BDX is BACK! Educational Drumline Fest Returns

Seattle JazzED is proud to announce its upcoming BDX Drumline Festival, set to take place on Saturday, June 3, at the Amazon Meeting Center in the South Lake Union neighborhood. This educational showcase will provide percussionists with the opportunity to workshop with professional drumline adjudicators from across the Pacific Northwest, receiving valuable feedback to improve their craft.

The festival will feature secondary school performances from Chimacum High School, Chimacum Jr. High School, Clayburn Middle School, Garfield High School, Life Christian Academy, North Creek High School, Orting Middle School, Robert Bateman Secondary School, Seattle JazzED Drumline, Sequoyah Middle School, Shorewood High School, South Shore Pk-8, Stanwood High School, and West Seattle High School. After performing, percussionists will move to individual clinics, where they will receive personalized feedback from professional drumline educators. The adjudicators are a diverse group, largely from the Pacific Northwest, with years of experience in the field. They include Chris Patin, Josie Dietrich, David Vaughns, and Christopher Grant.

The BDX Drumline Festival was started at Garfield High School by Tony Sodano, who is co-leading this year's event with educators Kelly Clingan and Beth Fortune. Sodano's vision for the festival was to create a non-competitive space for percussionists to learn and grow, and that vision continues today.

The Seahawks Drumline, Blue Thunder, will also perform for students. The day will conclude with an awards ceremony, where adjudicators will honor outstanding groups for specific skills with a focus on feedback.

 The BDX Drumline Festival promises to be a day full of music and learning, featuring some of the most talented percussionists from the Pacific Northwest. It is an event not to be missed!

Presenting sponsors of the festival include Amazon and the Douglas R. Roach Jazz Futures Fund. To learn more about the BDX Drumline Festiva and reserve tickets, visit www.seattlejazzed.org/bdx.

2023 BDX design created by Alex Radakovich.

May the Musical Shoe Fit: Meet Your Instrument Day

Each year, to welcome beginning musicians and set them up for success, Seattle JazzED hosts Meet Your Instrument Day. During the event, music educators leading the Summer Jazz Foundations Camp and the year-long Foundations program introduce and demonstrate all the available instruments for their new students. Throughout the day, students try out each of the following instruments: flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, guitar, bass guitar, cello, violin and drums. At the conclusion of the event, they are asked to select the top three instruments that they’d like to play in the program.

The staff's responsibility is to then carefully consider the students’ instrument preferences and allocate the instruments in a way that ensures balanced classrooms. This process ultimately results in assigning each student with an instrument that they will be playing throughout the program.

But why is Meet Your Instrument Day important?

PERSONAL CHOICE

Different instruments have different sounds and playing styles. It is important for a musician to choose an instrument that THEY enjoy playing and that sparks joy within themselves.

COMFORT

Playing an instrument requires physical coordination and endurance. A musician should choose an instrument that feels comfortable to hold and play, as it will allow them to play for longer periods of time and with greater ease.

MOTIVATION

When a musician is playing an instrument they enjoy, they are more likely to be motivated to practice and improve their skills. This motivation can lead to greater success and enjoyment in their musical pursuits.

BREAKING DOWN STEREOTYPES

Gender stereotypes continue to persist at all levels regarding student participation in music. Instrument choice has been associated with gender stereotypes, with some instruments considered more "masculine" or "feminine" than others. For example, the drums are often associated with masculinity, while the flute is associated with femininity.

Any person, regardless of their gender identity, should have the freedom to choose the instrument that they are most interested in playing. Encouraging young people to explore a range of instruments can lead to greater opportunities for collaboration and learning.

CREATIVITY

When a musician has the freedom to choose their instrument, they can explore different sounds and techniques. This can lead to greater creativity and innovation in their musical compositions.

Allowing young musicians to choose their instruments based on personal preference and comfort can have a profound impact on their musical development, creativity, and lifelong interest in music. By encouraging all young people to explore a range of instruments, we can create a more vibrant and dynamic musical landscape that reflects the diverse interests and talents of musicians of all genders and backgrounds!

Meet Your Instrument Day is a required event for students participating in the Summer Foundations Camp and will be hosted at Seattle JazzED’s site (380 Boren Ave N) on Sunday, May 21 from 11AM-1PM.

Thanks to a community of generous donors and community members, Seattle JazzED is able to offer free loaner instruments and sliding scale tuition to all participating students. Learn more about how you can show your support of our mission to increase access to music education across our community by clicking here.

A Message From a Music Mom on Monthly Giving

Sami Braman (l) pictured with mom, kathryn ROBINSON (r)

Everyone who knows me knows that I’m a music mom. 

Our daughter is grown now, but from the age of 6 when we took her to her first concert, she knew exactly which instrument she wanted to play and exactly which style she wanted to play it in. 

Every parent reading this knows what came next: We wanted to support her as best we could in this excitement of hers. I mean, your kid develops a passion—you do whatever you can to encourage it, right?  

For us that meant renting her an instrument, scrimping for music camps, and plenty of reminding: "Have you practiced today?"

We were lucky because she usually had. We remain lucky because she now tells us that she’s grateful we kept encouraging her. In her words: “You were just helping me do what it would take to make my dream come true.” 

One of the joys of my life is my position as a board member of Seattle JazzED, and as such I’ve been thinking about that lately: Helping me do what it would take to make my dream come true. In making jazz education available to every child, regardless of their ability to pay, Seattle JazzED is an organization dedicated to doing what it takes to make kids’ dreams come true. 

How? Through the generosity of folks like you. Some donate volunteer time, some donate money through occasional gifts. I have learned that an increasing number of you are beginning to donate monthly—a sustainable method of supporting JazzED made even more valuable for its predictability. A regular pattern of support is support an organization can count on—support that enables an organization to take the steps it needs to keep getting better. 

A lot like the way practicing every day enables a musician to keep getting better. 

That’s why I have decided to make my JazzED support monthly. The truth is, JazzED is grateful for whatever is given, however it’s given. But just as my daughter can play best when her practice is routine and ongoing, I know that I can support best when my support is routine and ongoing. 

There are plenty of benefits to this set-it-and-forget-it method of giving, including that monthly smaller payments feel easier on the budget and are changeable any time. But the main benefit of our regular giving to JazzED? 

It’s what it takes to help make kids’ dreams come true.  

Will you join me in giving monthly to Seattle JazzED this GiveBig season?

Thank you for supporting Seattle JazzED today and always.

With gratitude,

Kathryn Robinson
Music Mom
Seattle JazzED Board Member

Make a monthly or one-time gift to Seattle JazzED by clicking the link here.