 |
The Fond du Lac Jazz Festival Presents:
The mission of the Fond du Lac Jazz Ensemble is two-fold: to expose our audiences to great jazz and
blues performances and to support the cause of music education. The
Honors Jazz Ensemble is perhaps the most innovative of the organization's music education programs,
which through the years have included more than 100 music scholarships and many student jazz
workshops.
 Created
in 1999 by Jazz Festival board member Kay "Gus" Gainacopulos, a music professor at
UW-Oshkosh, the Jazz Ensemble program provides a vehicle for young musicians to gain a fuller
understanding of the artistry of jazz while honing their skills to achieve greater mastery of the
craft. In addition, it gives its members an opportunity they would not likely have otherwise --
the chance to play on a regular basis with jazz-focused musicians from other schools, under the
guidance of a college jazz instructor.
The 2007 Honors Jazz Ensemble is comprised of talented musicians from Fond du Lac, North Fond du
Lac, Oshkosh West, Oshkosh Lourdes, Ripon and Neenah high schools. Selected through an audition
process, the members practice regularly under the direction of UW-Oshkosh music professor Marty
Robinson and Fond du Lac’s Marian College music professor Brian Lydeen. The group gains valuable
performance experience by serving as the opening act of the headline performer at the Fond du Lac
Jazz Festival each year.”
|
 |
|
