2018 KMEA All-State Jazz conductor
Greetings jazz educators! I’m Gary Leopold, KMEA All-State Jazz Chair and I want to give you some basic information about the upcoming All-State Jazz Band auditions. The audition date is Saturday, January 6 at Salina Lakewood Middle School (1135 E. Lakewood Cir., Salina, KS 67401). Deadlines and fee schedule for registration are as follows:
December 15 – $10 fee
December 31 – $30 fee
January 5 – $50 fee
January 6 – $100 fee (on-site registration)
Steve Owen, Director of Jazz Studies at the University of Oregon, is this year’s guest conductor. Steve Mr. Owen is recognized as one of the nation’s finest jazz educators and is a highly sought-after clinician for all-state jazz ensembles in nearly every state. The university ensembles he directs have won numerous awards and accolades, including several “Outstanding College Big Band” at the Reno Jazz festival and was a 2008 Downbeat Award Winner in the College Big Band category. Owen is also a composer and arranger of prominence: his works have become staples in the libraries of the nation’s finest college and professional jazz ensembles, as well as them being featured at numerous jazz festivals nationally and internationally.
