Music News South Africa

Berklee College of Music workshops at Cape Town's jazz festival

A team from the Berklee College of Music will be conducting and moderating music workshops, panel discussions, and information sessions throughout the Cape Town International Jazz Festival, between 21 to 26 March, 2011.

Additionally, the college will conduct auditions and interviews to identify outstanding students for admission and for scholarships to study at Berklee College of Music in Boston. The college's participation coincides with the festival featuring a number of prominent Berklee alumni, including Danilo Perez with the Wayne Shorter Quartet, Esperanza Spalding, and Christian Scott.

The Berklee College of Music team includes John Baboian, Professor in the Guitar Department, vibraphonist Winnie Dahlgren, Associate Professor in the Harmony Department, Sam Skau, assistant director of International Programs, and Gojko Damjanic, assistant director of International Admissions. The workshops and panel discussions will also incorporate guests, including regional educators and artists from the festival. The above sessions are open to the public and will include interactive workshops and audience participation in performance.

Scholarship awards

The college will be offering a number of scholarship awards during this week. There will be two full tuition scholarships for Berklee's Summer Performance Programme, scholarships for three Berkleemusic online courses, and the opportunity to avail of the numerous and varying amounts in partial scholarships for study in the undergraduate programmes at Berklee College of Music in Boston. Berklee conducts auditions and interviews throughout North and South America, Europe, and Asia, with new sites each year across Africa and Asia in search of talented instrumentalists and vocalists - an effort that is supported by USD28 million in scholarship funds.

Audition and interview dates in Cape Town are 22 and 23 March.

To audition, a candidate must first apply to the college, online, at http://apply.berklee.edu. For additional application-related information, candidates must contact ude.eelkreb@snoissimdalanoitanretni.

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