Many students will be traveling to Houlton to take part in the Maine State Instrumental Jazz Festival, March 15 and 16 at Houlton High School. The schedule of performances are:
Friday, March 15
7:30 p.m. – Jazz Combo
Saturday, March 16
11:30 a.m. – Jazz Band
5:45 p.m. – Awards Ceremony (when John Bapst will find out if they will be featured in the night concert)
7:15 p.m. – Night concert begins; if John Bapst groups place, their division will likely take the stage at approximately 8:00 p.m.
The event can also be watched live online this year at http://whoufm.com.
Organizers of the high school Maine State Instrumental Jazz Festival have partnered with Northern Maine Media Inc. (NMM), the home of WHOU 100.1 FM, to video stream the entire two day festival to increase community engagement in music programs. The annual festival, which will be held in Houlton for the next two years, draws roughly 80 high school jazz ensembles from around 35 schools throughout the state and will be broadcast live online at www.whoufm.com on March 15 and 16, 2013.
“Many people aren’t aware of the magnitude of how many students are impacted by music programs in the State of Maine,” stated Joe Fagnant, instrumental Director of Houlton High School and host coordinator for this year’s jazz festival. “These specialty group ensembles highlight some of the best young musicians in the State. Our desire to stream the entire two day event will not only highlight those excellent students and programs, but also increase community engagement in music programs around Maine.”
“We’ve seen it in all events we’ve streamed over the past two years,” stated Fred Grant, President of NMM. “Interest in these music programs will increase by making them accessible online and we’re excited to showcase, simultaneously, all three performance venues and the Saturday night finals at this year’s jazz festival .”
The Maine State Instrumental Jazz Festival is organized by the Maine Music Educators Association (MMEA) and is conducted annually in March. MMEA is a non-profit organization which exists for the welfare of music educators, to advance music education, and to improve instructional opportunities for all.