Yamaha Education Projects

Yamaha Jazz Experience - overview

The Yamaha Jazz Experience UK workshops, March - April 2009

About the 2011-2012 Jazz Experience programme

Click on the links here to find information on the 2011 Yamaha Jazz Experience workshops, which travel to seven UK cities in Autumn 2011, or the 2012 Yamaha Jazz Experience Competition.

General information about Jazz Experience

The Yamaha Jazz Experience is a pioneering two-year jazz-in-education programme, combining teacher training and masterclasses in the first year and, in the second, a national competition offering high-profile live performance opportunities for award-winning new jazz ensembles aged 11-18 at some of the UK's leading venues and live events.

The programme first ran in 2009-10 and is running again in 2011-12. Supported by some of the UK's jazz elite, who help deliver the workshops and the live events, one core aim of the scheme is to address the jazz and improvisation skills shortage among those who teach and lead music with 11-18s, in order to help increase access to creative music making through small-group improvisation.

Phase 1: teacher workshop tour

Pictured here: Jazz educator Richard Michael (left) and Yamaha jazz flute artist Geoff Warren leading a teacher workshop in Carlisle in October 2011

The first phase of the programme is the Yamaha Jazz Experience workshop tour, aimed at music leaders and teachers, in informal and formal music education settings, who are new to or lack confidence, skills and knowledge in jazz and improvising. By giving them some direction and starting points for their own development in improvising, the project is able to deliver a lasting legacy to music teachers, which then benefits their students over the long term.

So in the first Yamaha Jazz Experience programme, in 2009, we took a series of one-day improvising workshops to seven towns, when we were able to help teachers and music leaders acquire the skills and confidence to teach and inspire pupils eager to learn improvisation. Led by jazz icon Julian Joseph, with Tim Garland, Andrea Vicari, Neil Cowley and leading jazz educator Richard Michael, these workshops certainly informed and inspired, judging from the feedback we received afterwards. Project patron, legendary jazz bassist Peter Ind, also contributed some inspiring video materials for the project, which were shown at each of the workshops.

The 2011 workshop tour, led by Richard Michael, Geoff Warren and supported by the Yamaha education department, visited Bolton, Carlisle, Newton Abbot and London.

Phase 2: ensemble competition for 11-18s

The programme's second phase, in year two, evolves into the national Yamaha jazz Experience competition. The closing date for the 2012 competition is 24 February 2012.

In 2010 we held the finals of the competition at Cheltenham Jazz Festival when nine shortlisted finalist ensembles aged 11-18, performed in front of jazz fans, professional jazz musicians and VIPs. The high-level judging pane - which included Liane Carroll, Peter Ind, Julian Joseph, Helen Mayhew (Jazz FM), Richard Michael and Andrea Vicari - chose one winning ensemble from each age category: under-15, under-17 and under-19. The three winners received a voucher for Yamaha instruments and equipment for their school or organisation. They were also each awarded a much-coveted gig at a top London jazz venue in 2010 by our venue partners, Ronnie Scott's, the 606 Club and the Bull's Head club in Barnes.

Thanks

Yamaha UK's music education manager Bill C Martin commented: "Our goal with Yamaha Jazz Experience is to inspire teachers and young musicians alike. With a consensus in UK music education that we need to empower young people's personal creativity, I can't think think of a better or more exciting way to do this than by helping their teachers to develop their own improvising skills and the provide a high-profile national competition for the young people they teach and coach. We were all bowled over by the incredible commitment and musicianship of the young people and teachers who took part in the first Jazz Experience project and look forward to expanding this further in the second one."

We are grateful for the moral support and advice given from our colleagues at the Federation of Music Services and the Music Education Council, which contributed in no small way to the success of this project the first time around. We also thank our other patron, Michael Connarty MP, who heads up the All Party Parliamentary Jazz Appreciation Group within the Houses of Parliament in Westminster, for his generous support and encouragement.

A Jazz Experience 2009-2010 Final Report of the project is availble.

Pictured here: Richard Michael and Julian Joseph inspire teachers at a Birmingham Jazz Experience workshop in 2009

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(updated: November 2011)