The 'Jazz-it-up!' Workshops held during last year's Macao International Music Festival (MIMF), organized by the Cultural Affairs Bureau, had a response that surpassed all expectations, allowing participants to greatly enhance their performing skills. In order to foster jazz music talents in Macao this year the MIMF organizes the Jazz Workshops once again, integrated in the 28th Macao International Music Festival Outreach Programme, to be held between 3 October and 1 November.
The Jazz Workshops, coordinated once again by famous Portuguese jazz master Zé Eduardo and his band, will be held from 11 to 28 August and feature a more comprehensive programme including three levels, in order to expose more young people to jazz music and enhance their jazz knowledge. All interested parties are welcome to enrol in the Workshops and must submit the application forms at the Cultural Affairs Bureau Building located in Tap Seac Square during office hours. Vacancies are limited. The Workshops, co-organized by the Macau Jazz Promotion Association with the support of the Fundação Oriente and the Macau Strings Association, comprise Fundamental Level, Beginner's Level and Advanced Level classes. Jazz musical training and ensemble at ground level will be conducted in the "Mini Jazz" Fundamental Course to inspire young learners' sense of music; the course includes four sessions in total, 10 students per session, targeting between 8 to 15 year olds with at least 2 years' experience of playing a Western musical instrument. Instrument training is especially targeted in the Beginner's Level Course while the Advanced Level Course emphasises on the training of impromptu jazz performance and ensemble. Zé Eduardo is a renowned jazz performer, conductor, composer and music educator in Portugal and Europe. As early as the late 1970s he founded and directed the Hot Club Portugal School of Jazz and assumed the directorship of jazz studies at the internationally renowned Taller de Músics for ten years from 1982, making immense contributions to the promotion of jazz music. All other instructors from his team are professional performers and have a rich experience in teaching. It is hoped that they can lift students' musical attainment and sentiment to a new level. Classes will be conducted in English with Cantonese interpretation, with tuition fees of MOP 400 (Fundamental Course), MOP 800 (Beginner's Level Course) and MOP 1,200 (Advanced Level Course). An audition is required for the Beginner's Level and Advanced Level courses, and will be conducted in the Casa Garden (Praça Luís de Camões) on 9 and 10 August, from 11:00am to 10:00pm. Applicants for the Beginner's Level Course should prepare one song of any style less than 3 minutes in length while those for the Advanced Level Course should prepare one song from any version of the Real Book, which must include at least one solo chorus and not exceed 5 minutes in length. Outstanding applicants will be selected by the instructors to participate in the Music Sharing Session to be held at the Casa Garden on 30 August to display their learning achievements to the general public.
The Jazz Workshops application forms and details can be downloaded from the MIMF website at www.icm.gov.mo/fimm. For enquiries, please call (853) 8399 6609 or 8399 6618 during office hours.
