April 3, 2007 – Vail, Colorado – Jazz Goes to School wraps up its ninth year in Eagle County Schools with two complimentary performances at the Vilar Center for the Arts, Beaver Creek on Friday, April 20, 2007. 

The fourth and final session, titled “A Tribute to the Giants of Jazz”, features the 9th Annual Jazz Goes to School Concert for Vail Valley Students at the Vilar Center for all elementary school students who participated in the program.  The Concert demonstrate all of the concepts taught in the first three classroom sessions and featured music written and/or performed by the greatest jazz musicians in history as well as blues tunes written by the fifth grade students.  The event will feature the Jazz Goes to School Sextet led by Tony Gulizia.

Jazz Goes to School is presented by the Vail Jazz Foundation (VJF) to all fourth and fifth graders in the public schools of Eagle County, plus the Eagle County Charter Academy, Vail Mountain School, Vail Academy, Stone Creek Elementary School and St. Clare of Assisi.  Having just completed its ninth year, Jazz Goes to School reaches over 1,000 students each year, and has exposed over 10,000 school students to jazz music. 

Members of the community are invited to purchase tickets for $8, by calling the Vail Jazz Foundation office at 479-6146 to reserve their seats.  “We encourage parents and community members to come and get a taste of what the local kids are learning in Jazz Goes to School,” VJF’s Executive Director, Robin Litt, says “Space is limited with over 1000 school children and their chaperones attending the performances this year”. 

Local jazz musician and professional jazz educator, Tony Gulizia (keyboard and vocals), directs the Jazz Goes to School program.  Tony’s brother, Joey (drummer) is also a professional jazz musician and educator, co-presents the sessions.  Other professional musicians and clinicians who assist the Gulizia brothers include  Andy Hall (bass), Roger Neumann (saxophone),  Walter “Scotty” Scott (trumpet) and Michael Pujado (congas and percussion).

The program is well received by school teachers, administrators and parents. Marcie Gass, longtime teacher at Gypsum Elementary School said, “Jazz Goes to School has allowed my students the diversity they need for musical appreciation.  I believe it will continue to broaden students’ horizons and awareness in many aspects of their young lives.

Jazz Goes to School is an interactive learning experience that is an extremely valuable enhancement of the basic school curriculum that would not otherwise be available to the students in the Eagle County schools without the support of the VJF.  “Jazz is America’s gift to the world and the Foundation’s mission is to perpetuate jazz music through live performances that showcase the talent of great jazz musicians, and through jazz education, with a focus on young musicians and young audiences.” says Litt, “By taking jazz into every elementary school, we hope to create an awareness at a young level, and therefore creating future audiences and potentially, future jazz musicians.”

Jazz Goes to School is sponsored in part by Alpine Bank, Buckman/Blount Community Use Fund, City Market/The Kroger Foundation, Colorado Mountain Express (Official Transportation Provider), Eagle County RE-50J School District and PTOs, Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation, The Evjue Foundation, Integrity Mortgage of the Rockies, Vail Valley Foundation, Vilar Center for the Arts Beaver Creek, Walmart Foundation, the Colorado Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts.

For more information, or to reserve your seat please contact:
Robin Litt, Executive Director
970-479-6146
vjf@vailjazz.org
www.vailjazz.org