Jazz Starters for all instruments
Director: John Paul Velez
- Grades 5-8
- June 23-26, 2025
- 2 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
About Jazz Starters
Is classical music completely different from jazz, or do these two styles have more in common than you think? Is it possible to take the skills that you develop through your private instrumental lessons and turn them into jazz?
Jazz Starters is a great opportunity for students with no prior jazz experience who wish to explore how to play jazz on their instrument. Starting with the basics - rhythm, melody, and harmony - students will experiment with new ways to approach these fundamentals of music from a jazz perspective. Along the way, they will learn new tunes, harmonies, scales, and riffs which they can then incorporate into their playing and begin sounding like the jazz musician they want to be. Pianists in Jazz Starters will concentrate mostly on playing chords and accompanying the rest of the band, as well as learning to improvise and take a solo. Note: Although there is no maximum enrollment in Jazz Starters, the number of pianists, bass, and drum-set students accepted will be limited to 3 students per instrument.
Each day, students will have small group lessons, as well as specialty classes in jazz history/theory and drumming circle. Ensemble playing in small and large groups will be a part of the weekly experience as students play with each other and alongside the pros.
Students will have the opportunity to play for one another in an informal performance class setting in preparation for their recital for the families on the final day.
Prerequisites
Students must have completed at least 2 years of private lessons on their instruments and have a level of proficiency to allow them to learn music with some independence. Students must be entering grades 5 through 8 in the fall of 2024.
Maximum enrollment: None, with the exception of the following instruments:
- Piano - 3
- Bass - 3
- Drum-set - 3
Location
Jazz Starters will be held on the Westminster Conservatory Princeton campus.
Schedule
Jazz Starters will meet Monday through Friday from 2 p.m.-5:30 p.m. A mid-afternoon break time will allow the students to socialize and eat the snack that they have brought for the day. On the final day, the students will present a concert for their family and friends at 4:45pm. Students should wear their Conservatory T-shirts to the performance!
Tuition
- Fees: $450
- Early Bird Discount (Register by May 31): $425
$50 Late Fee will be added to tuition for registrations received one week prior to the starting date of the program.
Tuition includes an assignment folder plus a Westminster Conservatory T-shirt.
A non-refundable deposit of $150 is due with the application. The balance of the fee is due by June 1. Registrations received after May 15 must pay in full. Cancellations after June 1 will receive a refund (less deposit, above) only if another student can be placed from a wait list.
