Call (414) 276-5760
We're here for you!

The Jazz Institute - Winter/Spring 2013

The Conservatory has one of the longest running jazz programs in the United States. Over the last forty-plus years, it has been a significant presence in the world of jazz and has produced many well-known performers.

The Jazz Institute at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music is the recipient of the Eric D. Batterman Memorial Grant. This generous grant from the Theodore W. Batterman Family Foundation has enabled us to significantly expand our jazz offerings. The Jazz Institute offers jazz instruction and performance opportunities for all ages. Students learn from our faculty of seasoned jazz performers and also have the chance to work with world renowned guest artists.


JAZZ PROGRAM
High school and adult instrumentalists and vocalists wanting to pursue a curriculum of study in jazz music can enroll in the Jazz Program in which individual instruction and a group experience in a jazz combo class are paired at a special rate.

• The Conservatory’s Jazz Program is open to high school and adult instrumentalists and vocalists wanting to pursue a curriculum of study in jazz music. Individual instruction and group experience in a jazz combo each semester are included in the program.

• Individual instruction with a member of the Conservatory’s faculty will give each student the opportunity to work at his or her own pace, to strengthen skills, technique and musicianship. Instruction will also cover jazz theory and improvisation. Call to arrange a specific instructor, lesson time and location. 

Weekly Jazz Combos-Receive $25 off when registered for at least 15 weeks of individual instruction! The combo experience enables students to use the skills learned during the lessons. Using standard jazz repertoire, students will get practical experience in honing their ensemble and improvisation skills. Each student will be assigned to a group that best meets his/her skill level and schedule.

• New Student Placement Hearings: A placement hearing ensures that ensembles consist of players with similar abilities. Students should perform a piece that best demonstrates their ability to play jazz. Standard repertoire is preferred.

New Student Placement Hearings for the Spring 2013 semester will be held on Wednesday, January 30, 2013 or by appointment. The deadline for a placement hearing is Saturday, February 2, 2013. Please call 414/276-5760 to schedule an appointment.

Students may also register for individual instruction, combos or classes independently from the Jazz Program.

Click on class links below to find specific class information or scroll down on page for detailed class information.

PIANO COMBOS & ENSEMBLES
Beginning Jazz Piano
Middle School Jazz Combo
   High School Jazz Combo
FUNDAMENTALS & TRANSCRIPTION Beginning Jazz Combo for Adults
Bebop Basics Intermediate Jazz Combo for Adults
Jazz Transcription
Advanced Jazz Combo for Adults
  Horace Silver Ensemble
VOICE Thelonious Monk Ensemble
Jazz Singers Workshop Latin Jazz 1
Nightclub Singer Cudahy Latin Jazz Ensemble
  Playing with the Jazz Pros
GUITAR  
The Blues Form for Jazz Guitarists
QUICK CLASSES

Listening to Jazz: The Music of Miles Davis
  Listening to Jazz: The Music of John Coltrane
   
  INSIDE THE MUSIC
  The Wonder of Stevie

 

 
PIANO  
Beginning Jazz Piano | 12 Weeks | $198
 
High School-Adult
Explore the essentials of jazz harmony as you learn a repertoire of jazz standards. Each week highlights a different historically important jazz pianist. Basic piano proficiency and knowledge of major scales is required.

Prospect • Mondays 6:30-7:25pm
4915 • Starts 2/11/13
Instructor: John Foshager


Return to Top

 
FUNDAMENTALS & TRANSCRIPTION  
Bebop Basics | 12 Weeks | $198  
High School-Adult
An introduction to the fundamentals of jazz improvisation, this class will show students how to use scales and basic bebop vocabulary to create solos on standard chord progressions.
Open to all instrumentalists.

Prospect • Mondays 7:00-7:55pm
4916 • Starts 2/11/13
Instructor: Eric Jacobson


Return to Top

 
Jazz Transcription | 12 Weeks | $198
 
High School-Adult
One of the key ways jazz musicians learn is by transcribing—the process of figuring out by ear what has been played on a recording. This class will focus on the transcription of 2-3 classic solos. Advice will be given on which solos to choose and how to transcribe them. The students will learn to play them from memory, then analyze the transcriptions and develop exercises that will enable them to start incorporating this material into their own improvisations.
Open to all instrumentalists.

Prospect • Tuesdays 8:00-8:55pm
4917 • Starts 2/12/13
Instructor: Eric Jacobson

Return to Top

 
VOICE  
Jazz Singers Workshop | 12 Weeks | $297
 
Adults
Sing with professional piano and bass accompaniment and learn the basic musical concepts needed to perform with fellow jazz musicians. This class will provide students with an understanding of form, keys, tempos, charts, set lists, and stage etiquette. Students must come ready to sing.

Prospect • Mondays 5:30-6:25pm
4918 • Starts 2/11/13
Instructors: Jim Paolo & John Foshager

Return to Top

 
Nightclub Singer | 12 Weeks | $297
 
Adults
This class will help you with song selection, stage presence,preparation, and developing a vocal style. Work with a professional piano accompanist as you prepare for an appearance at a local jazz club. Students must come ready to sing.

Prospect • Wednesdays 6:30-7:25pm
4919 • Starts: 2/13/13
Instructors: Marcya Daneille & John Foshager

Return to Top

 
GUITAR  
The Blues Form For Jazz Guitarists | 12 Weeks | $198     NEW!
 
High School-Adult
The blues progression is an essential part of the jazz tradition, although it appears here in more complex variations than are typically found in the rock or blues genres. In this class we will try our hand at chording and improvising through some of these colorful jazz versions of the blues. Basic knowledge of chords and scales, and solid familiarity with at least a three-chord 12-bar blues progression, are required for participation.

Prospect • Wednesdays 7:00-7:55pm
4920 • Starts 2/13/13
Instructor: Paul Silbergleit

Return to Top

 
COMBOS & ENSEMBLES  
If you are not available for these times, let us know. The Conservatory can form groups on days and times other than those listed here. New Student Placement Hearing date: Wednesday, January 30, 2013 or by appointment. The deadline for a placement hearing is Saturday, February 2, 2013. Please call Student Services at 414/276-5760 to schedule an appointment.  
Middle School Jazz Combo | 12 Weeks | $198  
Learn fundamentals of improvisation, accompaniment and group interplay while you perform standard repertoire as a member of a small jazz group. All instrumentalists and vocalists are welcome.

Audubon Court • Mondays 5:30-6:25pm
4922 • Starts 2/11/13
Instructor: Eric Jacobson

Return to Top

 
High School Jazz Combo | 12 Weeks | $198  
Learn fundamentals of improvisation, accompaniment and group interplay while you perform standard repertoire as a member of a small jazz group. All instrumentalists and vocalists are welcome.

Prospect • Tuesdays 7:00-7:55pm
4924 • Starts 2/12/13
Instructor: Eric Jacobson

Prospect • Tuesdays 5:30-6:25pm
4923 • Starts 3/5/13
Instructor: Eric Schoor


Wilson Center •Thursdays 7:00-7:55pm
4925 • Starts 2/14/13
Instructor: Eric Jacobson

Return to Top

 
Beginning Jazz Combo for Adults | 12 Weeks | $198  
Perfect for the adult who has started playing jazz but has never had a chance to play in a group. You will have fun playing the blues and other basic repertoire. Who knows, you just might work up the nerve to sit in at one the Conservatory Jazz Jam sessions! Open to all instrumentalists. A placement hearing is not required.

Prospect • Wednesdays 7:30-8:25pm
4927 • Starts 2/13/13
Instructor: Jim Paolo

Prospect • Fridays 11:00-11:55am
4930 • Starts 2/15/13
Instructor: Mark Davis

Return to Top
 
 
Intermediate Jazz Combo for Adults | 12 Weeks | $198
 
Prerequisite: Placement hearing required for new students or consent of the instructor.
Learn standard repertoire that is essential for every jazz musician.
All instrumentalists and vocalists are welcome.

Prospect • Mondays 7:30-8:25pm
4928 • Starts 2/11/13
Instructor: Jim Paolo

Return to Top

 
Advanced Jazz Combo for Adults | 12 Weeks | $198  
Prerequisite: Placement hearing required for new students or consent of the instructor.
Perform challenging jazz repertoire as a member of a group of adults who have experience playing jazz.


Prospect • Mondays 6:30-7:25pm
4929 • Starts 2/11/13
Instructor: Jim Paolo


Return to Top

 
Horace Silver Ensemble | 12 Weeks | $198
 
Adults
Intermediate Level
Prerequisite: Placement hearing required for new students or consent of the instructor.

Join a jazz combo and play hard bop masterpieces by the great pianist and composer Horace Silver. Open to instrumentalists.

Prospect • Mondays 8:00-8:55pm
4931 • Starts 2/11/13
Instructor: Eric Jacobson

Return to Top

 
Thelonious Monk Ensemble | 12 Weeks | $198
 
Adults
Intermediate Level
Prerequisite: Placement hearing required for new students or consent of the instructor.

Join a jazz combo and play classics by the “high priest of bebop,” Thelonious Monk. Open to instrumentalists.

Prospect • Thursdays 7:30-8:25pm
4932 • Starts 2/14/13
Instructor: Aaron Gardner

Return to Top

 
Latin Jazz 1 | 12 Weeks | $198
 
High School-Adult
Intermediate-Advanced Level
Prerequisite: Placement hearing required for new students or consent of the instructor.

Learn the basic styles of Latin jazz, cha cha, guanguaco, Son, bossa nova, and more. Open to piano, bass, percussion and horn players (trumpet, trombone, saxophone and flute).

Prospect • Thursdays 5:30-6:30pm
4933 • Starts 2/14/13
Instructor: David Wake

Return to Top

 
Cudahy Latin Jazz Ensemble| 12 Weeks | $198
 
High School-Adult
Advanced Level
Prerequisite: Placement hearing required for new students or consent of the instructor.
Our premier student Latin Jazz ensemble will prepare performances and dance sets of classics from the repertoire.

Prospect • Thursdays 6:30-7:30pm
4934 • Starts 2/14/13
Instructor: David Wake

Return to Top

 
Playing with the Jazz Pros | 3 Weeks | $150  
High School-Adult
Prerequisites: Open to pianists, guitarists, bassists, and drummers currently enrolled in private jazz instruction at the Conservatory. Participants need to demonstrate proficiency performing standard jazz repertoire.
A faculty trio of piano or guitar, bass and drums will guide students through the techniques of rhythm section playing. A repertoire of jazz standards will be chosen at the start of their semester. Students will have the opportunity to work on these during the semester of private lessons. The class will offer the opportunity to “sit in” and observe seasoned professionals, get feedback and try out suggestions on the spot. The class will address stylistic awareness, time, feel, form, chart interpretation and more.

Prospect • Thursdays 7:00-8:00pm
4935 • 1/31, 4/11, 5/23/13
Instructors: Jazz Faculty


Return to Top
 
QUICK CLASSES  
Listening to Jazz: The Music of Miles Davis | 6 Weeks | $98
 
Miles Davis, one of few household names from the jazz world, was at the forefront of an astonishing array of new styles through four decades of music. Come explore and enjoy his creations as a trumpeter and bandleader from his early years with original boppers such as Charlie Parker, through his ground-breaking projects in cool and modal jazz, his gorgeous collaborations with arranger Gil Evans, his famous hard-bop First Quintet, the highly influential post-bop Second Quintet, up to his experiments in jazz-rock fusion and pop-influenced sounds.

Prospect • Tuesdays 7:00-7:55pm
4936 • Starts 2/12/13
Instructor: Paul Silbergleit

Return to Top

 
Listening to Jazz: The Music of John Coltrane | 6 Weeks | $98
 
An iconic and often-imitated figure of modern jazz, John Coltrane opened up new directions in the music through his distinct tenor and soprano saxophone sounds, as well as with unique concepts of composition, and his landmark quartet of the 1960s. Join us as we listen to the sheer beauty and intensity of his playing, while examining his innovations in complex chord progressions, extended modal excursions, and forays into avant-garde territory.

Prospect • Tuesdays 7:00-7:55pm
4937 • Starts 4/9/13
Instructor: Paul Silbergleit

Return to Top

 
INSIDE THE MUSIC  
The Wonder of Stevie | 1 Session | $25
 
The songs of Stevie Wonder are among the most revered in the world, and often show a clear jazz influence that makes them especially suited to adaptation in this style. We Six guitarist Paul Silbergleit guides you through the group's selections and arrangements of Stevie tunes for their upcoming concert at WCM. Tuition includes a ticket to the Conservatory performance on Thursday, March 21, 2013 at 7:30pm.

Prospect • Friday 12:00-12:55pm
4938 • 3/15/13
Instructor: Paul Silbergleit

Return to Top