University will offer jazz studies certificate next year

Unlike the certificate in music performance, the jazz studies certificate will require only one performance course, with the other five required courses covering the genre’s history, theory and cultural context. Students will also be required to participate in one of the music department’s jazz groups and volunteer with the program’s Jazz In The Schools initiative.

“I see the design of the program as an attempt to emphasize how inextricably linked the program’s academic pillars of performance practice, theory and composition, historical and cultural understanding, and jazz education really are,” music professor Anthony Branker ’80, the program’s director, said in an e-mail.

The certificate in jazz studies is largely inspired and funded by a $4 million gift to the University from Anthony Lee ’79 in 2008 to enhance the study and performance of jazz.

“I picked jazz because jazz is a passion of mine,” Lee said of his donation. “I’ve been listening to jazz since I was quite young ... It’s such an indigenous American art form.”

Lee said he was inspired to make the donation after reading an article about jazz programs at American universities. When he looked into jazz studies at Princeton, however, he realized that the area was short on resources and that Branker was “like a one-man show for the whole program,” he said.

“I hope with the program that we will be able to bring the level of jazz at Princeton to one of the best at liberal arts schools,” Lee said, explaining that the certificate is not just for performers but will also allow for jazz enthusiasts to study the art form from a scholarly perspective.

Participating students must take courses in four categories, and can choose from music classes along with approved courses in African American studies, American studies, English, history and sociology. The music department currently offers seven courses dedicated specifically to jazz.

“It was a good moment to connect with other departments,” said music professor Scott Burnham, who is on the program’s executive committee. “We really wanted to step out of the music department.”

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“Music is also a creative and communicative form of artistic expression rooted in the kinds of interactive conversations that take place not only between musicians engaged in performance, but also the dialogues that occur between the artists and the traditions that have influenced them,” said Branker, commenting on the role of liberal arts colleges in teaching music. The program is not pre-professional.

Eli Asher ’00, a freelance musician in New York who was involved with the jazz program as an undergraduate, said that he supported the formation of a certificate.

“There’s definitely room for more serious study [of jazz],” he said. “And if it has anything to do with the exisiting program it will be great.”

Asher also noted that he has seen students demonstrate significant interest in the art form, both during his time as an undergraduate and during visits to campus, and that he welcomed any efforts to “facilitate [their studies] and make them feel more comfortable.”

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The program is planning to accept eight to 10 students in each class year and will hold auditions for current sophomores and juniors this spring.

The Jazz In The Schools component will require small groups of students to develop an educational lecture or demonstration to be offered in an elementary or middle school.

“I want them to understand that they too are educators and can make an impact when given the chance to interact with kids and impart their own wisdom and musical gifts in effective and meaningful ways,” Branker explained.

Kevin Laskey ’12, a member of the University Concert Jazz Ensemble’s rhythm section, said in an e-mail that while students have seriously pursued jazz study in the past, “it was something done in free time, requiring great dedication beyond academic commitments.”

Princeton’s jazz scene currently features roughly 45 students in eight different performing groups, including the concert group, a vocal ensemble and other mixed groups.

One group, the six-member Old and New Stories Collective, will travel to Tallinn, Estonia, during spring break to collaborate with jazz studies students at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre and perform in concerts.

Alumni involved in jazz include four-time Grammy Award nominee Stanley Jordan ’80, and active professional musicians such as Eli Asher ’00 , Ben Holmes ’01 and Irwin Hall ’07.

Senior writer Ameena Schelling contributed reporting to this article.