Forum Music Teachers Association of Houston, Inc.

Jazz Festival

This is an event for piano solo performance that features non-competitive and competitive divisions. The non-competitive division is open to students of all ages and abilities and will be adjudicated with comments and a rating scale. The competitors are grouped according to grade level and require a high level of preparation and performance. All solo performances are from memory.  Ensemble (4H or 6H) may be by memory or may use music.  Attire for the festival is performance attire or attire suitable to a jazz musician, the title of jazz composition.  The second attire choice may offer a student more creativity and festivity.  The Jazz chair has some repertoire listed on excel and the judges’ instructions outline what the Jazz Festival is listening in terms of performance.  Please contact the Chair if you need copies of these documents.

CHAIRMAN: Janet Soller
ASSISTANT CHAIRMAN:
DATE: February 23, 2024
LOCATION: Kawai Piano Gallery – 5800 Richmond Ave, Houston, TX 77057
FEES: $30 for non-competitive; $30 for competitive;
Pay for your student’s registration:

    1. OPTION 1 (preferred): Send payments via Zelle to fmteftreasurer@gmail.com. Add a message to the transfer with the memo “Jazz Festival enrollment for #__ students.”

    2. OPTION 2: One check per studio, made out to FORUM. Mail your registration check to the chair. Your payment must be postmarked no later than the deadline.

DEADLINES: Estimate December 6th, 2023.  Checks postmarked January 21st, 2024, or by Zelle by January 21st, 2024. Registration is due per the website also on January 21st, 2024.
TEACHER REQUIREMENT: Teachers will be asked to assist at this event. Teachers who are unable to fulfill their work requirements for any reason must provide advance notice to the chair ahead of the event, and pay one of the following applicable fees:
$150 with at least one week’s notice or $175 with less than one week’s notice, or no notice.
Teachers who are unable to work due to an emergency must notify the chair immediately, the fee may be waived with the approval of the chair and the president.
REQUIRED REPERTOIRE: For both divisions, participants must perform one jazz, rap, blues, or boogie-woogie work of his/her choice. A student may enter only one division.
Non-Competitive Guidelines:
  1. Solo Performance: Students perform individually one jazz solo work of their choice from memory.Ensemble: (4H or 6H, one piano) The one duet or trio is performed with or without music. Duet and trio partners may be of different ages and abilities.  Partners may include one adult with the exception that the adult may not be the teacher of the other partner(s).  One Fee per ensemble. Registration will require an ensemble name and the names of each partner.All participants must provide an original copy of the music with the measures numbered in PDF one-scan file electronically by February 10, 2023, to email address TBD. (Ensemble will submit one PDF copy.)Students will receive a critique and a rating, from 1 to 4 (with plus or minus scores). All students will receive a certificate with the appropriate colored ribbon sealed to it (purple for 1+, blue for 1, red for 2, white for 3, green for 4).Outside judges will be selected by the chairman and all judges’ decisions are final.
Competitive Guidelines:
  1. Solo Performance OnlyStudents will perform one jazz work of their choice from memory.All participants must provide an original copy of the music with the measures numbered in PDF one-scan file electronically by February 10, 2023, to email address TBD. (Ensemble will submit one PDF copy.)Register the student by the student’s current school grade level, with the exception of the late beginner.The late beginner: Students in grades 2, 3, and 4 only who are beginning piano students may register in a level which will be called “grade 2.5”.  To qualify as a “beginning piano student”, students may have only had a total of 8 months of lessons are less.   If the student is a transfer student, the registering teacher must count the months of lessons with the former teacher.  If the lessons add up to more than 8 months, enter the student in the student’s grade level.Competitors are grouped according to grades 1-12 grade. Kindergarten students are registered as grade one.  Chairman may group grades together or split grades into groups according to the number of students entered in each grade.Trophies will be awarded for first, second, third, and fourth place.  Honorable Mention may be a medal or a rosette ribbon.Outside judges will be selected by the chairman and all judges’ decisions are final. Ties will be strictly discouraged.
REGISTRATION: Go to the teacher dashboard to register online. Checks postmarked February 1, 2023, or delivered to Jazz Chair at February meeting or by Zelle by Feb. 1, 2023. Registration is due per the website also on February 1, 2023.. Late entries will not be accepted.

 

REGISTRATION STEPS:

Step One: Go to Dashboard (scroll to the bottom of this webpage) and complete the entry form by February 1, 2023. The entry form will look like this under a table/column format:

Teacher Name C/N Student Name 9 Last, First) Alphabetized by Level Grade Title of Piece Composer Selection 2: Composer * Link to Google Drive Folder