Theo and Zac head to NYJC Summer School
Lower Sixth pupils Theo G and Zac A have successfully gained places on the highly competitive National Youth Jazz Collective (NYJC) Summer School.
The Summer School is designed for England’s most gifted and talented young jazz musicians aged 14-18. They welcome players of all styles, traditions and instruments who are ready to extend their interactive improvisation and compositional skills, as well as their ability level and confidence. Pupils audition from all over the country audition for just 45 available places.
During the programme the boys will be selected to play in one of five nine-piece combos guided by 11 of the nation’s leading jazz educators. During the week they will partake in various masterclasses, lessons and seminars. All are designed to develop their ear and will broaden their improvisation, composition and spontaneous arranging and interactive skills. The week will round off with a public performance of all five combinations, which will be recorded and posted on the NYJC’s YouTube channel.
Theo commented: “I was fortunate to gain a place at last year’s summer school and it was a fantastic experience, I can’t wait to return this year. The programme is a lot of fun and you learn so much in just one week.”
Zac added: “I feel really lucky to be attending. Theo and I are both keen to pursue careers in the music industry so this will really help build our contacts and develop our skills for the future.”