On April 18, the Herbie Hancock Jazz Institute visited LACES to perform for the student body and to give a clinic exclusive to the members of the LACES Jazz Band. The band’s performance chronicled the various eras of jazz music, ranging from ragtime to the modern compositions of today’s greats. The group’s musicianship was extraordinary, showing their mastery throughout the many genres of jazz.
The Herbie Hancock Jazz Institute is a tuition-free 2-year program at the UCLA Herb Alpert School of Music and was founded by Thomas R. Carter in 1986. The program accepts one ensemble musician for each class and grants them a full scholarship and stipends to cover their monthly living expenses.
Students study individually and in small groups, receiving lectures, private lessons, and ensemble coaching from revered jazz musicians such as Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, and Horace Silver.
The institute’s instructors and students present many high-profile concerts and community outreach programs all over the world. Some notable tour locations include Chile, Russia, Cuba, Melbourne, Tokyo and Vietnam. This year’s Institute residents are Ebunoluwa Daramola (drums), Destiny Diggs-Pinto (bass), Alden Hellmuth (alto saxophone), Miles Lennox (piano), Sasha Ripley (tenor saxophone) and Yakiv Tsvietinskyi (trumpet).
Steve Murillo, Program Manager of the Herbie Hancock Institute, noted that he hopes LACES students gain “perspective from a more experienced person.” This surely rang true during the clinic that preceded the performance.
The clinic began with a short performance from the LACES Jazz Band. Shortly after, the members of the Institute came up to the stage and offered their professional opinions on the Jazz Band’s technical proficiency, musicianship, and improvisational skills.
Tenor saxophonist Sasha Ripley shared his perspective on the performance’s impact on young audiences. “Be courageous,” said Ripley. “Be adventurous with anything you do, and put a lot of passion into it.
The Herbie Hancock Jazz Institute continues to uphold its legacy as a premier institution for jazz education and performance, nurturing the next generation of young jazz musicians around the world.
