Young Musicians Compete in Jazz Festival

Thirty-four high school and middle school jazz ensembles from throughout Virginia and Maryland gathered on Friday and Saturday to participate in Chantilly High School’s annual Invitational Jazz Festival.

On Saturday night, the three bands with the highest scores took the stage in a Battle of the Bands to see who would win. The Walt Whitman Jazz Ensemble took home the first place trophy, but they weren’t the only winners. Individual students from various bands were recognized for outstanding performances with scholarships and gift certificates.

“The students who perform at the Chantilly Jazz Festival are among the brightest students academically,” said Drew Ross, Chantilly High School’s director of bands. “And they are also the best performers from their school music program. Our Jazz Festival is a showcase of the amazing talent in the mid-Atlantic. People will be blown away by the level of performance they will see from each and every band.”

The schedule was packed from Friday at 3 p.m. through Saturday at 10 p.m. Every 25 minutes, a new ensemble took the stage to perform a three-song set for three judges: Jim Carroll, professor of jazz studies at George Mason University; Eric Musselwhite, professor of jazz studies at Christopher Newport University; and Pete BarenBregge, freelance musician and editor of jazz publications for Warner Bros. Music.

The Albemarle High School Jazz Ensemble, the Walt Whitman Jazz Ensemble and the Governor’s School for the Arts Big Band made it to the top three to compete in the Battle of the Bands. Each set was excellent, marked by some unique trait to make it extraordinary. The Governor’s School, who placed third, had a very crisp sound, and many members proved themselves to be talented improvisers. Albemarle, who placed second, boasted a vocal quartet singing in tight harmony with the band. Walt Whitman, who placed first, was simply captivating. Check out a short video clip of "My Funny Valentine" in the gallery of this article.

According to festival co-chair Tim Lisko, the festival has grown quite a lot since it began 31 years ago. It was founded with the intention to “provide an opportunity for high school, professional jazz musicians and educators to share, learn and compete,” Lisko said.

“Originally, there were only a handful of bands from the Northern Virginia area,” said Ross. “Since then, the event has grown to two days and has also added middle school bands to the event which is really exciting.”

Chantilly’s Jazz Festival is one of best ways to promote jazz in our area, said Ross. “Is jazz a fading art? [These students] know jazz. Many of them come to me with recordings to listen to or come in playing a Charlie Parker tune they've been working on with their private teacher. While it is my job to teach them how to play, it is one day going to be their job to share their love of music with the world, by continuing to play, by playing jazz to their friends and passing it down to the next generation.”

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