J.D. Zellerbach Elementary School

841 NE 22nd Ave.

Camas, WA 98607
Text Box: We are a jazz choir of grade 3-4-5 students who meet three days a week before school from 8:15-8:50 a.m. Students play piano, bass and drums in the rhythm section. We fully believe in sharing the talents so there are several students on each instrument who are singing when they are not playing! Daily rehearsals include listening, vocal warm-up, music theory and jazz stylizations on the tunes being rehearsed. Students sing from the charts and from lyric sheets. We listen, sing, imitate and create to the best of our ability, and we love it! We will perform three to five pieces at each concert by memory. Multiple student soloists are featured on just about every song, most often through improvisation. Students are encouraged to use instruments other than their voice, as well! Improvisation is taught through listening, teaching blues riffs to “mentally cut and paste” them into a solo, singing the melody on scat syllables and by acknowledging the bass line to establish the key. Students feel safe to experiment and are encouraged through applause by their classmates. We perform many songs by Northwest composers. We are fortunate to live in a wealthy area of vocal jazz history and talent! Our goal is to have fun and to promote vocal jazz at the elementary level. We are proud recipients of a 2006 “DOWNBEAT Award” for Outstanding Performance in the Junior High Division in DOWNBEAT magazine. Please give us your support by attending one of our events as listed on this website. We hope to see you this year!

To contact me—Natalie Wilson

 

Phone: 360.833.5710 ext. 2507

Fax: 360.833.5711

Email: natalie.wilson@camas.wednet.edu

Who is JDZ JAZZ!! ?