Danilo Perez Heads Berklee Global Jazz Institute In Boston

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Berklee announces the inaugural class for the Berklee Global Jazz Institute, a unique center at the college designed to foster creativity and musicianship through various musical disciplines. World-renowned pianist Danilo Perez serves as its artistic director. Students may pursue a performance degree, diploma, or a two-year certificate through the Institute. BGJI has three main goals: to provide an interdisciplinary music
program where students may explore their creativity to the highest
level; to explore the social power of music as a tool for the
betterment of society; and to connect musical creative thinking with
the restoration of nature.

The BGJI students will benefit from an innovative curriculum taught by
a select group of prestigious Berklee faculty, including Danilo Perez,
Joe Lovano, Terri Lyne Carrington, George Garzone, Bill Pierce, Jamey
Haddad, and Allan Chase. Students will also be mentored by world-
renowned visiting artists and artists-in-residence, including John
Patitucci and Ben Street.

The program s directed study classes and seminars are designed to help
the students build a community of creativity. Classes include
Introduction to Global Jazz, focusing on the development of jazz, from
Africa to Europe and the Americas; Global Jazz Workshop Assembly,
offering a forum for artists-in-residence and presentations from the
Liberal Arts, Music Therapy, and Composition departments; and Creative
Improvisation Through Interdisciplinary Collaboration, exploring the
creative process and the connection between jazz and performing and
visual arts, including painting and dance.

Experiential and service learning will also be integral to the
program. Explains Marco Pignataro, managing director for the BGJI,
They ve been given this great musical talent. We ll teach that as
artists, they are responsible to positively affect their communities.
In addition to playing with and being mentored by jazz masters, the
students will also travel together to play at festivals in Panama,
Puerto Rico, and other places, and record original material in the
studio. They will give back to the community by working with children,
teaching music locally through Berklee s City Music program, and in
other cities during Institute performance trips. Students will
develop the skills needed to become role models for a new generation
of musicians and inspire leadership in others.

Says Perez, with regards to the third goal, The program will provide
interactive experiences in uncommon settings, such as the jungle or
the forest, where music is used to promote interaction with indigenous
cultures and is used to create awareness about the importance of the
restoration of ecology.

Berklee has selected 14 students to enter the inaugural BGJI class in
January, 2010. Finalists were chosen based on a live audition and
interview to determine the best fit. While the institute looks to
attract advanced players that are musically gifted, selection for the
BGJI is not solely based on musical proficiency.

In addition to demonstrating creativity and instrumental proficiency,
applicants must have a social awareness and be open to other
disciplines. Applicants are encouraged to submit personal work in
other artistic disciplines, along with original music. Says Pignataro,
We re looking to foster multifaceted, creative students that will be
also open to artistic interests other than music. We re looking to
develop the whole artist, not just the musician.

The BGJI students were chosen in mid-November and details of the
program were officially announced at the Panama Jazz Festival s Gala
Night on January 13, 2010.

Berklee Global Jazz Institute, the Inaugural Class:

Jahaziel Arrocha, saxophone, Panama City, Panama

Andrew Burglass, guitar, New Orleans, Louisiana

Greg Chaplin, bass, Hopedale, Massachusetts

Eyal Shmuel Hai, saxophone, Holon, Israel

Matthew Halpin, saxophone, Dublin, Ireland

Kenji Herbert, guitar, Kobe, Japan

Joey Lefitz, drummer, Los Angeles, California

Christian Li, piano, Montreal, Canada

Hailey Niswanger, saxophone, Portland, Oregon

Takeshi Ohbayashi, piano, Hiroshima, Japan

Jesse Scheinin, saxophone, Santa Cruz, California

Paulo Stagnaro, percussion, Boston, Massachusetts

Mark Whitfield Jr., drums, Brooklyn, New York

Jeonglim Yang, bass, Jeju, South Korea

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Photo caption: Danilo Perez (right) directs the Berklee Global Jazz
Institute inaugural class. Photo by Jennifer Shanley.

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