Berman Music Foundation had busy summer
LINCOLN, Neb.—The
Berman Music Foundation has been busy over the summer.
Jazz in June was a wonderful tribute to Butch. Special
thanks to Martha Florence and Doug Campbell for making each Jazz in
June show an event honoring Butch and his contributions to the
Lincoln music scene. We look forward to working with Jazz in June in
the future.
Grace and I have been busy working on other various
projects and reviewing several grant requests.
In keeping with our theme to promote music by focusing
on young people, we issued a grant to the Northeast Family Center
in Lincoln to promote their Academy of Rock program. Our
grant allowed the group to purchase two acoustic guitars and other
equipment. The center fosters youth development with the goal of
keeping kids from engaging in unhealthy risk behaviors. They work
with Lincoln’s most diverse and low-income households.
We have also awarded a grant to the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln School of Music to support two very exciting
projects in 2009.
The first project is the Honor Jazz Weekend, a
unique jazz experience for high school sophomores, juniors and
seniors. The festival is designed to give outstanding musicians a
comprehensive playing and learning experience. Festival participants
are chosen through a recorded audition (tape or CD). Students
attending the festival will have the opportunity to be involved in
small jazz combos, as well as a large jazz ensemble. Students will
also participate in master classes with UNL faculty and featured
guests learn about jazz history, composition, and improvisation. The
Honor Jazz Weekend is currently underwritten by the UNL School of
Music. The featured guest artist for 2009—vibraphonist Stefon
Harris—is sponsored by the Lied Center for the Performing Arts.
The Berman Music Foundation will underwrite the costs
for a new innovation in this 2009 program, a music educator training
session for high school music teachers in the region. Up to five
music educators will be invited to the UNL Honor Jazz Weekend as
Berman Jazz Fellows. Their workshop experiences will include
sessions by UNL School of Music faculty and Stefon Harris on jazz
pedagogy, distinctive repertoire for high school jazz programs,
developing jazz combos in the high school setting, and strategies
for the teaching of jazz composition. Fellows will be in residence
from Thursday evening through Sunday afternoon. The Berman
fellowship will underwrite all lodging, meals, round trip mileage to
the UNL campus, and instructional experiences and materials.
The second project is the UNL Summer Jazz Camp
for high school music students. The camp will include a week of
instruction and performance in all aspects of jazz, with special
emphasis on small-group performance and jazz composition. The
workshop faculty will include outstanding performers and
teachers—from UNL and elsewhere—offering personal instruction in
improvisation, combos, big band, jazz composition, history and
theory, with master classes and ensembles tailored to the needs and
abilities of each student. Each evening, students and faculty will
present concerts and jam sessions offering students of all levels
the chance to perform and grow in improvisational, small group, and
ensemble playing. Enrollment will be limited to 40 students.
The plan is to produce the jazz camp in June so that
faculty can find interesting ways to partner with the Jazz in June
concert series. Possibilities include inviting that week’s Jazz in
June artist to present a master class or to coach at the camp.
Recently, we awarded a grant to the Lincoln Arts
Council to sponsor the entertainment at the Lincoln Arts
Festival scheduled for Sept. 27-28 at Southpointe Pavilion. The
festival attracts nearly 12,000 patrons and artists and is
highlighted by some of Lincoln’s finest musicians.
Grace has been working with various education groups
to donate some of the foundation’s musical instruments. BMF will
continue our relationship with KZUM Community Radio by
underwriting several jazz and blues shows. We have also continued
our sponsorship of the Friends of Lied and we continue to
review grant requests and hope to work with many organizations and
institutions in the Lincoln area.
Finally, I know that many Berman Music Foundation
supporters have asked about the status of the foundation’s music
collection. We are finalizing the cataloging of the library and have
had discussions with educational institutions toward our goal of
loaning the collection to an institution that is better able to
house the materials and share them with the public. This is an
ongoing process that we hope to finish in the next few months.
May the music never end.
Tony Rager
Trustee, Berman Music Foundation
