The jazz department of Juilliard has received a $5 million gift from the Arnhold Foundation, a longstanding supporter of the New York music school. It is said the gift – the largest ever received by Juilliard for jazz – will provide for scholarships and the department’s ongoing educational activities.
The jazz programme, directed since 2014 by Wynton Marsalis, a staunch defender of core jazz values, is clear about the American character of its offering. It says it delivers “a rigorous education in the history and traditions of jazz” and is “committed to developing exceptional musicians versed in all styles of jazz and American roots music”. It continues: “Through improvisation, swing, and the blues aesthetic, the program aims to cultivate individuality, community, and the depth of feeling and generosity of spirit known as soul.
“At Juilliard, jazz students are first and foremost trained to move others with their sound and presence by developing and articulating original, meaningful stories about the human condition rooted in this American vernacular.”
Juilliard enrols approximately 50 jazz students a year, taught by a 35-member faculty including Ron Blake, Jerome Jennings, Joe Magnarelli, Elliot Mason, Ted Rosenthal and Charenée Wade.