In celebration of Mary Lou’s 100th birthday, Jazz at Lincoln Center and Artistic Director Wynton Marsalis are looking for a girl to swing our band, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra (JLCO). We’re searching the entire country for a female jazz pianist age 15-or-under to perform one song with the orchestra as part of the Jazz for Young People concert Who is Mary Lou Williams? on November 6 and 7, 2009.
Jazz at Lincoln Center Asks: Are You the Next Mary Lou Williams?
At the age of eight she was known as “the little piano girl.” Then she was billed as “The Girl Who Swings the Band.” Eventually, Mary Lou Williams became one of the finest musicians in jazz history, male or female.
Now, in celebration of Mary Lou’s 100th birthday, Jazz at Lincoln Center and Artistic Director Wynton Marsalis are looking for a girl to swing our band, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra (JLCO). We’re searching the entire country for a female jazz pianist age 15-or-under to perform one song with the orchestra as part of the Jazz for Young People concert Who is Mary Lou Williams? on November 6 and 7, 2009.
This competition is open to any female who is:
(A) 15 years of age or younger as of November 7, 2009
(B) Lives in the continental United States
(C) Has a parent/adult available to chaperone in New York City on November 5-7.
If you fit the bill, we invite you to download the sheet music for Mary Lou Williams’ piano feature “Close to Five” and submit a DVD of your performance (solo or with rhythm section accompaniment) for competition by Wednesday October 14,, 2009 at 5:00PM EST.
Two finalists will be chosen by a panel of judges that includes the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra’s piano chair (and a piano prodigy himself), Dan Nimmer. The winner will receive 4 free tickets to Jazz for Young People: Who is Mary Lou Williams and the chance to perform “Close to Five” with the JLCO in Rose Theater.
To Enter:
Download the application form, FAQ and sheet music.
Listen to Mary’s recording, practice a lot and record a video (maximum 5 minutes) of your performance.
Submit the application form and a DVD of your performance to Jazz at Lincoln Center. All materials must arrive by Wednesday October 14, 2009, 5:00 PM EST. The winner will be announced on our website on Wednesday, October 21, 2009.
Send DVD and application to:
Jazz at Lincoln Center
Education Department-Mary Lou Williams
33 West 60th St. 11th Fl.
New York, NY 10023
Performances will be evaluated on the following criteria:
Soulfulness – Swing, spirit
Rhythm - Groove, balance, pulse, timekeeping, swing feel
Soloing/Improvisation - Constructing improvisations through harmonic progressions in the style of the piece
Interpretation – Expression, stylistic choices, maintaining integrity of the original piece, beauty
Basic Musicianship/Technique – Articulation, precision, tone, attacks, releases, dynamics, accents, tempo, phrasing, control, projection, clarity, melodic line
Have Questions?
Read the FAQ, then call 212-258-9974 or email education@jalc.org. We look forward to hearing from you!
Want to learn more about Mary Lou Williams?
Visit the Nesuhi Ertegun Jazz Hall of Fame Online to learn about her life and listen to more of her great music. Or explore the online exhibit “Mary Lou Williams: Soul on Soul” produced by the Institute of Jazz Studies at Rutgers University.
And don’t forget to join us at the Rose Theater on Saturday, November 7, for Jazz for Young People: Who is Mary Lou Williams? with host Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.
This is the typical JALC press release, so it's done in the usual 'klutsy' way.
They could have cut to the chase; mentioned (briefly)that Mary Lou was great from a very young age and that they were looking for a girl of between the ages of _-15 to fill the chair.
All the rest of the attributes are pure junk.
The one that get's this gig knows what they need to bring to the table (including parents & teachers).
The DVD part is no bother to me....it's nearly become today's Brownie camera. You can shoot a video these days with a phone....get it on a computer and burn the disc.
Agreed that it's very awkwardly and definitly man_centrically worded
Not to mention that there are no "girls" in the band
What? Still?! Can I assume that there hasn't been a single one since 2000, when this article was published? JALC receives public funds, so how in hell has it gotten away with that?
I'm going to hear Ornette at JALC, and I've been feeling really bad about giving it even that much support.
Last edited by bluenoter; September-11th-2009 at 08:53 PM.
I'm actually talking with Eli Yamin - Director of the Middle School Jazz Academy at JALC - and I stand corrected girls is an acceptable term. i.e. Girls Varsity, Boys Basketball, etc.
He also said he thought we made valid points about compensation. He said this was the first time JALC has done this kind of competition and there's a learning curve...
What? Still?! Can I assume that there hasn't been a single one since 2000, when this article was published? JALC receives public funds, so how in hell has it gotten away with that?
I'm going to hear Ornette at JALC, and I've been feeling really bad about giving it even that much support.
There have fill in and part-time women musicians in JALCO, but not a regular member
I'm actually talking with Eli Yamin - Director of the Middle School Jazz Academy at JALC - and I stand corrected girls is an acceptable term. i.e. Girls Varsity, Boys Basketball, etc.
He also said he thought we made valid points about compensation. He said this was the first time JALC has done this kind of competition and there's a learning curve...
They're supposed to be communication professionals. That's a cop-out!
There have fill in and part-time women musicians in JALCO, but not a regular member
and to my knowledge, they have never had an open call for musicians, nor invited a woman to audition. More than once JALC folks have been heard to say they "couldn't FIND a woman good enough to play in the Orchestra!" I remember that comment being made at the time Renee Rosnes was playing in the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band.
I think we all can think of several very quickly -- without thinking very hard.
Mmm...so JALC wants a little re-enactment of Mary Lou Williams as
"the little piano girl of East Liberty". I'm wondering that if the parents of young girls who are aspiring pianists actually knew the history-and what Mary Lou Williams had to go through-I'm not so sure they would eagerly want to have their little girl be equated with that moniker. Mary Lou had an extremely rough childhood-playing in whore houses, entertaining at her step father's poker games, sometimes she went to school, sometimes she didn't, for a while-she was the one supporting the family-when she was 8 years old. According to Mary Lou Williams in her biography "Morning Glory" by Linda Dahl-she loved playing the piano and running wild-but she also had to constantly defend herself against sexual predators-and that went on for years and years. Will that part of the story be covered by JALC?
I'm actually talking with Eli Yamin - Director of the Middle School Jazz Academy at JALC - and I stand corrected girls is an acceptable term. i.e. Girls Varsity, Boys Basketball, etc.
In all the schools I've ever taught in, females from 4 to about 14 or 15 are called "girls" and males of the same age are called "boys". That is standard English. I mean, after all, that is what they are, boys and girls. From that age on, we usually call them "young women" and "young men".
Because I teach foreign languages, I've always addressed my students in the formal: monsieur, mademoiselle, señor, señorita. The coaches call the girls "ladies" and the boys "boys".
In all the schools I've ever taught in, females from 4 to about 14 or 15 are called "girls" and males of the same age are called "boys". That is standard English. I mean, after all, that is what they are, boys and girls. From that age on, we usually call them "young women" and "young men".
Because I teach foreign languages, I've always addressed my students in the formal: monsieur, mademoiselle, señor, señorita. The coaches call the girls "ladies" and the boys "boys".
I will use the terms "gentlemen" and "ladies" and/or "sir" and "ma'am" in an effort to teach them how to show some respect for each other. But the use of "boys" and "girls" is the terminology for all sports teams on our HS campus.
IMHO, it is all in the sincere or disingenuous motivation behind the usage.
My two cents....
Last edited by GoodSpeak; September-12th-2009 at 11:26 AM.
The ladies take care of their restrooms better than the boys...except for the graffitti. So the ladies always have soap, toilet paper, and paper towels. The boys always have rolls of toilet paper in the commodes, soap dispensers empty and broken, and paper towels stopping up the sink.
IMHO, it is all in the sincere or disingenuous motivation behind the usage.
Yes, of course, and I understand that Rita is referring to that exactly. When the announcements come on and the assistant principal says, "Good Morning, boys and girls!" it just doesn't sound right.
So the ladies always have soap, toilet paper, and paper towels.
If you came and visited you would know that that is not necessarily the case. I used to compare one of the bathrooms at work to those found in public schools - with paper on the floor, water all over the place and no toilet paper. We did have soap though: bar soap, soap in the dispensers and bottles of softsoap. Somebody in charge musta had soap issues.
Yes, of course, and I understand that Rita is referring to that exactly. When the announcements come on and the assistant principal says, "Good Morning, boys and girls!" it just doesn't sound right.
and to my knowledge, they have never had an open call for musicians, nor invited a woman to audition. More than once JALC folks have been heard to say they "couldn't FIND a woman good enough to play in the Orchestra!" I remember that comment being made at the time Renee Rosnes was playing in the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band.
I think we all can think of several very quickly -- without thinking very hard.
I wonder what could and would happen if women began an "anti-JALC" organization and got funding? Not as in "against JALC", but as in a feminine alternative. I mean, after all, JALC started somewhere.
Do you know how many men would try to get in and play? We'd be beggin'!
Last edited by Dennis Gonzalez; September-12th-2009 at 03:35 PM.
I've long thought that camp stuck in a decades ago era and mentality as far as the womens go. Welcome to JALC and the 1950s! Clearly they meant "little lady." LOL.
Yes, of course, and I understand that Rita is referring to that exactly. When the announcements come on and the assistant principal says, "Good Morning, boys and girls!" it just doesn't sound right.
Dennis, could you have meant Lois? She spoke of the term "girls," in quotation marks; I spoke of only the perennially all-male JALC Orchestra.
That said, 30+ years after second-wave feminism, I've learned to tolerate the term "girls," but it doesn't issue from my mouth (except under manifestly appropriate circumstances). (Neither does "ladies," BTW, unless it's mildly ironic.)
Last edited by bluenoter; September-12th-2009 at 07:41 PM.
[IMG]I've learned to tolerate the term "girls," but it doesn't issue from my mouth (except under manifestly appropriate circumstances). (Neither does "ladies," BTW, unless it's mildly ironic.)
Enlighten me.
...I'm not being facetious, I really want to know when and why!
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Originally Posted by Lois Gilbert
Still?! Can I assume that there hasn't been a single one since 2000, when 
(Neither does "ladies," BTW, unless it's mildly ironic.)
