March 8 was a cool, sunny day in Litchfield CT and it crackled with excitement for 15 talented teens. They gathered at 2PM at the Litchfield Community Center along with an audience 90 strong of family members and visitors from across the State to vie for scholarships to this summer’s Litchfield Jazz Camp. Even more important to them than a win was the opportunity to perform with a seasoned professional trio whose leader, pianist Zaccai Curtis, had just won a Grammy. This was heady stuff for kids who ranged in age from just 13 to 17.
The order of the day was a series of performances by the 15 semifinalists who were then winnowed down to five. Three winners and 2 honorable mentions would be announced around 4PM, if everything went as planned, and certificates and scholarships would be presented by last year’s first place winner, the talented violinist and now 17-year-old Conor McMillen of Washington Heights, NY.
After all 15 played, a brief intermission was called to allow the judges make their selections backstage. They included trio members, Zaccai Curtis, piano (whose Grammy win, announced just a few weeks before, was for Best Latin Jazz Album), Conway Campbell on bass, and Ian Carroll on drums. Curtis and Campbell were both former Litchfield Jazz Campers and all three are faculty members now. They were joined by the “official” adjudicating panel, saxophonists Albert Rivera and Don Braden,both top administrators of the Camp, andVita Muir its founder.
They deliberated while audience members munched chocolate chip cookies—this time the team remembered everyone needed coffee! Fifteen minutes later they returned to the auditorium to announce the winners. Conor McMillen kept the suspense going for a few more minutes while he treated the audience and competitors to his lovely arrangements of My One and Only Love (Guy Wood and Robert Mellin) and If I Were a Bell (Frank Loesser).
After an enthusiastic round of applause, Conor told us what we were all waiting eagerly to hear. In reverse order he presented honorable mention certificates and $350 scholarships to 13-yr-old bassist Kenjiro Matsuki from Tenafly NJ, and 14-yr-old pianist Noah Rosen from NYC. This pair can be reasonably called prodigies: they began their studies at camp at age 10 and age 12, respectively, already playing at a surprisingly high level and learning at warp speed. Next came 3rd place winner and recipient of a $1000 scholarship, drummer Xander Rosenblum. Xander who is 13 and from NYC joined the Camp last year for the first time playing in a skill-matched combo that included 20 somethings and a 54-year-old trumpeter-music teacher from Bermuda who brings a gaggle of youngsters to Camp each year. Next up, in second place with a $1000 scholarship was Xavier Smith, baritone horn player from New Haven. Xavier had entered the competition last year and was not altogether pleased with his own work, but, undaunted, he was back this year to take a top spot. And finally—the 1st place winner— also from New Haven, at age 17, was alto saxophonist Dontae James. He received a $2000 full scholarship and a music lesson from the Camp faculty member of his choice.
Here are the tunes the finalists played, just in case you want to give them another listen. Dontae offered a gorgeously lyrical Stars Fell on Alabama (Frank Perkins and Mitchell Parish) and Mr. PC(John Coltrane); Xavier played the iconic Blue Monk (Thelonious Monk) and Impressions (Coltrane); Xander turned in stirring renditions of A Night in Tunisia (Frank Paparelli and Dizzy Gillespie) and Donna Lee (Charlie Parker and Miles Davis); Noah gave us the beautiful Horace Silver tune, Peace, and an old chestnut made new by his treatment, Take the A Train (Billy Strayhorn/Duke Ellington); and Kenjiro, born in Japan and now residing in Tenafly NJ, tackled Miles Davis’ Oleo and Milt Jackson’s Bags Groove.
When the judges realized what we had in the winners was a bona fide band with all parts covered, urged them to grace the audience with a final jam session. So, they whipped up a rousing Au Privave (Charlie Parker) And that was a wrap.
A thank you goes to Litchfield Jazz Talent Search supporters The Northwest CT Community Foundation, Northwest Community Bank and friends of Litchfield Performing Arts,Inc.
For information about Litchfield Jazz Camp and to register, visit https://litchfieldjazzcamp.com/. The 30th Annual Litchfield Jazz Festival begins as the Camp concludes on July 25 and runs through July 27. For tickets visit https://litchfieldjazzfest.com/