PRESS RELEASE:

The Blues Alley Jazz Society (BAJS) is pleased to announce that it has been awarded an Access to Artistic Excellence grant in Music from the National Endowment for the Arts, effective July 1, 2010. The award will support a big band jazz music program for youth.

Incorporated in 1985, the mission of the BAJS, is to leverage the resources of the nightclub of the same name and its access to accomplished jazz performers for the purpose of providing jazz education and performance opportunities to youth ages 11-18 in the Washington DC area.

The program consists of the Blues Alley Youth Orchestra, led by internationally recognized electric and contra bass player Michael Bowie, and a two week Big Band Jam on the National Mall every April. The programs are offered free of charge to participating students, made possible through educational partnership with the Berklee College of Music, Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra, the United States Army Blues, and an ecumenical partnership with Grace Church. Through its extensive outreach to area high schools, clinics, master classes, and performances on the National Mall, the program is open to all and reaches a broad segment of area residents. In addition, a Summer Jazz Camp will be offered this July through the Smithsonian Associates program. The cornerstone of the program, the Blues Alley Youth Orchestra, is comprised of accomplished student musicians ranging in age from 11-18 years old with their mission to preserve and promote the big band jazz genre. Now in its 20th year, the Orchestra has performed at such mainstay venues as The John F. Kennedy Center, The Smithsonian Institution, The National Theater, Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival, Carter Barron Amphitheater, Wolf Trap Farm Park, Blues Alley and elsewhere.

The BIG BAND JAM provides a performance venue for area jazz bands performing in April during Jazz Appreciation Month and helps educate students and the community about the National Capital's unique jazz heritage and thriving current jazz scene. Area high schools, colleges, universities, and military ensembles participate in a two-week festival during which professional musicians and music faculty provide workshops and master classes to students.

Additional details can be found on-line at www.BIGBANDJAM.org or by contacting Harry Schnipper at 202-544-3230 or Carol Sue Fromboluti at 202-363-8176.

Harry Schnipper executivedirector@bluesalley.org