RAVENSCROFT AND THE VALLEY JAZZ COOPERATIVE OFFER THEIR FIRST-EVER SUMMER YOUTH CAMP, WITH A “SPECIAL TOPICS” FOCUS ON JAZZ COMPOSITION & ARRANGING (June 23-27 @ 10am - 3pm)
VALLEY JAZZ COOPERATIVE
EXPLORE YOUR GIFTS. FIND YOUR PASSION.
Join VJC Founder Russell Schmidt for a week-long intensive in which he will help you develop your creative impulses into fully-formed, highly-expressive jazz compositions. Educational sessions will include emphasis on:
- Understanding chord progressions and traditional formal structures,
- Studying jazz harmony, voice-leading concepts, and common voicings,
- Analyzing musical examples by historically-significant jazz writers,
- Examining the relationship between improvisation and composition, and
- Exploring practice exercises designed to expand one’s creativity.
Participants will, of course, also work on their own compositions and/or arrangements as part of this writer’s workshop. This immersive program will give you the tools to grow as a composer and musician.
Educational sessions will run for the full week (M-F) from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon and 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. All instruction will take place in Ravenscroft’s MultiPurpose Room. Participants can pack their own lunch or head out each day to a nearby restaurant during the hour-long, midday break. As always, parking is free and abundant on-site at Ravenscroft.
Cost for this educational program is $150.00. Please note this VJC Summer Youth Camp is being offered free of charge to all VJC alums through the generosity of MSW-Education. (Current and former VJCers should reach out to Director Russell Schmidt prior to registering to receive a waiver for the educational fee.)
Space is limited for this “special topics” intensive, so apply now and grow your creativity in fresh, new ways this summer.
About the Insructor
Russell Schmidt
Russell Schmidt is a sought-after adjudicator, clinician, and guest conductor, having worked at jazz festivals and with school/universities from New York to California. Over the years, he has directed various All-State Jazz Ensembles across the country, most recently leading the ATSSB All-State Jazz Ensemble at the TMEA Conference in San Antonio, TX. After a distinguished career in academia, he joined Music Serving the Word Ministries in June 2014 as Coordinator of Education and Keyboardist. In early 2016, he founded MSW’s educational outreach program, the Valley Jazz Cooperative, which he continues to lead. Previously, Russell served as Director of Jazz Studies at Bowling Green State University and the University of Utah. He also held faculty appointments at Northern Arizona University, the University of North Carolina–Asheville, and the Eastman School of Music, where he co-conducted the Eastman Studio Orchestra and was a student of Rayburn Wright.
As a composer and arranger, Russell has written for artists as varied as saxophonists Bob Berg and Michael Brecker, the Ying String Quartet, and Rhythm & Brass. His works as a composer/arranger have been released by Advance Music, GIA Publications, the Penfield Commission Project, and VJC Publications (for which he also serves as editor). He continues to write prolifically for both small groups and jazz ensembles.