussed.
$30 advance purchase/$45 day of the workshop

Sun. 2/24 Mark Levine Workshop Series: Jazz Theory Complete in Two Hours!
11:00 am-1:00 pm

Author of the one of the most widely used jazz theory texts in the world, The Jazz Theory Book (Sher Music), Mark Levine boils it all down to a single two-hour intensive. From the II-V-I progression through advanced harmonic techniques, scale theory, and reharmonization. Please bring music manuscript paper and a pencil to class.
$30 advance purchase/$45 day of the workshop

Sun. 2/24 Mark Levine Workshop Series: How to Voice Standards for Piano--The Menu

2:00-4:00 pm
Grammy-nominated pianist/educator Mark Levine shows pianists how to create effective jazz piano arrangements using 4th chords, upper structures, the "So What" chord, the "Kenny Barron" and "Herbie Hancock" chords, and rootless left-hand voicings. Mark has created a "voicing menu" to facilitate matching the melody note at any given point with the best possible piano voicing. Students use "Alice in Wonderland" as a workshop song.
$30 advance purchase/$45 day of the workshop

Sun. 2/24, 3/3, 3/10, and 3/17

A New Coat of Paint: Arranging for Solo Singers with Stephanie Bruce