The West Milford High School Jazz Ensemble won a silver rating when it competed in the New Jersey Association of Jazz Education (NJAJE) State Preliminary Festival at Liberty Middle School in West Orange on March 2.
The band's performances of "Blues for Kazu", "Polka Dots and Moonbeams", and "Brincando Com Fogo" earned the ensemble a Silver Rating, Solo Awards for students Ben McLaughlin on Bass Trombone and Shane Duffy on Bass, as well as the Best Trombone Section Award.
According to the NJAJE, the festival occurs in two phases:
A preliminary round of all participating ensembles is held at five locations on consecutive nights and adjudicated by the same three professionals.
"Sight-reading is required and is scored as 15 percent of the total score in the preliminary round," according to the organization. "Improvisation is also required as part of the sight-reading chart, and is one of the new components of the sight-reading adjudication sheet."
A final round is then held at three locations on April 25, where each of the top nine scoring bands from the preliminary round is grouped by school enrollment. Sight-reading and improvisation are required and are identical to the preliminary round.
The West Milford Jazz Ensemble will compete on that date in the NJAJE State Jazz Finals in Burlington City.
West Milford Schools Jazz Programs
The Highlanders Jazz Bands are Directed and Conducted by Matthew Gramata, West Milford High School's Symphonic Band Director, Assistant Marching Band Director, and Woodwinds Lesson Instructor for the High School Bands and the Macopin Middle School 8th Grade Band.
The Jazz Program in the West Milford Township School District was established by Gramata in 2010 and has flourished over the past 10 years.
"Jazz is very accessible to any student that is interested in participating.," the band's website said.
Currently, there are approximately 50 students enrolled in the high school jazz program.
The high school offers two jazz bands: The Jazz Ensemble and the Jazz Band.
All bands are created through an audition process that encourages participation regardless of experience in the genre.
Jazz Ensemble auditions are held in November, and the ensembles begin rehearsals soon after the conclusion of the marching band season.
West Milford also has a Middle School Jazz Band at Macopin School.
The Macopin Jazz Band is Directed and Conducted by Matthew Paccione, who is also Macopin's Seventh Grade Music Teacher.
Recent highlights of the West Milford Jazz Ensemble include:
● Seven New Jersey State Finals appearances in nine years of existence; including 2nd place finishes at the NJAJE State Jazz Finals in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019.
● In February, 2017, the West Milford Jazz Ensemble participated at the prestigious Berklee Jazz Festival in Boston, Massachusetts for the first time, and was awarded 1st place. The Berklee Jazz Festival is arguably the largest jazz festival in the country. In 2018, the WM Jazz Ensemble placed 2nd in the Festival.
● In 2017, the WM Jazz Ensemble was honored to be selected as a performing ensemble at the National Association for Music Education (NAfME) All-Eastern Division Conference/ Convention in Atlantic City. This division is made up of 13 states, and the WM Jazz Ensemble was one of only two high school jazz groups selected to perform.
● In 2018, the WM Jazz Ensemble was selected to perform at the NJMEA Convention in East Brunswick, a three-day professional development conference for music educators from the state of New Jersey. The WM Jazz Ensemble was the only high school jazz ensemble featured at the conference.
● In 2019, the WM Milford Jazz Ensemble performed at Trumpets Jazz Club in Montclair with special guest Jaleel Shaw. The WM band opened for the One More Once Big Band, an ensemble comprised of professional musicians from the tri-state area. Saxophonist Jaleel Shaw was the special guest soloist, and performed with the West Milford Jazz Ensemble and the One More Once band.