Terrace High jazz band places third in national competition

It’s not the water.

It’s not the coffee.

It’s not the weather.

And it’s certainly not a fluke.

What it is, however, is this: High school jazz bands from this area know how to swing.

Four of the nation’s top 15 high school jazz bands, including Mountlake Terrace High School, came from one area for the Essentially Ellington jazz festival and competition in New York from May 13-15. Mountlake Terrace High School placed third and was given $500.

“It was quite shocking,” said Mountlake Terrace jazz ensemble 1’s director Darin Faul.

Three of the four bands earned second, third and honorable mention. The sole honorable mention award went to Shorewood High School, which received $400. Miami’s magnet performing arts school – the New World School of the Arts – earned top honors in the 10th annual festival and $1,000. Seattle’s Roosevelt High School placed second and received $750. Garfield High School, which had won first place the past two years, competed but did not place this year.

All monetary awards go toward improving schools’ jazz programs.

Faul said he knew the other schools also had performed well, so he wasn’t sure how Mountlake Terrace stacked up. He was confident in his ensemble’s performance and knew everyone learned a lot, which was an important part of the experience.

“I was really pleased with our performance,” he said.

This marks the first time the competition was held in Jazz at Lincoln Center’s new home, Frederick P. Rose Hall. Each band was chosen by a panel of judges composed of distinguished jazz musicians – Director of Jazz at Indiana University, and Music Director for the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra, Dr. David Baker; composer, conductor and Ellington authority David Berger; jazz historian, author, composer and conductor, Gunther Schuller; and Jazz at Lincoln Center Artistic Director, Wynton Marsalis.

Mountlake Terrace High School’s pianist/vocalist Katie Jacobson, a junior, was named the Ella Fitzgerald Outstanding Vocalist Award winner. Jacobson sang “I Didn’t Know About You” as part of the band’s competition program Saturday afternoon. Senior pianist Kevin Proudfoot received an outstanding soloist award, and the ensemble’s trumpet section also was honored.

After being named one of the top three bands, Mountlake Terrace musicians shared the stage with trumpeter Wynton Marsalis before a sold-out house at Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall. The jazz ensemble performed “Kinda Dukish/Rockin’ in Rhythm” then brought out Marsalis to feature him on “Perdido.” Joining Marsalis at the mic were student soloists Jonathan Gipaya on trumpet and Gabe DeMiero on tenor sax.

This marks the third time that Mountlake Terrace has been selected to participate in this prestigious festival. The band earned an honorable mention in 2002.

In their performance on Saturday, the ensemble performed “Happy-Go-Lucky Local,” “I Didn’t Know About You” and “Kinda Dukish/Rockin’ in Rhythm.”