JazzUp
What is JazzUp ?
JazzUp is an exciting and comprehensive summer training program for young musicians from France and abroad. Over 10 packed days, it offers full immersion in the Jazz à Vienne’festival !
Taking part in JazzUp is a great opportunity for young musicians to work with counter parts from all over the world and to connect with renowned professionals. JazzUp is a chance to strengthen your musical abilities thanks to a robust program culminating in an on-stage performance before an informed audience. It is also a perfect way to explore many aspects of the jazz universe.
Our jazz camp is open to intermediate to advanced musicians. You must be between 16 and 25. We are looking for musicians who play instruments traditionally used in jazz : the drums, bass, piano, guitar, woodwinds, brass-winds, vocalists… Musicians who play other instruments are welcome to apply too !
All the sessions, which will be delivered in English, will take place in the Music Conservatory in Vienne.
Content
- Practice sessions
- Live performances
- Jam sessions
- Masterclasses and talks from professionals
- Access to many concerts
What will you gain ?
- Hands-on instruction from professional musicians
- Networking opportunities with like-minded individuals
- Performance experience at a renowned jazz festival
- Insights into improvisation and musical theory
- Memories to last a lifetime!
Alex Terrier
After graduating from Berklee College, Alex Terrier moved to New York, where has has collaborated with the Mingus Big Band, George Garzone, Kenny Barron, and Jeff Tain Watts, among others. An international guest lecturer, Alex Terrier is a teacher at the American School Of Music in Paris and has been the pedagogic director of JazzUp since 2013. In 2024, Alex Terrier received a Grammy nomination for "The Mingus Centennial Sessions".
Marianne Solivan
Vocalist, educator, composer & arranger, Marianne Solivan has been at the forefront of the New York City Jazz scene for 20 years. Having performed and recorded with a list of Jazz heavyweights including Christian McBride, Lewis Nash, Buster Williams, Greg Hutchinson, Peter Bernstein, Steve Wilson, and many more. Solivan is a true Jazz musician that leads with her heart and knows how to tell a story just as well as she can bring the fire to a swing tune and improvise over any tempo. She has been performing throughout the US and abroad leading tours in Japan, France, Italy, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Austria, and Russia, and has released five albums under her name) with a sixth, BREAK'S OVER, coming out in January of 2025. She is also a gifted educator having built her own Jazz Vocal Workshop in Manhattan, NY and currently holding a tenure track position teaching Jazz Voice at Syracuse University.
Brandon McCune
This Chicago native makes his home in Newark, NJ, where he shares his passion and experience for music at the Cicely Tyson Community School of Performing and Fine Arts. After studying with Kenny Barron at Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts, Brandon toured and recorded with many jazz notables such as Abbey Lincoln, Nnenna Freelon, Terence Blanchard, and many others, earning multiple Grammy nominations. He was also honored to represent his country as a US Jazz Ambassador to Africa, where he taught masterclasses/workshops and gave concert performances for universities, heads of state, and the general population.
Steve Wood
Steve Wood has a B.A. in Jazz Performance from the Oberlin Conservatory where he studied with Peter Dominguez, Wendell Logan, Gary Bartz, and Billy Hart among others. In 2004, he moved to Graz, Austria to pursue a master's degree. He graduated in 2006 with honors. In Austria he quickly became a first call bassist working with former professors Wayne Darling, Fritz Pauer, Renato Chicco, Uli Rennert and Stjepko Gut as well as working with other great musicians based in the area, including Doug Hammond, Howard Curtis, Harry Sokal, and Karl Ratzer. Since 2009 Steve has lived in Brooklyn and has been an active member of the New York music scene. A few of the many incredible musicians he has performed with are Johnathon Blake, Jaleel Shaw, Bill Lee, Peter Evans, Tadataka Unno, Junior Mack, and Marianne Solivan. He has also performed at private events for Senator Chuck Schumer, Liv Tyler, Brooke Shields and Sir Paul McCartney.
Jay Sawyer
Born in Grand Rapids, MI, Jay Sawyer is one of the most in-demand drummers in New York City. After graduating from East Kentwood, he attended Western Michigan University where he got a Bachelors of the Arts in Jazz Studies. He continued his education at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where he obtained a Masters of Arts in Jazz Studies. Since moving to NYC in 2012, Jay has performed in the Off-Broadway musical “Lady Day” featuring Dee Dee Bridgewater, been featured on over 25 recordings and performed in over 20 countries across 5 continents. He has shared the stage with artists such as Freddy Cole, Stefon Harris and Donny McCaslin. Additionally, Jay has performed at several festivals including the Montreal, Detroit and Chicago Jazz Festivals, Festival Eclats d’Email in Limoges, France and the Leopolis Jazz Festival in Lviv, Ukraine.
Places are limited. The deadline for applications and to submit videos is April 30th 2025. The answer will be given in May.
Requirements
JazzUp is designed for experienced student musicians aged 16 to 25 who have mastered improvisation and harmonic skills.
Three musical samples are required: online video (no file downloads) of the musician playing a ballad (Body & Soul, I'm Old Fashioned or Soul Eyes), a medium to medium-up tempo tune (Have You Met Miss Jones, Days of Wine and Roses or Stella by Starlight), and an up-tempo tune (What Is This Thing Called Love ?, I'll Remember April or Nica's Dream).
Tips for your recording:
This recording is to help us select musicians to perform together as a band. We receive dozens of applications and we carefully review each one. To help you submit the best application, here are some tips:
- Submit one video per song.
- As a musician your focus should always be first and foremost the quality of your sound and the accuracy of your rhythm.
- We do not require a professional video and sound quality, but do the best you can, show us you have the motivation necessary to join the band.
- Do not submit a ten-minutes long video.
- Do not submit any songs other than the ones listed to avoid your application to be dismissed.
- Prepare yourself, practice and rehearse before recording yourself.
Fee:
- Full board: 900€
- Classes only: 3000€
Full board details
The price includes accommodation, catering (full board) and trainee supervision. Transportation fees are not included.
Students will be picked up and welcomed at the airport/train station by festival staff.
Boarding School:
Accomodation is provided at the Lycée Ella Fitzgerald.
Students will sleep in dormitories (2, 4, or 6 beds) with shared bathrooms.
Meals:
3 meals are included:
- Breakfast at the boarding school,
- Lunch at the Le Façonnier restaurant, close to the Conservatory (5 minutes walk)
- Dinner at the catering, with festival staff, near the main stages
Jazz à Vienne works with international organisations to welcome young international musicians (Echterlive Festival (Luxembourg), Taller de Músics (Espagne), Togoville Jazz (Togo), Udin&Jazz (Italie)…)