video of this concert below.
Signing up has been as vast as in former years. All student participants are selected. Six combos are formed that will rehearse and perform in Sao Paulo on the last two nights of the week.Over 100 participants will attend the 21th IASJ Jazz Meeting 2011. The arrival day is on Saturday, July 2nd, 2011. The activities start on Sunday, the 3rd of July, and finish on Friday, the 8th of July. More than 40 international music institutions will attend the IASJ Jazz Meeting 2011.
The IASJ (International Association of Schools of Jazz) established in 1989, is one of the most important existing world wide network of high quality schools of jazz. Students, teachers and representatives are connected through the Annual IASJ Jazz Meeting, which takes place in a different country every year. The first IASJ Jazz Meeting took place in The Hague, The Netherlands. Ever since, jazz schools that play a major role in jazz and jazz education in Europe and the USA hosted the IASJ Jazz Meeting. In the years to come IASJ Jazz Meetings are planned in South America, South Africa, the USA, as well as in various top level jazz schools in Europe.
The music known as jazz has evolved into a truly global art form since its inception over one hundred years ago in America. It is played, taught and appreciated throughout the world while at the same time assimilating a rich array of musical influences along the way. Through its core values of freedom of expression, group interaction, shared respect and individual responsibility, jazz embodies the highest ideals of art and human creativity and has emerged as a powerful tool for promoting harmonious relations across highly diverse cultural boundaries.The IASJ is committed to promoting these values in both the musical world and society as a whole. The organization is based in Den Haag, Netherlands. Membership comes from all the continents and nearly forty countries, ranging from large state-funded conservatories to small privately run schools as well as individual educators and artists. The IASJ achieves its goals through a variety of activities including a posting board on the web, a newsletter and exchange programs during the academic year.
The focal point of the IASJ is the Annual Jazz Meeting held in a different country each year. These meetings enable the most promising students from member schools to participate in international ensembles, jam sessions, recording projects and master classes coached by top level artists from around the world. Attending representatives and teachers from IASJ member schools meet during this period to discuss pedagogical, philosophical and administrative issues. Ongoing student and teacher exchanges result from this interaction as well as the promotion of more performing opportunities for all the participants. The IASJ, through the universal power of jazz music, serves as a positive force towards encouraging cross cultural communication and understanding.
David Liebman —founder and artistic director of IASJ
“Teaching jazz was completely foreign to me during my early musical life. Musicians from my era (basically the 1960s) for the most part did not go to school for jazz although there were some places such as Berklee, University of Miami, North Texas and others. But in the New York area there were no schools nor were there any teachers of jazz around, except for Lennie Tristano with whom I took some lessons with. As is said, I learned “from the street”, by trial and error, observation and a lot of luck. In fact the idea of teaching jazz was an anathema to me and many musicians of that period.
It was during my travels to so many places, especially in Europe that I realized the obvious. Everyone who is learning an art form like jazz is learning the same material, though it may be presented in different languages. I mean Miles is Miles and Duke is Duke no matter where you are or how you say it. The music is truly universal. Yet from what I could see, musicians and teachers in one country, say Germany, had no idea who the key players and/or teachers were in a neighboring country like France. It seemed that the time worn concept of networking would benefit everyone.
Establishing the IASJ is by far the most important work I have done in my life as a professional musician. It surpasses my own career and experiences, which although have made me what I am, pale in comparison to the positive and far reaching work that the organization has accomplished and continues doing. I feel like I have made a real contribution to the world and will continue my work in this way as long as possible.”
